OpenTutor: a modular AI homeschool platform, leveraging a GitHub curriculum, an AI tutor, and a Discord classroom.

OpenTutor connects curriculum, classroom conversation, tutoring, and student work into one parent-supervised learning workflow built around GitHub, AI, and Discord.

Runtime update — May 2026 By Josh Johnson
OpenTutor homeschool flow diagram connecting GitHub, Discord, Vibe, and parent oversight

Thesis: A Supervised Learning Operating System

OpenTutor argues that the next durable model for home education is a supervised learning operating system: one that joins curriculum, communication, tutoring, assessment, and portfolio evidence in a single, reviewable workflow.

This document is written as a working white paper for AI-assisted, parent-supervised education. In this model, GitHub serves as the durable academic record, Discord serves as the live classroom environment, and Vibe serves as the on-demand tutor operating inside clear human guardrails.

  • Governance before automation Parent and educator oversight is a design requirement, not an optional layer.
  • Transparency by default Assignments, revisions, feedback, and progress are visible through open tools rather than hidden behind proprietary dashboards.
  • Continuity of learning evidence Day-to-day tutoring interactions connect to long-term portfolios, making student growth easier to audit and support.

Who This Is For

OpenTutor is designed for communities that want AI support without sacrificing visibility, accountability, or human instructional leadership.

The current release prioritizes operators who are comfortable managing curriculum, communication, and AI tutoring as one connected system rather than a collection of disconnected education apps.

Primary

Homeschool Families

Parent-led homeschool families who want visible, reviewable AI-assisted instruction and a long-term record of student growth.

Secondary

Microschools & Learning Pods

Microschools, learning pods, independent tutors, and alternative programs coordinating multi-student workflows in lightweight, open infrastructure.

Emerging

Schools & Institutions

Schools piloting supervised AI, project-based assessment, and portfolio-driven documentation before larger institutional adoption.

OpenTutor is best treated as an experimental operating model, not a turnkey accredited school package or compliance platform.

Technical integration map showing repositories, channels, tutor layer, and parent oversight connected as one system

System Architecture

OpenTutor uses three layers: GitHub for durable work, Discord for the classroom, and Vibe for guided help.

The system connects records, classroom channels, student work, tutoring, and parent review without hiding the underlying tools.

Step 01

The Assignment Hub

GitHub holds curriculum, schedules, assignments, revisions, and student portfolios in one reviewable record.

Step 02

The Virtual Classroom

Discord is the daily classroom: subject channels, announcements, check-ins, and study rooms in one familiar space.

Step 03

The AI Tutor

Vibe answers inside Discord with explanations, assignment help, quizzes, and next steps under parent oversight.

Systems image showing the OpenTutor homeschool model with Discord, GitHub, tutoring, and parent oversight connected visually.

Design Rationale

The model keeps the operating roles clear: Discord hosts the day, GitHub stores the work, Vibe supports instruction, and the parent stays in control.

A small set of transparent tools replaces the usual hidden dashboard.

Everything stays reviewable

Assignments, schedules, revisions, and bot behavior leave a trail. GitHub shows what changed; Discord shows the classroom flow.

Help shows up where the work happens

Students ask in the same place assignments, resources, and family communication already live.

Parents stay in the loop

Roles, channels, visible prompt files, and reviewable code keep adults in the operator seat.

The curriculum can evolve like software

Lessons, reading lists, pacing, and projects can be revised like any other versioned work.

Students practice future workplace tools

Students practice channels, mentions, async check-ins, version history, and digital collaboration early.

Professional habits become normal early

Clear questions, documented progress, and versioned work become part of the learning routine.

Technical repository workflow map showing student folders, subjects, assignments, and project outputs connected together

Learning Resources

The repo keeps resources close to the work: assignments, student folders, teacher tools, references, datasets, and useful links.

Shared assignments feed student workspaces; teacher prompts and dashboards keep planning visible.

Learning Center Example

The repo is split by function

The learning-center repo separates shared material, student work, teacher tools, and dashboards.

learning-center/ assignments/ resources/ students/ teachers/ .github/workflows/
Teacher Layer

Adults stage the program from real folders

Assignments, references, prompts, and dashboards live in folders adults can inspect and edit.

assignments/social-studies/ resources/un_countries.csv teachers/ai-assistants/ teachers/sites/index.html teachers/sites/mind-map/
Student Workspace

Each learner gets a durable working folder

Each student gets a named workspace for subjects, schedule files, and portfolio work.

students/student-name/ grade-5/ math/ stem/ language-arts/ social-studies/ schedule.csv README.md
Learning resources map showing parent guidance, student guidance, subject folders, quick reference guides, datasets, and essential online tools.
For parents and students

Use clear folders like /math, /science, /programming, /history, /reading, and /projects.

Parents curate the library; students use it for subject guides, vocabulary, and references.

Reference materials

Keep formulas, grammar rules, writing frameworks, measurements, history guides, and datasets ready.

Group online tools by purpose so students can find the right aid quickly.

What this means for OpenTutor

This is a maintained learning library, not a fixed curriculum map.

AI helps turn resources into rubrics, lesson outlines, announcements, worksheets, and review materials.

Setup Guides

OpenTutor depends on a few real-world setup steps. These official links make it easier to stand the system up without guesswork, then layer in agentic coding workflows where the parent stays in the loop as curriculum architect, assignment maintainer, and feedback lead.

Accounts + Repos

Start with identity and ownership

Parents and students should have real GitHub accounts so assignments, commits, and project history map to actual people.

Discord Classroom

Build the classroom shell

Discord becomes the day-to-day classroom layer, so the main job is creating a clean server with obvious subject and admin spaces.

Bot + Runtime

Install the tutor safely

Create the Discord application, install the bot with limited scopes, then run the repo with the correct bot token and Anthropic key.

Agentic Coding Layer

Supercharge parent-led curriculum building

Agentic coding tools can reduce friction across assignments, documents, and projects. Parents keep human oversight while using Codex-style agents to draft curricula, generate differentiated tasks, score with rubrics, and produce actionable feedback faster.

  • Use AI coding agents to co-author unit plans, assignment templates, and project prompts.
  • Keep the parent as final reviewer, approver, and standards owner at each step.
  • Reuse agent skills to maintain documentation, grading notes, and revision history.
  • Antigravity (VS Code-based)
  • OpenAI Codex docs

Vibe: Tutor + Family Helper

Vibe is the classroom tutor and family helper inside OpenTutor. It checks schedules, GitHub files, web results, weather, and family context when the answer depends on them.

What Vibe does

One assistant, four jobs

  • TeachExplain, quiz, rephrase, and scaffold schoolwork.
  • OrientFind the right student, schedule, folder, or assignment.
  • ReadUse GitHub files when questions depend on repo content.
  • UpdateUse web, URL, and weather tools when facts may have changed.
Try asking

Useful prompts

Everyday requests should feel like classroom language, not tool commands.

@Vibe what should the students do on Monday? @Vibe summarize the math folder in the learning center repo. @Vibe what's the weather in Chicago today? @Vibe help us turn today's errands and schoolwork into a quick plan.
Tutor behavior

Friendly help that fits the classroom

Vibe combines tutor style, student awareness, recent context, and guardrails so replies fit the classroom.

Illustration of Vibe tutoring inside a calm digital classroom

Tutor support in subject channels

Subject channels, prompts, and tutor help live in the same classroom flow, so support appears where students are already working.

Illustration showing Vibe's tutoring strengths and classroom support

Context-aware tutor support

Recent context, speaker awareness, concise replies, and guardrails turn tutoring into a practical classroom layer instead of a generic chat window.

Teaching Style

Clear explanations

Vibe explains schoolwork in plain language, adapts to the student, and keeps answers useful without taking over the learning.

Context Awareness

Knows the classroom

Display names, roles, aliases, and recent messages help Vibe distinguish students, parents, and teacher roles in a live Discord thread.

Guardrails

Helper, not server admin

Cooldowns, concise replies, and scoped tools keep Vibe focused on learning and productivity while parents remain the operators.

Daily Flow

Daily Flow is a flexible sequence: orient, work, get help, review, build, and close the loop.

Learning Mode
What Happens
Student Output
Opening Block Orient

Morning check-in

Parent posts priorities and links to the right subject folders.

Ready to work

Students know today’s tasks, locations, and expected commits.

Core Work Work

Subject work

Students move through subject folders and assignment materials.

Organized evidence

Notes, drafts, and responses land in the right folders.

Tutor Window Get help

On-demand tutoring

Vibe rephrases directions, explains concepts, and helps students restart.

Less stalled time

Questions become clearer next steps instead of long blockers.

Reset Review

Progress review

Parent checks completed work, blockers, and afternoon priorities.

Visible pacing

Work can be redirected without losing the day’s trail.

Project Time Build

Projects and applied work

Students shift into coding, design, research, or portfolio projects.

Portfolio artifacts

Code, websites, drafts, and assets become durable evidence.

Close Commit

Commit and plan

Students save finished work, note changes, and identify the next step.

Clean day record

The parent can review completed work and tomorrow’s next actions.

Pearlescent cat illustration of the morning homeschool check-in

Morning check-in

Priorities and expectations start the day.

Pearlescent cat illustration of focused homeschool study and guided work

Focused study

Subjects, repo materials, and tutor help stay connected.

Pearlescent cat illustration of homeschool review and end-of-day reflection

Commit and review

Finished work and next actions stay visible.

Governance & Safety

Parents keep authority over curriculum, pacing, permissions, and classroom structure. Vibe supports learning; it does not run the school.

No Server-Management Role

Vibe does not moderate servers or manage classroom permissions.

Visible Prompt and Skill Files

Prompt rules and skill files stay visible and reviewable.

Scoped Live Tools

External access is limited to explicit, reviewable tools.

Immediate, Contextual Help

Students ask in Discord and get help in the flow of class.

Human-in-the-Loop AI

The AI can explain and scaffold, but parents set the standards.

Portfolio-Based Learning

Repositories make student work, revisions, and growth visible.

Support the Project

OpenTutor and Vibe are open-source homeschool infrastructure work. GitHub stars and forks help people discover, test, and improve the project; donations can fund API costs, curriculum maintenance, documentation, and continued development.

GitHub Star

Star the Vibe repo

Stars help more parents and educators find the Discord bot and signal that the model is worth continuing to build.

Star on GitHub
GitHub Fork

Fork the project

Forks make it easier to adapt the bot, test runtime changes, add skills, and send improvements back through pull requests.

Fork on GitHub
Bitcoin

Direct Bitcoin support for OpenTutor infrastructure, hosting, and ongoing development.

3AWfncSFKENu47mDUhyZU1tvAULPzkSdZ8
Ethereum / EVM

Direct EVM-compatible support for OpenTutor infrastructure, tooling, and documentation work.

0x6B71F8F87F7eA31628149D70B9d178cB3E357A90

These addresses fund OpenTutor infrastructure, API usage, curriculum maintenance, and continued development.