Colorado homeschool requirements and record-keeping, 2026-27
In Colorado you send written notice of a nonpublic home-based educational program to a school district in the state 14 days before you start, and each year after that. The notice certifies only each child's name, age, residence and hours of attendance. The program provides at least 172 days of instruction a year, averaging four hours a day. Your child is evaluated in grades 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11, by a nationally standardized test or by a qualified person, and you submit the results to the district or to an independent or parochial school. You keep attendance, test and evaluation results, and immunization records permanently.
What you file and when
- Written notice of the program, certifying each child's name, age, residence and hours of attendance
To: Any school district in Colorado. When: 14 days before establishing the program, then each year it continues - Test or evaluation results (grades 3, 5, 7, 9, 11)
To: The school district that received your notice, or an independent or parochial school in Colorado (then tell the district which school). When: After testing
What you keep
- Attendance data
- Test and evaluation results
- Immunization records
How long to keep it. Records are kept permanently by the parent.
Who evaluates. Optional route: a qualified person chosen by the parent: a Colorado-licensed teacher, a teacher at an independent or parochial school, a licensed psychologist, or a person with a graduate degree in education.
Testing. Grades 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11. A composite above the 13th percentile keeps the exemption; at or below it, the child may retest before placement in a school.
Hours, days and subjects
- 688 hours a year
- 172 days a year
- 4 hours a day
- Compulsory attendance ages: 6 to 16
At least 172 days averaging 4 instructional contact hours per day.
Under § 22-33-104.5, notice is not required before age 6, the program need not be established until age 7, and it need not continue after 16. Colorado's general compulsory attendance age (§ 22-33-104) was not separately checked.
Subjects. Reading; Writing; Speaking; Mathematics; History; Civics; Literature; Science; Constitution of the United States.
Work out your hours for Colorado with the free calculator.
Things people miss
- Notice can go to any Colorado school district, not just your own; results then go to that same district.
- The 4 hours a day is an average across the 172 days, so long and short days balance out.
- If the child was habitually truant in the last six months of school, you must also send a written curriculum description with the notice.
- The district can ask to see your records, with 14 days' written notice, only if it has probable cause.
Official sources
- C.R.S. § 22-33-104.5 Home-based education (text published by the Colorado Department of Education) (Colo. Rev. Stat. § 22-33-104.5)
Verified checked on 2026-10-18 - CDE Homeschool and Part-Time Programs in Colorado (CDE guidance)
Verified checked on 2026-10-18
How Schoolkeeper helps
A twenty-second daily log, and then an export in the shape Colorado asks for:
- An attendance record showing the days you taught, counted against 172.
- Hours by subject, totalled for the year against 688.
- A portfolio of work samples, photos and what they read, in date order.
Questions parents ask
What do I have to file to homeschool in Colorado?
Written notice of the program, certifying each child's name, age, residence and hours of attendance, to Any school district in Colorado. When: 14 days before establishing the program, then each year it continues. Test or evaluation results (grades 3, 5, 7, 9, 11), to The school district that received your notice, or an independent or parochial school in Colorado (then tell the district which school). When: After testing.
What records do I keep for homeschooling in Colorado?
Attendance data; Test and evaluation results; Immunization records.
How many hours or days does Colorado ask for?
Colorado asks for 688 hours a year; 172 days a year; 4 hours a day.
Does Colorado require testing or an evaluation?
Grades 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11. A composite above the 13th percentile keeps the exemption; at or below it, the child may retest before placement in a school.
This is a plain-English summary with its sources, not legal advice. Tell us if this is wrong.