D.C. Homeschooling

Everyone, from a parent just considering homeschooling to the veteran homeschooler, has questions. To help, we've compiled the best resources, support, information, and ideas available to help you make your decision to homeschool and to successfully home educate your children. There are so many resources in D.C. that you can use to make homeschooling fun and enjoyable for every member of your family! Here are some common questions:

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District of Columbia Home School Laws
The Home School Legal Defense Association provides a brief summary of the homeschooling laws in the District of Columbia. Includes a link to a legal analysis of laws relating to homeschooling in D.C.
§ 38-203. Enforcement; penalties.
An accurate daily record of the attendance of all minors covered by § 38-202 and this section shall be kept by the teachers of each public, independent, private, or parochial school and by every teacher who gives instruction privately. These records shall be open for inspection at all times by the Board, the Superintendent of Schools, school attendance officers, or other persons authorized to enforce this subchapter. It shall be the duty of each principal, head teacher, or school administ...
Culture at Home
Culture at Home is an African American homeschool support group in the Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area with an emphasis on the older homeschooled student. Culture at Home is a support group for families concerned with the healthy well-being and academic guidance of the African-American child. The purpose of this group is to provide an educational outreach support program and to supplement the curriculum of homeschoolers with children ages 10-18 (grades 5-12), but they also provide ...
District of Columbia Public Schools
This is the internet presence for the District of Columbia Public Schools.
The Handel Children's Choir
The Handel Children's Choir has an enrollment of 60 boys and girls, ages 8 to 18. The program emphasizes classical music, multicultural music, contemporary music and folk songs. Special attention is placed on healthy vocal production and training in musicianship. Above all the program is designed both to be substantive and enjoyable for the children. Each season the Children's Choir presents winter and spring concerts and performs outreach and special events in the community. Past activities hav...
Appalachian National Scenic Trail
The Appalachian National Scenic Trail is a 2,180-mile footpath along the ridgecrests and across the major valleys of the Appalachian Mountains from Katahdin in Maine to Springer Mountain in northern Georgia. It traverses the scenic, wooded, pastoral, wild, and culturally resonant lands of the Appalachian Mountains. Conceived in 1921, it was built by private citizens and completed in 1937. The trail traverses Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsyl...
§ 38-204. Census of minors.
The Board, or its designee, shall conduct annually, or as frequently as may be found necessary or desirable, a complete census of all minors 3 years of age or more who permanently or temporarily reside in the District. The census record shall be amended from day to day as changes of residence occur among minors within the age group, as other persons come within or leave the age group, and as other persons within the age group become residents of or leave the District. The census record of minors...
§ 38-206. Penalty for failure to provide correct information.
Any parent, guardian, custodian, principal, or teacher of a minor who has reached the age of 3 years who willfully neglects or refuses to provide the information required by §§ 38-202 through 38-206, or who knowingly makes any false statement, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
§ 38-202. Establishment of school attendance requirements.
Every parent, guardian, or other person, who resides permanently or temporarily in the District during any school year and who has custody or control of a minor who has reached the age of 5 years or will become 5 years of age on or before December 31st of the current school year shall place the minor in regular attendance in a public, independent, private, or parochial school, or in private instruction during the period of each year when the public schools of the District are in session. This ...
DCPS Policies
Listed here are answers to the most commonly asked District of Columbia Public Schools policy questions.
National Building Museum Outreach Programs
The National Building Museum has created three unique outreach programs—CityVision, Investigating Where We Live, and the Design Apprentice Program—which offer under-served urban youth of middle and high school age in-depth opportunities to learn about the design process. These design immersion outreach programs are offered on weekends, in the summer, and during the academic year.
Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail
Five trails are currently recognized as segments of the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail: - the 70-mile Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail between Ohiopyle and Seward, Penn., managed by Laurel Ridge State Park, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources; - the 150-mile Great Allegheny Passage between Cumberland, Md., and Ohiopyle and between Pittsburgh, Penn., and Ohiopyle, managed by an alliance of organizations and agencies; - the 184.5-mile C & O Canal Towpath betwee...
Capital Area Christian Communicators (CACC) Debate Club
Capital Area Christian Communicators (CACC) Debate Club is a parent-run debate co-operative. CACC exists as an organization to provide our youth with life skills that will prepare them to articulate truth and defend their beliefs.
United States Capitol Guide Service
The United States Capitol is a monument, a working legislative building, and one of the most recognizable symbols of Democracy in the world. Visit the new Capitol Visitor Center, located under the East Front Plaza, which provides a dramatic educational experience for all visitors, an experience enhanced through exhibits, displays of historic documents, and documentary presentations.
Bike the Sites
Bike the Sites offers guided bike tours and rentals in Washington, D.C. This is a unique and fun way to see our nation's capital. The tours combine history, interesting facts, and a love for the city with a safe, enjoyable, and easy bike ride. Visitors who prefer exploring on their own may rent mountain bikes, child trailers, and strollers. They are conveniently located at the Old Post Office Pavilion, just a block from the National Mall and Smithsonian museums.
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Idea Book For Cuisenaire Rods At The Intermediate Level
Grades 2-5. Idea Book designed for use with Cuisenaire Rods.
A Little Way of Homeschooling
This book is a compilation of the experiences of 13 different homeschoolers and how they incorporated an unschooling style of teaching in their homes. This book addresses the question of whether a Catholic can happily and successfully unschool. This ...
Montessori International
Montessori International is the magazine for all parents and teachers. Montessori International magazine is a high quality colour education magazine with a Montessori focus and a truly child-centred approach. The magazine is for Montessori parents, n...
Don't Waste Your Time Homeschooling: 72 Things I Wish I'd Known
Traci Matt, a veteran homeschool mom helps you make the most of your homeschooling efforts. She takes a look back at 20 years of successes and challenges, offering tested strategies to assist you on your home education journey. This book will help yo...
Homeschooling and Libraries: New Solutions and Opportunities
Homeschools are alwsy looking for alternative ways of schooling that do not necessarily reflect what a typical classroom looks like. Since homeschooling is so diverse across families, information institutions, including public, academic, school, and ...
Quote of the Day

Any child who can spend an hour or two a day, or more if he wants, with adults that he likes, who are interested in the world and like to talk about it, will on most days learn far more from their talk than he would learn in a week of school.

John Holt