Yes! For a long time, the most commonly expressed concern about homeschooling was whether homeschooled children would be disadvantaged socially. However, studies have found that homeschoolers do well socially, emotionally, and psychologically.

And opportunities for social enrichment continue to grow! With the rise in homeschooling popularity, there are literally countless ways homeschooling families can find socialization opportunities—through volunteering, co-ops, sports, youth groups, community orchestras, part-time jobs, and the list goes on. In fact, for many families, the hardest part is deciding which activities to say no to.

No, you don't! While some states have a special homeschooling option for parents who are certified teachers, no state requires that every homeschooling parent be a certified teacher.

In fact, research has found little difference between the academic achievement of homeschooled students whose parents were certified teachers and those whose parents were not. They both scored on average much higher than their counterparts in public school.

However, be aware that some states require homeschool parents to meet certain qualifications (such as having a high school diploma or its equivalent). You can find homeschool laws (including any qualification requirements) for all 50 states and US territories on our interactive legal map.

No. In general, homeschooling only becomes an issue in a divorce case when the parents cannot agree with each other about the children’s education, and it is typically only one of the many issues over which parents disagree. HSLDA supports the right of parents to determine how their children are educated and therefore does not choose sides if one parent wants to homeschool and the other does not.

When a divorce occurs after the parents have joined HSLDA as a married couple, and the parents disagree on homeschooling, HSLDA cannot ethically represent either member against the other due to the conflict of interest between the parents.

While HSLDA does not represent families in custody disputes, we can provide a packet containing research on domestic and custody cases involving homeschooling to our members. If you are an HSLDA member, you can contact us to request the packet.

HSLDA offered one-on-one consulting as a part of our member benefits until April 2024.

We then began transitioning to offering exclusive how-to-homeschool guidance via member-only webinars, master classes, articles, and other resources that can be accessed 24/7 on our website. We still have a team of Educational Specialists that produce exclusive content for our members and speak at events.

Our decision to move away from educational consulting arose from the tremendous growth of homeschooling since 2020. New sources of consulting and support are developing for home-educating families as more parents realize, “I can homeschool, too!” At the same time, with homeschooling’s rising profile, we are seeing increased scrutiny by legislatures and the media.

HSLDA’s core mission has always been legal advocacy for homeschool freedom. As new challenges to this freedom emerge, we want to sharpen and strengthen our advocacy: from defending member families whose right to homeschool is being challenged, to supporting favorable legislation, to encouraging research about homeschooling’s benefits, to representing homeschooling to journalists and the media, to building solidarity with homeschoolers around the globe.

Be assured that our legal consulting will continue. This has been our mainstay member benefit since our founding in 1983. It’s even in our name: Home School Legal Defense Association! You can always call or email with your homeschooling-related legal questions, and a member of our legal team will provide personal assistance.