4327R
HOMEBOUND INSTRUCTION REGULATION
Guidelines for Placing a Student on Homebound Instruction
1. There should be a referral from the School Physician or the Director of Pupil Personnel Services. Building
Principals or their designees are charged with the responsibility to verify that parents' requests meet the
requirements established for homebound instruction by the Board. Homebound instruction will commence
forthrightly upon this determination.
2. A copy of the official Homebound Schedule Card will be forwarded to the homebound teacher, the Counselor
and/or the Building Principal, the Attendance Department, the Director of Curriculum and Pupil Personnel
Services, the Assistant Superintendent for Business, and the school nurse-teacher (if a medical referral). No
payment for services to any instructor will be authorized unless a claim form is properly filed in the business
office for services actually rendered.
3. Upon receipt of a copy of the above mentioned card, the Counselor and/or the Principal should:
a. contact the classroom teacher(s) for books and assignments; and
b. have the pupil's folder available for conference with the homebound teacher. The high school or
middle school Counselor should expect the homebound teacher to contact her/him within one week
after a student is placed on homebound.
4. Upon notification by the Counselor that a pupil is on homebound instruction, the teacher of the individual
subject should make available to the Counselor all future assignments and tests, as administered, and
changes in text materials, if any.
5. If the student is from high school, the homebound teacher will pick up all pertinent books and materials at the
high school office. If not a high school student, the teacher contacts the student's teacher for books and
assignments.
6. When homebound instruction is provided, a separate "Home Instruction Register" will be maintained in the
office of the school. The names of students receiving such instruction will be recorded in the Home Instruction
Register and on days on which a student receives at least one hour of Home Instruction may be claimed.
Students should be identified by grade. In preparing the Attendance Report, the attendance of all students
receiving homebound instruction will be added to the attendance of all other students at the same school
level. The entries in the Home Instruction Register of Attendance are to be verified in the same manner as the
regular registers of attendance. All inquiries concerning Home Instruction, pertaining to student accounting,
should be addressed to the Bureau of School Social Services.
7. Upon sending out the progress reports at the end of each marking period, the homebound teacher should
consult the Counselor concerning any negative comments.
8. Periodically there will be an investigation by the Director of Pupil Personnel Services concerning the continued
need of those students with psychological problems receiving homebound instruction. A similar procedure will
be followed by the School Physician in the case of those students who have been placed on homebound
instruction for medical reasons.
9. When a pupil is to return to school, the Director of Pupil Personnel will notify the homebound teacher and the
transfer will be made by the Office of Pupil Personnel Services.
Homebound Teacher
1. To the extent possible, a student's regular homeroom teacher (elementary school) should first be requested to
provide instruction. Next preference is for a teacher in the same grade and the same building. Next preference
is for a teacher in the same grade in another building in our district. Every effort should be made to secure
instruction from teachers working in our school system handling the same area of assigned responsibility or
as close as possible before seeking instructors from substitute lists.
2. At the secondary level (departmentalized) two teachers from the child's regular teachers (one from the Social
Studies/English area and one from the Science/Math area) should first be requested to provide home
instruction. Next preference would be for teachers in these same basic instructional areas within the same
grade level and same building. Next preference would be for teachers in these same basic areas as close to
the grade level as possible in the same building. Next preference would be for teachers in these same basic
areas but in the other secondary building in our district, prior to seeking an instructor from a substitute list.
3. The exceptions to the above are as follows:
a. In the event that a special education student is to be provided homebound instruction, the
administrator must first attempt to secure the services of the special education teacher servicing the
student in his/her primary disability. If the special education teacher is unable to service the student,
follow the procedures noted above in regards to both the elementary student and the secondary
student.
b. When instruction for either a regular or special education student is to take place in a Syracuse
hospital, instructors are to be secured first, where possible, through the Oswego BOCES and the
cross-contract with the Onondaga BOCES. Specially trained teachers are available to provide
instruction in the hospitals of the City of Syracuse through Onondaga BOCES.
Instructions to be Followed Regarding Homebound Program
1. Elementary students are to receive one hour of instruction per day.
Secondary students are to receive two hours of instruction per day.
Instruction is only permitted on days when school is in session.
2. Homebound instructors are to contact the home school for books and assignments.
3. Homebound instructors must contact parent or guardian to set up time of instruction. If it is to be conducted in
the home, the parent or guardian should be present during the period of instruction.
4. If the student is from the high school or middle school, the homebound teacher should contact the student's
counselor within one week of entrance date to homebound.
5. A separate time sheet is to be submitted for each student. Time sheets from substitute homebound teachers
are to be submitted weekly with the parent's or guardian's signature.
6. Three copies of the Progress Reports are to be submitted to the Pupil Personnel Services Office at the end of
each marking period the student is on homebound instruction.
7. When a student is to be transferred from homebound to regular instruction, a final Progress Report must be
submitted to the Pupil Personnel Services Office.
8. The homebound teacher is responsible for returning books to the home school.
9. Regular homebound teachers are to submit time schedules at the beginning of the homebound program and
as revised when additional students are assigned.
10. If notebooks or paper are needed for use in homebound instruction, they may be obtained from the Pupil
Personnel Services Office.
End-of-Year Instructions Regarding Homebound Instruction
1. It will be the responsibility of the homebound teachers to return all books to the same person who originally
supplied the books, i.e., Principal, Counselors, etc.
2. All homebound teachers are to submit End of Year Reports on each student indicating grade earned in each
subject with recommendation for school and class placement for the following year.
3. Permanent Record Cards: It is the responsibility of regular homebound teachers to complete permanent
record cards of elementary and middle school students whose names appear on their registers.
4. Homebound Teachers will advise their students of grades earned as well as the teacher's recommendation
for placement for the following year.
5. The high school will send copies of report cards to parents of high school students and special education
upper grade high school students who have been on homebound instruction.
6. Regular homebound teachers are to meet with the clerk maintaining the open homebound registers to
coordinate all closing data.
Adoption date: January 1, 1993