Getting Started
New to homeschooling? This will answer some
of your questions and give you places to go. Visit our Support Groups
and Resources pages for more excellent contacts and groups in Arizona and nationwide.
Arizona is one of the best states
for homeschooling. The state requirements are reasonable, the support
groups plentiful and the weather great!
First things first,
what are the Legal
requirements for home schooling in Arizona?
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File a notarized Affidavit
with your county, along with a birth certificate if your child is
between the ages of 6 and 16.
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No further testing or
reporting required.
Arizona Affidavit to Homeschool
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For more information,
click on your county here:
http://www.ade.state.az.us/counties.asp
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Read the law here:
http://www.azleg.state.az.us/ars/15/00802.htm
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FAQs:
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If my child is not yet 6,
do I need to file? No.
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If I try homeschooling and
it doesn't work out, can I simply register my child in school?
Yes, but if your child is over 6, the state may require testing
for accurate grade placement.
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Are there many ways to
homeschool? YES! See below.
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How often do I need to
file? Once (or anytime you change from schooled to
homeschooled).
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What is the penalty for not
filing? Misdemeanor
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Testing? Not required
for Arizona homeschoolers. Interested for your own information? Check out:
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CHSRC
offers IOWA testing in August, March and May.
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Support groups may do IOWA or
Stanford 9 testing--usually in the spring.
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Some private schools will allow
homeschoolers to test with them, usually in the spring
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Private test administrators are
also available.
School at home or unschool? Or
any choice in between...
First, remember, whatever you
choose to do today, can be changed tomorrow if it does not work. You are
not necessarily making a permanent choice. Also remember that what works for one
family or one child, may not work for all families or even all children
within a single family! Try, test, experiment, take what works and
leave the rest behind!
How can you learn about options?
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Read! Online,
books, at the library, etc.
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Ask! Ask others
you meet, at park days, outings, and other organizations. Email us!
hena@hena.us for more info.
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Go to conferences and
informational meetings!
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Check out our
Resources page!
What are the facts about Homeschooling?
Dr. Brian Ray is a home schooling
dad and a statistician and researcher on homeschooling. He started the
national homeschooling research institute. Their website,
www.nheri.org , has a great deal of
facts and information to help guide you and your family.
Curriculum?
You can buy, rent or borrow!
Or you can use the world as your classroom! Some people use formal
curriculum, some use none.
Stay connected
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Join a support group. Groups
are listed
on HENA,
CHSRC
and AFHE. There are many crossovers, but you may find one that
is not listed on another site as groups go in and out of existence
and some prefer being listed on one site versus another.
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Join an email discussion list.
See http://groups.yahoo.com/ for a variety of lists.
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Check the library for
activities and free programs.
Looking for catalogs,
magazines and resource materials?
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Go online to companies and
request catalogs, you'll soon be on everyone's list!
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Ask friends or family.
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Check the library and ask them
to add subscriptions.
Challenging Subjects?
Some of us are good at English, some at Math, some at Science, some at
Art!
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Learn with your child!
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Partner with someone good at
something you're not!
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Join a co-op!
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Hire a tutor! ASU, NAU and U of
A are all good sources as well as local homeschooled teens for
younger kids!
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Take a college class! Students
may usually attend at age 12 (check your local community college) or
parents can take and teach to children! Remember, there are online
classes to be taken!
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Consider a supplemental program (although be aware that
public school programs
will place you subject to rules and regulations such as testing
that apply to schooled children and not homeschooled children)
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Many organizations (museums,
libraries, clubs, etc.) offer a wide array
of classes for students (and parents, too!), such as: Art, Music,
Math, Science, Foreign Language, Literature, Creative Writing, Chess
and more.
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Classes and programs within the
community in general may meet some of your needs.
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Sign up for correspondence
classes or distance learning through video, CD, satellite or online
tutoring are also options.
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Rent videos or supplemental
materials at
the library!
Worried about high school and
college? Don't be.
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Anyone over 12 years old can
attend the Maricopa community colleges and most likely other
community colleges.
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Homeschooled and unschooled
students can attend college, based on their college entrance exams
or portfolios in lieu of transcripts.
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Home-schooled Evanston teen
accepted by Harvard, Yale, more 7 of the nation's top universities
want her. Read here:
http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2008/apr/18/news/chi-homeschool_18apr18
TESTING
Many new homeschoolers are
concerned about testing, comparisons, measurements and requirements.
There is no requirement for testing in Arizona and each college has
their own testing system, so if that is your child's goal, start
checking into college testing at about age 12-14. In Maricopa
County, students can attend community college at age 12 and must take a
placement test IF they wish to take a Math or English course.
If you are interested in testing
for other, personal reasons (sometimes court or custody related),
although private schools are not required to do testing, when they do,
they normally use SAT – aka Stanford 10, officially Stanford Achievement
test:
http://www.pearsonassessments.com/haiweb/cultures/en-us/productdetail.htm?pid=SAT10C
Iowa test is another national test used by
many districts:
http://www.education.uiowa.edu/itp/itbs/
And here’s a list of state standard tests
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_state_achievement_tests_in_the_United_States
Have a special situation?
Special needs, gifted, special interest? There's probably a
support group for you! If not, make one! Invite others. If you're
in a remote location, join a national online group and start a local
(statewide) online group if none exist. Ask everyone!
For more information, feel free to
contact us - webmaster@hena.us to
let us know how we can make this page better or answer questions for
you.
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