Every fall a new wave of Colorado families decides to homeschool, and the first question is always the same: what does the state actually require? The answer is less than most people fear and more than a few assume. Colorado’s home-school statute, C.R.S. 22-33-104.5, sets a handful of concrete rules, and the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) publishes them in plain language. This guide walks through each one using CDE’s own pages, then covers a change that matters this year: new rules for the part-time public programs many homeschoolers use.
The notice of intent: 14 days, one district, every year
The starting point is a written notice. CDE’s homeschool law page quotes the statute: parents must provide “written notification of the establishment of said program to a school district within the state fourteen days prior to the establishment of said program.” The notice includes “the name, age, place of residence, and number of hours of attendance of each child enrolled in said program.” Two details trip people up. First, the notice goes to a Colorado public school district, and the statute says a district within the state, not necessarily the one you live in. Second, it is annual: CDE’s FAQ says the notification “must be resubmitted” each year.
Timing is also more forgiving than many families expect. Per CDE, notification is not required until a child reaches age six, and the program does not have to begin until age seven. CDE posts a notice of intent template on its Homeschool and Part-Time Programs page, and questions go to Home_School@cde.state.co.us.
172 days, four hours a day, seven subjects
The attendance rule is specific. A home-based program must include “no less than one hundred seventy-two days of instruction, averaging four instructional contact hours per day.” Note the word averaging: a two-hour Friday and a six-hour field-trip Tuesday are fine as long as the year balances out. That is one reason attendance records matter, which we get to below.
The curriculum rule names the subjects without dictating a curriculum. Instruction must cover “communication skills of reading, writing, and speaking, mathematics, history, civics, literature, science, and regular courses of instruction in the constitution of the United States.” Colorado does not approve or accredit homeschool curricula; CDE states plainly that homeschooling “is considered non-public education and is not accredited by CDE,” and that no state funding is available for it.
Who is allowed to teach
You do not need a teaching license. CDE’s page says the only qualification is that “you must be the child’s parent, legal guardian or an adult relative designated by the parent,” and the statute exempts homeschooling parents from the Colorado Educator Licensing Act of 1991. A grandparent or aunt designated by the parent can run the program.
The testing years: 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11
This is the requirement families most often get wrong. Colorado does not test homeschooled children every year, and it does not require the state assessments given in public schools. Instead, a child must be evaluated “when such child reaches grades three, five, seven, nine, and eleven.” The family chooses between two routes: “a nationally standardized achievement test,” or an evaluation by “a qualified person,” which CDE describes as a teacher, a licensed psychologist, or a person with a graduate degree in education. The cost is the parent’s. CDE’s page adds that parents report the results to their school district.
There is a floor. According to CDE’s summary of the statute, a score above the 13th percentile lets the program continue; a score at or below it requires the child to be enrolled in a public or private school until the next test. It is the one place where a test result has a legal consequence, so choose the test or evaluator carefully in a testing year.
Two related FAQ answers are worth knowing. State assessments are not required, though CDE notes that “if a parent or legal guardian requests it, a district may permit a homeschooled student” to take them. And there is no state diploma: CDE says district diplomas “are presented only to students who have attended a public high school in the district,” so homeschool parents issue their own, and the GED is an option rather than a requirement.
Records you keep for good
The statute requires parents to keep records “on a permanent basis,” and CDE lists what that means: “attendance data, test and evaluation results, and immunization records.” A spreadsheet with a row per school day, a folder of test reports and a copy of each child’s immunization record satisfies it, and those records are what a school or college will ask for later.
What changed for 2026-27: part-time public programs
Many Colorado homeschoolers use part-time public school programs, which let a homeschooled student take some classes or activities through a district or charter school. The 2026 School Finance Act, SB26-023, added four requirements for those programs, and CDE summarizes them on its part-time programs page. Students who attend a private school are not eligible. Programs “cannot, directly or indirectly, fund, reimburse, or subsidize a private activity or private purchase.” Programs “must follow the same laws as the local education provider that authorizes the program.” And a provider “cannot operate a part-time public-school program for homeschool students outside the geographic boundaries” of its authorizer without authorization.
The rules take effect with the 2026-27 school year, with a grace period from CDE for programs whose local board authorized them by Sept. 15, 2026. The department says the change came out of budget concerns: it estimated the programs would cost more than $100 million statewide in the 2025-26 fiscal year. For families, the practical effect is paperwork. Programs must now verify eligibility by requiring a copy of your Notice of Intent to Homeschool before enrollment, which is one more reason to file the notice on time and keep a copy.
Where to go from here
Once the notice is filed, the rest of the year is yours to build. Colorado Local’s homeschool section lists free field trips, from the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge to the Poudre Learning Center in Greeley, plus dated homeschool days at museums and gardens such as the Denver Museum of Nature & Science Home School Day on Sept. 30 and the Plains Conservation Center program on Oct. 15. Our free museum days guide covers the SCFD calendar through December. Every one of those outings counts toward the 172 days.
Sources
- Colorado Department of Education, Homeschool Law (summary and quotations of C.R.S. 22-33-104.5)
- Colorado Department of Education, Homeschool and Part-Time Programs in Colorado and the part-time programs and SB26-023 page
- Colorado Department of Education, Frequently Asked Questions about Home Schooling
More like this: Learn · Family + Learning · Homeschool + Field Trips · Homeschool Events
This is general information, not legal advice.
