CT ·
8
none specified
Connecticut homeschooling rests on the compulsory-education statute CGS 10-184, which lets parents instruct children at home if instruction is 'equivalent' in the required subjects (reading, writing, spelling, English grammar, geography, arithmetic, US history, and citizenship). There is NO state homeschool statute imposing notification, standardized testing, portfolio review, or recordkeeping requirements. The Notice of Intent (form C-14) and annual portfolio review come from CSDE's non-binding C-4/C-14 administrative guidelines (1990, rev. 1994) and are widely understood (and corroborated by HSLDA and CT homeschool organizations) to be voluntary best practices, not legal obligations. Homeschooled students are not required to take the statewide Smarter Balanced or NGSS assessments.
No statute requires homeschool notification. Connecticut General Statute 10-184 (compulsory attendance) allows parents to instruct children 'elsewhere' if instruction is 'equivalent' to public school in the required studies. The CSDE 'suggests' (as a best practice, not a legal mandate) that parents file a Notice of Intent (historically referenced as form C-14, from the 1990/1994 C-4/C-14 Guidelines / Circular Letter C-14) with the local superintendent within 10 days of beginning homeschooling. Filing is optional; the official CSDE homeschooling page frames notification as contacting the district to learn its preferred notification method, a 'best practice' rather than a requirement.
No recordkeeping is legally required. CSDE recommends (best practice) maintaining a portfolio for each child containing samples of activities, assignments, projects, and assessments, plus a log of books and materials used. An optional annual 'portfolio review' meeting with a school official is suggested in the C-4/C-14 guidelines but is NOT required by statute and may be declined.
- reading
- writing
- spelling
- English grammar
- geography
- arithmetic
- United States history
- citizenship (including study of town, state, and federal governments)
· Connecticut Elementary and Secondary Social Studies Standards (2023) — state-specific, aligned to the C3 Framework · 118
| K | K.Civ.1.a | Describe the roles and responsibilities of community leaders. |
| K | K.Civ.2.a | Explain how all people, not just official leaders, contribute to the community. |
| K | K.Eco.3.a | Describe the skills and knowledge needed to do certain jobs in the community. |
| K | K.Eco.4.a | Describe where goods and services in the community come from. |
| K | K.Geo.1.a | Distinguish between land and water features on a map. |
| K | K.Geo.1.b | Demonstrate spatial awareness by creating maps of familiar places including simple text features. |
| K | K.His.2.a | Identify similarities and differences between the past and the present. |
| K | K.His.9.a | Identify a variety of primary sources to explain how people lived in the past. |
| K | K.Inq.1.a | Develop questions relevant to self, family, and school community. |
| K | K.Inq.2.a | Apply disciplinary knowledge and practices to demonstrate an understanding of social studies content. |
| K | K.Inq.3.a | Gather information to answer a question relevant to self, family, and school community. |
| 1 | 1.Civ.8.a | Describe how the Pledge of Allegiance and classroom procedures promote democratic principles. |
| 1 | 1.Civ.8.b | Describe how symbols of the United States illustrate democratic principles. |
| 1 | 1.Eco.14.a | Describe why people in one nation trade goods with people in another nation. |
| 1 | 1.Eco.4.a | Describe goods and services produced locally and in other communities. |
| 1 | 1.Geo.2.a | Identify where a student's community is located on different types of maps. |
| 1 | 1.Geo.2.b | Use maps, graphs, photographs, and other representations to describe how geographic features affect how people live around the globe. |
| 1 | 1.His.3.a | Generate questions about significant individuals or groups from the past in our community or nation. |
| 1 | 1.His.6.a | Compare various accounts about significant individuals, groups or events. |
| 1 | 1.Inq.1.a | Explain why a compelling question about community members is important to the student. |
| 1 | 1.Inq.1.b | Identify facts and concepts related to compelling and supporting questions. |
| 2 | 2.Civ.1.a | Describe the roles and responsibilities of local officials. |
| 2 | 2.Civ.5.a | Explain the role and responsibilities of a local government. |
| 2 | 2.Eco.1.a | Explain how scarcity and abundance influences decision-making in the community. |
| 2 | 2.Eco.7.a | Explain the costs of making goods within a community. |
| 2 | 2.Geo.1.a | Demonstrate spatial awareness by creating a community map illustrating physical and human-made features. |
| 2 | 2.Geo.2.a | Describe change over time in the local community using information from maps, graphs, and photographs. |
| 2 | 2.His.1.a | Employ chronological thinking to create a timeline of multiple events in one's life or community where people worked together. |
| 2 | 2.His.3.a | Develop questions about diverse individuals or groups recognized for contributions to their community or the United States past and present. |
| 2 | 2.Inq.1.a | Explain why a compelling question about a significant person, event, or issue in a community is important to the student. |
| 2 | 2.Inq.1.b | Identify facts and concepts related to compelling and supporting questions. |
| 3 | 3.Civ.1.a | Identify the responsibilities and powers of government officials at the state and local level. |
| 3 | 3.Civ.2.a | Explain how democracy relies on the responsible participation of individuals and groups within school, local and state communities. |
| 3 | 3.Eco.3.a | Identify examples of resources in Connecticut that are used to produce goods and services. |
| 3 | 3.Eco.9.a | Describe the role of financial institutions in Connecticut. |
| 3 | 3.Geo.2.a | Use maps and other visual representations to describe the relationship between the locations of places and regions throughout Connecticut. |
| 3 | 3.Geo.3.a | Use both local and state maps of Connecticut to describe location of cultural and environmental characteristics over time. |
| 3 | 3.His.1.a | Employ chronological thinking to create a chronological sequence of events illustrating developments in innovations and industries throughout Connecticut. |
| 3 | 3.His.2.a | Compare the regional and cultural characteristics of Northeastern Woodland Native American tribes of Connecticut, present and past. |
| 3 | 3.Inq.1.a | Explain why compelling questions about Connecticut and Local History are important to others. |
| 3 | 3.Inq.1.b | Explain how supporting questions help answer compelling questions in an inquiry about Connecticut history. |
| 4 | 4.Civ.12.a | Explain how people have worked and are working to change laws related to communities, inclusive of religion, ethnicity, and gender. |
| 4 | 4.Civ.6.a | Describe ways in which people throughout United States regions benefit from and are challenged by working through government and voluntary organizations. |
| 4 | 4.Eco.1.a | Compare the benefits and costs of neighborhood gentrification in the United States. |
| 4 | 4.Eco.6.a | Explain how business investments in worker training and diversity contribute to increased productivity and future incomes within a region. |
| 4 | 4.Geo.1.a | Demonstrate spatial awareness by creating maps to illustrate regions within or extending beyond the political boundaries of the United States. |
| 4 | 4.Geo.2.a | Explain the relationship between natural resources and human settlement in United States regions using maps, photographs, and other representations. |
| 4 | 4.His.5.a | Explain how push and pull factors influence the development of cultural enclaves in the United States. |
| 4 | 4.His.9.a | Summarize how different kinds of sources can be used to understand the settlement and resettlement of individuals and groups. |
| 4 | 4.Inq.1.a | Explain why compelling questions about a United States region are important to others. |
| 4 | 4.Inq.1.b | Explain how supporting questions help answer compelling questions in an inquiry about a United States region. |
| 5 | 5.Civ.4.a | Compare how political systems were used to make rules that establish community leadership and protect freedoms for various groups in the Colonial era. |
| 5 | 5.Eco.1.a | Compare the benefits and costs of governmental and individual choices leading to the American Revolution. |
| 5 | 5.Eco.3.a | Identify examples of resources used to produce goods and services throughout colonial settlements in the New England, Middle, and Southern regions. |
| 5 | 5.Geo.2.a | Use maps to explain the relationship between the location of the New England, Middle, and Southern colonies and the environmental characteristics. |
| 5 | 5.Geo.4.a | Explain how cultural diffusion of agricultural and technological knowledge held by African, Indigenous, and European communities contributed to development. |
| 5 | 5.His.1.a | Employ chronological thinking to create timelines comparing the events that led to the American Revolution. |
| 5 | 5.His.4.a | Explain how political and economic beliefs shaped the perspectives held by Patriots and Loyalists leading to the American Revolution. |
| 5 | 5.Inq.1.a | Identify concepts, ideas, and interpretations associated with compelling and supporting questions about early United States history. |
| 5 | 5.Inq.1.b | Explain how supporting questions help answer compelling questions in an inquiry about United States history. |
| 6 | 6.Civ.14.a | Compare how individuals and groups have affected change in a region using historical and contemporary examples. |
| 6 | 6.Civ.6.a | Describe how political organizations have shaped people's lives in a region. |
| 6 | 6.Eco.1.a | Explain how economic decisions affect the well-being of individuals, businesses, and societies within a region. |
| 6 | 6.Eco.3.a | Describe the role of supply and demand within and among regions. |
| 6 | 6.Geo.1.a | Demonstrate spatial awareness by constructing maps to represent spatial patterns and environmental characteristics of a region. |
| 6 | 6.Geo.2.a | Explain the relationship between population and bodies of water using maps and other representations of a region. |
| 6 | 6.His.2.a | Classify a series of historical events and developments in a region as examples of political change and continuity. |
| 6 | 6.His.3.a | Develop questions about historically significant regional and global economic events and issues. |
| 6 | 6.Inq.1.a | Explain how compelling and supporting questions represent key ideas about geography or other social science disciplines in the study of a world region. |
| 6 | 6.Inq.1.b | Explain how compelling and supporting questions are mutually reinforcing. |
| 7 | 7.Civ.1.a | Identify the powers and responsibilities of individuals, groups, and media in addressing human rights issues in both governmental and nongovernmental contexts. |
| 7 | 7.Civ.2.a | Explain how political participation varies within different types of government in different eras and contexts. |
| 7 | 7.Eco.4.a | Describe different types of economies. |
| 7 | 7.Eco.4.b | Describe the role of competition in a market economy. |
| 7 | 7.Geo.3.a | Analyze cultural diffusion among regions using paper based and digital mapping techniques. |
| 7 | 7.Geo.4.a | Explain how norms regarding gender and sexuality influence the daily lives of people. |
| 7 | 7.His.2.a | Describe a series of political events and developments that reflect change and continuity throughout the history of a region. |
| 7 | 7.His.6.a | Analyze how maps represent the perspectives of individuals and groups during different eras. |
| 7 | 7.Inq.1.a | Explain how compelling and supporting questions represent key ideas about geography or other social science disciplines in the study of a world region. |
| 7 | 7.Inq.1.b | Develop compelling and supporting questions that are mutually reinforcing. |
| 8 | 8.Civ.3.a | Examine the origin, purpose, and impact of the founding documents. |
| 8 | 8.Civ.4.a | Explain the evolving powers and limits of the three branches of government as defined in the United States Constitution and subsequent federal actions. |
| 8 | 8.Eco.1.a | Explain how the transition from an agricultural-based economy to an industrialized economy affected the well-being of individuals, groups, and society. |
| 8 | 8.Eco.3.a | Explain how the demand for finished goods influenced business specialization and the growing need for labor during the American Industrial Revolution. |
| 8 | 8.Geo.11.a | Explain how Westward Expansion increased access to natural resources and the production and distribution of goods in a global market. |
| 8 | 8.Geo.9.a | Evaluate the influence human-induced environmental change had on spatial patterns of industrialization and Westward Expansion. |
| 8 | 8.His.1.a | Explain the events and developments that led to the establishment of colonies in the Atlantic and Pacific Worlds. |
| 8 | 8.His.1.b | Analyze the impact of United States' treaties on the sovereignty of Native nations. |
| 8 | 8.Inq.1.a | Explain how compelling and supporting questions represent key ideas in the study of United States history. |
| 8 | 8.Inq.1.b | Develop compelling and supporting questions that are mutually reinforcing. |
| High School: Civics and Government | CG.Civ.1.a | Distinguish between the functions of local, state, tribal, and national governments in response to challenges. |
| High School: Civics and Government | CG.Civ.1.b | Distinguish between the powers and responsibilities of local, state, and federal election officials in facilitating free and fair election processes. |
| High School: Civics and Government | CG.Eco.7.a | Evaluate a United States trade policy in terms of costs and benefits. |
| High School: Civics and Government | CG.Eco.9.a | Describe the roles of the executive branch in developing and implementing economic policies in the United States. |
| High School: Civics and Government | CG.His.5.a | Analyze how interpretations of the social contract theory of government influenced the founding of the United States government. |
| High School: Civics and Government | CG.His.5.b | Analyze how historical contexts have shaped and continue to shape the ideologies and platforms of political parties in the United States. |
| High School: Civics and Government | CG.Inq.1.a | Explain how a question reflects an enduring issue in the United States Government. |
| High School: Civics and Government | CG.Inq.1.b | Explain how supporting questions contribute to an inquiry and how new compelling and supporting questions emerge when engaging sources. |
| High School: Modern World History | MW.Civ.2.a | Analyze how theories of government developed in the Age of Enlightenment represented new ideas about the balance between rights of the individual and state. |
| High School: Modern World History | MW.Civ.3.a | Analyze the impact of treaties and laws on the maintenance of national and international order in the 20th century. |
| High School: Modern World History | MW.Eco.1.a | Analyze how access to resources resulted in imperialist policies that had a range of costs and benefits for different groups. |
| High School: Modern World History | MW.Eco.4.a | Evaluate the extent to which competition for access to resources existed during industrialization. |
| High School: Modern World History | MW.Geo.1.a | Demonstrate spatial awareness by creating maps to illustrate the environmental characteristics and patterns of trade in early modern world history. |
| High School: Modern World History | MW.Geo.2.a | Explain the relationships between the locations of places and the impact of imperialism using maps and other representations. |
| High School: Modern World History | MW.His.1.a | Evaluate how historical events and developments were shaped by the movement of individuals and groups during maritime exploration. |
| High School: Modern World History | MW.His.1.b | Evaluate how the Enlightenment and Scientific Revolution shaped institutions in society. |
| High School: Modern World History | MW.Inq.1.a | Explain how a question reflects an enduring issue in Modern World History. |
| High School: Modern World History | MW.Inq.1.b | Explain how supporting questions contribute to an inquiry and how new compelling and supporting questions emerge when engaging sources. |
| High School: United States History III | US.Civ.2.a | Analyze the role of citizens in advocating for and ratifying the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution. |
| High School: United States History III | US.Civ.5.a | Evaluate the effectiveness of state and federal government in upholding the Reconstruction Amendments. |
| High School: United States History III | US.Eco.3.a | Analyze the ways in which government incentives and personal motivation influenced production and distribution under New Deal policies. |
| High School: United States History III | US.Eco.6.a | Explain potential approaches to stabilize markets in response to the Great Depression. |
| High School: United States History III | US.Geo.12.a | Evaluate the effects of human-made and natural catastrophes on global trade, politics, and human migration in the United States. |
| High School: United States History III | US.Geo.3.a | Analyze changing spatial patterns of cultural enclaves within and among United States regions using paper-based and electronic graphic techniques. |
| High School: United States History III | US.His.1.a | Evaluate how the Progressive Era is a result of immigration and industrialization. |
| High School: United States History III | US.His.1.b | Evaluate the role of the media in shaping public opinions and debates about America's emergence as an imperial power. |
| High School: United States History III | US.Inq.1.a | Explain how compelling and supporting questions reflect an enduring issue in United States History. |
| High School: United States History III | US.Inq.1.b | Explain how supporting questions contribute to an inquiry and how new compelling and supporting questions emerge when engaging sources. |
Is homeschooling legal in Connecticut?
Yes. Connecticut homeschooling rests on the compulsory-education statute CGS 10-184, which lets parents instruct children at home if instruction is 'equivalent' in the required subjects (reading, writing, spelling, English grammar, geography, arithmetic, US history, and citizenship).
Do I have to notify anyone to homeschool in Connecticut?
No. Connecticut does not require parents to file a notice to begin homeschooling. No statute requires homeschool notification. Connecticut General Statute 10-184 (compulsory attendance) allows parents to instruct children 'elsewhere' if instruction is 'equivalent' to public school in the required studies. The CSDE 'suggests' (as a best practice, not a legal mandate) that parents file a Notice of Intent (historically referenced as form C-14, from the 1990/1994 C-4/C-14 Guidelines / Circular Letter C-14) with the local superintendent within 10 days of beginning homeschooling. Filing is optional; the official CSDE homeschooling page frames notification as contacting the district to learn its preferred notification method, a 'best practice' rather than a requirement.
Is standardized testing required for homeschoolers in Connecticut?
No annual test is mandated for homeschoolers in Connecticut. The state test (Smarter Balanced Assessments (SBAC) for ELA and Mathematics (grades 3-8); Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) Assessment for science (grades 5, 8, 11); SAT School Day for grade 11 ELA/Math) is not required for home-educated students.
What subjects are required for homeschooling in Connecticut?
Connecticut requires instruction in: reading; writing; spelling; English grammar; geography; arithmetic; United States history; citizenship (including study of town, state, and federal governments).
Does Connecticut have its own learning standards?
Math: CCSS-M (Connecticut Core Standards for Mathematics). ELA: CCSS-ELA (Connecticut Core Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy). Science: NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards). Social studies: Connecticut Elementary and Secondary Social Studies Standards (2023) — state-specific, aligned to the C3 Framework.