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Maine homeschool requirements

Track your Maine homeschool requirements without spreadsheets

Homeschool Fox helps you understand Maine's requirements, log activities, track progress, and generate records when you need them.

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Verified June 2026 State-specific sources No credit card required

Maine at a glance

Required days
175 days/year
Required subjects
10 subjects
Notice
Required
Testing / evaluation
Parent's choice (testing, portfolio, or evaluation)
Recordkeeping
Recommended

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

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Calculate your homeschool pace

Maine tracks days, not hours. We suggest aiming for 900 hours/year as a personal target. Enter your end date to see the pace.

Leave at 0 if you haven't started tracking yet.

Add your school year end date to see your pace.

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We'll set up your dashboard with Maine's tracking targets. No credit card required.

What Homeschool Fox tracks for Maine

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

  • Days toward your 175-day goal
  • Required subjects & core hours
  • Daily activity logs
  • Attendance records
  • Notes & portfolio records
  • Printable PDF reports
  • High school transcripts
  • State-specific progress tracking
Start logging today

See it work

Log a homeschool day in seconds

Type or speak what you did in plain English. Homeschool Fox sorts it into subjects, adds up the time, and updates your Maine progress automatically.

You write

“We read for 45 minutes, did math worksheets for 30 minutes, and watched a history video for 20 minutes.”
Parsed instantly

Homeschool Fox logs

  • Reading 45 min
  • Math 30 min
  • History / Social Studies 20 min

Today's total

1 hr 35 min

Progress updated
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Your Maine requirements, in plain English

Tap any item for the details.

Notice requirements

Required
Yes, Maine requires you to file notice of your intent to homeschool. You must notify both your local school district and the state.

Required days

175 days/yr
Maine doesn't specify a minimum number of hours, but requires at least 175 days of instruction per year.

Required subjects

10 subjects
Maine requires instruction in the following subjects: english, math, science, social studies, health, physical education, fine arts, library skills, maine studies, and computer proficiency. Beyond these requirements, you have flexibility to add subjects that interest your family.

Testing / evaluation

Required
Maine requires one annual assessment, submitted with the annual letter to the commissioner and your school unit. Families pick from a nationally standardized test, a local test developed by the school unit, a portfolio review conducted by a Maine-certified teacher, a homeschool support group that includes a certified Maine educator, or an approved local advisory board.

Recordkeeping & portfolio

Recommended
No, Maine does not legally require you to maintain a portfolio. However, keeping records of your homeschool activities is still highly recommended for your own reference and for potential college applications or if you ever need to demonstrate educational progress.

Withdrawing from public school

Letter + notice
Maine requires written notice within 10 calendar days of starting (or by September 1 if starting in the fall), sent simultaneously to the local school unit and the Department of Education commissioner. Notify the current school so attendance reflects the change, and keep a copy. An annual assessment follows.

Full guide

Homeschooling in Maine: the complete guide

If you're homeschooling in Maine, you're working inside a moderately regulated framework with enough structure to keep the state informed but plenty of room to build a family-shaped program. Compulsory attendance in Maine covers children ages 7-17, which means a homeschool program needs to be in place for any child in that range.

Rather than counting hours, Maine counts days: 175 of them in each school year. Parents decide what makes a day a school day, which leaves room for travel days, field trips, and co-op mornings to count toward the total.

Notice filing is the gateway for Maine homeschool families: a short document submitted to both your local school district and the state sets the record straight for the year ahead. Because notice is filed with both your district and the state, it's worth keeping a copy of each submission in your records.

Assessment in Maine takes the form of parent's choice (testing, portfolio, or evaluation) annually. It's more of a pulse-check on how learning is landing than a pass/fail exam.

The required subjects in Maine (english, math, science, social studies, health, physical education, fine arts, library skills, maine studies, and computer proficiency) form the backbone of each year's plan, with real freedom in how deeply or creatively each is taught. The record-keeping side of homeschooling doesn't need to dominate Maine families' evenings. Homeschool Fox lets you log activities as they happen, then builds the compliance picture on its own.

Notice requirements

Notice is required

You must notify both your local school district and the state of your intent to homeschool.

Need a head start? Use the free Notice of Intent generator to draft a Maine-ready letter.

Deeper guides: how to write a notice of intent to homeschool covers the language admins look for, and when and where to file your notice of intent covers state-by-state deadlines and recipients.

Generate your notice of intent

Withdrawing from public school

Maine requires written notice within 10 calendar days of starting (or by September 1 if starting in the fall), sent simultaneously to the local school unit and the Department of Education commissioner. Notify the current school so attendance reflects the change, and keep a copy. An annual assessment follows.

For the play-by-play, how to withdraw your child from public school walks through the conversation, the timing, and the paperwork. What to send the district when you pull your child covers exactly what the letter should and shouldn't say.

Assessment requirements

Assessment is required

Type:
Parent's choice (testing, portfolio, or evaluation)
Frequency:
Annually

Standardized testing for homeschoolers walks through which test to choose, where to register, and how to prep.

Portfolio & records

Portfolio not required

While Maine doesn't mandate a portfolio, keeping records is still recommended.

Required subjects

Maine requires instruction in the following subjects.

english math science social studies health physical education fine arts library skills maine studies computer proficiency

Looking for curriculum?

Browse our curriculum directory to find the right fit for your family, then track your hours with Homeschool Fox to stay compliant with Maine's requirements.

Browse curricula

Additional notes

Annual assessment required - multiple options available. Written notice due within 10 calendar days of starting (or by September 1 if starting in fall), sent simultaneously to the commissioner and the school unit.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to notify anyone to homeschool in Maine?
Yes, Maine requires you to file notice of your intent to homeschool. You must notify both your local school district and the state.

How many hours do I need to homeschool in Maine?
Maine doesn't specify a minimum number of hours, but requires at least 175 days of instruction per year.

Does Maine require testing for homeschoolers?
Maine requires one annual assessment, submitted with the annual letter to the commissioner and your school unit. Families pick from a nationally standardized test, a local test developed by the school unit, a portfolio review conducted by a Maine-certified teacher, a homeschool support group that includes a certified Maine educator, or an approved local advisory board.

Do I need to keep a portfolio in Maine?
No, Maine does not legally require you to maintain a portfolio. However, keeping records of your homeschool activities is still highly recommended for your own reference and for potential college applications or if you ever need to demonstrate educational progress.

What subjects must I teach in Maine?
Maine requires instruction in the following subjects: english, math, science, social studies, health, physical education, fine arts, library skills, maine studies, and computer proficiency. Beyond these requirements, you have flexibility to add subjects that interest your family.

Nearby states

View all states

Want the cross-state comparison? Homeschool laws by state covers the legal regime in every state side by side.

Free Maine printables

Two ready-to-use PDFs for Maine homeschoolers. No account needed.

Maine hour log Printable daily log, prefilled with the state's hour and day target. Withdrawal letter template A fillable letter to withdraw from public school, with Maine guidance.

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

Reviewed and sourced

Last verified: June 2026. We review Maine's requirements against official sources and update this page when the rules change.

Sources

Homeschool Fox is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. We turn public homeschool requirements into practical tracking tools for families. Always confirm details with your state or a qualified advisor.

More Maine guides

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