Homeschooling in Montgomery County MD: What MCPS Families Need to Know

Montgomery County Public Schools is the largest school district in Maryland, serving roughly 160,000 students. It is also one of the most academically competitive systems in the country, and that pressure drives a significant share of its families toward home instruction. Whether your child is drowning in test anxiety, struggling in a placement that does not fit, or you simply want a different educational path, homeschooling in Montgomery County is entirely legal — but the process has specific bureaucratic steps that are easy to get wrong.

Maryland reported 42,151 homeschooled students statewide for 2024-2025. Montgomery County, with its concentration of highly educated, dual-income households, contributes disproportionately to that number. Here is exactly how to do it.

The Legal Foundation: Maryland Law, Not MCPS Policy

This is the most important thing to understand before you call your school's registrar: homeschooling in Maryland is governed by the Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR 13A.10.01), not by MCPS policy. Montgomery County Public Schools can set procedures for how you submit your paperwork, but they cannot impose requirements beyond what state law specifies.

Under Maryland Education Article §7-301, a child is exempt from compulsory attendance at a public school if they are "receiving regular, thorough instruction during the school year in the studies usually taught in the public schools to children of the same age." This exemption is a right, not a privilege you request from a principal or superintendent. You notify the district; you do not ask their permission.

The Two Forms You Need

Montgomery County uses specific forms for home instruction. You will need both:

Form 270-34 — Home Instruction Notification. This is the 15-day notice required under COMAR. You must submit it to the MCPS Department of Special Education and Student Services (or the Home and Hospital program coordinator, depending on your child's status) at least 15 days before you begin home instruction. On this form, you select your supervision option and, if choosing Option 2, identify your umbrella organization by name.

Form 270-36 — Annual Home Instruction Continuation. Filed each subsequent school year to confirm that you are continuing home instruction. MCPS requires this for each year after your initial notification.

MCPS provides these forms as downloadable PDFs. You submit Form 270-34 by mail or in person to the MCPS central administration office, not to your child's school.

Option 1 vs. Option 2 in Montgomery County

Like every Maryland county, MCPS operates under the state's two-pathway system.

Option 1 (MCPS Portfolio Reviews) — A Montgomery County home instruction coordinator reviews your portfolio twice per year, typically at the end of each semester. They assess whether your program demonstrates regular, thorough instruction across all eight required subjects: English, mathematics, science, social studies, art, music, health, and physical education. Reviews happen at a mutually agreeable time and place — often your home or a neutral location.

Under COMAR's anti-overreach provision, MCPS reviewers are legally prohibited from requiring anything beyond what the regulations specify. They cannot demand to see your college transcripts, mandate that you follow the Maryland College and Career Ready Standards, or require daily lesson plans unless you are already using them as part of your program. Their sole job is to determine whether "regular, thorough instruction" is occurring.

Option 2 (Umbrella Supervision) — You join a registered nonpublic entity, which takes over the supervisory role entirely. Your portfolio reviews happen with the umbrella, not with any MCPS official. The umbrella submits annual verification to MCPS confirming your enrollment. Many Montgomery County families prefer this path because it removes the public school apparatus from their child's education completely.

Notable umbrella options serving Montgomery County families include His Academy (Christian, based in the county), Freedom Hill Fellowship (neutral, statewide), and Peaceful Worldschoolers (secular, statewide).

How to Actually Withdraw from MCPS

Filing the Notice of Intent is only half the process. If your child is currently enrolled in an MCPS school, you must also formally withdraw them.

Step 1: Write a withdrawal letter to your child's current principal. The letter does not need to be elaborate. State that you are withdrawing your child from enrollment effective on a specific date and that you are beginning home instruction under COMAR 13A.10.01. Send it via certified mail with a return receipt requested. Keep the receipt.

Step 2: Return school property. Laptops, textbooks, and any other district property must go back. Get a written receipt from the school acknowledging the return.

Step 3: Submit Form 270-34 to MCPS central administration. This goes to the superintendent's office, not to your child's school. File it at least 15 days before you intend to begin instruction. Some families submit the withdrawal letter and the Notice of Intent on the same day.

The 15-day conflict. Many families pulling their child from MCPS mid-year due to bullying, academic crisis, or mental health needs face a painful gap: COMAR says 15 days before instruction begins, but their child cannot safely stay in school for another two weeks. Legal advocates note the 15-day rule lacks clear statutory backing and is a regulatory requirement that many families challenge. The practical safeguard is to file everything simultaneously, start instruction immediately, and keep meticulous daily logs proving education replaced public school attendance from day one.

What the Portfolio Must Cover

For families choosing Option 1, the MCPS portfolio review is your compliance checkpoint. A portfolio that passes review includes:

• A brief overview or table of contents showing what curricula or materials you used for each of the eight mandated subjects
• Three to five dated work samples per subject, distributed across the semester to show continuous instruction (not all from the same week)
• For subjects like physical education, art, and music — activity logs, photos of projects, class attendance records for outside lessons, or program reports from apps like Khan Academy or a music platform

MCPS reviewers look for evidence of breadth and regularity. A portfolio that covers mathematics thoroughly but has a single worksheet for health or music is likely to receive a deficiency notice. You then have 30 days to provide supplementary evidence before the situation escalates.

If you are using an online curriculum like Time4Learning, Khan Academy, or a school-in-a-box provider, the auto-generated progress reports with date stamps and subject breakdowns are excellent additions to your portfolio. Print them, organize them by subject, and bring them to the review.

Standardized Testing Is Optional

Maryland does not require homeschooled students to take standardized tests. MCPS offers voluntary participation in the county's regular standardized testing schedule, but you indicate your preference for this on Form 270-34. You are not required to say yes. Many families prefer private evaluations by certified teachers instead, both to assess academic progress and to generate documentation that can support future college applications.

Montgomery County Families With IEPs

Parents who withdraw an MCPS student with an active IEP need to understand that the district's legal obligation to provide special education services ends at the point of withdrawal. Maryland law does not require the public school system to deliver IEP services to homeschooled students. You may request parentally-placed private school special education services, but these are discretionary and subject to the district's resources and willingness to cooperate.

If your child's IEP failures or the district's non-compliance drove your decision to withdraw, document everything before leaving — all communications with the school, IEP meeting records, notice of procedural safeguards acknowledgments. That documentation matters if there is ever a dispute about the withdrawal's legitimacy or timing.

Starting on Solid Legal Ground

Homeschooling in Montgomery County is absolutely manageable once you understand that MCPS sets the procedural form, but Maryland state law sets the actual rules. The county cannot add requirements on top of COMAR, cannot interrogate your curriculum choices, and cannot delay your child's withdrawal while they "review" your plan.

For families who want a complete, step-by-step guide to the MCPS withdrawal process — including exact wording for your withdrawal letter, a breakdown of Form 270-34's key fields, and a comparative analysis of Option 1 vs. Option 2 for Montgomery County families — the Maryland Legal Withdrawal Blueprint has the full framework.

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