How to Start Homeschooling in Georgia

Required hours

810 hrs/year

School days

180 days/year

Required subjects

5 subjects

Notice

Required

Testing / evaluation

Standardized testing

Portfolio

Required

Jump to the full Georgia requirements for plain-English detail on each of these.

Step by step

1. 1

   Understand Georgia's homeschool law

   Georgia has moderate homeschool requirements. Families must provide at least 4.5 hours per day over 180 school days, and you'll file notice with the state Department of Education.

2. 2

   Withdraw from public school (if enrolled)

   The path out of public school in Georgia routes through the state rather than the local district. After a written withdrawal to the current school, families file a state-level notice of intent before instruction starts at home. Homeschool Fox can draft the withdrawal letter for you. It fills in the student, district, and date fields automatically.

3. 3

   File your notice of intent

   Yes, Georgia requires you to file notice of your intent to homeschool. You must notify the state Department of Education.

4. 4

   Plan your subjects

   Georgia requires instruction in the following subjects: reading, language arts, math, social studies, and science. Beyond these requirements, you have flexibility to add subjects that interest your family.

5. 5

   Set your hours or days target

   Georgia requires at least 4.5 hours of instruction per day over 180 school days, which works out to roughly 810 hours per year.

6. 6

   Plan for assessment and records

   Georgia requires a nationally standardized test at least once every three years, starting at the end of third grade. You may give it yourself, in consultation with a person trained in administering and interpreting norm-referenced tests (O.C.G.A. 20-2-690(c)(7)). Scores stay with the family and are not submitted to the state. Since July 2025, a school system that offers the PSAT, SAT, PreACT, ACT, ASVAB or an AP exam to its own students must make it available to home study students in grades 6 to 12 who live in the system (O.C.G.A. 20-2-324.8). Georgia asks you to write an annual progress assessment report for each child, covering every required subject, and to keep those reports for at least three years (O.C.G.A. 20-2-690(c)(8)). Test records are kept the same way. Nothing is submitted: the statute gives no official the power to call for either, and the Department of Education says it only collects the Declaration of Intent.

7. 7

   Track your hours and keep records

   Log activities as they happen so hours, attendance, and subject coverage build up automatically. Homeschool Fox lets you log from your phone or by voice and generates a Georgia-specific compliance report when you need it.

Free Georgia printables

Three ready-to-use PDFs for Georgia homeschoolers. No account needed.

Templates, not legal advice. Confirm the current rule with your state or district.

Free tool

Calculate your homeschool pace

Georgia requires 810 hours/year. Enter how far you've come and we'll show you the daily pace to finish on time.

What Homeschool Fox tracks for Georgia

Everything Georgia expects you to keep, in one place — no spreadsheets, no lost notebooks.

• Hours toward your 810-hour goal
• Required subjects & core hours
• Daily activity logs
• Attendance records
• Notes & portfolio records
• Printable PDF reports
• High school transcripts
• State-specific progress tracking

More Georgia guides

• Georgia Homeschool Requirements Hours, notice, assessment, and subjects at a glance.
• Homeschooling High School in Georgia Credits, GPA, transcripts, and graduation.
• Record Keeping in Georgia What to document, how to organize it, and staying compliant.
• How to Withdraw From School in Georgia The steps, the letter, and timing to avoid truancy issues.
• Moving to Georgia What to file when you arrive and whether your records transfer.
• Public School Sports in Georgia Whether homeschoolers can play, what it takes, and who to ask.
• Homeschool Hours Required in Georgia The number, what counts toward it, and the pace to hit it.
• Required Subjects in Georgia The list, how much time each needs, and proving you taught them.
• Georgia Letter of Intent Who to file with, when it's due, and a free generator.
• Georgia Homeschool Portfolio What belongs in it, who can ask to see it, and a printable checklist.
• Homeschool Testing in Georgia What the state asks for, when, and low-score rules.
• ESA & School Choice in Georgia Funding amounts, who qualifies, and the trade-offs.