We’re lucky to be living in a country that allows parents to take their kids out of school and educate them at home. Unlike many other states, Alabama doesn’t have many homeschooling regulations. Alabama’s homeschooling law provides you with 3 options: 1) Homeschooling with a church school, 2) Homeschooling with a private school, or 3) Homeschooling using a private tutor.
Alabama’s Regulations
- Homeschooling with a church school
- Must enroll your child in a church school (a school operated as a ministry of a local church, group of churches, denomination, and/or association of churches that does not receive any state or federal funding)
- Must file a church school enrollment certificate with the superintendent of your local public school
- Must keep an attendance register for every school day of the year
- Must comply with any policies established by the church school
- Homeschooling with a private school (either a home-based private school or the home may be a location of instruction as an extension of an existing private school)
- Must report to the county or city superintendent the names and addresses of all school-age children enrolled in the school
- The principal teacher of a private school must keep an attendance register for every school day of the year
- Must obtain proof of immunization or medical/religious exemptions from immunization
- Must teach physical education
- Homeschooling using a private tutor
- The private tutor must be an Alabama-certified teacher
- Must ensure that your child is instructed in English and in the same subjects taught in the public schools for at least 3 hours a day, for 140 days each school year, between the hours of 8am and 4pm
- The private tutor must submit a statement to the county or city superintendent that includes:
- A listing of the students tutored
- The subjects taught
- The proposed tutoring schedule
- The private tutor must keep a register of work, showing the daily hours of instruction and attendance
Although unschooling in Alabama via any of these homeschooling options is feasible if you don’t mind these requirements, your child may not have access to a community of peers who they can engage with and learn from on a day to day basis.
Enter The Open School. We have a virtual program that you can enroll in from anywhere in the world. And as a self-directed school, our program is perfectly aligned with unschooling. We have no required subjects and no tests. Instead, students design virtual activities to do with other students and staff, including art projects, video games, workshops, one-on-one lessons, and anything else you can imagine. It’s a community of self-directed learners, and a great place for unschoolers to make deep, lasting friendships.
If you want your child to be a free learner in Alabama, with access to a supportive and caring community of peers and adults, a virtual private school may be your best bet. You can read more about our virtual program, or contact us directly, by clicking one of the buttons below.
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