Homeschooling a Child With Autism or ADHD in Colorado

What Colorado asks of a homeschool family

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

Getting started (notice)

a written notice to a Colorado school district 14 days before you begin, giving each child's name, age, place of residence and the number of hours of attendance.

Records you must keep

kept by you. Colorado does not collect them.

Testing / evaluation

in grades 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11, either a nationally standardized achievement test or an evaluation by a qualified person at your expense. A qualified person means a licensed teacher, a teacher employed by an independent or parochial school, a licensed psychologist, or someone holding a graduate degree in education.

Special education and your homeschooled child in Colorado

We researched this from Colorado'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

Its own category, not a private school

Colorado law (C.R.S. 22-33-104.5) creates a "nonpublic home-based educational program" and says it is not intended to be and does not qualify as a private and nonprofit school.

Asking for an evaluation

Colorado's special education rules (ECEA 4.02(1)(a)) say child find includes children whose parents choose home schooling, and that if a child is not enrolled in school the identification duty belongs to the administrative unit (district or BOCES) where the child lives. A parent can therefore ask the district of residence for an evaluation.

Services and IEPs

Colorado's services plan rule (ECEA 2.42 and 8.02(1)(b)) covers parentally placed children enrolled in private schools located in the unit, and home-based programs are not private schools under C.R.S. 22-33-104.5, so the sources found do not give a homeschooled child an individual right to an IEP or services. The sources do not say what happens to an existing IEP on withdrawal, so that is not found in primary sources.

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

The Colorado Department of Education says part-time programs for homeschool students are public school programs that school districts, charter schools and BOCES may offer, and tells families to contact their local provider to see what is available. Whether those programs include IEP services or therapies was not found in primary sources.

Scholarships and funding for a child with a disability

No state scholarship, voucher or education savings account for children with disabilities that homeschoolers can use was found in the Colorado Department of Education or statute pages checked.

Also worth knowing

Homeschooled children must take a nationally standardized test or have a qualified person evaluate progress in grades 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11, and the results go to the district that received the notice of intent or to an independent or parochial school (C.R.S. 22-33-104.5(3)(f)). The state's page lists a 2026 bill on part-time homeschool programs (SB26-023) whose contents were not reviewed here.

State office to ask: Colorado Department of Education, Exceptional Student Services Unit (Office of Special Education).

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 Colorado, 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 Colorado allows.

Records in Colorado

Check the records line above for Colorado. 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 Colorado?

Colorado's homeschool rules are summarized on this page. On special education: Colorado law (C.R.S. 22-33-104.5) creates a "nonpublic home-based educational program" and says it is not intended to be and does not qualify as a private and nonprofit school. Colorado's special education rules (ECEA 4.02(1)(a)) say child find includes children whose parents choose home schooling, and that if a child is not enrolled in school the identification duty belongs to the administrative unit (district or BOCES) where the child lives. A parent can therefore ask the district of residence for an evaluation.

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 Colorado's testing rules?