Why You Can Trust CNET 7 ways Alexa can help your kids get ready for school
If you're having trouble getting everyone ready and out the door in the morning, maybe Alexa can help.
Much to the dismay of kids everywhere, summer is over (or soon to be). That means no more staying up late, sleeping in and playing video games all day.
Instead, at the crack of dawn, everyone will be frantically running around the house every morning to get ready for school.
If you have an Alexa speaker, you can put it to work in the morning. Here are seven ways Alexa can help your kids get ready and out the door every the morning.
Alarms
The obvious use for Amazon's smart speaker in the morning is an alarm. But it's not just any alarm. You can place an Echo Dot in your kid's room and set an alarm that wakes them up to their favorite music, the weather or a standard alarm sound.
The best part is that you can create an Alexa routine that turns on a bedside lamp so they wake up to light instead of sound, which is generally a more calming and natural way to wake up.
A second use for an alarm in the morning is one that plays when it's time to leave (or a few minutes before) so they don't miss the bus.
Drop In and intercom
When your kid decides to ignore their alarm, you can turn to some of Alexa's other features to help peel your child out of bed.
For starters, Drop In will let you talk to your child from anywhere in the house. Just say, "Alexa, drop in on [child's name]'s bedroom." This will open a two-way call between the two Alexa speakers and let you talk to your child.
The intercom function is another great tool. Earlier this year, Amazon expanded on the Drop In functionality with Announcements. These announcements let you send a message to all Alexa speakers within the home at once.
Just say, "Alexa, tell everyone it's time to go," or "Alexa, broadcast." This will send a voice message to all the Alexa speakers around the home.
Make a toothbrush timer
To help teach your kid proper hygiene, make sure they know when they're brushing their teeth enough by setting up a routine for them.
Create a routine that triggers when they say, "Alexa, toothbrush time." Then make that routine start a timer for two minutes. Easy peasy.
Timers in the bathroom can also be used to make sure the kids aren't wasting too much time and water in the shower.
Read more: 11 ways you can use Alexa in the bathroom
Reminders or to-do lists
Use reminders to help your kids not forget anything in the morning. OK, maybe this is a good tip for everyone.
Create reminders for their packed lunch, homework, classes they have that day, etc. Then all you have to do is say, "Alexa, what are my reminders?"
If reminders don't work for you, you can also build a to-do list or calendar for them with tasks and events for all the things they need to do before they leave in the morning.
Help them get into the habit of asking Alexa for reminders or to-do list tasks before they head out the door each morning so they won't head to school without their homework. Again.
Out The Door
If you'd rather not have to piece together a bunch of Alexa skills, your all-in-one solution is Out The Door. Out The Door is an Alexa skill that turns getting ready for school into an adventure.
Each day, kids are given a new superpower and have to defeat a different creature as they complete "missions," which are things like getting dressed, brushing their teeth and putting their shoes on. It's a great way to motivate your kids to get ready in the morning.
Weather
Make sure your kids are dressed appropriately for the weather that day by either building weather into your Flash Briefing or asking, "Alexa, what's the weather?"
You can also say, "Alexa, is it going to rain today?" If so, you'll know to pack a rain jacket or umbrella for your kid before they leave.
Educational games
If by some miracle your kid is ready before you, consider having them play an educational game while they wait. There are tons of math quizzes, like Quiz Me or Times Tables, and countless other educational skills that can help them exercise their brains while waiting on the bus or waiting to leave for school in the morning.
Now that your kids are squared away, here are some ways you can use Alexa for your morning routine.
If your kids are a little older, here are nine tips for back to school.