Colorado CNA study materials
Colorado CNA study resources

Colorado CNA study plan

Colorado CNA · Give each week a clear focus.

8 weeks · About 6 hours per week

Week 1

Basic nursing skills

  • List the correct sequence for measuring temperature, pulse, respiration, blood pressure, and oxygen saturation, and state the normal range for each

  • Demonstrate hand hygiene and standard precautions in the correct order, verbalizing each step aloud

  • Identify at least 15 abnormal values (blood pressure, pulse, respirations, temperature, oxygen saturation, blood glucose) and state the required CNA action for each

  • Explain the CNA's scope of practice for specimen collection, intake and output measurement, and reporting changes to the licensed nurse

Your checkpoint

Completed 30-question self-quiz on vital signs and infection control with a recorded score of 85% or higher, plus a one-page error log naming each missed concept and its correct answer

Week 2

Basic nursing skills & Personal care skills

  • Perform a full bed bath, a partial bath, and perineal care on a manikin or practice partner while maintaining privacy and correct draping throughout

  • Demonstrate applying and removing personal protective equipment in the correct order without contamination

  • Sequence the steps for safe positioning, turning, and transfer of a resident, including body mechanics and gait-belt use

  • Document three practice care events using objective, non-judgmental charting language

Your checkpoint

A skills checklist of 20 personal care and basic nursing steps performed and self-scored against a state-style skills rubric, with every missed step re-performed and initialed

Week 3

Personal care skills

  • Perform oral care, denture care, and hair and nail care on a manikin within 10 minutes each without breaking asepsis

  • Identify at least four skin-integrity risk factors and describe two prevention measures for each

  • Describe how to adapt bathing, dressing, and toileting for a resident who is unsteady, has limited range of motion, or uses a medical device

  • List at least six observations during personal care that must be reported to the nurse

Your checkpoint

A timed, self-recorded or instructor-signed run-through of a complete bed bath with all critical steps checked off and a written list of the six reportable observations

Week 4

Mental health and social service needs

  • Describe five therapeutic and five non-therapeutic communication techniques, giving a concrete example of each

  • Identify behavioral signs of depression, anxiety, and grief in a resident and state the appropriate CNA response for each

  • Explain how culture, religion, and sexual orientation affect care preferences, giving two accommodation examples per category

  • Outline the CNA's role in reporting suspected abuse, neglect, or exploitation, including whom to notify and within what timeframe

Your checkpoint

Score of 80% or higher on a 25-question practice set covering communication, mental health needs, and abuse reporting, with each wrong answer rewritten as a correct statement

Milestones

Week 2: Can perform hand hygiene, PPE, and a complete bed bath from memory with no critical-step omissions on the rubric

Week 4: Scores 80%+ on a 25-question mixed set from Domains 1-3 and can state the abuse-reporting chain of command without notes

Week 6: Can distinguish delirium, dementia, and depression in 10 out of 10 written scenarios and produce a complete dementia care plan draft

Week 8: Scores 85%+ on a full-length timed practice exam covering all six domains, with an error log showing every missed item re-taught