How to Homeschool in Oregon (2026): One-Time Notice, Required Subjects, and Testing at Select Grades

Oregon's Home Schooling Law

Oregon Revised Statutes §339.035 provides the legal framework for home schooling as an alternative to public school enrollment. The three compliance requirements are: a one-time written notice to your local Education Service District, instruction in required subject areas, and standardized testing at the end of grades 3, 5, 8, and 10. No credential is required to teach, no portfolio is reviewed by any agency, and no third-party evaluator must assess your child.

Oregon's compulsory school age runs from 6 through 18, broader than most states. Children in that range who are not enrolled in a public school, a private school, or a registered home school program are subject to the attendance law.

Filing Your Notice

Oregon requires a one-time written notice filed with your local Education Service District (ESD), not your school district superintendent. File within 10 days of beginning home schooling. A written letter identifying each child by name and age and stating your intent to provide home schooling in the required subjects is sufficient. Oregon does not require a specific form.

This notice is not annual. Once you have filed it with your local ESD, you do not re-file each year. The only time you file again is if you move to a county served by a different ESD, at which point you file with the new ESD within 10 days of establishing your program there. Keep a copy of your original notice and any acknowledgment from the ESD. That copy is your proof of compliance for as long as you home school in the same ESD area.

Required Subject Areas

Oregon requires home schooling to cover English (which includes language arts, reading, and writing), mathematics, science, social studies, health, and physical education. Oregon does not specify which textbooks to use, how many hours to spend on each subject, or what grade-level content must be covered in any given year. You choose the curriculum and structure the school day.

The subject list is broad but standard -- most core home school curriculum packages address all of the required areas without supplemental planning. Physical education and health are the subjects that most families handle outside of formal curriculum packages, through sports, fitness activities, and health instruction woven into science or family wellness routines.

Standardized Testing at Grades 3, 5, 8, and 10

Oregon requires standardized testing at the end of grades 3, 5, 8, and 10 only. Testing is not required in other grades. Results must be completed by August 15 of the year the grade is finished. Oregon does not administer the test; you select from approved nationally normed instruments and administer the test yourself.

Oregon does not require a certified teacher to administer the test. The parent may administer it. Commonly used options include the Iowa Assessments, Stanford Achievement Test, CAT, and similar nationally normed instruments. Oregon's Department of Education maintains a list of acceptable tests at oregon.gov/ode -- confirm the current list before selecting a test, as approved instruments can be updated.

You keep the score reports in your own files. You do not routinely submit results to the district or ESD. The ESD may request the results, and low scores over consecutive testing periods can trigger additional steps, covered below. A reading assessment in the year before a required testing grade helps you gauge where your child stands in language arts and target any gaps before the formal test.

The 15th Percentile Threshold

Oregon's testing requirement comes with a consequence provision that home school families should understand before choosing the standardized test approach. If a child scores below the 15th percentile in any required subject area for two consecutive school years, the district superintendent may require the family to consult with an education specialist and may impose additional oversight requirements for the home school program.

This provision does not apply after just one year of low scores -- it requires two consecutive years below the threshold in the same subject before the district can act. And the district's response is not automatic termination of the home school program; it triggers a consultation and possible additional requirements. Families whose children are working well below grade level in specific subjects should consider this provision when planning the assessment approach. A different instructional strategy or additional support in that subject before the second year of testing reduces the risk that the provision is triggered.

The 15th percentile is a low bar -- it sits at the bottom of the bottom fifth of national test-takers. Most home-educated children who are receiving consistent instruction in the required subjects will clear this threshold without difficulty. It functions more as a floor to confirm that some instruction is occurring than as an academic performance standard.

No Portfolio, No Evaluator

Oregon does not require home school families to maintain a portfolio for external review or to have their child evaluated by a third-party professional. Your own records -- lesson plans, completed assignments, materials lists -- are kept for your benefit and are not submitted to anyone unless the ESD makes a specific request. The standardized test at the required grade levels is the only external assessment Oregon requires.

Keeping basic records is worth doing for practical reasons that go beyond compliance. College applications, dual enrollment requests, and military enlistment all ask for educational documentation. A student with year-by-year records of subjects covered and materials used can produce a coherent transcript. Build a simple annual folder and add to it as the year goes on.

Withdrawing from an Oregon Public School

Send a written withdrawal notice to the school and file your notice with your local ESD within 10 days of beginning home schooling. Keep copies of both. If your child has an IEP, mandatory special education services through the public school end at withdrawal. Oregon allows school districts to make certain services available to non-public school students with disabilities on a voluntary basis, but the IEP entitlements end when the child leaves the public system. Contact your district's special education office before withdrawing if services are in place.

Oregon law allows home school students to participate in extracurricular activities at their local public school. Access and eligibility requirements vary by district; contact your specific school to understand the enrollment process.

High School, Transcripts, and Diplomas in Oregon

Oregon does not set graduation requirements or diploma standards for home school programs. You establish the criteria, track credits through grades 9 to 12, and issue the diploma when the student meets them. A parent-issued Oregon home school diploma and transcript are accepted by Oregon's public universities, community colleges, employers, and licensing bodies.

The University of Oregon, Oregon State University, and Portland State University are experienced reviewing home school applications. Most ask for SAT or ACT scores alongside the parent-issued transcript. A clear transcript listing courses by name, credit hours, and grades by year is the standard document. Some programs ask for course descriptions; prepare those if your student is applying to competitive institutions.

Oregon's community colleges are broadly accessible to home school graduates. The Oregon Promise grant is available to Oregon community college students and home school graduates are eligible to apply through the standard process. Dual enrollment for high school students is also available at many Oregon community colleges -- contact the specific institution for their home school applicant requirements. Use the curriculum guide to build a full high school plan that accounts for the courses and credentials your student's target institutions will expect.

No State Funding for Oregon Home School Families

Oregon does not have an education savings account or voucher program for families providing home schooling under §339.035. All curriculum, testing, and other educational costs are the family's responsibility.

A Note from Homeschool Teacher Guide: What This Really Means for You

Oregon is simpler than its reputation. The notice is one-time and filed with your local ESD, not an annual form to track. Testing is required only at the end of grades 3, 5, 8, and 10, so most years have no testing obligation at all. When a testing grade arrives, plan for a spring administration while your child's learning is fresh, get the results back by August 15, and file them in your records. You do not submit results anywhere unless the ESD requests them. The 15th percentile threshold sounds alarming but is a very low bar; consistent instruction in the required subjects clears it without difficulty. Focus on building a strong program, know which grades require a test, and Oregon's requirements take care of themselves in the background.