Ontario

Subsection 21(2) of the Education Act excuses children from compulsory school attendance if the student is receiving a satisfactory education at home. Parents must provide written notice of their intent to homeschool. There are no requirements for required subjects or assessments.

Notification:          

Parents must provide written notification of intent to homeschool to the school board. Notification should include the name, gender and date of birth for each child who will be homeschooled. Parents must also include telephone number and address. If address changes, notification should be sent to the school board.

 Notification should be given each year prior to September 1^st.

Qualifications:       

None  – Policy/Program Memorandum No. 131 instructs that school boards will accept the notification of intent to homeschool as “evidence that the parents are providing satisfactory instruction at home.”

Days or Hours:      

None

Subjects:                

None

Bookkeeping:

None

Assessment:

None

Intervention:

A school board may investigate a homeschool program if they have reasonable grounds to be concerned that the instruction provided in the home may not be satisfactory. Reasons that may cause to investigate an individual homeschooling program include:

• Refusal of a parent to give written notice of intent to homeschool
•  A credible third party report expressing concern a homeschooled child is not receiving instruction at home
• Evidence that a child was removed from attending school due to conflicts with the school, rather than for the purpose of homeschooling
•  A history of absenteeism from school prior to a parent giving notification of intent to homeschool 

Services Available

Parents providing homeschooling may request access to the following:

Assessments for students in Grades 3, 6, and 9, and/or the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (normally given to students in Grade 10) – administered by the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO).

To have a student take an assessment free of charge at the local school, parents must contact the school board by September 30 (or the date specified by the local school board). Assessment results will be sent to the school where the test was taken and the school will pass along the results children’s homes.

Courses through Independent Learning Centre can be accessed by homeschooled children. To enroll the child with the ILC, the parent must pay any applicable fees and submit the enrollment form to the ILC, along with a letter from the school board indicating that the child is receiving home schooling.

Services offered by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care can be accessed by homeschooling families. To access Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care school health support and personal support services and equipment, the parent must provide a letter from school board indicating that the child is receiving instruction at home.

 Funding for Part-Time Attendance is provided by The Ministry of Education for students who attend school on a part-time basis. The per-pupil grants are prorated according to the amount of time the student is in attendance at the school.

Links

Ontario Home Schooling Policy No.131
Sample Letter of Intent to Homeschool 
Ontario Education Act
Ontario Curriculum Resources