Hawaii asks for one notice when you start, a progress report every year, and test scores in grades 3, 5, 8 and 10. The parent counts as a qualified teacher, and the yearly report can be written by the parent.
Verified against primary sources November 2026. Laws change; sources are linked at the bottom of this page.
Before you start, give the principal of the public school your child would otherwise attend a notice of intent, on Form 4140 or in a signed letter with your child's name, address, phone number, birth date and grade. You do not file it again each year unless your child would move to a different public school. Keep a record of your planned curriculum. Each year, send the principal a progress report using one of four methods: a standardized test score, test progress of one grade level a year, a written evaluation by a Hawaii-certified teacher, or your own written evaluation with work samples. In grades 3, 5, 8 and 10, test scores are also required. Hawaii sets no hour or day count for home schooling.
A parent teaches the parent's own child after giving the local public school principal a notice of intent. The principal and complex area superintendent acknowledge the notice; they do not grant permission. This is what the rest of this page describes.
A program in a non-school setting, taught by someone other than the parent or run by professional staff, that the superintendent or a designee approves. It carries more paperwork than home schooling, and approval is not automatic.
Attendance at a private school satisfies the compulsory attendance law. For this purpose, a private school is one licensed or accredited by a body the statute names, such as the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools or the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Enrolling in a private school's home study program does not count as attending a private school.
Before home schooling starts, give the principal of the public school your child would otherwise attend a notice of intent. Use the Department's Form 4140, or write a letter with your child's name, address and telephone number, birth date and grade level, and your signature. The principal and the complex area superintendent acknowledge it. The rule says the notice is for record keeping and to protect families from unfounded accusations of educational neglect or truancy.
If you send the annual progress report, you do not resubmit the notice each year. When your child would move from one local public school to another, for example from sixth grade to an intermediate school, notify the principal of the new school.
Keep, but do not file, a record of your planned curriculum. The rule says it should include the start and end dates of your program, the hours per week your child spends in instruction, the subject areas, how you will judge mastery, and a list of textbooks and materials with author, title, publisher and date. The principal may ask to see it if progress is found inadequate.
Each year, send the principal a report of your child's progress using one of four methods: a nationally normed standardized achievement test score at grade level for your child's age; progress on such a test equal to one grade level per calendar year, even if your child is below grade level; a written evaluation by a person certified to teach in Hawaii; or your own written evaluation describing progress in each subject, with representative work samples and representative tests and assignments, including grades if you give them.
In the statewide testing grades, 3, 5, 8 and 10, test scores are required. Your child may take the statewide test at the local public school; you get the details from the principal. Or you may arrange private testing at your own expense, using a test comparable to the state's. The principal may approve another means of evaluation if you ask. In those years, the school test results can serve as your annual progress report.
The principal reviews each report. With test scores, adequate progress means a score in the upper two-thirds of the range. If progress is not adequate, the principal meets with you to make a plan for improvement. The principal may not recommend school enrollment or legal action for educational neglect unless progress is inadequate for two consecutive semesters, and never for a child before third grade. Refusing requests that go beyond the rules is not grounds for an educational neglect finding.
Notify the principal when home schooling stops. Your child must be re-enrolled in the local public school or a licensed private school unless a new alternative educational program is presented within five school days.
| Before you begin | Give the notice of intent, Form 4140 or a signed letter, to the principal of your local public school. Keep the acknowledged copy the school returns. |
| During the year | Keep your curriculum record. No days, hours minimum, or filings are due. |
| Grades 3, 5, 8 and 10 | Arrange the test: ask the principal about the statewide test at the school, or schedule a comparable private test at your own expense. |
| Once a year | Send the principal your progress report. The rules set no calendar date. |
| When your child would change schools | For example, elementary to intermediate, or a move to a new school's area: file a new notice with the new school's principal. |
No. As long as you send the annual progress report, the notice stands. You file a new one with the new school's principal when your child would transfer to a different public school, for example from elementary to intermediate school, and the Department also asks for a new notice when your family moves to another school's area.
No. A written evaluation by a teacher certified in Hawaii is one of four ways to show progress. The others are a standardized test score, test progress of about one grade level a year, or a written evaluation by the parent that describes progress in each subject and includes samples of work and tests.
Grades 3, 5, 8 and 10. Your child may take the statewide test at the local public school at no cost, or you may arrange private testing at your own expense with a test comparable to the state's. The principal may approve another means of evaluation if you ask. In those grades, the test results can also serve as that year's progress report.
The home schooling rules set no number. Your curriculum record should note the hours per week your child spends in instruction, but no minimum applies. The roughly three hours a day figure in Hawaii's rules belongs to a different option, a superintendent-approved alternative educational program.
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Make a free parent accountReference information reviewed August 2026 against primary sources (statutes, NCAA and Common App published requirements). This is general information, not legal advice; requirements change, so verify anything load-bearing for your family against your state's current law.