Getting Started
How to Start Homeschooling in Arizona: The Complete Guide (2026)
Homeschooling in Arizona, step by step: the affidavit, ARS §15-802, the five required subjects, ESA funding of ~$7,000-$8,000, curriculum picks, and finding community.
14 min read · Updated
Spotlighted programs in this guide
FeaturedCULTIVATE hybrid education
Our mission is to enhance a family's homeschooling journey in a collaborative model, cultivating a child's cognition, creativity and character so they can identify their God-given purpose. We offer small ratios of students to teachers, not exceeding 9:1, and facilitate skill-based learning groups as opposed to traditional grade groups. Additionally, we host frequent field trips, nature adventures and special events.
FeaturedLittle Light Academy
Little Light Academy is a two-day microschool designed for students working at a 3rd–5th grade academic skill level, where learning is personalized, hands-on, and meaningful. Through small class sizes, project-based learning, and engaging instruction, students are encouraged to grow academically while building confidence, curiosity, and a genuine love of learning. Led by a certified teacher with over 15 years of combined tutoring and classroom experience, Little Light Academy partners with homeschooling families to provide individualized instruction in math, reading, writing, science, social studies, and life skills. Our goal is to create a nurturing learning environment where every child is known, supported, and inspired to reach their full potential.
FeaturedLittle Risers Schoolhouse
Little Risers Schoolhouse is a faith-based, back-to-basics school located in Surprise. Our mission is to help raise the next generation to know the Lord, in education, and life skills! We begin each day with the pledges, Bible time, and standard-based academics to build a strong educational foundation for every child. After academics, we transition into hands-on life skills learning, where students engage in meaningful activities such as gardening, caring for our farm animals, cooking, sewing, and more. Our goal is to nurture the whole child academically, spiritually, and practically by helping them grow in knowledge, character, and real-life skills. We offer a full-time program Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM, with before and aftercare available for families who need additional flexibility.
FeaturedTrinity Arch Preparatory School for Boys
A Christian hybrid small school where boys grow in wisdom, character, and purpose. We partner with Christian homeschooling families to provide an exceptional education for boys ages 10–18. Through small tutorial groups, outstanding male mentors, rigorous academics including dual enrollment opportunities for high school students, daily physical training, and more than 15 expeditions each year, boys develop the confidence, discipline, and leadership needed to flourish. School at Trinity Arch looks different from a traditional classroom. Boys spend their days in small tutorial groups with expert tutors who know them personally, engage in rigorous academics, participate in Socratic discussions, pursue independent "Deep Think" projects, play chess, train physically each day, and explore Arizona through expeditions. Our goal is to cultivate young men who love learning, embrace responsibility, and are prepared to lead lives of faith, service, and purpose. Every family is different. We offer flexible scheduling options and work alongside parents to design a program that complements their homeschooling journey. Many families qualify for significant scholarship assistance, making a Trinity Arch education more affordable than they might expect. We intentionally limit enrollment so every boy is truly known, challenged, and encouraged. If you're looking for a Christ-centered community where your son can flourish academically, physically, socially, and spiritually, we'd love to meet your family.
FeaturedWest Valley Crusaders
Not Just a Co-op — A Faith-Filled Farm Community Where Kids Grow 🌿 Crusaders Fall Enrollment is Now Open! Proudly serving homeschool families for 7 years with faith, community, learning, and hands-on farm enrichment. Looking for more than just a co-op? Crusaders is a Christian homeschool enrichment program where children learn, grow, build friendships, and experience education in a meaningful, hands-on way. At Crusaders, families love our: ✨ Established 7-year program ✨ Flexible 1, 2, or 3-day options ✨ Kindergarten through upper elementary enrichment ✨ Farm life, animals, science, history, art, literature, Bible, and more ✨ Math placement and structured academic support ✨ Festivals, field trips, clubs, tutoring, and community events ✨ A welcoming environment where kids are known, loved, and encouraged We are rooted in faith, growing in knowledge, and committed to creating a place where children can thrive academically, socially, spiritually, and creatively. Fall classes are filling quickly, and some spots are almost waitlisted. 📞 To register or learn more, call 602.540.3388 for a quick phone informational. 🌐 westvalleycrusaders.com Crusaders Farm Academy Rooted in Faith. Growing in Knowledge
FeaturedYoung Creatives
We offer both classes and Microschool options for students who want to explore creativity based on Christian principles. Students explore painting ,drawing ,multiple media,sculpture,sewing,ceramic painting and other fantastic artisan crafts. We teach students actual fine art skills but break steps down to simple instructions students in a fun and encouraging way. Students are taught to work as a team,stay focused and do their best work. Happy accidents are ways to grow and helps them build perseverance through encouragement . We also offer an online option for students that need that flexibility.
Arizona is one of the easiest states in the country to homeschool in, and one of the most generous. One notarized form filed with your county makes you legal, the state never asks for test scores or portfolios, and the Empowerment Scholarship Account puts roughly $7,000 to $8,000 per child per year on the table if you want it. This guide walks through the whole decision: the legal steps, the money, the curriculum, the community, and the mistakes new Arizona homeschool families make.
The Short Version
If you just want the checklist:
- Decide between the two legal pathways: traditional homeschool (ARS §15-802) or ESA contract student. They are different, and you cannot be both.
- If homeschooling traditionally, file a notarized Affidavit of Intent to Homeschool with your County School Superintendent within 30 days of starting.
- If your child is currently enrolled in public school, notify the school in writing that you are withdrawing them.
- Teach five required subjects: reading, grammar, math, social studies, and science.
- Choose a curriculum, find a community, and start.
Everything below is the longer, more honest version of those five steps.
Step 1: Understand Arizona's Two Legal Pathways
This is the decision most new families don't realize they're making, and it matters more than any curriculum choice.
Pathway A: Traditional homeschooler. You file the Affidavit of Intent under ARS §15-802. You are privately educating your child with your own money. The state requires the affidavit and the five subjects - nothing else. No testing, no reporting, no portfolio reviews, no oversight.
Pathway B: ESA student. You sign a contract with the Arizona Department of Education's Empowerment Scholarship Account program. The state deposits roughly $7,000 to $8,000 per year (more for students with disabilities) into a ClassWallet account for tuition, curriculum, tutors, and approved expenses. In exchange you agree to spend only on allowable items, keep receipts, and file quarterly expense reports.
You cannot be both. ESA students are legally "ESA contract students," not homeschoolers, and the ESA contract requires you to withdraw your affidavit. Read Homeschool vs. ESA in Arizona before you sign anything - it is the most-read guide on this site for a reason.
A quick rule of thumb: if you want maximum freedom and don't need the money, file the affidavit. If you want funding for curriculum, tutors, a microschool, or therapies, ESA is usually worth the paperwork. Many families start on the affidavit and move to ESA later, or run ESA for one child and the affidavit for another.
Step 2: Withdraw from Public School (If Enrolled)
If your child is currently enrolled in a public or charter school, send written notice to the school that you are withdrawing your child for home instruction. Email is fine; keep a copy. There is no state approval process and no waiting period - the school cannot deny your withdrawal.
If your child has never been enrolled (a kindergartner starting fresh, or a child under 6), there is nothing to withdraw from. Arizona's compulsory attendance age is 6 to 16.
Step 3: File the Affidavit of Intent
Within 30 days of beginning home instruction, file a notarized Affidavit of Intent to Homeschool with your County School Superintendent. Every Arizona county has its own form and submission process - Maricopa, Pima, Pinal, and the rest all handle it a little differently, and most now accept online filing.
Two details trip people up:
The certified birth certificate. State law requires a certified copy of your child's birth certificate (or other approved proof of birth) filed with the affidavit. A photocopy of a hospital souvenir certificate won't work. Order certified copies early if you don't have one.
File once, not yearly. The affidavit stays active until you terminate it, your child turns 16, or you move to a different county and re-file there. You do not renew it each school year.
The Arizona Homeschool Affidavit Filing Guide has county-by-county forms, the birth certificate workaround, and the 30-day timing rules. The full Arizona Homeschool Laws guide covers everything else the law touches.
Step 4: Know What the Law Actually Requires
Arizona's requirements fit on an index card:
- Five subjects: reading, grammar, mathematics, social studies, and science. That's the complete list.
- No testing. Arizona does not require standardized tests, evaluations, or portfolio reviews for affidavit homeschoolers.
- No hours or days. No minimum instructional hours, no required school calendar.
- No curriculum approval. You choose everything. Faith-based curriculum is entirely your prerogative.
- No teacher qualifications. Parents do not need a teaching certificate, degree, or background check to homeschool their own children.
That's it. Families moving from states like New York or Pennsylvania are often genuinely surprised.
Step 5: Decide Whether to Apply for ESA
If you want state funding, apply for the Empowerment Scholarship Account at any point in the year - there is no application window or deadline for most students. Rough award amounts for 2025-26:
- Students without disabilities: approximately $7,000 to $8,000 per year, varying by grade.
- Students with disabilities: significantly more, scaled by disability category, sometimes $15,000 to $40,000+.
Funds arrive quarterly in ClassWallet, the state's payment platform. You can pay registered vendors directly or buy approved items and request reimbursement. The Arizona ESA Application Guide walks the application step by step, and the ESA funding dates guide explains when deposits actually land.
Two cautions before you apply. First, the affidavit and ESA are mutually exclusive - signing the ESA contract ends your homeschool affidavit. Second, ESA is public money with real rules: allowable expense categories, receipts, quarterly reporting, and audits. The ESA Parent Handbook guide is the plain-English version of the current rules.
Step 6: Choose a Curriculum (or Don't, Yet)
New homeschoolers overspend on curriculum more reliably than anything else. Arizona's ESA covers curriculum purchases, which makes it even easier to overbuy. A saner approach:
Start lighter than you think. Especially for K-3, a solid math program, lots of reading aloud, and time outside beats a boxed all-in-one you and your kid grow to resent by October.
Match the curriculum to your actual life. Working parents often do better with open-and-go programs like Master Books or The Good and the Beautiful. Parents who love teaching gravitate to Sonlight or classical programs like Memoria Press. Our Best Christian Homeschool Curriculum guide compares the major options honestly, and the curriculum comparison chart puts them side by side.
Use the directory. Arizona has hundreds of tutors, co-ops, microschools, and enrichment programs - the programs listed below this guide are a starting point. Many families end up "homeschooling" with a tutor for math, a co-op day for science and friends, and ESA covering most of it.
Step 7: Find Your People
Homeschooling in Arizona is not a solitary activity anymore. The state's community is large, organized, and mostly welcoming to newcomers:
- Co-ops - parent-run groups meeting weekly for classes and friendship. Most cost $100 to $400 per year. See the Phoenix Christian co-ops guide and the statewide groups guide.
- Hybrid programs - two or three campus days with paid teachers, the rest at home. The Arizona hybrid programs hub lists them.
- Microschools - full-time small schools, usually ESA-funded. The microschools hub covers the state.
- Sports and enrichment - homeschool leagues like EVAC and CYAA, plus hundreds of ESA-approved enrichment vendors.
Step 8: Set Up Record Keeping (Lightly)
Arizona requires no records from affidavit homeschoolers - but keep them anyway, especially for high school. A simple binder or spreadsheet with the curriculum used each year, samples of work, and a transcript-in-progress by 9th grade will save you when college applications or a return to school come up. Parent-issued diplomas are fully recognized in Arizona; our homeschool record keeping guide covers the tools.
What It Costs
Bare-bones homeschooling with library books and free resources runs a few hundred dollars a year. A typical Christian family with a purchased curriculum, a co-op, and some activities spends $1,600 to $3,500 per child. With ESA, most families' out-of-pocket cost drops close to zero. The real cost of homeschooling in Arizona has the full breakdown, and yes - people ask - you can get "paid" to homeschool in Arizona in the sense that ESA funding covers nearly all of it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to the questions below are covered in depth in the FAQ section of this page, but the short versions:
Is homeschooling legal in Arizona? Yes, explicitly, under ARS §15-802. Arizona is one of the least-regulated homeschool states in the country.
How do I legally start homeschooling in Arizona? File a notarized Affidavit of Intent with your County School Superintendent within 30 days of starting, and withdraw your child from any current school in writing.
Do I need to be a certified teacher? No. Arizona sets no parent qualifications.
Can I homeschool and still use ESA? Not simultaneously - ESA students are a separate legal category. You choose one pathway per child per year.
What if I want to stop homeschooling? Terminate the affidavit with your county and enroll in any school. Arizona schools accept homeschool students back at any grade.
Your First Two Weeks: A Realistic Plan
Week 1. Pick your pathway (affidavit vs. ESA). Withdraw from school if enrolled. Get the birth certificate together. File the affidavit. Do not buy curriculum yet.
Week 2. Visit one co-op or hybrid program - every one listed in the directory below welcomes visitors. Borrow or trial one math and one reading program. Read aloud a lot. Let your child decompress if they're coming out of a hard school situation; a few unstructured weeks cost nothing academically.
Then build from there. Arizona gives you the freedom to do this well, the funding to do it affordably, and a community big enough that you will not be doing it alone.
More programs in this guide
Frequently Asked Questions
Is homeschooling legal in Arizona?▼
How do I legally start homeschooling in Arizona?▼
Do I need to be a certified teacher to homeschool in Arizona?▼
What subjects are required for Arizona homeschoolers?▼
Can I homeschool and use ESA at the same time in Arizona?▼
How much does it cost to homeschool in Arizona?▼
Part of the Laws & getting started hub
Arizona Homeschool Laws
The affidavit, ARS §15-802, required subjects, and how ESA changes your legal classification.
More from the Laws & getting started hub
- Homeschool vs. ESA in Arizona: Know the Legal Difference (2026)
Homeschooling (ARS §15-802) and ESA-funded education are two different legal pathways in Arizona. Here's how they differ, why it matters, and how to choose.
- Arizona Homeschool Laws: The Complete Guide for Christian Families (2026)
Arizona homeschool law explained for Christian families: the affidavit, the 30-day rule, required subjects, testing, ESA vs. homeschool, and returning to public school.
- Arizona Homeschool Affidavit: 2026 Filing Guide
How to file the Arizona homeschool affidavit correctly: county-specific forms, the certified birth certificate rule, the 30-day deadline, and why ESA and affidavit are separate legal paths.
- The Real Cost of Homeschooling in Arizona (2026 Breakdown)
What homeschooling actually costs in Arizona: $400-$900 bare-bones, $1,600-$3,500 typical, plus co-op dues, tutor rates, and how ESA covers the bill.
This guide is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Confirm current rules with the Arizona Department of Education before acting.