Homeschool record keeping and portfolio: what to keep and a weekly routine

Homeschool record keeping comes down to four things: an attendance or hours log, a few dated work samples in each subject, a reading log, and any test or evaluation results your state asks for. A homeschool portfolio is a chosen set of those records that shows growth over the year, not every page your child ever did. Ten minutes on a Friday is enough to keep it up. What your state actually requires varies a lot, so check your state's rules first.

This post is from Peabody (peabody.kids), a free reading and learning site for kids, free through the end of 2026. It isn't legal advice: we link to HSLDA and a state page we opened on 18 October 2026, and you should check your own state's current rules.

What to keep, at a glance

What does my state require?

It depends entirely on where you live. HSLDA's homeschool laws by state map sorts US states into four bands, from no notice required up to high regulation with extra requirements, and links to a page for each state and territory. Start there, then read your state's own education department page.

HSLDA's state recordkeeping posts give the same general advice for every state. Keep attendance records, the textbooks and workbooks you used, samples of schoolwork, letters with school officials, portfolios and test results. Keep them for at least two years, and keep high school records and proof that you followed the law on file permanently.

A few examples show how different states are, as HSLDA and the states describe them:

• Missouri (children under 16): families keep, but don't submit, a plan book, diary or similar record of subjects and activities, such as a daily log of hours, plus samples of work and academic evaluations, according to HSLDA's Missouri post.
• Maryland: families using the portfolio option keep a portfolio of materials, including the child's writing, worksheets, workbooks, creative work and tests, and the books they read, according to HSLDA's Maryland post.
• Pennsylvania: the state's home education page says an evaluation by a qualified evaluator is the required proof that an appropriate education took place.

Other states ask for very little. Rules change, so check your state's rules each year before you set up a system. If you are in Colorado, our Colorado homeschool requirements post covers that state.

Homeschool attendance: a simple log

Even where nobody asks for it, an attendance log is the record you'll use most. Keep it plain:

A paper notebook, a spreadsheet or a printed calendar all work. Choose the one you'll still be filling in by March. If your state counts hours or days, add them up monthly so the end of the year holds no surprises. Some families count learning outside the table, such as a museum visit or baking with fractions; whether that counts is something to check in your state's rules.

A 10-minute weekly routine

Do it at the same time every week, such as Friday after lunch:

1. Fill in the attendance log for any days you missed (2 minutes).
2. Pick one or two work samples per subject from the week. Date them on the back, or photograph them into one folder per subject (3 minutes).
3. Update the reading log with the week's titles (2 minutes).
4. Copy anything you want from apps before it rolls off. Many show only recent weeks, though Peabody's Learning record page prints any range you pick (2 minutes).
5. Write one sentence on what went well and what to change next week (1 minute).

Once a term, sort the samples down to the best few and add a short note on progress. That sorting is the portfolio.

A sample homeschool portfolio outline by subject

A portfolio should be easy for someone else to flip through in fifteen minutes. A ring binder or one PDF per child, in this order:

1. Cover page: child's name, grade, school year, and your name as the teacher.
2. Summary: subjects taught, curriculum and resources used, total days or hours.
3. Attendance log, or a monthly summary of it.
4. Reading log: the year's books, by month.
5. Language arts: three writing samples (start, middle and end of year), plus spelling or grammar work.
6. Math: a few worksheets or tests from across the year, showing new topics, and a note of the lessons finished.
7. Science: experiment write-ups, notebook pages, photos of builds with what was tested.
8. History and geography: a timeline, maps, a narration or short report.
9. Art, music and physical education: photos of art, a recital programme, sports or activity notes.
10. Field trips and projects: a list, with a photo or ticket for a few.
11. Tests or evaluations, only where your state asks.

Start-middle-end samples do the most work. Three dated pieces of writing show a year's growth more clearly than any list of lessons.

Using Peabody in your homeschool records

Peabody's grown-up view comes with a free family account. It wasn't built as a record-keeping tool, but some of what it shows can go straight into your log and portfolio. Here is what it really shows, and what it doesn't.

The Learning record page (the easy way). For each child there's a "Learning record" page in the grown-up view. Pick a range (this week, last 7 or 30 days, this month, the school year from 1 August, or any two dates up to 400 days) and it lays out a binder-ready sheet: the days with learning, the minutes in each place (Reading, Numbers, Making stories, World, Arcade, everything else), a total, the stories finished with the day and how many reading questions were right, and the math parts finished. There are blank lines to write in learning away from Peabody and a line to sign. Print gives a clean page without the menus; Download hours gives the same days as a spreadsheet file. It's free through the end of 2026, and it only shows what Peabody already counted, so check it against your own log.

What the pages show, if you want to copy by hand (Friday, 5 minutes):

• Minutes, from Time and progress. The last seven days, day by day, split into Reading, Numbers, Arcade, Making stories, World, Chat and Everything else. Only active time counts: the page showing and a tap, key or scroll in the last minute. Copy the Reading, Numbers and World minutes into your attendance log.
• Stories finished and reading checks. The week's reading checks list each story by title, the day, and whether it was passed. For a fuller reading log, use "See their side" to open your child's "Stories I've read" shelf, which lists every library story they have read, newest first. Every library story has a reading level from 1 to 13, so you can note the level beside each title.
• Math. Number answers right, number parts finished this week, and the times-tables grid, one square per fact. A screenshot of the grid once a term makes a clear math page for the portfolio.
• World. Trails finished, land by land (Science, History, Geography and more), with the grade each level is like. That's a list of topics for your science and history pages.

What the making places give you:

• A picture from the Art Studio can be downloaded as an image for the art section.
• A cartoon from Cartoons can be printed.
• A Workbench build ends with a test that has a number, like how many pennies the foil boat held before it sank. A photo plus that number is a ready-made science sample.

What Peabody can't do for your records:

• No transcript or grades. The Learning record is a record of use: days, minutes, stories and math parts. It isn't a grade, a score or a transcript, and it doesn't count time away from Peabody. The Privacy page's "Download data" button is something else: a raw file of everything Peabody keeps about one child, for privacy, not something to hand an evaluator.
• The Time and progress page shows seven days. The Learning record reaches back as far as Peabody has counted, so you don't have to copy weekly.
• No writing samples. Every answer on Peabody is three boxes. A story Peabody makes from your child's idea is written by AI, so it isn't your child's writing; note the idea if you like, but keep their own writing on paper.
• No standards report and no test score. Peabody doesn't map work to state standards or give a score that compares children.

For how Peabody fits a whole week, see using Peabody in your homeschool and the homeschool hub. For the reading side of the log, the free library is where those titles come from, and how long should kids read has minutes by age.

Learn more elsewhere

• HSLDA: homeschool laws by state
• HSLDA: the importance of recordkeeping (one of its state posts; the general advice is the same across states)
• Pennsylvania Department of Education: home education and private tutoring

Questions parents ask

What records should I keep for homeschool?

Keep an attendance or hours log, dated work samples in each subject, a reading log, a list of the curriculum and resources you used, any test or evaluation results your state asks for, and letters with school officials. HSLDA suggests keeping records for at least two years, and high school records permanently. Check your state's rules for what is required where you live.

What goes in a homeschool portfolio?

A cover page, a summary of subjects and resources, the attendance log, a reading log, and a few work samples per subject from the start, middle and end of the year, plus art, field trips and any required tests. It should show growth, not every page.

How do I keep homeschool attendance?

Write the date, the subjects, the minutes and a short note for each school day, on paper or in a spreadsheet. Add up days or hours each month if your state counts them. A weekly catch-up of a few minutes keeps it accurate.

How long should I keep homeschool records?

HSLDA's general advice is at least two years for elementary and middle school records, and permanently for high school records and proof that you followed your state's homeschool law. Your state may ask for more.

Can Peabody be used for homeschool records?

Partly. With a free family account, the grown-up view shows the last seven days of active minutes by area, stories finished and reading checks by title, math answers and parts, World trails finished, and every library story the child has read. The Learning record page prints a sheet for any range up to 400 days (days, minutes by place, stories and math parts finished) and downloads the hours as a spreadsheet, but it is a record of use, not a transcript or a grade. Peabody is free through the end of 2026.