How to Homeschool in West Virginia

West Virginia homeschool law in detail

We link the governing law so you can read it yourself instead of taking our word for it. The governing law is W. Va. Code 18-8-1(c)(2).

Notice / letter of intent

Under the notice exemption in W. Va. Code 18-8-1(c)(2), you file a one-time Notice of Intent with your county superintendent (or the county board). The notice includes each child's name, address, and age, plus an assurance that instruction will cover reading, language, math, science, and social studies, and satisfactory evidence that the person providing instruction has a high school diploma or equivalent, or a post-secondary degree or certificate from an accredited institution. If your child is currently enrolled in public school, file the notice on or before the date home instruction begins. The notice stays effective until you move to a different county or stop homeschooling; no annual re-filing is required. The superintendent cannot deny a complete notice.

Required subjects

You must provide an assurance that your child will receive instruction in reading, language, mathematics, science, and social studies. The law does not dictate curriculum, methods, or materials, so you choose how to teach those subjects. (A separate, rarely used county-approval option under 18-8-1(c)(1) requires board-approved subjects instead.)

Required days or hours

The notice option has no required number of days or hours of instruction. Only the older county board approval option carries a 180-day requirement, which is one reason most families skip it.

Recordkeeping

Keep copies of each year's academic assessment results for three years. Beyond that, the notice option imposes no ongoing attendance or progress reporting unless requested in connection with the assessment process. Many families keep a simple portfolio of work samples anyway, which doubles as evidence for the assessment.

Testing and assessment

Each year you obtain an academic assessment using one of four options: a nationally normed standardized test (acceptable progress is the 4th stanine, roughly the 23rd percentile, or improvement over the prior year), participation in the public school testing program, a portfolio review with a written narrative by a West Virginia certified teacher, or an alternative assessment mutually agreed on with the county superintendent. You only submit results to the county superintendent for grades 3, 5, 8, and 11, due by June 30 of the year the assessment was given. If results show inadequate progress, you start a remedial program (no district approval needed) and demonstrate acceptable progress.

Withdrawing from public school

If your child attends public school, send a short written withdrawal notice to the school principal (certified mail is a smart habit so you have a receipt), then file your Notice of Intent with the county superintendent on or before the day home instruction begins. Once the notice is filed, your child is exempt from compulsory attendance. Keep copies of both documents.

Good to know

West Virginia's Hope Scholarship ESA is scheduled to open to all school-age children starting with the 2026-27 school year (July 1, 2026), including students who have always homeschooled, though Hope participants follow the Hope program's own rules rather than the 18-8-1(c) exemption Homeschoolers also have extracurricular and athletics access under the 2020 Tim Tebow-style law (HB 4925).