Use the Smart Speaker to Organize Your Child’s School Day at Home
One of the benefits of full-time school is the structure it brings to your kids’ day: there is a timetable that students must follow, with clear start and end times for each lesson, probably marked with a bell, and the possible consequences of being late.
But when you’re at home, school day can turn into a time warp pretty quickly, and your kids’ attention can be easily distracted by any number of distractions in your home. If you’re considering homeschooling for the foreseeable future, you’ll need some semblance of structure, and your smart speaker can help you with that.
Here’s how to use Alexa or Google Assistant to keep your kids homeschooled.
Set up Family Bell with Google Assistant
Google just launched a feature for Google Assistant called Family Bell, which allows you to choose specific times at which your speaker should beep throughout the day – for example, at the beginning of a period, at the end of lunch, or at the beginning of your bedtime. You can start it with a voice command (“Ok Google, create a family call”), but it’s probably easier to use the Google Home app for more control over times, days, and routines.
To set up Family Bell , open the app on your iOS or Android device and tap your profile photo in the upper right corner. Tap Assistant Settings> Assistant> Family Call> Add Call and enter details (including what you want the bell to say). You can update or change your ad in the same menu. Since this feature is brand new, you may need to update the app if you don’t see the Family Bell option.
You can also use Google Assistant routines to combine multiple actions, such as turning on a light, playing a bell, speaking a command, and starting a song or audiobook (or whatever you need for your educational purposes). In the app, choose Assistant> Routines and tap the plus sign to create a custom routine.
Set up reminders with Alexa
If you have an Amazon Echo, you can play it back with Alexa reminders. Your speaker will play a preset message and / or beep at a designated time, which you can repeat on a specific schedule.
To set up reminders, open the Alexa app on your iOS or Android device, tap the menu button in the top left corner, and tap Reminders & Alarms> Reminders . Click the plus sign to create a new reminder and enter what you want Alexa to say. From there, you can also edit the time, frequency, and devices transmitting the message.
Alexa also has the ability to combine multiple activities into a routine. From the menu, select Routines and click on the plus sign. From here, follow the instructions to set up the IFTTT routines on specific days and times. As with Google Assistant, you can use other smart home devices as well.