Homeschooling a Child With Autism or ADHD in Arizona

What Arizona asks of a homeschool family

These are the homeschool rules we have on file for Arizona, last verified 2026-08. Our Arizona page has the full list, with sources.

Getting started (notice)

a one-time affidavit of intent filed with the county school superintendent within 30 days of beginning homeschooling (child's name, date of birth, address, and custodial parents' contact info); if you stop homeschooling, notify the county within 30 days. Many Arizona families instead use the universal Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program, which has its own contract and rules.

Records you must keep

none required

Testing / evaluation

none

Special education and your homeschooled child in Arizona

We researched this from Arizona's statutes and administrative code, the state education department and the US Department of Education, last checked October 2026. Where a source was missing, old or in conflict, the line says so instead of guessing. Federal law (IDEA) gives a child placed in private school by a parent no individual right to services, only a share of the district's equitable-services funds, and each state decides how a home school is counted.

How the state counts a home school

Treated like a private school

A.R.S. 15-802 defines a homeschool as its own nonpublic category for attendance and requires an affidavit of intent filed with the county school superintendent, but A.R.S. 15-763(C) says that for determining services to pupils served by private schools under federal law, the state considers the term to include homeschooled pupils.

Asking for an evaluation

The Arizona Department of Education's 2019 parentally placed private school guidance says the district of residence has child find responsibility for homeschooled children and for parental requests that the district of residence evaluate a child, while the district where a nonprofit private school sits handles children attending that school. The guidance page is from November 2019, so confidence is medium.

Services and IEPs

Because homeschooled pupils are treated as private school pupils for this purpose (A.R.S. 15-763(C) and (D)), the department's FAQ says no parentally placed private school child has an individual right to services under 34 CFR 300.137, and such children get a services plan from the district rather than an IEP. The sources we read do not say whether an existing IEP continues after withdrawal.

Part-time classes, therapies and activities at the public school

A.R.S. 15-802.01 lets a homeschooled child who lives in a public school's attendance area try out for that school's interscholastic activities on the same terms as enrolled students, with the parent submitting written confirmation of passing grades and satisfactory progress. No statute opened addresses part-time academic classes or therapies for homeschooled children.

Scholarships and funding for a child with a disability

Arizona's Empowerment Scholarship Account (A.R.S. 15-2401 and 15-2402) lists children identified with a disability under Section 504 or state special education law among the qualifying groups, and an account holder can educate the child at home with the funds. However, the parent must sign a contract not to enroll the child in a district or charter school and not to file a homeschool affidavit of intent, so it is an alternative to the 15-802 homeschool route rather than an add-on, and the district's evaluation duty under A.R.S. 15-766 is not removed. Dollar amounts were not verified.

Also worth knowing

A.R.S. 15-802(D) excuses a child from the school attendance and instruction duties when the child is in such physical or mental condition that instruction is inexpedient or impracticable, as shown to the satisfaction of the school principal or designee. The department FAQ also says a child on an ESA who attends a nonprofit private school can be eligible for the district's proportionate-share equitable services.

State office to ask: Arizona Department of Education, Exceptional Student Services (AZ FIND, Child Find).

Sources we read

A plain-language summary of public sources, not legal advice. Scholarship and school-choice programs change often, and we have left dollar amounts out on purpose. Confirm current rules with the state office before you act.

Pace, testing and the plan

Check the testing and evaluation line above for Arizona, since it can depend on how you homeschool. Where a test or an evaluation applies, remember that Learning Supports change how lessons look and feel while your child learns. They are not part of a test or an evaluation. Whether a child can be given accommodations on the test, or with the evaluator, is something to ask the test provider or evaluator before the day, and we cannot tell you what Arizona allows.

Records in Arizona

Check the records line above for Arizona. Letters & Devotion logs instructional hours automatically while your child works, tracks mastery per skill as a ready-made portfolio record, and prints a transcript in one click. Turning supports on or off does not change that record, and nothing in it names a condition, because Letters & Devotion never stores a diagnosis.

Six Learning Supports you can switch on

A parent ticks what helps, never a condition. Each support is a bundle of single switches, and any switch can be changed on its own. After about three weeks the parent side asks whether a support is helping.

Reading support
Often chosen for dyslexia
Read-aloud with each word highlighted, a clearer font, extra spacing and answer buttons.
Focus support
Often chosen for ADHD
Short pieces, one question on screen and movement breaks.
Predictable routine
Often chosen for autism
The same layout, a heads-up before changes, a calm look and plain wording.
Math support
Often chosen for dyscalculia
Pictures and a calculator, with nothing timed.
Writing support
Often chosen for dysgraphia
Answer out loud, with ideas counted over spelling.
Low-pressure mode
Often chosen for anxiety or perfectionism
No scores, calm feedback and a free second try.

What this is not

It does not diagnose anything or store a diagnosis. Your child never sees a condition name.
It is not special education, therapy or an evaluation, and it is not a substitute for an IEP.
Read-aloud is a computer voice, not a person, and answering out loud needs the microphone switch.
Some lesson rewrites, such as plainer literal wording, are pre-written, so not every lesson has one.

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Questions

Can I homeschool a child with autism or ADHD in Arizona?

Arizona's homeschool rules are summarized on this page. On special education: A.R.S. 15-802 defines a homeschool as its own nonpublic category for attendance and requires an affidavit of intent filed with the county school superintendent, but A.R.S. 15-763(C) says that for determining services to pupils served by private schools under federal law, the state considers the term to include homeschooled pupils. The Arizona Department of Education's 2019 parentally placed private school guidance says the district of residence has child find responsibility for homeschooled children and for parental requests that the district of residence evaluate a child, while the district where a nonprofit private school sits handles children attending that school. The guidance page is from November 2019, so confidence is medium.

Does Letters & Devotion store my child’s diagnosis?

No. You pick supports, never a condition, nothing stores a diagnosis, and your child never sees a condition name. Support settings are never sent to analytics.

Does this replace an evaluation or an IEP?

No. The setup screen says it plainly: these change how lessons look and feel, and they are not a substitute for an evaluation or an IEP.

Do the supports work with Arizona's testing rules?