How to Start Homeschooling in Maryland

Required hours

No state minimum

Required subjects

8 subjects

Notice

Required

Testing / evaluation

Portfolio review

Portfolio

Required

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

Step by step

1. 1

   Understand Maryland's homeschool law

   Maryland has light but formal homeschool requirements with no mandated hour or day minimums, and you'll file notice with your local school district.

2. 2

   Withdraw from public school (if enrolled)

   Moving a child from public school to homeschool in Maryland starts with a written withdrawal to the current school and a notice of intent to the local district. Together they put the new arrangement on record. 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, Maryland requires you to file notice of your intent to homeschool. You must notify your local school district.

4. 4

   Plan your subjects

   Maryland requires instruction in the following subjects: english, math, science, social studies, art, music, health, and physical education. Beyond these requirements, you have flexibility to add subjects that interest your family.

5. 5

   Set your hours or days target

   Maryland does not mandate a specific number of instructional hours. Families have flexibility in determining their own schedule and pace of learning.

6. 6

   Plan for assessment and records

   Maryland doesn't require standardized testing. Instead, a local school-system reviewer may meet with the family up to three times a year to look over the portfolio, talk about the instructional program, and confirm the student is receiving regular, thorough instruction. Under COMAR 13A.10.01, the portfolio includes materials used for instruction — texts and reading lists — plus student work samples such as writings, worksheets, creative projects, and assessments. It stays at home and is shown at the scheduled review.

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 Maryland-specific compliance report when you need it.

Free tool

Calculate your homeschool pace

Maryland doesn't mandate a minimum. Use 900 hours/year as a general guide to stay on pace.

What Homeschool Fox tracks for Maryland

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

• Required hours or days
• Required subjects & core hours
• Daily activity logs
• Attendance records
• Notes & portfolio records
• Printable PDF reports
• High school transcripts
• State-specific progress tracking

More Maryland guides

• Maryland Homeschool Requirements Hours, notice, assessment, and subjects at a glance.
• Homeschooling High School in Maryland Credits, GPA, transcripts, and graduation.
• Record Keeping in Maryland What to document, how to organize it, and staying compliant.