Homeschool benefits and savings in the Issaquah School District
Issaquah School District Regulation 3114 lets a homeschooled student enroll for any amount of time less than full time, receive ancillary services, or both, if the student would be eligible to enroll full time. Families can also set up an off-campus program agreement with a district teacher, and home-based students with a district-assigned grade of 11 or 12 can use Running Start.
Who qualifies
Receives home-based instruction
A student who is not enrolled in a private school and receives home-based instruction counts as part time when taking district courses or services.
Could enroll full time
Part-time enrollment and ancillary services are for students otherwise eligible for full-time enrollment in the Issaquah School District.
Files a declaration of intent
File by September 15, or within two weeks of the start of any quarter, trimester, or semester, with the district where you live or a district that accepted your student through choice.
Has an assigned grade level
The district assigns each home-based student a grade level and base graduation year by age and assumes one grade of progress each year.
What your student can use
The terms come from Issaquah Regulation 3114 and Procedure 3114P.
- District courses
- Any load under 1.0 FTE
- Ancillary services
- Permitted for part-time students
- Off-campus program agreement
- Written plan per subject
- Teacher time with parent and student
- 4 hours a month
- Running Start
- District grade 11 or 12
Running Start admission follows the college's standards set with the district, so ask how your student's base graduation year affects the assigned grade before you apply.
How to enroll part time
- By September 15
File the declaration of intent
Ask the district for the letter of intent and its supplementary application, which staff provide to interested parents on request.
- After you file
Review options with the school
Staff explain your rights to part-time instruction and ancillary services and review the supplementary application with you.
- If you want teacher support
Sign an off-campus agreement
The agreement sets objectives, teaching by certificated staff, start and end dates, and how your student's work is evaluated, with a supervising teacher assigned.
- Each year
Keep the declaration current
File a new declaration of intent each year your student continues home-based instruction.
What it includes
Included
- Part-time enrollment in district courses
- Ancillary services
- Off-campus program agreements with district staff
- Running Start for district grades 11-12
Not included
- Curriculum, books, and teaching materials
- Full-time enrollment while homeschooling
Choices about philosophy, books, materials, curriculum, methods, and evaluation of home-based instruction stay with the parent.
Who to contact about part-time enrollment
The district office answers questions about part-time enrollment, declarations of intent, and the supplementary application.
Homeschool rules and statewide help in Washington
You must file a declaration of intent by September 15 for the school year, or within two weeks after the start of a public-school quarter or term for a later start.
Washington sets these rules:
- Subjects: Teach occupational education, science, mathematics, language, social studies, history, health, reading, writing, spelling, and art and music appreciation. Provide hours equivalent to the annual program hours per grade for approved private schools under RCW 28A.195.010 and .040.
- Testing: Each year, obtain a state-board-approved standardized test administered by a qualified person or a written assessment by a Washington-certificated person currently working in education.
- Records: Keep annual test or assessment results permanently, along with immunization records. Forward required records if your child transfers to a public or approved private school.
- Teachers: The parent needs 45 college quarter credits or the semester equivalent, a home-instruction course at a postsecondary or vocational-technical institute, supervision by a certificated teacher, or the superintendent’s finding of sufficient qualifications. Teacher supervision includes planned objectives, an average of at least one contact hour per week with the child each month, and progress evaluation; the teacher may supervise no more than 30 children.
Read the Washington homeschooling guide See statewide programs in Washington
Questions parents ask
- What grade will Issaquah put my child in?
- The grade that matches your child's age. The district assigns a grade level and expected graduation year by age and presumes your child moves up one grade each school year.
- Can a homeschooled teen do Running Start through Issaquah?
- Yes. Home-based students may enroll based on the college's admission standards set with the district, and state law requires a district-assigned grade of 11 or 12.
- What is an off-campus program agreement?
- It is a written plan for each subject in which district certificated staff teach, supervise, and evaluate your child's work. A teacher typically spends four hours a month with you and your child.
- Does the district provide our curriculum?
- No. Curriculum, books, and teaching materials stay with you.
Turn support into your child’s next lesson
Local classes cover the subjects they offer. We teach the remaining subjects, so a local class can stay part of the year without becoming the whole curriculum.
$149/month per child after the trial.
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