Step 2: Plan your homeschool curriculum

What "planning your curriculum" actually means

You are doing two things at once:

1. Designing what your child will learn - what content, in what order, at what depth.
2. Producing documents your registering authority will accept - typically a learning plan, scope and sequence, assessment plan, and resource list.

These two jobs overlap but they aren't identical. A great homeschool program with terrible documentation will fail registration. Beautiful documentation that doesn't actually work for your child wastes everyone's time. We'll do both, starting with what every Australian authority expects.

The eight Australian Curriculum learning areas

The Australian Curriculum (and almost every state's home education guideline) is organised into eight learning areas. You don't have to give equal time to each, but you do have to address each one.

Learning area	What it covers	Minimum elements expected
English	Reading, writing, speaking, listening, literature, language	Reading daily, writing across genres, comprehension, spelling and grammar
Mathematics	Number, algebra, measurement, geometry, statistics, probability	Continuous skill-building across all strands, regular practice
Science	Biological, chemical, physical, Earth and space sciences; inquiry skills	Hands-on investigations, scientific inquiry, content topics
HASS (Humanities and Social Sciences)	History, Geography, Civics and Citizenship, Economics and Business	Australian and world contexts, source-based skills
The Arts	Visual arts, music, dance, drama, media arts	At least two of the five disciplines, with creation and response
Health and Physical Education	Health, movement, personal and social capability	Regular physical activity, food and nutrition, relationships
Technologies	Design and Technologies, Digital Technologies	Computational thinking, design process, safe and ethical use
Languages	A language other than English	Some authorities make this optional in primary; check your state

You can integrate. A unit on the Australian gold rushes covers HASS (history), English (writing, comprehension), The Arts (researching colonial-era visual art), and Mathematics (cost-of-living calculations from primary sources). One project, four learning areas - and that is a perfectly legitimate way to plan.

Choose a homeschooling style

Most Australian homeschool families end up somewhere on a spectrum from highly structured to fully child-led. Pick the rough end you want to start at, then drift toward what actually works for your child. None of these are inherently better; they suit different families.

Structured (school-at-home)

A timetabled day with set lessons, a chosen curriculum delivered sequentially, assessments and reports. Often used by families transitioning out of school, or families where the parent is anxious about gaps. Easiest to document for registration. Risk: replicating the things you didn't like about school.

Good if: you want predictability, your child responds well to clear structure, or you're using a packaged curriculum like K12, ACE, or Easy Peasy.

Eclectic

You pick the best resource for each learning area - perhaps a structured maths curriculum, a literature-based English approach, project-based science, and tutors for languages. This is the most common Australian homeschool style and the easiest to sustain long-term. Documentation requires more work because you have to articulate the program rather than point at a brand.

Good if: you have time to research and curate, or you want different approaches for different subjects.

Charlotte Mason / classical / Steiner / Montessori-aligned

Recognised pedagogical traditions with their own curricula, philosophy and assessment styles. Charlotte Mason emphasises living books, nature study and short focused lessons. Classical follows the trivium (grammar, logic, rhetoric). Steiner is developmental and arts-rich. Montessori-aligned uses prepared environments and self-paced work. All are accepted by Australian authorities as long as you can map the program back to the curriculum learning areas.

Good if: the philosophy resonates and you're willing to invest in learning the method.

Unit studies / project-based

You teach across learning areas through extended projects - a six-week study of Antarctica that integrates geography, science, English, art and maths. This is rich, memorable, and engages many children deeply. Requires the parent to plan integration consciously, and registration documentation needs to show how each learning area is still covered.

Good if: your child is project-driven, you enjoy planning, and you can map across learning areas.

Natural learning / unschooling

Child-led; the parent provides resources and follows the child's interests. Australian authorities can accept unschooling-style programs but the documentation burden is significantly higher because you have to show retrospectively that learning areas have been addressed and outcomes met.

Good if: you and your child both thrive without imposed structure, and you're prepared to keep extensive records of what is actually happening.

In practice, most experienced Australian homeschool families end up eclectic with a structured maths spine and project-based humanities, because maths is the learning area where gaps cause the most damage and where sequential building matters most. This is observation, not prescription - every family settles where their kids and their values lead them.

Religious and tradition-specific approaches

A substantial proportion of Australian homeschool families have a religious or specific-tradition basis for their choice. Authorities accept these approaches as long as the curriculum learning areas are addressed; the values and emphasis are up to the family.

• Christian homeschooling. Several packaged curricula are widely used. ACE (Accelerated Christian Education) delivers a workbook-based program across all years with a strong scope-and-sequence structure - typically used in full, with the family supplementing for Australian context. Sonlight is literature-rich, reading-list-led, and often blended with maths from elsewhere. Easy Peasy All-in-One Homeschool is free, online, and Bible-integrated. Australian Christian College Distance is a registered school delivering a full Australian Curriculum + Christian-studies program through to HSC. Most Christian homeschool families combine a packaged Christian core (often for English and Bible) with mainstream Australian resources for maths and science. Australian Christian Education Network (ACEN) is the peak body.
• Catholic and classical Catholic. Classical-tradition curricula (the trivium of grammar, logic, rhetoric) often work for Catholic families. Memoria Press delivers a Latin-rich classical curriculum that some Australian Catholic families use as their backbone. Mother of Divine Grace is another well-known classical Catholic curriculum. Most Catholic homeschoolers combine these with the Australian Curriculum (often using ACARA's HASS and Science syllabuses) and add explicit Catholic religious education. Some Catholic distance education schools in Australia accept home-educated students for specific subjects.
• Islamic homeschooling. Growing community in Australia. Iqra Online delivers an Australian-aligned Islamic curriculum from primary through secondary. The Tarbiyah Curriculum is project-based and integrates Islamic studies with broader content. Most Islamic homeschool families build their program by combining an Islamic-studies core (Quran, Arabic, Islamic history) with mainstream Australian Curriculum resources for English, maths, science and HASS. Local Islamic schools sometimes accept dual enrolment for specific subjects or part-time arrangements.
• Steiner / Waldorf-aligned. Developmental, arts-rich, story-led pedagogy. The Steiner approach delays formal reading and structured maths until later than mainstream Australian curriculum, then builds rapidly. Steiner Education Australia (SEA) publishes resources and runs teacher training; some Australian Steiner schools provide curriculum materials for home-educating families. Note: Steiner schools and Steiner home-education are not the same - home-educating Steiner families adapt the principles for their context, often working with a Steiner-trained consultant for the early years.
• Jewish homeschooling. Small but established community in Australia. Resources from international sources (typically US-based) combined with Hebrew language programs, Jewish studies materials, and mainstream Australian Curriculum content for secular subjects. Local Jewish day schools and community organisations sometimes support home-educating families with shared programs.

Whatever tradition or framework you use, the registration plan still needs to demonstrate that the learning areas are addressed. The authority is not assessing your faith or tradition - only your curriculum.

Writing a learning plan that gets approved

Authorities are looking for a plan that is:

1. Broad - covers all required learning areas
2. Sequential - content builds logically over the registration period
3. Appropriate - matched to the child's stage and ability
4. Documented - the plan itself, and how you'll evidence progress

Here is a template that works in every Australian state with light adaptation:

Section 1: About the child (1 page)

• Full name, date of birth, year level
• A short paragraph describing the child as a learner: strengths, interests, areas where they need more support
• Any diagnosed learning needs, with reports attached as appendices
• Languages spoken at home

Section 2: Educational philosophy (1 page)

• Why you have chosen home education
• Your approach in 2-3 paragraphs (structured, eclectic, Charlotte Mason, etc.)
• The values you want the program to reflect

Section 3: Learning areas (4-8 pages)

For each of the eight learning areas, half a page covering:

• The strands or topics you will address this period
• The main resources you will use
• The kinds of activities the child will undertake
• How you will assess learning

This is where the bulk of the document lives. Authorities care most about English and Mathematics and will scan more lightly for the others, but every learning area must be present.

Section 4: Scope and sequence (1-2 pages)

A table showing what content each learning area covers per term across the registration period. See the template below.

Section 5: Assessment and reporting (1 page)

• What evidence you will keep (portfolios, work samples, observation notes, test results, project records)
• How often you will review progress
• How you will identify and address areas where the child is struggling

Section 6: Resource list (1 page)

The main books, online programs, libraries, museums, sports clubs, tutors, co-ops, and online courses you will use.

A scope-and-sequence template

For a 12-month registration with four terms:

Learning area      | Term 1                | Term 2                | Term 3                | Term 4
-------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|----------------------
English            | Narrative writing,    | Information texts,    | Persuasive writing,   | Poetry, novel study,
                   | spelling foundations, | comprehension,        | source analysis,      | extended response,
                   | daily reading         | grammar focus         | research project      | assessment
-------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|----------------------
Mathematics        | Number to 10,000,     | Fractions & decimals, | Measurement,          | Statistics &
                   | place value,          | algebra introduction, | geometry, scale       | probability,
                   | addition/subtraction  | problem solving       | drawing               | revision & test
-------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|----------------------
Science            | Biological:           | Chemical: materials   | Physical: forces &    | Earth & space:
                   | ecosystems &          | & their properties    | motion, energy        | weather, solar
                   | classification        |                       |                       | system
-------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|----------------------
HASS               | History: First       | Geography:            | Civics: government    | Economics:
                   | Nations Australians   | Australia's regions   | & democracy           | needs vs wants,
                   |                       |                       |                       | trade
-------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|----------------------
The Arts           | Visual arts:          | Music: rhythm &       | Drama: scripted &     | Visual arts: digital
                   | drawing & painting    | percussion            | improvised            | media
-------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|----------------------
HPE                | Daily movement +      | Daily movement +      | Daily movement +      | Daily movement +
                   | health: nutrition     | health: relationships | health: safety        | health: mental
                   |                       |                       |                       | wellbeing
-------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|----------------------
Technologies       | Design: kitchen       | Digital: basic        | Design: textiles or   | Digital: word
                   | project               | coding (Scratch)      | woodwork              | processing, online
                   |                       |                       |                       | safety
-------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|-----------------------|----------------------
Languages          | Auslan: greetings &   | Auslan: family &      | Auslan: numbers &     | Auslan: storytelling
                   | introductions         | feelings              | time                  |

Adjust learning areas, depth and topics for your child's year level. Reviewers want to see thought, not perfection. A scope and sequence is a plan - it can change, and most do.

Resources we recommend looking at first

These are starting points; none are required. Most are free.

• Australian Curriculum - the official scope and content descriptions for F–10. Free, searchable, and most state syllabus documents map to it.
• State syllabus pages - NSW, VIC, QLD, WA, SA, TAS, ACT and NT all publish their syllabuses online for free. If your state requires alignment with the state syllabus rather than the Australian Curriculum, start there.
• Khan Academy - free maths and science from primary through senior. Solid for the structured-maths spine that most eclectic families want.
• State Library / public library memberships - most state libraries give free remote access to databases, ebooks, audiobooks and journals to anyone with a library card.
• ABC Education - free, Australian, curriculum-aligned video and activities.
• Local councils - many run free school-holiday activities, makerspaces, and arts programs.
• Homeschool co-ops - group classes, science labs, sports days, debating, drama. Search Facebook for "[your state] homeschool group" and "[your suburb] homeschool co-op."

Common planning mistakes

• Front-loading the year. Don't put every interesting topic in Term 1. You'll burn out by Easter.
• Underestimating maths. Maths needs daily, sequential practice from primary onward. Skipping a week causes more damage than skipping a week of any other learning area.
• Confusing curriculum with content. A curriculum is a plan. Content is what you actually teach. They should match, but the plan exists to give you and the authority confidence - the day-to-day is what matters.
• Buying packaged curricula sight-unseen. Borrow, sample, or trial before committing $1,000+. Most don't fit.
• Documenting too little for the authority. This is the single most common cause of rejection or re-submission. Err on the side of more detail in your initial application; you can run a lighter day-to-day operation than your plan describes, you just can't have planned less than you actually do.

What's next

Once your plan is written and your registration is in (or already approved), move into Step 3: Day-to-day teaching for the practical rhythm of running a homeschool - timetables, record-keeping, multi-age teaching, and assessment.

If you're already thinking ahead to senior credentials, Step 4: Exams and post-school pathways covers how homeschoolers sit the HSC, VCE, QCE and earn an ATAR.