How to start homeschooling in Arkansas
Everything Arkansas asks of a homeschool family, in order, from the state’s own sources, checked October 1, 2026. Each step links to a free tool that does it, and there’s a checklist to print at the end.
Step by step
Know what Arkansas requires
Parent files a Notice of Intent to Home School with the local school district superintendent every year (online or paper) and takes full responsibility for the child's education. No state testing, subject, day or hour requirements were found on official sources.
Teacher qualification for this option: No parent qualification requirement found.
If your child is in school now, withdraw in writing
Send the school a dated withdrawal letter saying your child will be educated at home, and keep a copy. Arkansas also asks for a notice under this option (the next step); file it by its deadline.
File your notice
Required.
When: By August 15 each year (forms accepted from June 1); otherwise before withdrawing, subject to a possible 5-school-day wait.
What it includes: Annual Notice of Intent (NOI) filed with the resident school district superintendent; online at noihs.ade.arkansas.gov (preferred) or on paper. Includes parent/guardian contact information, district, student legal name, date of birth, grade, prior school, and home school start date. Parent signs that they are responsible for the child's education while homeschooled. Forms accepted from June 1. If filed after August 15 for a child currently enrolled in public school, the district may require a 5-school-day waiting period before release (the superintendent or board may waive it; the online NOI has a waiver-request box). Parent must give written notice to the new district within 30 days after moving to another district, and notify the superintendent if homeschooling stops. Per ADE (June 2025), a student may be ineligible to be homeschooled while under disciplinary action for violating a written school policy (including excessive unexcused absences), with an open FINS/truancy case, if a registered sex offender resides in the home, or for failure to return school property.
Arkansas names its own form, affidavit or filing for this. Use that where it’s required; our letter can go with it as a cover letter or a record.
Plan your school year: days and hours
Arkansas doesn’t set a number of days or hours for this option.
No minimum found.
Planning about 180 days, as schools do, gives the year a shape and makes a move to another state easier.
Cover the required subjects
Arkansas doesn’t list required subjects for this option.
No required subjects found on official sources reviewed.
Testing or evaluation
Not required under this option.
Keep records anyway
Arkansas doesn’t require records under this option.
Our suggestion: keep attendance, a reading log and a few work samples each year. A move to another state, a college, or a question from the district is much easier with them.
Start teaching
Put your books on a lesson schedule, and the planner spreads the lessons across your school days and moves them when a day is missed. Log attendance in a tap, and keep grades, a portfolio and a transcript as you go.
High school and graduation
No homeschool graduation requirements found on official sources.
Official sources for this option
Not confirmed on an official page: Text of Ark. Code 6-15-501 to 6-15-510 could not be read on an official site. Ineligibility conditions and the 5-day wait are confirmed only through ADE's 2025 memo (which cites 'ACA 6-15-201' for the wait — likely a mis-citation). The memo says paper NOIs are no longer sent to DESE; districts keep them. Confidentiality of NOI information and the bar on districts adding criteria were seen only on a secondary site. Compulsory attendance ages (Ark. Code 6-18-201) not confirmed. Who issues a homeschool diploma not confirmed. Educational Freedom Account (EFA) rules for homeschool participants not reviewed. Check these points with the state or your local school district before you rely on them; everything else above comes from the official sources listed.
Your Arkansas checklist
Homeschool Corral · How to start homeschooling in Arkansas · homeschoolcorral.com
- Read Arkansas’s rules for “Home school”
- Withdraw from school in writing (if enrolled), and keep a copy
- File the notice (By August 15 each year (forms accepted from June 1); otherwise before withdrawing, subject to a possible 5-school-day wait)
- Set the first and last day, school days and breaks
- Choose curriculum for each required subject
- Start a simple attendance log and reading log
- Make a first-week plan and start
Questions Arkansas parents ask
Do I have to notify anyone to homeschool in Arkansas?
Yes. When: By August 15 each year (forms accepted from June 1); otherwise before withdrawing, subject to a possible 5-school-day wait. What to file: Annual Notice of Intent (NOI) filed with the resident school district superintendent; online at noihs.ade.arkansas.gov (preferred) or on paper. Includes parent/guardian contact information, district, student legal name, date of birth, grade, prior school, and home school start date. Parent signs that they are responsible for the child's education while homeschooled. Forms accepted from June 1. If filed after August 15 for a child currently enrolled in public school, the district may require a 5-school-day waiting period before release (the superintendent or board may waive it; the online NOI has a waiver-request box). Parent must give written notice to the new district within 30 days after moving to another district, and notify the superintendent if homeschooling stops. Per ADE (June 2025), a student may be ineligible to be homeschooled while under disciplinary action for violating a written school policy (including excessive unexcused absences), with an open FINS/truancy case, if a registered sex offender resides in the home, or for failure to return school property.
How many days or hours do homeschoolers need in Arkansas?
No minimum found.
Do homeschoolers have to take tests in Arkansas?
No testing requirement stated; DESE lists optional state-funded tests for homeschoolers: PSAT (grade 10), ACT (grade 11), AP exams (fees may apply), and the ATLAS exam (grades 3-10, from 2025-26).
Do I need a teaching certificate to homeschool in Arkansas?
No parent qualification requirement found.
What subjects are required in Arkansas?
Arkansas doesn’t list required subjects.
What records do I need to keep in Arkansas?
Arkansas doesn’t require records. Keeping attendance, a reading log and work samples is still wise.
Keep going
This is a plain-English summary of the state’s official sources, checked on the date shown. It is not legal advice, and laws change. Read the linked official pages, and check with the state or your local school district if anything is unclear.
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