Get started with Schooltime on your child’s Apple Watch
Schooltime blocks notifications and app use on your child’s Apple Watch during the days and times you choose, like school hours. When it’s active, a yellow circle appears on their watch face and Do Not Disturb turns on. Your child can exit Schooltime temporarily, to check messages or call emergency services, and you get a notification whenever they do. Schooltime turns back on when your child lowers their wrist.
Note: Apple Watch For Your Kids isn’t available in all countries or regions. For information about availability, including supported carriers, see Apple Watch GPS + Cellular.
Before you start
To use Schooltime schedules on a family member’s Apple Watch, first set up an Apple Watch for your child. This requires one of these Apple Watch models with watchOS 7 or later:
Apple Watch Series 6 or later with cellular
Apple Watch SE (1st generation) or later with cellular
Apple Watch Ultra, Apple Watch Ultra 2, or later
You also need an iPhone 6s or later with iOS 14 or later for the initial watch setup. To use Schooltime on your own Apple Watch, you need watchOS 7 or later.
Note: A cellular plan isn’t required to set up an Apple Watch for a family member, but is necessary for some features.
Set up Schooltime
Go to the Apple Watch app
on the iPhone used to manage the watch.
Tap My Watch, then tap a watch below Family Watches.
Tap
, then tap Schooltime.
Turn on Schooltime, then tap Edit Schedule.
Choose the days and times you want Schooltime to be active on the watch.
Note: To set schedules for multiple days, tap Customize Days.
Tap Add Time if you want to set up multiple schedules during a day.
Exit Schooltime
Your child can exit Schooltime temporarily.
Tap the display, then press and hold the Digital Crown.
Tap Exit.
If your child exits Schooltime during scheduled hours, the Schooltime watch face returns when they lower their wrist. During nonscheduled hours, Schooltime remains inactive until the next scheduled start time, or until your child taps Schooltime in Control Center.
See when Schooltime was unlocked
Go to the Apple Watch app
on the iPhone used to manage the watch.
Tap My Watch, then tap a watch below Family Watches.
Tap
, then tap Schooltime to see reports for the days, times, and durations Schooltime was unlocked.
The report also appears on the Apple Watch. To see it, go to the Settings app
on the Apple Watch, then tap Schooltime.
Schooltime turns on again when the display goes to sleep.
Tip: When Schooltime isn’t active, your child can turn it on—for example, if they’ve joined an after-school study group that falls outside scheduled hours and they don’t want to be distracted. Just press the side button, then tap in Control Center. To exit Schooltime, press and hold the Digital Crown, then tap Exit.
What’s next?
If your Family Sharing group has an Apple Music family subscription, your child can listen to Apple Music as long as they have a Wi-Fi or cellular connection. They can also follow and stream podcasts. To get started, open the Music or Podcasts app
on your child’s Apple Watch.