Homeschool Tools

Use this when a user wants to find or get recommendations for homeschool curriculum, educational programs, or learning materials for their children. Searches a curated database of 350+ expert-reviewed homeschool offerings and returns personalized matches based on the child's grade level, learning style, family values, budget, and special needs. subjects is a hard filter results always satisfy. worldview is too, but it widens: a specific worldview request also returns worldview-neutral offerings, which suit any household. grade_level is a hard filter except that an offering with no grade range recorded appears at every grade. budget_max filters on an offering's lowest price, so a result may cost more at higher levels, and one whose price is unknown may appear at any budget. learning_style, special_needs, parent_time, and format_preference influence ranking. Do not use for lesson planning, scheduling, legal compliance questions, or tutoring.

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "grade_level": {
      "type": "string",
      "enum": [
        "pre-k",
        "k",
        "1",
        "2",
        "3",
        "4",
        "5",
        "6",
        "7",
        "8",
        "9",
        "10",
        "11",
        "12"
      ],
      "description": "The child's current or target grade level."
    },
    "subjects": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string",
        "enum": [
          "all",
          "math",
          "language_arts",
          "science",
          "history",
          "reading",
          "writing",
          "foreign_language",
          "art",
          "music"
        ]
      },
      "minItems": 1,
      "maxItems": 10,
      "uniqueItems": true,
      "description": "Always pass as an array, e.g. [\"math\",\"science\"]. Use [\"all\"] for comprehensive curriculum."
    },
    "worldview": {
      "type": "string",
      "enum": [
        "secular",
        "christian",
        "catholic",
        "neutral",
        "any"
      ],
      "description": "Family's religious/philosophical preference. 'any' means no preference."
    },
    "budget_max": {
      "type": "integer",
      "minimum": 0,
      "maximum": 1000000,
      "description": "Maximum annual budget in USD, compared against an offering's lowest price. 0 selects offerings with a free tier; many of those also sell paid levels, and an offering whose price is unknown carries no price range at all — so do not tell a family something is free without checking what the result actually shows."
    },
    "learning_style": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string",
        "enum": [
          "hands_on",
          "visual",
          "auditory",
          "reading_writing",
          "self_paced",
          "structured",
          "interest_led",
          "independent"
        ]
      },
      "minItems": 1,
      "maxItems": 8,
      "uniqueItems": true,
      "description": "Always pass as an array, e.g. [\"visual\",\"hands_on\"]. How the child learns best."
    },
    "special_needs": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string",
        "enum": [
          "adhd",
          "autism",
          "dyslexia",
          "anxiety",
          "gifted",
          "twice_exceptional",
          "processing_disorder",
          "none"
        ]
      },
      "minItems": 1,
      "maxItems": 8,
      "uniqueItems": true,
      "description": "Always pass as an array, e.g. [\"adhd\",\"dyslexia\"]. Any learning differences or special needs. Use [\"none\"] if none."
    },
    "parent_time": {
      "type": "string",
      "enum": [
        "minimal",
        "moderate",
        "intensive"
      ],
      "description": "Daily parent teaching time. 'minimal' = under 1hr, 'moderate' = 1-3hrs, 'intensive' = 3+hrs."
    },
    "format_preference": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string",
        "enum": [
          "print",
          "online",
          "hybrid",
          "app_based"
        ]
      },
      "minItems": 1,
      "maxItems": 4,
      "uniqueItems": true,
      "description": "Always pass as an array, e.g. [\"online\",\"hybrid\"]. Preferred curriculum delivery format."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "grade_level"
  ],
  "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
}

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "matches": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "object"
      }
    },
    "match_count": {
      "type": "integer"
    },
    "filters_applied": {
      "type": "object"
    },
    "no_match_note": {
      "type": "string"
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "matches",
    "match_count"
  ],
  "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
}

Use this when a user asks for more detail about a specific homeschool curriculum or program. Returns detailed review synthesis, pros/cons, reviewer quotes, and a link to the full metareview on HomeschoolTools.net. Accepts the offering slug or its name.

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "slug": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 120,
      "description": "The offering slug (e.g., 'saxon-math') or its name (e.g., 'Saxon Math')."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "slug"
  ],
  "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
}

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "name": {
      "type": "string"
    },
    "slug": {
      "type": "string"
    },
    "detail_url": {
      "type": "string"
    }
  },
  "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
}

Look up specific homeschool offerings by name in the Homeschool Tools database (e.g., to check whether a curriculum the user mentioned is covered, or to get its slug for other tools). Returns name, slug, and a one-line summary per match. Do not use this for general recommendations (use find_curriculum), and do not use it for lesson planning, tutoring, or non-curriculum questions.

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "query": {
      "type": "string",
      "minLength": 2,
      "maxLength": 120,
      "description": "Offering or publisher name to look up, e.g. 'Sonlight' or 'Beast Academy'."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "query"
  ],
  "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
}

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "query": {
      "type": "string"
    },
    "result_count": {
      "type": "integer"
    },
    "results": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "object"
      }
    },
    "note": {
      "type": "string"
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "query",
    "result_count",
    "results"
  ],
  "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
}

Use this when a user wants to compare 2-3 specific homeschool curricula side by side (e.g., 'Sonlight vs My Father's World'). Returns full detail for each offering so you can contrast approach, price, worldview, parent time, and reviewer consensus. Pass slugs when known, names otherwise.

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "slugs": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string",
        "maxLength": 120
      },
      "minItems": 2,
      "maxItems": 3,
      "description": "2-3 offering slugs (preferred) or names, e.g. [\"sonlight\",\"my-fathers-world\"]."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "slugs"
  ],
  "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
}

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "offerings": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "object"
      }
    },
    "not_found": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "object"
      }
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "offerings"
  ],
  "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
}