Homeschool World Forum

1. I am currently in a bit of a bind with where to go next in my intent to homeschool. All of the information that have found states that, in WA, a person who has already enrolled their children in public school must OFFICIALLY WITHDRAW them from said place of schooling. Now, what I don't see anywhere is, how is this done exactly? I mean, I am planning to enact this decision this week, so do I simply enter the office and state, "my kids are withdrawn now" or...?

Do I write a letter stating that decision? If so, who then do I give it to?

2. All of the information I have found (HSLDA, Laws for District, State, Fed, School itself, etc.), state that I must keep them enrolled or else they'll be considered truant and I'll be fined daily for that truancy...yet, if the superintendent deems it viable, they can be withdrawn with no recourse, so...do I go to the Superintendent's office and withdraw them there? The principal? The office ladies? Who has these forms? Do I even have to fill any forms out other than something I create stating my intent?

3. I received the Declaration of Intent in the post today, upon inspection I realized that it is asking for addresses, birth-dates, name of the school in my neighborhood, my telephone number, and their grade level...if I simply leave these blank (I can't now, I'd have to white-out because I recognized the issue too late), are they of an authority to DENY a Declaration I've made because my Declaration does not submit all of the information that they deem required? This is not an "application" of course, it is a "Declaration."

4. On the declaration, in the box asking if the home based instruction will or will not be supervised by a person certificated in WA state...would that be myself? Or, since I will not be using that method of having a certificated nstructor presdng over me, would I simply leave that area blank?

5. When it says that "this form must be filed annually by September 15th or within two weeks of the beginning of any public school quarter, trimester or semester," does this mean that, since I am declaring now, and the "semester" does not actually end until Jan. 25th, that I must calculate when the exact two weeks are before that offcial semester-end date and have the declaration arrive in their offices WITHIN that two-week window? Or, can I send it now and they will know automatically that my intention is for the Declaration to take effect when received and then I wll send another before Sept. 15 of next year? (again, it says WITHIN two weeks, does this simply mean before two weeks or does it actually mean that all of the Declarations of Intent, to be viewed as legitimate must arrive in their hands in the exact period of 14 days [do weekends count?] prior to the cut-off date?)

I do not wish to miss anything so that my intentions and plans are made abundantly clear to any who may threaten to question or usurp them on some perceived authority that I may have let slip by somewhere n the process...

6. Funds are waaay tight right now, is there any way to have HSLDA or comparable help without instant cost? Time is of the essence, I cannot have my kids coming home bawling, screaming, frightened and depressed like they are anymore, for weeks, months...it is not changing in the least, only becoming more pronounced and I honestly fear that if changes are not made this instant, it may be too far gone to rectify. It saddens me but my resolve is to turn this around a.s.a.p. and allow them to get on with their lives, their familial connections, and their spirit that is being simply defamed and persecuted through the horrific and inhumane situation that this method of "instruction" is imparting.

Thank you for any insights, moving forward with this as quickly as possible is top priority right now, everyone's simply losing too much sleep and life over it. Thanks.

1. I am currently in a bit of a bind with where to go next in my intent to homeschool. All of the information that have found states that, in WA, a person who has already enrolled their children in public school must OFFICIALLY WITHDRAW them from said place of schooling. Now, what I don't see anywhere is, how is this done exactly? I mean, I am planning to enact this decision this week, so do I simply enter the office and state, "my kids are withdrawn now" or...?

Do I write a letter stating that decision? If so, who then do I give it to?

Talk to your superintendent. Usually it is a letter of intent, and formally withdrawing your child from school - meaning you go down, fill out the withdrawal forms, etc.

2. All of the information I have found (HSLDA, Laws for District, State, Fed, School itself, etc.), state that I must keep them enrolled or else they'll be considered truant and I'll be fined daily for that truancy...yet, if the superintendent deems it viable, they can be withdrawn with no recourse, so...do I go to the Superintendent's office and withdraw them there? The principal? The office ladies? Who has these forms? Do I even have to fill any forms out other than something I create stating my intent?

You may want to look for a group in your area that can help you more on your school district's interpretation of the law.

3. I received the Declaration of Intent in the post today, upon inspection I realized that it is asking for addresses, birth-dates, name of the school in my neighborhood, my telephone number, and their grade level...if I simply leave these blank (I can't now, I'd have to white-out because I recognized the issue too late), are they of an authority to DENY a Declaration I've made because my Declaration does not submit all of the information that they deem required? This is not an "application" of course, it is a "Declaration."

They can. Is this a problem? You gave the same information to the school when you enrolled your children.

4. On the declaration, in the box asking if the home based instruction will or will not be supervised by a person certificated in WA state...would that be myself? Or, since I will not be using that method of having a certificated nstructor presdng over me, would I simply leave that area blank?

If you are a certified teacher, fill it in. If you are not, then the answer is no, and you would not fill in a name.

5. When it says that "this form must be filed annually by September 15th or within two weeks of the beginning of any public school quarter, trimester or semester," does this mean that, since I am declaring now, and the "semester" does not actually end until Jan. 25th, that I must calculate when the exact two weeks are before that offcial semester-end date and have the declaration arrive in their offices WITHIN that two-week window? Or, can I send it now and they will know automatically that my intention is for the Declaration to take effect when received and then I wll send another before Sept. 15 of next year? (again, it says WITHIN two weeks, does this simply mean before two weeks or does it actually mean that all of the Declarations of Intent, to be viewed as legitimate must arrive in their hands in the exact period of 14 days [do weekends count?] prior to the cut-off date?)

Again, get with a homeschool group in your area, but the way I interpret the state laws is that the two week window is a buffer to get all ducks in order and not disrupt class too much by withdrawing a child whenever. Personally, I'd run it down there the first day of the two week window.



6. Funds are waaay tight right now, is there any way to have HSLDA or comparable help without instant cost? Time is of the essence, I cannot have my kids coming home bawling, screaming, frightened and depressed like they are anymore, for weeks, months...it is not changing in the least, only becoming more pronounced and I honestly fear that if changes are not made this instant, it may be too far gone to rectify. It saddens me but my resolve is to turn this around a.s.a.p. and allow them to get on with their lives, their familial connections, and their spirit that is being simply defamed and persecuted through the horrific and inhumane situation that this method of "instruction" is imparting.

Take advantage of your library, online resources, and thrift stores/homeschool libraries. Depending on the ages of your kids, I'm sure plenty on here would be able to point you to some awesome sites for printouts and games.

Excellent, thank you.

I need to find resources in my area. Online searching for all of this has kept me up for nearly a week straight, apologies if I ramble some.

This has been my intention for a very long time, after raising my kids then having them taken away, now that they've come back and I've received the go-ahead, I simply wish to go about it all in the right way and in the best way possible for the children. Too much upset for far too long, the light at the end of this stage's tunnel has got me somewhat excited.

I did mail the Intent form today, because when I go to get the withdrawal forms, which I have seen copies of online, there seems to be no way to withdraw w/o having a transferral in place.

I have taken advantage of the library immensely, as well as everything that I can find online, we've amassed an extensive home library and resources, activities, sets of worksheets, workbooks, study aids, and much more. This has all been in the works for a long time, only the go-ahead from other members of the family scared to take the plunge have kept us from moving forward. That consent has now been given after seeing firsthand the perils faced in the current situation, and I wish to make all necessary steps to bring this all full circle and be a family unit again. For my 9 and 7 year old, this is what they've been waiting and waiting to see for years as well. It truly is a blessed time, and any mis-steps now would be really detrimental.

The intent of the HSLDA comment is a wholly legal one. I'm somewhat disconcerted at the thought of being told something legally that I am unprepared for and perhaps ought to have some sort of legal backbone in place for any such unforeseens.

I am under the impression that the withdrawal forms are to be had at the school itself as this is where I filled out the enrollment forms 4 months ago. I scheduled an appointment with the schools principal for this Thursday. Perhaps tomorrow I will visit the Superintendent's office downtown. Presumably inquiring there will not give anyone else the impression or feeling that any toes are being stepped upon, this is truly my main concern as it's known how people can become vindictive when in positions of authority on occasion. *deep breath* So, off we go!

Wow, I wish I'd found the local rep before ... I found them, called them, and was informed that having filed the letter of intent, no matter when during the school year, is half the "battle" (I really do not see it as a <i>battle</I> per se), the other half being writing a letter stating one's intent to wthdraw, and delivering it to the school itself.

Exactly what I needed to know, and we were added to a wonderful community of homeschoolers on top of that. WONDERFUL!!

Searching these forums more as well, seeing how many have already posed the same or very similar concerns/questions, I appreciate it greatly.

Thank you!

Yay! I'm so glad you found support nearby! It truly does make all the difference when just starting out!

I wish you the best!