Homeschool by State
Homeschooling in Montana
What to know in Montana
Applies to parents instructing their child, stepchild, or ward in the parent's residence.
Compulsory attendance age
This is part of your state's rules.
Read the explanation
Instruction is required for a child who is 7 or older before the first school day in a school fiscal year until the later of the child's 16th birthday or completion of eighth-grade work, subject to statutory exceptions.
Annual notification to county superintendent
This is part of your state's rules.
Read the explanation
Parents must notify the county superintendent where the home school is located each school fiscal year (July 1 through June 30) of the student's attendance. The statute does not establish a statewide calendar filing date, so parents must verify local county notification procedures.
Attendance recordkeeping
This is part of your state's rules.
Read the explanation
Parents must maintain student attendance records and provide them to the county superintendent upon request.
Minimum instructional hours
This is part of your state's rules.
Read the explanation
Instruction must meet statutory aggregate hours: 720 hours for grades 1 to 3, and 1,080 hours for grades 4 to 12 (with kindergarten set at 360 half-time or 720 full-time hours). Maintaining a practical hours log is recommended rather than assuming a fixed number of days.
Organized course of study in basic subjects
This is part of your state's rules.
Read the explanation
The home school must provide an organized course of study covering subjects included in the state's basic public school instructional program.
Parental authority over curriculum and evaluation
This is part of your state's rules.
Read the explanation
Parents retain legal control over educational philosophy, instructional materials, curriculum, textbooks, time, place, method, and evaluation.
Immunization and facility health and safety exemption
This is part of your state's rules.
Read the explanation
Under a 2025 statutory amendment separating home school and nonpublic school rules, home schools are no longer subject to the immunization-record or building health-and-safety provisions of section 20-5-109.