Your Friendly Guide To
Colorado Homeschooling Laws
Welcome! Do you want a clear and simple guide on how Colorado homeschooling is done? You have come to the right place. We explain Colorado homeschooling laws without resorting to legal jargon - and with a dash of humor to keep you awake.
Laws are necessarily long. If they are not tediously long and obfuscating, how are lawyers going to bring home the bacon? We will cover all the homeschooling laws you need to know to stay safe. You will never need to be ignorant with Homeschooling-Paradise to guide you along. Shall we get started? Are you all fired up? Yes? Here we go. Let's start with some wonderful news of Colorado homeschooling. The State of Colorado feels that you, the parent or guardian, have the sole right to choose your children's method of education. That is, unless you botch it up. Then, the State of Colorado will take over. We will look at that mess later. Isn't that great! We mean the freedom, not the botch up. It is certainly better than Alabama, where homeschooling is not recognized. Parents there have to squeeze through legal loopholes to homeschool their kids. You will have no such worries. What you do with your kids is your business.
If anyone were to poke his nose into your scholastic affairs, you have the legal right to chop it off, even if it's Pinocchio or the Pink Panther. Colorado Homeschooling Law will fully back you up. Tests for Homeschoolers in Colorado There is only one thing that may cause you nightmares - tests. Are you shivering in fear? Colorado homeschooling law says that all homeschoolers have to be tested. Don't worry. We will be posting other articles in our website that will show you how to make your kids super smart. In a year's time, you can turn them into test vampires - they will suck all their questions dry and still hunger for more. Trust us - it is a good thing. Now, are you shivering with anticipation? You will find more details on tests for homeschoolers in Colorado below.
The Colorado Homeschooling Notice of Intent - NOI
In the beginning, you decide whether homeschooling is the best option for your children. If you are still sitting on the wall, then please pay our Pros and Cons of Homeschooling a friendly visit. You will find it on our Navigation Bar on the left - waiting patiently for parents like you. After that, please come back here and read your Colorado Homeschooling Laws.
Compulsory Attendance Ages for Homeschoolers in Colorado
If you have made your momentous decision, then your next step is to look at the age of your child. All children who are between the ages of 6 to 16 have to go to school. If their birthday (from the ages of 6 to 16) falls on or before August 1, they have to attend school. If you want to homeschool your children, Colorado homeschooling laws state that the compulsory attendance age is from 7 to 16. However you have to inform the authorities - ANY school district within your state - of your intention to homeschool when your child turns 6. But you aren't required to start homeschooling until she is 7.
Send the Colorado Homeschool Notice of Intent - NOI - to a School District
How do you inform the authorities? Send them an NOI (Notice of Intent) 14 days before you intend to start homeschooling. The NOI should contain the following particulars - nothing more, nothing less. It should have the full names and ages of the homeschoolers plus their address and total number of hours they will be taught (at least 688 hours, or 4 hours x 172 days per year. Sign it and you are done. Complying with Colorado homeschooling laws is a piece of cake.
By Colorado homeschooling law, you have to do this every year. Of course, you can continue homeschooling your kids until they are 80, but thankfully you can stop sending the NOI once they turn 17. If you have just moved in from Mars, Manitoba or Morocco, or if you are removing your child from a public school or kindergarten, you just do the same thing. Not sure how to write an NOI? Click
Colorado Homeschooling - Sample NOI
kindly provided by freewebs.com. Now that you have typed, printed, signed and decorated your NOI, make a photocopy of it to keep for yourself. Then hop over to any
School District in Colorado
that suits your taste and submit your NOI. Very easy. If they demand for any other information, you can refuse them with a very firm No. It's expressly written in our Colorado homeschooling law. But you are a charming and agreeable person, so of course you will part with them on good terms.
Am I Exempt From the Colorado Homeschooling Statute and the Annoying NOI?
Colorado Private, Parochial or Independent SchoolIs your child also attending a private, parochial or independent school? You don't have to file the NOI if the school is providing more than 50% of the instruction. You are saved from administrivia. However, your child is not a homeschooler by Colorado homeschooling law. Colorado Certified Teacher and Homeschooling If you happen to be a Colorado certified teacher, you can instruct your children at home without bothering about homeschooling laws. How lucky! Perhaps you are rolling in money and have hired a certified teacher. Then you are also exempt from the statute.
Homeschooling Documents You Should Keep and Cherish in Colorado
You don't want to incur the wrath of the Law, do you? Let's look at some documents required for homeschooling in Colorado. Attendance data: You just have to record how many hours your kids were taught each day. Complex charts and statistical analyses are not required. Immunization records: Self-explanatory. No-one wants their kids to be running around with a contagious disease. Test or evaluation results: We haven't really explained to you about the dark side of Colorado homeschooling laws yet. Just joking. Tests are fun. We will shed light on Colorado tests later on. All these records are very important. If the superintendent of your school district has reason to believe that you are not complying with Colorado homeschooling laws - for instance if you are running a school for terrorists - then she has the right to give you a 14 days' written notice to produce your documents.
Miscellaneous Colorado Homeschooling Laws - Mostly Good Stuff
Sorry, you have to know quite a bit of Colorado homeschooling laws to stay out of trouble. However, these laws may delight you.
Qualifications Required to Homeschool in Colorado
As far as qualifications go, you don't need any degree or diploma to teach your children. You can be a doctor, clown, clown doctor or even a snake handler - but not a snake. Your educational background does not matter. So what is to prevent a stark raving lunatic from homeschooling his kid, you may ask. There is always The Test to catch the likes of him. Colorado lawmakers are no fools. We will get to that later, we promise you. Are you feeling lazy? You can ask your relatives to teach your kids while you catch up with the latest juicy gossip from your neighbors. According to Colorado homeschooling law, your relatives can also educate your kids - no qualification required. So why not put your pesky in-laws to good use whenever they come over and bug you? However, according to Colorado homeschooling laws, you can't call your home a private or nonprofit school just because you have hired your uncles, grandparents, cousins and mother-in-law as full-time teachers.
Required Days of Instruction for Homeschools in Colorado
You have to teach your children for a minimum of 688 hours, or roughly 4 hours a day for 172 days. When you teach them is totally up to you. You can have a scholastic marathon of 180 hours for the month of January and then snore for the whole month of February. You can teach them history in the mornings and witchcraft during the dead hours of the night.
Required Subjects for Homeschools in Colorado
What should you teach your dear kids? Simply reading, writing, speaking, math, civics, history, literature, science and the Constitution of the United States. These are the bare minimum. How you are going to teach them these subjects is also entirely up to you. You can certainly teach them other subjects in addition to the ones above, and you can use any curriculum you want. If you are like most homeschooling parents, you probably want the best curriculum for your kids. The United States may be the most powerful country in the world but sadly its education falls behind many other nations. See
Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study
if you want to read the gory details. In fact, a very small island, Singapore, is Number 2 in the world in terms of education. We are currently looking for suppliers of Singapore textbooks to meet the needs of homeschooling parents like you. By the way, please don't forget to check out our Singapore math worksheets. We have tons of math problems for your kids to scratch their heads over! All for Free! One last thing - if you are wondering whether you could receive funding for your homeschool, we have bad news for you. Colorado homeschooling law clearly states that homeschoolers won't receive any special funds. Now let's look at everyone's favorite topic, tests.
Tests and Evaluations for Homeschoolers in Colorado
This is sure to bring a grimace to everyone's face. Brace yourself for the bad news. Colorado homeschooling law says that tests/evaluations are mandatory for homeschoolers. They have to either take a nationally standardized achievement test or be evaluated by a "qualified person" at grades 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11. Your child can take the test or be evaluated at any time of the year as long as you feel that he is ready for the test. His age and grade level don't have to match too. If your child is the reincarnation of Einstein, he could take the grade 11 test at the age of 7.
Tests for Homeschoolers in Colorado
If you choose to take the test, you can pick ANY of the nationally standardized tests available in the United States. Isn't that wonderful? However, there is a dark side to this. If your child's composite score just happens to fall at or below the 13th percentile, then he has to be retested. You can choose any test as before. But, if horror of horrors, his scores aren't any better the second time, then by Colorado homeschooling law, he has to enroll in a public, independent, or parochial school until the next testing period comes around - which could take another 2 years.
Evaluation of Homeschooler by a Colorado Qualified Person
If tests give you the shivers, you can always get a "qualified person" to evaluate your child. Who are these special people? They are certified teachers, private school teachers, licensed psychologists or those with a graduate degree in education. You certainly can't get your housekeeper to evaluate your child.
How a "qualified person" evaluates your child is totally up to her? She could ask your son to play the Moonlight Sonata on a grand piano while reciting the history of the Civil War, or count the number of germs in a 10-year-old toothbrush with the aid of a microscope. However, most "qualified persons" behave very professionally. They will usually talk to the child, look at her assignments and projects, ask her what books she has read and perhaps give her some tests. Their aim is to see if your child has hopefully made some academic progress and perhaps is in good mental health.
Homeschoolers Submitting Test or Evaluation Results in Colorado
You have to submit a copy of the test or evaluation results to the school district that received your NOI. If instead you submit the results to a private, parochial or independent school in Colorado (never send to Alaska, Australia or Angola), you have to inform the school district of the name of the school. If your child's composite score falls at or below the 13th percentile, the school will have to notify the school district. It may sound confusing, but you will soon puzzle it out. You don't have to be a nuclear scientist to understand Colorado homeschooling laws. One more word on tests - you have to bear all the fees. Sorry to spoil your day.
Can My Colorado Homeschooler Attend Public School Classes and Participate in Extracurricular or Interscholastic Activities There?
Yes, she certainly can. Not all schools and school districts are the same though - they have different rules and regulations. They can also charge you up to 150% of the cost of participating in the activities. Unfair! However, don't despair. They can only use that money to fund the activity your child participated in. The principal can't use it to buy a diamond ring for the lovely girl next door. Please note that if your child receives more than 50% of her education from a public, parochial or private school, she can't call herself a homeschooler by Colorado homeschooling law. So please be careful. But go ahead. Let your child take part in wrestling matches and bullfighting at school, if they are available and she is up to it.
Diplomas and Graduation
For Homeschoolers in Colorado
How is my child going to get her high school diploma? Simple - create one. Get a cool looking blank certificate from an office supply shop and print out her diploma when you think she is ready. Her age doesn't matter - she could be 6 or 16. You will know when she is ready. We are not joking. Colorado homeschooling laws are very kind to people like you.
If you have purchased one of the homeschool programs currently available in the market, then the diploma should be part of the package. If you are afraid to issue your own diploma, you could always enroll your child in a public school. The school district may require your child to be tested to see what grade level your child should be placed in - with your consent, of course. In the end, your child will get a high school diploma issued by the public school. You get to save on stationery costs.
Special Needs Children
Who Are Homeschooling in Colorado
We have good news for you. You can send your child for classes or activities provided by a public school. Since these schools are receiving federal money, it should be free for your child.
Sadly, All Good Things Must Come to an End.
This is the end of our Colorado Homeschooling Laws article. If you found this article helpful, please click the Google +1 button below. We appreciate it!
If you would like to read the homeschooling laws of the other states, please click
Homeschooling Laws.
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