Quicklinks
Information & Regulations • Reentering Bethel School District
Frequently Asked Questions • Resources • Testing
The RCW’s (The Revised Code of Washington) are all of the permanent laws now in force in Washington State . The RCW’s listed on this site refer to laws pertaining to Home Based Instruction. If you want more information, you can click on the RCW’s mentioned on this site and you will be linked to the Washington State Legislature website which has the text of the law. You can also refer to the Bethel School District Policy for more information about our district’s current policies regarding home-based education.
Getting Started and Declaration of Intent
Parent/guardian fills in “Declaration of Intent” form and returns to Challenger office. This form states that parents are taking responsibility for their child’s education. It is necessary to file a new Declaration each school year.
The “Declaration of Intent” to provide Home-Based Instruction must be completed and returned to Tom Edwards, CSS Assistant Principal and Bethel School District Home School Liaison at Challenger Secondary Schools. These must be returned by September 15th or within two weeks of the beginning of any public school quarter, trimester or semester.
If your child has previously attended a Bethel public school, we ask that you withdraw your student upon filing your “Declaration of Intent.”
What Is Home-Based Instruction?
RCW 28A.225 defines instruction as home-based if it consists of planned and supervised instructional and related educational activities including curriculum and instruction in the basic skills of occupational education, science, mathematics, language, social studies, history, health, reading, writing, spelling, and the development of an appreciation of art and music. Total annual program hours are as follows:
- Kindergarten At least a total of 450 hours
- Grades 1 through 12 An annual average total of 1,000 hours
Parent Qualifications
A parent must either:
- Be supervised by a certificated teacher who has contact with the child for one hour per week average per month,
- Have earned the equivalent of 45 college-level quarter credit hours,
- Have taken a course in home-based instruction at a post-secondary institution or vocational technical institute, or
- Been deemed sufficiently qualified by the local superintendent.
Information and Regulations
We recommend you contact the Superintendent of Public Instruction’s Office in Olympia for the free publication “ Washington State ’s Laws Regulating Home-Based Instruction”, also known as the “pink book”. This is available through the Office of Learning and Teaching Support at (360) 664-3574. Information is also available on the OSPI website.
Re-entering the Bethel School District
Credit may be granted by a review of actual student course work, or by review of transcripts from a private school, agency, or home schooling organization. Please note, the Bethel School District has no obligation to accept credits earned outside the school district.
Frequently Asked Questions
What if my child has an IEP? IEP services are accessed at your neighborhood school.
How do I start the home school process? You must file the “Declaration of Intent.”
How do I know what to teach my child? You are solely responsible for your curriculum. You can access the web sites listed under Home School Resources.
What if I don’t feel confident to teach a subject? You can talk to other home school parents about working together on classes.
How does my student get Bethel School District credits for their home-based work? You must meet with the Bethel School District Home School Liaison to transfer credits. VERY VERY IMPORTANT - Keep all tests, notes, calendars, textbook information, papers, assignments and hour logs as documentation.
Can home school students graduate from a Bethel School District high school? Students need to attend high school during their senior year.
Can my child still be in band or access other resources at the school in our neighborhood? A student may attend his/her neighborhood school on a part-time basis. Special education and related services are available to home-based education students who are enrolled part-time in the district equivalent to the recommended special education program. Ancillary Services - Ancillary services are any co-curricular service or activity, any health care service or activity, and any other services or activities, except “courses,” for pre-school through twelfth grade students. A student must meet the district’s prerequisites in order to participate in a sport or activity.
Additional Resources
- The Washington Homeschool Organization (WHO) is a statewide, non-profit membership organization. Its mission is to serve the diverse interests of home-based education in Washington State. WHO is nonpartisan, nonsectarian, and nondiscriminating in its views of homeschooling and participation in its activities.
- Office of Superintendent of Public Instuction is the state regulating body for public education.
- Bethel School District Grade Level Standards will give you a sense of where students should be at each grade level.
- Pierce County Library
- Bethel School District Policy
Annual Testing
An approved standardized test administered yearly by a qualified individual, or an annual academic progress assessment of the student’s academic progress written by a certificated person currently working in the field of education must be administered yearly. A parent must ensure that test scores or annual academic progress assessments and immunization records, together with any other records that are kept relating to the instructional and educational activities provided, are maintained. The Washington Homeschool Organization (W.H.O.) makes an effort to keep a current list of persons offering to test or assess homeschoolers. See the Home School Resources section for information about W.H.O. Bethel School District Testing - If your student is in a grade level affected by the Bethel School District assessment program, he/she may come to the school at the times scheduled for testing. Parents should contact the principal of their student’s resident school if the student will be participating in the testing program.