Missouri at a glance
| What | The rule |
|---|---|
| Hours | At least 1,000 hours of instruction a year. At least 600 of them in reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies and science (or related academic courses suited to the child’s age and ability). At least 400 of those 600 at the regular homeschool location. |
| Who it covers | Children from age 7 until the district’s compulsory attendance age. The hours and records requirements stop at age 16. |
| What you file | Nothing. Missouri has no notice of intent, and the optional declaration of enrollment was abolished in 2025 (Senate Bill 63). |
| What you keep | A plan book, diary or other written record of the subjects taught and activities engaged in; a portfolio of samples of the child’s academic work; and a record of evaluations of academic progress. Or other written, credible evidence equivalent to those three. |
| Who checks | No one reviews the records each year. Home school enforcement and records are subject to review only by the local prosecuting attorney, and a daily log showing a program that meets the law is a defense to any prosecution or educational-neglect charge. |
| The school year | Missouri’s school year runs July 1 to June 30. For high school credit, a course is 100 hours or more of instruction. |
This summarizes Missouri's homeschool law as of November 9, 2026. Laws change and districts read them differently: check the current text and your district's instructions, and ask a homeschool association in Missouri when something is unclear.
The three totals
- 1,000 hours of instruction in the year. Any subject, any place.
- 600 of them in reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies and science, or academic courses related to those subjects and consonant with the child's age and ability.
- 400 of those 600 at the regular home school location.
The requirements apply from age 7 until age 16; the statute says they do not apply to any pupil sixteen or older. Keeping the log through high school still pays: Missouri counts a high school credit as 100 hours or more of instruction in a course, and a transcript is built from the hours.
The records the statute names
As evidence that the child is receiving regular instruction, the parent maintains either:
- a plan book, diary or other written record indicating the subjects taught and the activities engaged in, a portfolio of samples of the child's academic work, and a record of evaluations of the child's academic progress; or
- other written or credible evidence equivalent to those three.
A daily log is the simplest form of the first: the date, each subject, a few words on the lesson, the minutes and where it took place. The statute makes the production of such a log, showing a program that meets the requirements, a defense to any prosecution under the compulsory attendance law and to any charge of educational neglect. Enforcement and records are subject to review only by the local prosecuting attorney.
Nothing to file
Missouri has never required a notice of intent to homeschool. From 1986 to 2025 parents could file an optional declaration of enrollment with the county recorder of deeds or the district, and some districts treated it as mandatory; Senate Bill 63 (2025) abolished it. The same bill requires a public school to remove a child from its rolls promptly when the parents give written notice that the child will be educated another lawful way, and opens public school athletics and activities to homeschool students who meet the requirements.
Home school or FPE school
Since 2024 Missouri law describes two kinds of home-based schools with the same hours and records. A home school (section 167.012) does not enroll children who take part in the MOScholars program (the state's education savings accounts). A family-paced education (FPE) school (section 167.013) may. Families using MOScholars funds are FPE schools; everyone else is a home school. Both offer at least 1,000 hours, 600 in the core subjects and 400 at the regular location, and both keep the plan book, portfolio and evaluations.
A pace that reaches 1,000
Over 180 school days, 1,000 hours is about 5 hours and 33 minutes a day, and the 600 core hours about 3 hours and 20 minutes. A four-day week over 36 weeks (144 days) needs just under 7 hours a day. Missouri sets yearly totals, not a daily minimum, so a short day in October can be made up in March. Because the year runs July 1 to June 30 under the compulsory attendance statute, summer lessons count.
How My Award Tracker counts the Missouri year
A Missouri child's dashboard shows three meters: hours of instruction against 1,000, core subjects against 600 (Math, Reading & Writing, Science and History & Social Studies lessons), and days of instruction for your own planning. The year record prints the daily log of subjects and activities the statute asks for, hours by subject, reading by title and the work samples you attached, which together are the plan book, the portfolio and the evaluations in one place.
Mark a child as homeschooled, pick Missouri and the month your school year starts, and the targets fill in. Log each lesson by subject in minutes; the dashboard shows the days and hours so far, and the year record PDF prints the daily log, hours by subject, reading by title and signature lines. Every feature is free for your first 30 days; then Plus is $9.99 a year for one child and the Family plan $29.99 for up to 6. Start your Missouri record, or read about homeschool records first.
Keep the record on paper, free
Homeschool attendance and hours log (PDF): one line per lesson with the date, subject, what you covered, the reading by title and the minutes, a page total and signature lines. The same log in Excel counts the school days, the hours and the core-subject hours as you type. Already keep a paper planner? Take a photo of each page in My Award Tracker and the lessons are read into your record; you check every row first.
Other states
- Homeschool record keeping by state: What to keep in every state, how to count days and hours, and a free printable log.
- Pennsylvania: 180 days or 900/990 hours, the portfolio and the June 30 evaluation.
- New York: 900/990 hours, the IHIP, quarterly reports and the annual assessment.
- Georgia: 180 days of 4.5 hours, the Declaration of Intent and the progress report.
Frequently asked questions
Does a co-op class or a field trip count toward the 1,000 hours?
Instruction counts wherever it happens, and the statute does not list activities. Core-subject hours outside your regular homeschool location count toward the 1,000 and toward the 600, but not toward the 400 that must occur at the regular homeschool location, so keep a note of where each lesson took place.
What is a “regular homeschool location”?
The law does not define it; most families treat it as their home. The 400-hour rule only concerns core subjects, so a park day or a museum visit is simply logged where it happened.
Do I have to tell the school district we homeschool?
No. Missouri never required a notice of intent, and the optional declaration of enrollment that some districts treated as mandatory was abolished in 2025 by Senate Bill 63. If you withdraw a child from a public school, give the school written notice that the child will be educated another lawful way; the school must then remove the child from its rolls promptly.
What changed in 2024 and 2025?
In 2024 (House Bill 2287 and Senate Bill 727), Missouri moved the home school rules into section 167.012 and created a second category, the family-paced education (FPE) school, for families whose children take part in the MOScholars program; FPE schools keep the same records and offer the same 1,000, 600 and 400 hours. In 2025, Senate Bill 63 abolished the declaration of enrollment and gave homeschool and FPE students a path to public school sports and activities.
How long should I keep the records?
The statute sets no period. HSLDA recommends keeping at least two full years of records for elementary and middle school, and all four years of high school indefinitely, since a transcript, with 100 hours per credit, is built from them.
How many hours a day is 1,000 hours?
About 5 hours and 33 minutes a day over 180 school days, or 6 hours and 15 minutes over 160 days. The 600 core hours are about 3 hours and 20 minutes a day over 180 days. Missouri sets a yearly total, not a daily minimum.