Colorado Homeschool Testing Requirements: Grades, Tests, and the 13th Percentile Rule

Colorado homeschoolers don't submit portfolios or get inspected by their district. But there is a mandatory assessment checkpoint that catches families off guard: testing or qualified-person evaluation in five specific grade years. Miss the assessment requirement, use the wrong test, or fall below the threshold — and you're in a legally vulnerable spot.

Here's exactly how Colorado's testing requirement works, which tests qualify, and what to do when testing feels like the wrong tool for your kid.

Which Grades Must Be Tested

Under CRS §22-33-104.5, Colorado homeschooled students must be tested or evaluated in grades 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11. These are the only mandatory testing years — all other grades are optional.

The assessment requirement is grade-based. If your child's grade designation is unusual because of acceleration, retention, or a midyear move, confirm the applicable grade year with the testing provider or NOI district.

Plan the assessment during the applicable grade year and leave time for any follow-up if scores are unexpectedly low.

The 13th Percentile Rule

Colorado requires a composite score above the 13th percentile on a nationally normed standardized test. The 13th percentile is not a passing score in the conventional sense — it's a minimum threshold. Roughly 87% of students nationally score above it. This is a very low bar by design; the legislature's intent was to catch only the most serious educational neglect.

If your child scores at or below the 13th percentile, the law provides an opportunity to retest using an alternate version of the same test or a different nationally standardized achievement test selected by you. If subsequent tests or evaluations continue to show deficiencies, the district may place the program on probation and require a formal remediation plan.

The composite score is what matters. Subject-level subscores can be below the 13th percentile without triggering a compliance issue as long as the overall composite is above it.

Which Tests Are Accepted

Colorado law specifies a standardized achievement test that provides composite scores and national norms. Tests families commonly use:

California Achievement Test (CAT/5) — available via Seton Testing, Christian Liberty Press, and others. Paper booklets cost $35-$47.50 depending on grade level and vendor. Widely accepted and familiar to Colorado homeschoolers.

Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) — another common choice, also available through Seton and other providers. Provides the composite scores Colorado requires.

Stanford Achievement Test, 10th Edition (SAT10) — accepted statewide. Online proctored versions run approximately $45.

TerraNova — accepted; less commonly used but fully compliant.

CLT (Classical Learning Test) — accepted by Colorado; popular among classical homeschoolers.

Tests that may not satisfy the requirement: MAP (NWEA) and STAR assessments are frequently rejected because they do not provide a national percentile composite score in the format Colorado requires. If you've been using MAP or STAR for your own tracking, great — but confirm with the district before relying on one for a compliance year.

Check with your specific district if you're unsure about a particular test; commonly identified acceptable examples are CAT, ITBS, Stanford 10, TerraNova, and CLT.

Where to Take the Test

You have several options for test administration:

Testing services: Seton Testing, BJU Press Testing, and similar providers offer proctored testing by mail or online. Online proctored tests run around $45 and can be scheduled at your convenience.

CHEC (Christian Home Educators of Colorado): CHEC runs an Independent School that tests in spring of odd calendar years — note this is on a different schedule than the state's odd-grade requirement, so confirm the timing works for your child's grade year.

Statheros Academy and similar umbrella schools: Some umbrella schools provide testing as part of their annual fee ($60-$120 annually for enrollment, with testing access included or add-on).

Local testing centers: Some libraries, tutoring centers, and co-ops host group testing sessions — check your local homeschool community Facebook group or co-op for upcoming dates.

The Evaluator Alternative

Don't want to test? Colorado offers a legitimate alternative: a qualified person can evaluate your child's academic progress instead of a standardized test.

A "qualified person" in Colorado means:

• A current Colorado-licensed teacher
• A teacher employed by an independent or parochial school
• A licensed psychologist
• A person with a master's degree in education

The evaluator must provide a written assessment of your child's academic progress. Evaluator fees vary widely — a simple email-based portfolio review from a retired teacher can cost $45, while an in-person evaluation runs higher. Some homeschool co-ops maintain a list of local evaluators willing to work with homeschool families.

This option is particularly useful for children who test poorly under timed, standardized conditions, children with testing accommodations needs, or families who philosophically prefer narrative assessment over multiple-choice testing.

Handling Testing Anxiety

If your child has genuine test anxiety, you have a few practical levers:

Untimed or extended-time testing: Some providers offer untimed versions of qualifying tests. Confirm with the publisher and district that the format produces the required composite score for Colorado compliance.

Familiar environment: Taking a test at home, administered by a parent under proctoring guidelines, removes a significant chunk of the environmental stress that classroom testing creates.

Low-stakes practice: Running through a practice version of the test format — not the actual test, just the question style and timing — in the months before the test year reduces novelty anxiety significantly.

The evaluator route: If anxiety is severe enough that standardized testing would not reflect your child's actual learning, the evaluator option exists specifically for situations like this. A portfolio review and evaluation conversation is a much lower-anxiety assessment experience for many children.

What to Do With Your Test Results

When your child completes a qualifying test, you'll receive a score report. Keep this permanently. It's your legal documentation that you met the testing requirement for that grade year.

Submit the assessment result to the school district that received your NOI, unless you are enrolled in an independent school that acts as the assessment repository. If the district requests permanent records in a probable-cause matter, it must provide 14 days' written notice. Most Colorado homeschoolers have little district interaction beyond their filing and assessment submission.

The Colorado Portfolio & Assessment Templates include a testing-year checklist, a test comparison worksheet to help you choose the right assessment for each grade, and a score-tracking form for keeping all five testing years organized in one place.

Testing Year Prep Timeline

A practical schedule for each testing year:

• September: Confirm which grade year applies, identify which test you'll use
• October-November: Register with testing provider; note any print/ship lead times for paper tests
• January-March: Administer the test
• March-May: Receive scores; file score report in your records
• If scores are low: Use the alternate-version or different-test retest provision; if deficiencies continue, document the remediation plan required by the district

The testing years feel like a bigger deal than they are once you've been through one. The 13th percentile threshold is low, the test choices are flexible, and the evaluator alternative is always available. The main thing is not letting a testing year sneak up on you.

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