Washington homeschool requirements
What Washington requires to homeschool — instruction time, testing, and the exact legal citation, in plain English. Then the part most guides skip: how the garden, the animals and the work you do around the place fit into the same record.
Last verified June 2026 · A starting point, not legal advice — Washington sets the rules and they change.
The rule, in plain English
Washington: 180 days OR 1,000 hours (a school-wide annual average) — either satisfies the requirement. Declaration of Intent by Sept 15. Eleven subject areas are required.
What that works out to
- →1,000 hours spread across 180 days averages about 5.6 hours a day.
- →Because either measure satisfies Washington, it's worth tracking both and reporting whichever you reach first — 1,000 hours works out to 5.6 hours a day if you also hit 180 days.
Our arithmetic on the figures above, to make planning easier — shown against a conventional 36-week school year and against a full 52-week year for families who school year-round. Washington sets the requirement; these numbers are not part of it.
Laws change — always confirm the current rules for Washington yourself before relying on them. See Washington's official requirements on HSLDA →
This is a plain-English summary for your convenience, not legal advice. Cultivate helps you store, organize, and produce your homeschool records — it isn't the authority on what your state requires. Homeschool laws change; always confirm current rules with your state or a homeschool legal resource (e.g., HSLDA) before relying on them.
How to start homeschooling in Washington
The general path most families follow. Washington's specific requirements are in the summary above — confirm the exact steps and deadlines with your state before relying on them.
- 1
Check what Washington asks for before you begin
Washington: 180 days OR 1,000 hours (a school-wide annual average) — either satisfies the requirement. Declaration of Intent by Sept 15. Eleven subject areas are required. Confirm the exact form, deadline, and current wording with Washington or HSLDA before you rely on any of it.
- 2
Teach on a schedule that satisfies Washington's rule
Either measure satisfies Washington (180 days or 1,000 hours), which is more forgiving than it first looks. A family doing long, intensive days may reach the hours total well before the day count; a family doing short daily lessons will hit days first. You only find out which describes you by recording both — and the cost of tracking the second one, if you're already tracking the first, is close to nothing.
- 3
Complete Washington's required testing or assessment
Yes — standardized testing/assessment required Confirm the accepted tests, the grades they apply to, and the timing with Washington, and keep the results with your records.
Washington lets you choose — so track both and use whichever helps
Either measure satisfies Washington (180 days or 1,000 hours), which is more forgiving than it first looks. A family doing long, intensive days may reach the hours total well before the day count; a family doing short daily lessons will hit days first. You only find out which describes you by recording both — and the cost of tracking the second one, if you're already tracking the first, is close to nothing.
What to keep in Washington
- ✓Attendance — the hours that count toward Washington's requirement
- ✓Samples of your child's work — writing, math, projects, and photographs of things they built or grew. This is what an Washington evaluation is easiest to face with.
- ✓The curriculum and materials you used, and which of Washington's 7 required subjects each one covered
- ✓Your Washington test or evaluation results — required, so keep them filed
- ✓Grades and a transcript — and note that hours logged by subject are what a transcript is built from, so the two are the same job
This is exactly what Cultivate keeps for you. Describe the day in plain English and it files the hours by subject against Washington's total as you go. The chicken tally, the fence repair and the reading lesson go in the same box and come out sorted.
A homestead day, against Washington's 7 required subjects
Washington names 7 required subjects, and a working homestead touches most of them before lunch. This is how families commonly categorise the practical work they are already doing — whether any particular activity counts is Washington's call, not ours, but the record of it is the part you control.
Washington counts hours. The hours your children spend on this work are real hours — but only if something wrote them down while it was happening. That is the problem Cultivate solves: describe the day in plain English and the garden, the goats, the tractor repair and the reading lesson all land in the right record at once.
How practical work is categorised is a judgement your family and Washingtonmake — Cultivate records what you did, it doesn't decide what counts. Confirm anything you intend to rely on with Washington or HSLDA.
Washington homeschool requirements — FAQ
What does Washington require to homeschool?
Washington: 180 days OR 1,000 hours (a school-wide annual average) — either satisfies the requirement. Declaration of Intent by Sept 15. Eleven subject areas are required.
How many days do you have to homeschool in Washington?
Washington: 180 days OR 1,000 hours (a school-wide annual average) — either satisfies the requirement. Declaration of Intent by Sept 15. Eleven subject areas are required.
What does Washington's requirement work out to per week?
1,000 hours spread across 180 days averages about 5.6 hours a day. Because either measure satisfies Washington, it's worth tracking both and reporting whichever you reach first — 1,000 hours works out to 5.6 hours a day if you also hit 180 days. These are our calculations from the figures above, offered to make planning easier — Washington sets the requirement, not the arithmetic.
Does Washington require standardized testing for homeschoolers?
Yes — standardized testing/assessment required. Confirm the accepted tests, the grades they apply to, and the timing with Washington or HSLDA, and keep the results with your records.
What records should I keep to homeschool in Washington?
Either measure satisfies Washington (180 days or 1,000 hours), which is more forgiving than it first looks. A family doing long, intensive days may reach the hours total well before the day count; a family doing short daily lessons will hit days first. You only find out which describes you by recording both — and the cost of tracking the second one, if you're already tracking the first, is close to nothing.
What is the legal citation for homeschooling in Washington?
Washington's homeschool law: RCW 28A.200/.225. Always confirm the current rules with Washington or a homeschool legal resource such as HSLDA.
Stop tracking this on paper
Cultivate keeps your records — and produces the documents.
Washington sets the rules. Cultivate does the part that has to happen every day: you describe the day in plain English and it tallies the hours by subject as you go — so the Washington total is already counted, not reconstructed in May from memory. The garden, the animals, the workshop and the school day all go in the same place, and come out as print-ready reports and transcripts whenever you need them.
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