https://www.gadoe.org/Curriculum-Instruction-and-Assessment/Pages/Home-Study-DOI.aspx
(Online Form Link)

The Georgia Department of Education does not supply the curriculum, materials or resources for home school. The law requires the following five content areas:

• Mathematics,

• English Language Arts,

• Science,

• Social Studies, and

• Reading

The home study program shall provide a basic academic educational program which includes, but is not limited to, reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies, and science, however, you may teach other content areas. For curriculum, testing, and resource materials, please contact a home school association in your area or use your browser to search for the term Georgia Home School Curriculum or Home School Curriculum. Select a vendor/program that fits your child's educational needs. If there is any cost for the curriculum, the parent will be responsible for this. It is advisable to secure your curriculum prior to registering your child/children by submitting the "Declaration of Intent" online. You must submit a declaration of intent by September 1st or within 30 days after a program is established. You may employ a tutor. Parents must have a high school diploma or GED.

If your child/children are enrolled in Georgia Cyber Academy, Georgia Connections Academy, or Provost Academy your child/children are NOT considered home school students. These are state board approved on-line charter schools. You must communicate with these schools for any documents you may need.

The Georgia Department of Education has a very limited role related to home school. The Georgia Department of Education is only responsible for maintaining the Declaration of Intent records.

Completing the Online Submittal Form

• Fields with a red asterisk (*) are required fields.

• "Signature" and "Date Submitted" is not required on the online electronic submittal form.

• "The school year for this home school study program" the law requires 180 instructional days. Put the actual date you begin teaching your child/children at home as the beginning date and counting forward to the 180 instructional days limit. However if your child/children began the school year in a public/private school that time can be included as part of this 180 instructional days requirement. You can teach more days if you desire.

• "Submit Your Declaration of Intent" button located at the bottom of form. After you click the submit button, you will receive a screen that shows a 36 unique character parent signature line as well as the date of submittal.

• Print a copy of this form for your records. This is the only document you required to submit to the Department of Education. This form represents confirmation that your child/children are officially registered in home school. The Department of Driver Services and the Department of Labor will need this form if your child wants a driving license/permit or a work permit.

Once the child/children are officially registered as a home school student, you as the parent have similar rights and responsibilities of the Local Education Authority (District office). The parent is considered the superintendent, principal, teacher, and you can create and sign any document that relates to the educational needs of your child/children.

If you wish to return your child to public school, you may do so at any time. You can create a withdrawal form and give it to the local school. The local school must validate each content area your child/children took while being home schooled. This validation process is unique to each district. If you have questions related to this process, please contact your local school district.

You must test your child/children at the end of third grade and every three years afterwards (example: grades 3, 6, 9, 12). The test must be a nationally standardized test (CRCT and EOCT are not nationally standardized test). Please contact a home school association in your area to obtain information on these tests, time, and the location.

Effective July 1, 2013, Georgia law indicates you are no longer required to submit an attendance form to the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE). Declarations of Intent (DOI) must still be submitted to the GaDOE each year. These forms should be submitted electronically using the GaDOE website. Electronic submissions automatically provide the parent with a 36 unique character parental signature. Georgia law dictates that the DOI must be submitted by the parent or guardian only. The GaDOE will not accept third party submissions. If possible, submission of the DOI should be electronically, however, mailing, emailing or faxing is acceptable. Please note when mailing, emailing, or faxing, it may take several weeks to input your DOI into our files.

The GaDOE no longer issues Certificate of Attendance. Your DOI with the 36 unique characters on the parental signature line is the official document of the Georgia Home Study Program. This document should be used to obtain Driver's license/permits, work permits, post-secondary admission, military enlistment, and for all other entities that require proof of educational enrollment.

Driving Permit or License

To obtain a driving permit or license, a copy of the electronically submitted Declaration of Intent to the GaDOE website with a 36 unique character digital parent signature is all that is needed.

Work Permits

Work permit forms required by the Department of Labor in accordance with the law O.C.G.A. § 39-2-11 provides in part: § 39-2-11. Employment certificates -- Required; requirements for issuance. GaDOE is ONLY responsible for issuing the Declaration of Intent (DOI) for the work permits. On receipt of your DOI, please access the Georgia Department of Labor for instruction on obtaining the Home Study Program Employment Certificate.

Pursuant to Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 20-2-690), the following are requirements for home study programs:

• Effective July 1, 2012, parents or guardians who wish to teach their children at home in a home study program must annually submit to the Georgia Department of Education a Declaration of Intent to Utilize a Home Study Program by September 1 or within 30 days after a program is established. The Georgia Department of Education will provide for electronic submittal of the Declaration of Intent. Please see the information below on how to submit the Declaration of Intent and the attendance reports.

• The declaration must include the names and ages of the students, the address where the program is located, and the dates of the school year.

• Parents or guardians may teach only their own children in the home study program provided the teaching parent or guardian possesses at least a high school diploma or a general equivalency diploma (GED). Parents or guardians may also employ a tutor who holds at least a high school diploma or a GED to teach such children.

• The home study program must include, but is not limited to, instruction in reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies, and science.

• The school year must include the equivalent of 180 days of at least 4-1/2 hours of instruction per day unless the child is physically unable to comply with this requirement.

• As of July 1, 2013, you are no longer required to submit attendance to the Georgia Department of Education. For driving permits or licenses all that is needed is the Declaration of Intent with a 36 character parent signature. This document replaces the Certificate of Attendance and should be submitted with all other Driver Service's required documents to obtain a driving permit or license.

• Students in home study programs shall be subject to an appropriate nationally standardized testing program administered in consultation with a person trained in the administration and interpretation of norm referenced tests. The student must be evaluated at least every three years beginning at the end of the third grade. Records of such tests shall be retained.

• The instructor shall write an annual progress assessment report in each required subject area for each student. These reports shall be retained for at least three years.

How to Submit the Declaration of Intent form

Online Submittal

Parents/guardians are encouraged to submit the Declaration of Intent and attendance reports online using the Georgia Department of Education’s online web application.

Paper Form Submittal

Parents/guardians will find it much more efficient to submit their homeschool documentation electronically using the Georgia Department of Education’s online web application. However, parents/guardians that do not have access to a computer may submit hard copies of their homeschool documentation by mail or fax using the contact information below:

Mailing Address:

Georgia Department of Education
Homeschool Division
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive, SE
Suite 2054 Twin Towers East
Atlanta, GA 30334
Fax: (770) 344-4319

Withdrawing from Home School to Obtain a GED

If you are wishing to withdraw from home school to obtain your GED, go to www.gadoe.ord and download and print the two documents below.

• Underage Enrollment Affidavit for Home School Applicants

• Underage Youth Application for GED Program

How to Request a Certificate of Attendance

For driving permits or licenses all that is needed is the Declaration of Intent with a 36 character parent signature. This document replaces the Certificate of Attendance and should be submitted with all other Driver Service's required documents to obtain a driving permit or license.

To request a Declaration of Intent for homeschool students, please contact Linda Dunn at ldunn@doe.k12.ga.us.

Forms and References

Laws impacting homeschool in Georgia (Georgia Codes 20-2-690 and 20-2-690.1) can be found on the Georgia General Assembly's website. Select "Georgia Code" on the left of the homepage, and enter the code numbers to search for the laws.

• Declaration of Intent Form