How to Homeschool in NYC

Steps to Homeschool in NYC

  1. Familiarize yourself with New York’s homeschooling laws and regulations by visiting the NYS Department of Education’s website.
  2. Visit the NYC DOE Homeschool website for NYC’s general information on homeschooling.
  3. Send in your Letter of Intent (LOI). It is required to submit a Letter of Intent and send it via email (letterofintent@schools.nyc.gov) or complete the online Letter of Intent. An automated response will be sent to your email address.
    • What is a Letter of Intent? It is a letter stating your intention to homeschool your child.
    • If you have multiple children, all children can be stated on the same LOI.
  4. Once you have submitted your form, you are officially a homeschooler. However, and I strongly advise this, if you are taking your child out of school to homeschool, please send a copy of your LOI to that school.
    • Why? Do not rely on the DOE to communicate with your school that you are homeschooling and to avoid any accusations of truancy and/or encounters with social services send it the paperwork.
  5. Two weeks after sending your LOI, you will be required to submit an Individualized Home Instruction Plan (IHIP) via email at Homeschool@schools.nyc.gov.
    • What is a IHIP? This is your overview plan to tell the district which subjects you will be covering and which curriculum you will be using. You do not have to use the government’s form. You can create your own.
      • If you have multiple children, each child should have their own IHIP.
  6. You will be required to create quarterly reports and a final annual assessment narrative. It sounds way harder than it actually is. Be aware of the due dates for each quarterly report. All documentation will be sent via email to the homeschooling email. An automated response will be sent to your inbox. Create a digital folder and save all documentation.  

That’s it!