You must send a one-time written notice of intent to your local school superintendent. This notice needs to be sent within 10 days of you starting to homeschool your student. It is not necessary to use any particular form, but HSLDA members may wish to use our specially designed Maine Notice of Intent Form located below. Your notice of intent must include the following information:

• name, address, and signature of the parent or guardian,
• student’s name and age,
• the date that home instruction began (or will begin),
• a statement that you will provide instruction to your student for at least 175 days a year,
• a statement that you will cover the required subjects, and
• a statement that you will submit a year-end assessment for your student.

Parents administer standardized testing  but don’t need to submit results to anyone. We recommend it as a process of  monitoring and adjusting, seeing where your child is performing at the national level, and making adjustments for the following year. Charleston Academy will provide links to  standardized testing companies that provide this service.

Dr. Bryan Ray’s stats show that  homeschoolers outperform their public schooled counterparts by 37 points on  average—even if the homeschooling parent never graduated from high school.  Additional research and information are available at NHERI.org. 

For your child’s year-end assessment (due by September 1st), you can:

• Submit the official results of a national standardized achievement test.
• Submit the results of a test developed by local school officials (homeschoolers do not commonly use this type of assessment).
• Submit a letter stating that your child’s progress has been reviewed and is acceptable. This letter can be from a Maine-certified teacher, a support group that has a Maine-certified teacher helping to conduct your child’s review or an advisory board that includes two homeschool teachers and one school official and that you arrange with your school district before the school year begins. The advisory board option is not commonly used. 

You taught your children to talk, walk, eat, have manners…
Who better to teach them then someone who deeply cares?
Curriculum outlines the scope and sequence, but parents impart the love of learning, build character, and curiosity. If you don’t know the material, learn together.
Affirming interaction helps students succeed. 
Other families study the same material, which motivates both students and parents.

Colleges seek home schooled students, because they tend to be academically advanced, engaged in education, self-governed leaders, focused and specializing in topics which interest them. High school students can take PSEO courses and complete up to 2 years of college while still in high school. These students don’t need entrance exams.

Schools use 7 hours a day because of wasted time. Children spend time waiting and distracted. Home school families generally spend 3-4 hours per day. Beside study time, learning happens in the car, at the store, everywhere and anytime they are receptive. Students work on their assignments independently part of the time - not so distracted by other students! Then they have free time to enjoy family and other children!

Students should complete core classes either at home or a combination of Charleston Academy and home. Electives can also be completed both at home and at the Academy. Education should happen at home with Charleston Academy classes reinforcing, encouraging, and supporting families.

9:00am - 9:30am Chapel 
9:30am - 10:30am First Class 
10:30am - 11:30am Second Class 11:30am - 12:00pm Lunch 
12:00pm - 1:00pm Third Class 
1:00pm - 2:00pm Fourth Class 2:00pm - 3:00pm Fifth Class 
3:00pm Dismissal 

We added 2 extra classes in case we miss some!

No, distance learning is considered an ineffective envrionment for children to learn. Screen time is detrimental to their development. Children need face to face interactions and opportunities to ask questions.

Usually 5-15, but depends on the class.

Most classes will have roughly 3 different ages together. This is an intentional design because student thrive in a community. Older students will step up to be a leader, like a big brother or sister helping other students. Younger children respect the older children and tend to try harder. When all children are the same age, the group tends to conform to being the same, like pounding down the nail that sticks out. We encourage the children to all do their best and support each other. This attitude of cooperation is often evident at home.

No. We encourage family involvement. Talk in the car and be a part at school!

Parent Partners are an important part of Charleston Academy! You can supervise lunch, assist in classes, organize field trips, greet at the Welcome Desk, set up, teardown, and lead small group discussions at Chapel or Worldview. Parents also make great instructors!

Dr. Bryan Ray’s stats show that  homeschoolers outperform their public schooled counterparts by 37 points on  average—even if the homeschooling parent never graduated from high school.  Additional research and information are available at NHERI.org. 

Yes, the Department of Education defines your  self-hiring requirement as simply “qualified to teach.” We have great freedom in Maine for  homeschooling, and with great freedom comes great responsibility. 

When that classroom is built on labs instead of lectures, when the classroom is built on a Socratic methodology that draws out critical thinking skills and engages students with the subject matter, and when the classroom offers an opportunity for iron to sharpen iron, these are powerful benefits to the homeschool community. 

Colleges and universities are now actively recruiting homeschoolers for their academic performance, commitment to volunteerism, social maturity, and real-world experience. Homeschooling is creating a solid foundation for marketable skill sets.