North Carolina · autism, ADHD and learning differences
Homeschooling a child with autism, ADHD or a learning difference in North Carolina
File once with the state, keep attendance and immunization records, and give a nationally standardized test every year. Results stay in your drawer unless asked. Starting in North Carolina means the notice step listed above. What changes for a neurodivergent child is how the lessons look and feel, and that is something a parent can set.
What North Carolina asks of a homeschool family
These are the homeschool rules we have on file for North Carolina, last verified 2026-08. Our North Carolina page has the full list, with sources.
Getting started (notice)
a one-time Notice of Intent to the Division of Non-Public Education (DNPE) before the school's opening date (DNPE asks for it at least five days prior and does not accept notices in May or June); it includes the school's name and address and the chief administrator
Records you must keep
annual attendance records and disease immunization records for each student; the school must operate on a regular schedule at least nine calendar months of the year
Testing / evaluation
a nationally standardized achievement test administered every academic year covering English grammar, reading, spelling, and mathematics; results kept at least one year and shown to DNPE on request (no passing score required, results are not routinely submitted)
Special education and your homeschooled child in North Carolina
We researched this from North Carolina'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
G.S. 115C-563 defines a home school as a nonpublic school, and the State Board's Policies Governing Services for Children with Disabilities (NC 1501-6.1, revised March 2021) say registered home schools are recognized as private schools.
Asking for an evaluation
Under NC 1501-6.2 the LEA where the private school (home school) is located must locate, identify and evaluate parentally placed children, and the policy says this does not prohibit a parent from requesting an evaluation from the LEA where the child lives. For a home-schooled child, if the parent does not consent to evaluation the district may not override and is not required to treat the child as eligible for services (NC 1503-4.3 text).
Services and IEPs
NC 1501-6.8 says no parentally placed private school child has an individual right to the services the child would get in public school; the LEA decides after consultation and writes a services plan for each child it chooses to serve. This follows 34 CFR 300.137-138; what happens to an existing IEP on withdrawal is not spelled out in the sources we read.
Part-time classes, therapies and activities at the public school
Not found in primary sources: no North Carolina statute or DPI page opened sets rules for part-time public school classes or therapies for home schools. The Article 41 account statute lists fees for public school individual classes and extracurricular programs as a qualifying expense, which shows such arrangements exist but does not make them a right.
Less certain: the sources on this were thin or in conflict. Confirm with the state office before relying on it.
Scholarships and funding for a child with a disability
North Carolina's Personal Education Student Accounts for Children with Disabilities (ESA+, G.S. 115C-590 and following) count a home school as a nonpublic school and allow spending on curriculum, tutoring and therapies, though not tuition to a home school. First-time eligibility requires an LEA finding that the child has a disability, and the award is larger for certain disabilities (autism, hearing impairment, moderate or severe intellectual disability, orthopedic or visual impairment). The article was amended in 2023 and 2025, and current funding, deadlines and waitlists were not checked.
Also worth knowing
Home schools are run under Article 39 Part 3 with the Division of Nonpublic Education, the instructor must hold at least a high school diploma or equivalent, and testing is annual (G.S. 115C-564). The special education policies PDF listed on DPI's page is dated March 2021, so changes since then may not be reflected.
State office to ask: NC Department of Public Instruction, Office of Exceptional Children.
Sources we read
- https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/ByArticle/Chapter_115C/Article_39.html
- https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/ByArticle/Chapter_115C/Article_41.html
- https://www.dpi.nc.gov/policies-governing-students-children-disabilities/download
- https://www.dpi.nc.gov/districts-schools/classroom-resources/exceptional-children/policies-procedures
- https://www.dpi.nc.gov/districts-schools/classroom-resources/exceptional-children
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 North Carolina, 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 North Carolina allows.
Records in North Carolina
Check the records line above for North Carolina. 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.
Try it with your child in North Carolina
All 84 courses are readable in full with no account and no card, and the first 30 days are free.
$29 a month or $290 a year for every child. Cancel anytime, in one click.
Questions
Can I homeschool a child with autism or ADHD in North Carolina?
North Carolina's homeschool rules are summarized on this page. On special education: G.S. 115C-563 defines a home school as a nonpublic school, and the State Board's Policies Governing Services for Children with Disabilities (NC 1501-6.1, revised March 2021) say registered home schools are recognized as private schools. Under NC 1501-6.2 the LEA where the private school (home school) is located must locate, identify and evaluate parentally placed children, and the policy says this does not prohibit a parent from requesting an evaluation from the LEA where the child lives. For a home-schooled child, if the parent does not consent to evaluation the district may not override and is not required to treat the child as eligible for services (NC 1503-4.3 text).
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 North Carolina's testing rules?
Check the testing and evaluation line above for North Carolina, 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 North Carolina allows.
What does it cost?
$29 a month or $290 a year for every child. The first 30 days are free with no card.
Keep reading
- Homeschooling in North Carolina: the full requirements
- Homeschooling for autism and ADHD
- A homeschool curriculum for a neurodivergent child
- ADHD homeschool curriculum
- Dyslexia homeschool curriculum
- IEP accommodations a homeschool curriculum can carry
A plain-language summary, not legal advice, and laws change. Confirm current requirements with North Carolina before relying on them. Sources are listed on the North Carolina page.