Almost time to file Private Affidavite for California...

[tammyw]

This will be our very first time filing in California (we were in Hawaii last year). I asked about this previously here and have been informed it's very easy - just fill out on the online form and keep an attendance record.

Well my method of attendance has been to have a daytimer - each day I write very general notes about what we did that day e.g. Cursive, Spelling, History, etc. #1 - is that enough when it comes to keeping "attendance"?

#2 - there is a homeschool co-op group here that I joined. This Friday they are having an "informational" time for first-timers filling out the paperwork (private school affidavit). Unfortunately we have something going on Friday that I'd prefer to do if possible. But I wanted to ask - is there something specific I need to know before filling out the paperwork? Are there any tips/tricks? Would anyone possibly be willing to give me a little hand holding on this?

[yllek]

Subbing.

It's my first time too. Thanks for starting this thread!

[AJP]

HSC has a step-by-step guide to filling it out here: http://www.hsc.org/linebyline.php
And some more info about the process here: http://www.hsc.org/legalprivateschoo...php#afteroct15

As for attendance, you can just have a calendar of school days for each child (like a blank attendance form, can find those online probably) and write "present unless marked otherwise", file it with your paperwork. It's extremely unlikely you'll ever have to show it to anyone.

[Lillian J]

Originally Posted by tammyw

Well my method of attendance has been to have a daytimer - each day I write very general notes about what we did that day e.g. Cursive, Spelling, History, etc. #1 - is that enough when it comes to keeping "attendance"?

All that's required in the way of attendance is a checkmark in a register or on a calendar as to when the child was *absent* from school, and being absent is a pretty unlikely scenario. You don't need to keep any records whatsoever of what you're doing, and should never show such records to any authorities, because they're not required by law.

You might want to just kick back read through the HSC section about private schools before even beginning to deal with the affidavit - it will give you ease and confidence. Lillian

[tammyw]

Thanks for the information so far. I'll go ahead and look through those links.

One thing regarding attendance - when you go away on vacation - how do you handle things like that? Is that considered "absence"? Another thing - we are a "schooling" all the time kind of family, meaning we're always reading, watching educational videos, listening to educational cds in the car, etc., including most weekends. I feel like all those extra days we do work far outweigh any "vacation" days we take, but just wondering how most of you handle that?

[Lillian J]

Originally Posted by tammyw

One thing regarding attendance - when you go away on vacation - how do you handle things like that? Is that considered "absence"? Another thing - we are a "schooling" all the time kind of family, meaning we're always reading, watching educational videos, listening to educational cds in the car, etc., including most weekends. I feel like all those extra days we do work far outweigh any "vacation" days we take, but just wondering how most of you handle that?

I never considered my child absent when we were on vacation - those are some of the most valuable educational experiences of all. If your child's school goes to Wherever, and he goes along, he's not absent. And it sounds as if your child will never have any absences at all - mine never did. - Lillian

[tammyw]

Okay, I will get a standard "attendance record only" and start using that. I'll keep my journal for my own purposes.

I haven't made my way through all of those two documents yet (got a bit overwhelmed last night, lol).

Does everyone have letterhead and envelopes printed? Or just design something on the computer?

[AJP]

Letterhead and envelopes? Heavens, no. I've never had to correspond with anyone as a "private school". It's really quite simple to comply with the legal requirements. Were you maybe seeing that on the part about filing a "statement in lieu"? You don't have to do that if you file the PSA online (the statement in lieu can be filed instead of the online PSA if you have an objection to the electronic form for some reason), you won't have to send anything else to the state, or anyone else for that matter.

[tammyw]

I saw it on the link at the top of this thread. I'll admit some of the details in those two links above had my head spinning! Last year in Hawaii, all we had to do was submit a VERY simple form to the local school district. That seemed like a piece of cake in comparison!

http://www.hsc.org/linebyline.php

1. Name of School

Enter the name you have chosen for your school. Any name you choose is permissible, although you may wish to use a name that is business-like and professional. "Cutesy" names may draw attention or unwarranted scrutiny to your school. This name should be used on all correspondence concerning the school. We strongly recommend that you either purchase printed letterhead and envelopes or prepare letterhead on your computer for you to use in correspondence on school matters. You need not worry about trademark issues or whether your name is unique unless you plan to operate it as a business; seek competent legal advice if you do.

[AJP]

I suppose if one was withdrawing a student from school to homeschool with a PSA, the letterhead and envelopes would help deflect the hairy eyeball when sending correspondence for the withdrawal and request of records (not that the hairy eyeball is legally warranted, but some districts tend to overstep their bounds and make things more complicated than the education code requires). But outside of that situation, I don't know what else it would be needed for in an official capacity.

[Lillian J]

Tammy, the issue of using letterhead stationery is simply a tip for making correspondence with some local school or other bureaucrat go most smoothly. If you're withdrawing a child from your local school, for instance, and you want to make that formal by writing to inform them and asking for the cumulative folder to get the records closed, so that they know not to call your home and ask why your child is not at school, it may look more official to her if it's on letterhead. Oftentimes, clerks will just ignore requests from obvious home based private schools for cumulative records, so making them look more businesslike can help. No biggie. You're not going to have to deal with anything other than filling out the affidavit, which is no big deal - the reason there are detailed instructions in the HSC site for how to fill it out is simply that it's the same form a commercial private school fills out, so there could be a question or two that might not be that obvious to you, so those instructions can just simplify the process. - Lilian

[tammyw]

Thank you. That makes me feel a lot better!

[rsps]

I made some letterhead in Micorsoft Word, but have never had the need to use it!!