Wisconsin law requires students between the ages of 6 and 18 to attend school. If a child will be 6 by September 1, school is required for that year. Many students begin school at 5 (the usual age for kindergarten), but that is the parents' choice.
Homeschooling parents can choose to begin formally educating their 5-year-old child. However, they may choose to delay formal school until the year in which the child turns 6 by September 1. If the child turns 6 after September 1, formal schooling does not have to begin that year but can begin the following year.
Education law in Wisconsin also requires 875 hours of instruction per academic year which usually takes place over the course of 175 days, with 5 hours of instruction per day. Parents providing home instruction to their children must also instruct for 875 hours. Their academic year does not have to mirror the public school's academic year.
For example, parents could choose to have an academic year of August through April, with three full months of summer vacation. Another example would be parents choosing to homeschool year round, from January through December, taking a week's break each month. Other creative options would be having longer or shorter school days or teaching on Saturdays and not having school on Mondays.The important thing is to complete the 875 hours of teaching within your school year.
Homeschooling Wisconsin parents do not have to use a state-approved curriculum. Their curriculum choice can be religious or non-sectarian.
Some parents choose to use a curriculum that is very similar to the one used at public school, while others buy a curriculum for their child's grade level that includes books for the entire academic year. Other parents use a homeschool online program or design their own curriculum based on the state's learning standards. Other parents may choose one curriculum for language arts, another for math and yet another one for science. The choice belongs to the homeschooling family.