Homeschool Vision 101: How To Build Authentic Educational Goals

Creating a Homeschool Vision

Of course, the first step on this path is casting a vision for your homeschool. While it is ideal to do this early in your homeschool journey, you can start anytime! And, remember your vision isn’t stagnant—it is something that lives and changes as you and your children learn and grow.

To be honest, this is something my husband and I haven’t fully established yet. (We have our first kid-free weekend coming up soon, and I’m excited to use some of this time to work on our family visions and goals!) There are several elements that we want incorporated into our family vision.

As Christians, our foremost goal is that our children love Jesus and walk with Him. For our homeschool, this means our curriculum and activities and reading books need to resonate with Biblical truth and values. We don’t want our kids favorite books to model unkindness towards others or selfishness, but rather graciousness, gentleness, and hospitality. This will be a guiding light in our homeschool vision.

Additionally, we firmly believe in the importance of learning to work hard. We want our children to have plenty of time to learn about what they love and spend time doing things they enjoy. But this does not make up the whole of their education, for both homeschool and life! We expect them to work hard, persevere, and do hard things. We expect critical thinking over rote memorization. This is a very important aspect of our homeschool vision.

Finally, we want our children to be well-equipped with life skills so that as they mature to adulthood, they are prepared to handle whatever they encounter. We want them to know how to do basic carpentry work, handle simple house repairs, know how to take care of a yard, be able to create a flourishing garden, know how to create a budget and stick to it, be able to prepare their own meals, and much more. When I was a young girl, I remember my mom saying, “We aren’t raising children, we are raising adults.” This philosophy will be reflected in our family’s vision.

Some of my favorite books that we are using as a foundation in these thoughts are Our 24 Family Ways by Clay Clarkson (especially valuable for character training), 50 Things Every Child Should Know Before Leaving Home by Dr. Josh and Jen Mulvihill , Educating the Whole-Hearted Child by Clay and Sally Clarkson (this handbook is also great for guiding your homeschool beyond just vision-casting), For the Children’s Sake by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay (this book utilizes a lot of Charlotte Mason ideas), and A Thomas Jefferson Education: Teaching A Generation of Leaders for the Twenty-First Century by Oliver Van DeMille.

We also greatly enjoy the Courageous Parenting podcast with Isaac and Angie Tolpin and The Old Fasioned on Purpose podcast with Jill Winger.

Some questions to ask as you formulate your vision: What is the purpose of education? Why am I choosing to homeschool? When my kids graduate high school, what do I want them to know? What characteristics are most important for me to see in my children? What type of lifestyle fits our family best? What do I anticipate my role to be in my children’s education? What do I want my children to achieve beyond high school?

Implementing Your Vision

Once you have a formal vision constructed, implementing your vision becomes the most important part. It is a lighthouse, a shining beacon that illuminates the values and ideals that are most important for you to impart to your children. It is also a bulwark, protecting your family when ideas and activities try to intrude that do not align with your goals for your family.

By simply asking, “Does this (curriculum, activity, group) align with our homeschool vision?” you will have an answer to whether you should use those books or participate in that event.

Now, break down your vision into short-term goals for the year. Make them SMART—Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-bound. Rather than “Complete all our subject this year”, consider goals like “Complete 20 math lessons by the end of this month, making sure my child fully understands each concept.” Or, “Read seven books aloud this month that emphasize the character trait of hospitality.”

Part of implementing your vision and establishing your goals is making sure that your curriculum, book, and activity choices align with your vision. For example, if hands-on learning is important to you, don’t choose a rigorous sit-down science curriculum that doesn’t contain any labs and has 120 lessons for the year! If you love the classical approach, make sure your read-alouds reflect those educational priorities. Consistency is key to reaching your target!

Rhythms and Routines

If you’re big on strict schedules, then go for it. Some people thrive with everything mapped out, and if that’s you, you’re incredible! While that is my sister, it is most definitely not me. However, I have found that having some rhythms to our days sets us up for success much more than just going with the flow. And, it helps us stay focused on reaching our goals! Here’s what works for our family, but figure out what works for yours and run with it!

• Morning Time: Once kids are dressed and seated eating breakfast, I do our morning time basket with them. We do short lessons in Bible, geography, history, and science together. Altogether this takes 15–20 minutes. (I have found starting while they are eating helps their attention spans greatly at their young ages!)
• Structure Learning/Play: I’ll set up my two younger children with some specific activities like magnatiles, puzzles, or our water table in the warmer months. This gives me 20–30 minutes to do short lessons in reading and math with my oldest son.
• Outdoor Time: Depending on the weather and time of year, sometimes this happens in the morning, sometimes in the late afternoon. We try to spend time in the backyard, walk to a park, or even walk a couple miles to the local coffee shop (a treat for mom, and the train yard is next door which keeps kids occupied for actual HOURS!). Everyone has a lot more patience if we get outdoor time in!
• Family Time: Once kids are ready for bed, our whole family spends 20–30 minutes together reading, singing, and talking. This keeps us all on the same page and allows us time where our whole family can connect at the same time!

While we incorporate many other things into our day, ensuring all of these things happen each day allows for a natural flow of learning, while still giving us some structure so the entire day isn’t just a free-for-all.

A Living Vision

As you move through the homeschool year, it is important to assess how your vision is being implemented and where you may need to adjust. Homeschooling is a dynamic, living process, and so is your vision. Be open to growth, to revisiting your goals, and to changing things as your family grows.

The vision we build today will extend far beyond our children’s time at home. This is the legacy of faith, hard work, and life skills that they will carry into adulthood. What you teach now will resonate for years to come as they use their abilities to love others, lead with integrity, and live out their core values.

Remember, homeschooling isn’t about achieving perfection; it’s about creating a nurturing, intentional environment where your children are given the tools and values they need to succeed in life. The vision you set will provide the roadmap, but the relationships you cultivate along the way will be the true heart of your homeschool journey.