- No portfolio, test, evaluation or registration is required. Reporting your homeschool to the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) is optional.
- Keep a daily attendance record, in any form you like. Show it if the Secretary of Education or your local public school superintendent asks.
- IDOE says to provide 180 days of instruction a year, July 1 to June 30, in English and equivalent to public school. There is no hours rule.
Here are the papers. The one that matters most is your attendance record: a calendar page, a printed log or a spreadsheet with a line for each school day.
Beside it may sit the letter you sent to withdraw your child from school, and for a high schooler, the signed withdrawal form. If you chose to register, there’s IDOE’s verification email. Work samples are up to you.
Does Indiana require a homeschool portfolio?
No. IDOE says “Indiana law does not require specific educational records to be maintained.” No test or evaluation is required either.
The reason is how Indiana sets things up. IDOE says the law treats a homeschool as a nonaccredited nonpublic school, which isn’t bound by the state’s curriculum rules (IC 20-33-2-12). You choose what to teach and what books to use, and the Indiana Academic Standards are optional.
What counts as a work sample?
Indiana doesn’t define one, because it doesn’t require one. But IDOE gives three good reasons to keep records anyway.
If a question of educational neglect ever comes up, IDOE says good attendance records and “other documentation” of ongoing learning help answer it. IDOE also “strongly” recommends keeping high school course records for colleges and employers. And if your child goes back to public school, the school decides placement, and you may bring test results, attendance records and the curriculum you used.
Examples, not rules: a dated math page, a writing assignment, a science lab sheet, a book list, a course list with grades.
The one record Indiana does require
Indiana asks for one record: attendance. IDOE says IC 20-33-2-20 requires an accurate daily record of attendance, kept to verify your child’s enrollment and attendance.
No set form. IDOE says “there is no specific form required.” A wall calendar, a notebook or a spreadsheet all work.
Who can ask to see it. The law says the Secretary of Education or the superintendent of the public school corporation where your homeschool is located (IC 20-33-2-20). IDOE’s Help Sheet also names the State Attendance Officer.
What you send. Nothing. IDOE says it does not accept, keep or validate homeschool records. The record stays home until someone asks.
Days, hours and subjects
IDOE says to provide 180 days of instruction in each school year, which runs July 1 to June 30. There is no hours rule: IDOE says instructional time requirements don’t apply to homeschools.
The sources word the 180 days a little differently, so here they are side by side.
| Source | What it says |
|---|---|
| IDOE’s homeschool FAQ | Parents “should provide 180 days of instruction” in a year that runs July 1 to June 30. Days your child spent in a public or accredited school count |
| IDOE’s Help Sheet | Lists 180 days of instruction under what Indiana law requires. You decide which days your school meets and how long you teach each day |
| HSLDA (advice) | Teach the same number of days as your district’s public schools, often but not always 180 |
Subjects are your call. IDOE says the law asks for instruction “equivalent to that given in public schools” (IC 20-33-2-28), and the state doesn’t define what that means. IDOE also says the school must be taught in English.
The Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) suggests covering the same general subjects public schools teach. That’s advice, not law.
Our advice: count your days in the attendance record, and aim for 180. Then the question is answered if anyone asks.
Do you have to register your homeschool in Indiana?
No. IDOE says reporting your homeschool’s enrollment “is not required in Indiana.” You may report it to IDOE if you like.
If you do, you fill in IDOE’s online form once. IDOE says the registration stays active year after year and covers every child you homeschool. An email with a verification number comes back, and that’s all: no books or curriculum.
The law does add two duties. If the Secretary of Education asks, you give the number of children you teach, by grade level. And if your child leaves your homeschool and no other school asks for the records within 15 school days, you report the child’s name, address and leaving date to the Secretary of Education or your local superintendent (IC 20-33-2-21).
Starting, and leaving a school
If your child is in school now, tell the school you’re withdrawing. IDOE says no method is set in law and a phone call may do, but it recommends writing. If you don’t tell the school, your child could be reported as truant.
IDOE says that for a high schooler, the school will ask you to sign the “Withdrawal to Non-Accredited Nonpublic School Located in Indiana” form (IC 20-33-2-28.6). IDOE adds that it isn’t a registration form. If you don’t sign it, your child counts as a dropout, and the principal may report your child to the BMV to revoke or refuse a driver’s license or learner’s permit.
Younger children need no form. IDOE says the school can’t make you register or show your curriculum before you withdraw.
IDOE says a homeschooled child must start school by age 7 (IC 20-33-2-8). HSLDA suggests sending the withdrawal letter by certified mail with a return receipt. That’s advice, not law.
The Indiana homeschool year, date by date
Indiana has no yearly filing deadline. You keep attendance as you go, and the year runs July 1 to June 30.
| When | What | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Before you start, if your child is in school | Tell the school you’re withdrawing. High schoolers sign the withdrawal form | IDOE; IC 20-33-2-28.6 |
| By age 7 | A homeschooled child must be in school | IC 20-33-2-8; IDOE |
| Any time, optional | Report your homeschool to IDOE, once | IDOE |
| All year, July 1 to June 30 | Keep a daily attendance record | IC 20-33-2-20; IDOE |
| All year, July 1 to June 30 | IDOE says to provide 180 days of instruction | IDOE |
| If asked | Show attendance to the Secretary of Education or your local superintendent | IC 20-33-2-20; IDOE |
| End of the year | Nothing to file. No test, no evaluation | IDOE |
How long to keep homeschool records in Indiana
IDOE sets no period. Its homeschool pages don’t say how long to keep the attendance record or anything else.
HSLDA advises keeping records for at least two years. It says to keep high school records, and proof that you followed the law in those years, forever. That’s advice, not law.
High school is where it matters most. Under House Enrolled Act 1348, IDOE says, the diploma your homeschool issues is legally enough to show your child finished high school. You can also sign the transcript and grade records yourself, so keep the records behind them.
Can Indiana homeschool records be digital?
IDOE sets no form for the attendance record, so paper or digital both fit what it describes. Indiana has no evaluator, so no one has to accept a digital portfolio.
The people who can ask to see your record are the Secretary of Education and your local superintendent. A printout covers anyone who wants paper.
What changes in 2026 and 2027
2026
No change to Indiana’s homeschool rules as IDOE describes them. IDOE’s current homeschool FAQ already includes the 2025 diploma law, House Enrolled Act 1348.
One 2026 bill, Senate Bill 124, would have lowered the compulsory school age from 7 to 5. It failed, according to IAHE Action, the advocacy arm of the Indiana Association of Home Educators.
2027
No change is scheduled that we found. Check IDOE’s homeschool page before your next school year starts on July 1.
Keeping Indiana records in KidsFoldr
The goal is a whole year of records with no binder to keep, no pile to sort and nothing to type. Snap a page as you teach, and KidsFoldr files it under your child, grade and subject. Then the worksheet can go: scan it for peace of mind, then toss it.
Keep the originals that matter on paper, though. That’s your copy of the signed withdrawal form, any letter from the school or your superintendent, and high school records and transcripts.
When a paper has a date on it, such as a letter from your superintendent, a test day if you choose to test, or a co-op calendar, snap it. The date lands on the family calendar, linked back to the paper, with nothing to type.
Your attendance record can start itself. The Attendance or hours log adds a day for every date your child has schoolwork, and you check it. High school grades file as report cards, by subject. When someone asks to see the year, pick dates or grades, and it’s a PDF to share or print.
Turn on automatic backup, and every paper goes to KidsFoldr Cloud as it is filed. One tap on Back up copies every paper to your own Google Drive or iCloud.
Common questions
Do I need a portfolio to homeschool in Indiana?
No. IDOE says Indiana law doesn’t require specific educational records. IDOE also says the one record you keep is daily attendance (IC 20-33-2-20).
Do I have to register my homeschool in Indiana?
No. IDOE says reporting your enrollment is optional. If you do, you register once, and it stays active year after year.
Do I have to keep attendance?
Yes. IDOE says you keep a daily attendance record, in any form, and show it if the Secretary of Education or your local superintendent asks.
How many days do I have to homeschool in Indiana?
IDOE says to provide 180 days of instruction a year, July 1 to June 30. There’s no rule on hours per day.
How long do I have to keep homeschool records in Indiana?
IDOE sets no period. HSLDA advises at least two years, and high school records forever.