- Kansas asks for no portfolio, no work samples and no testing. The law names no records you must send in and sets no time to keep them.
- Register your homeschool’s name and address with the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) once. It is not an approval, and KSDE sends no confirmation, so keep a copy.
- Teach with a competent instructor (that can be you) for about as long as the local public schools are in session. KSDE’s yardstick is 186 days, or 1,116 hours for grades 1 to 11.
Picture one child’s records folder. It holds a copy of your homeschool’s registration with KSDE, an attendance log, a list of books and curriculum, and a few work samples.
In Kansas, a homeschool is a non-accredited private school under K.S.A. 72-3120(a)(2) and K.S.A. 72-4345 to 72-4347. A public virtual school or an accredited private school is a different route. See which route you’re on.
What Kansas requires instead of a portfolio
Kansas has no portfolio rule. Your homeschool must meet the private school route in § 72-3120(a)(2), and register under § 72-4346.
| Requirement | What the law says | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Registration | Register the school’s name and address with the state board of education. KSDE’s form also asks for the name and address of the school’s records custodian | § 72-4346(a); KSDE |
| Teacher | A competent instructor. No state teaching license needed | § 72-3120(a)(2); KSDE |
| Time | A period substantially equivalent to the time your local public schools are in session | § 72-3120(a)(2) |
| Each school day | “Regularly enrolled” means enrolled in five or more hours of instruction each school day | § 72-3120(i)(3) |
| Ages | From 7 until 18 | § 72-3120(a) |
Here’s the yardstick. Public schools must hold at least 186 school days, or 1,116 hours for grades 1 to 11 (§ 72-3115). KSDE puts it as 186 days of at least six hours, or 1,116 hours. The law doesn’t spell out how a homeschool counts them.
Kansas law lists no required subjects. You choose your own books and curriculum, and KSDE doesn’t supply any. The Kansas curricular standards are guidelines you can use if you like (KSDE).
Registering your homeschool with KSDE
The one thing you file is a short online registration with KSDE. It gives your school’s name and address, and the name and address of its records custodian, the person you name to look after the school’s records (§§ 72-4345, 72-4346; KSDE). You register once, not every year.
There is no approval, no review and no fee. KSDE sends no confirmation, so make copies: one for your files and one for the school your child is leaving. If you need a copy later, KSDE’s Letter of Registration Request form emails one to you.
Leaving a school? Tell the school your child attended. KSDE says that if you don’t, the school is required by law to report your child as truant.
Use the same online form to update your details, and to mark your school “Non-Active” when you stop homeschooling (KSDE). The state keeps a list of registrations. If your child moves to another school, that school can ask for your registration so it can request your child’s records (§§ 72-4346(c), 72-4347).
Who checks your homeschool
No one, on a schedule. Kansas law sets no testing, no evaluator and no yearly review, and KSDE says registering is not an approval.
The truancy law covers private schools too, homeschools included (§ 72-3121(g)). A child of school age who isn’t enrolled in any school is reported as not attending (§ 72-3121(b)). The parent gets written notice before any report (§ 72-3121(d)).
Testing is your choice. The Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) suggests testing from time to time. That is advice, not law.
The Kansas homeschool year, date by date
Kansas has no statewide homeschool deadline. Your dates come from your own start, your local district’s school year and your child’s age.
| When | What | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| When you start | Register once with KSDE. The law sets no deadline; HSLDA says to register when you start | § 72-4346; KSDE; HSLDA |
| Leaving a school | Tell the school, or it must report your child as truant | KSDE; § 72-3121 |
| All year | Teach about as long as the local public schools. KSDE: 186 days, or 1,116 hours for grades 1 to 11 | § 72-3120(a)(2); § 72-3115; KSDE |
| Each school day | Five or more hours of instruction counts as “regularly enrolled” | § 72-3120(i)(3) |
| Your details change | Update your registration online | KSDE |
| You stop homeschooling | Mark your school “Non-Active” | KSDE |
| Ages 7 to 18 | School is required | § 72-3120(a) |
If your child is under 7 and enrolled in a school, you can withdraw them at any time (§ 72-3120(c)).
How long to keep homeschool records in Kansas
The law sets no time. But it makes your school’s records custodian (the person you name on your registration) responsible for your students’ records, and a new school can ask for them (§§ 72-4345, 72-4347).
KSDE says accurate and complete progress records are in your child’s best interest. They will be needed if your child moves to a public or accredited school, or applies to college. An accredited school doesn’t have to accept your credits, and it may test your child to decide (KSDE).
HSLDA suggests keeping most records, like attendance, book lists and work samples, at least two years. It says to keep high school records and proof that you followed the law forever. Both are advice, not law.
Our advice: keep a few originals on paper. Those are your registration copy or KSDE’s registration letter, any letter from a school district or KSDE, test score reports if you test, and high school work you may need for a transcript or credit. Everything else can be a scan.
Work samples: not required, still worth keeping
Kansas asks for no work samples. KSDE still says complete records of your child’s progress are worth keeping.
They help if your child goes to a public or accredited school, where credits are the school’s call. And they help when your child applies to college, since colleges set their own rules for homeschool graduates (KSDE).
What counts is up to you. Examples, not rules: a dated math page, a writing piece, a book list, a science lab sheet, a history project.
You issue your own high school diploma. KSDE says the state doesn’t recognize it as meeting any requirements, and it recommends the accredited schools’ graduation units for homeschool high schoolers.
Homeschool, virtual school or accredited private school
The rules on this page are for a non-accredited private school, which is how Kansas treats a homeschool. Learning at home through a Kansas virtual school is a different route (KSDE).
| Route | What it is | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| Homeschool (non-accredited private school) | You teach, or choose a competent instructor | Register once with KSDE |
| Accredited private school | A private school accredited by the state board | Not covered by the registration law for non-accredited schools |
| Kansas virtual school | Online classes for credit, through a school district, with Kansas licensed teachers | State tests and an accredited diploma |
Public school classes and activities
Your local school board must let your homeschooled child enroll part time in its courses, programs or services (§ 72-3120(h)). Each district publishes its policy on its website. It must try in good faith to fit your schedule requests, but it doesn’t have to meet every one.
Your child can also join the resident district’s KSHSAA activities, at the school for your attendance area, with the same fees and tryouts as everyone else (§ 72-7121). For academic eligibility, you submit an affidavit or a transcript showing your child is making satisfactory progress toward the next grade. It holds for that season.
Can your records be digital?
Yes, as far as the law goes. It sets no format for any record and names no evaluator. Even the registration is an online form, and KSDE emails a copy of your registration letter when you ask.
Keep copies you could print if a new school or a college asks. That is advice, not law.
What changes in 2026 and 2027
2026
No change to Kansas’s homeschool rules. No 2025 or 2026 law touched the registration, time or teacher rules on this page.
Two 2026 bills did not pass. SB 338 would have defined a home school in the private school law, and died in committee. HB 2717 would have started compulsory school at age 6, and was struck from the House calendar. School is still required from age 7.
One new 2026 law, SB 382, lets a private school open its KSHSAA activities to homeschooled students, if the school chooses to.
2027
No change is scheduled. There is no yearly filing, so your registration stands.
The Legislature meets every year, so new bills could come in 2027. Any change would start there.
Keeping your records in KidsFoldr
No law tells you what to keep, so the easy answer is to keep it all, on your phone instead of a shelf of binders. Snap each paper for peace of mind, and the paper can go. Years of attendance logs, book lists and work fit on your phone, filed by child, grade and type (and subject for schoolwork), with nobody sorting and nothing to type.
The few originals named above stay on paper. Snap them too, so a copy is always at hand. Snap a letter from your district, a test appointment or a KSHSAA practice schedule, and the date lands on your family calendar, linked back to the paper, with nothing to type.
Attendance fills in from your papers with one tap. In the Attendance or hours log, tap Fill from papers to add a day for every date your child has schoolwork, artwork or a test on file. Add hours if you count them.
If a new school or a college asks, the year is ready. Start a New portfolio for a grade or your own dates, and print or share the PDF. You pick the sections. For Kansas, you might switch on:
- The attendance or hours log, for your school days
- Work samples, sorted by subject
- A reading log, for your book list
- Letters and notices, for your KSDE registration
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, and every paper is searchable by any word on it.
Common questions
Do I need a homeschool portfolio in Kansas?
No. Kansas law asks for no portfolio, no work samples and no tests. You register once with KSDE and teach for about as long as the local public schools (§§ 72-3120, 72-4346).
Do I have to register my homeschool every year?
No. KSDE says to register once. Update the same online form if your details change, and mark your school “Non-Active” when you stop.
Does KSDE approve my homeschool?
No. KSDE says there is no approval or review. Registering just puts your school’s name and address on file.
How long do I have to keep homeschool records in Kansas?
The law sets no time. Your school’s records custodian (the person you name on your registration) is responsible for its records, and KSDE says records will be needed for a transfer or college. HSLDA advises keeping most records at least two years.
How many days do Kansas homeschoolers need?
A period substantially equivalent to your local public schools (§ 72-3120(a)(2)). KSDE’s yardstick is 186 days, or 1,116 hours for grades 1 to 11.