A weekly school news digest with every date and form in one place
School news comes from everywhere: teacher emails, a PDF newsletter, the class app, the school website and a district closure notice. This prompt has your todo.is agent collect it every Sunday evening and turn it into one short list for each child: what is happening this week, what to bring, what to sign or pay, and the dates to remember.
The prompt
- Every Sunday at [TIME] ([TIME ZONE]), make me a school news digest for [MY CHILDREN]. Read emails from the last 7 days in my Gmail from [SCHOOL SENDERS], including attached newsletters and PDFs, and check [SCHOOL WEBSITES] for news and calendar updates. Make one section per child with: this week day by day, things to bring (PE kit, money, costumes), forms to sign or payments due with the deadline, and upcoming dates for the next 4 weeks. Put anything due before Wednesday at the top in bold. Add the new dates to my Google Calendar as events, and ask me before adding more than 5. Send it to [WHERE TO SEND IT] and keep it under one screen per child.
What to change
- [TIME]: Sunday evening works for most families, e.g. 18:00.
- [TIME ZONE]: Your time zone, e.g. "America/Denver".
- [MY CHILDREN]: Names, grade and class, e.g. "Mia (Year 3, Ms Okoro) and Leo (Year 6, Mr Hart)".
- [SCHOOL SENDERS]: Email addresses or domains, e.g. "@oakfield.sch.uk, the PTA, the after-school club". Forward app notifications to Gmail if they only come in an app.
- [SCHOOL WEBSITES]: The school news page, term calendar and district closures page, or "none".
- [WHERE TO SEND IT]: WhatsApp, Telegram or email. Ask to send it to both parents.
Example result
- School digest · week of October 12
- Example with a fictional school and family.
- Due soon: Mia's museum trip form and £8 payment, due Wednesday.
- Mia · Year 3, Ms Okoro
- • Mon: spelling test (words were in last week's email)
- • Tue: PE, send her in PE kit
- • Wed: trip form and £8 due (pay in the school payment app)
- • Thu: library day, return her book
- • Fri: non-uniform day, bring £1 for the charity collection
- Coming up
- • Oct 22: museum trip, packed lunch needed, back by 15:30
- • Oct 26 to 30: half-term, school closed
- Leo · Year 6, Mr Hart
- • Mon: swimming, bring a towel and goggles
- • Wed: after-school football until 16:30
- • Fri: book report due (half a page, any book read this term)
- Coming up
- • Oct 20: parents' evening, booking link in Tuesday's email, slots fill fast
- • Nov 4: secondary school application deadline (from the council website)
- Whole school
- • New pickup gate on Elm Road from Monday due to building work
- • PTA cake sale on Friday, donations welcome
- Added to your calendar
- • Museum trip (Oct 22), parents' evening booking reminder (Oct 14), half-term (Oct 26 to 30), application deadline (Nov 4)
- Sources: 14 emails, 2 PDF newsletters, the school calendar page.
How to do it with todo.is
- Copy the prompt and add your children, the school senders and the school websites.
- Connect Google in todo.is so your agent can read school emails and add dates to your calendar.
- Paste the prompt on the Today screen or send it to your agent on WhatsApp; the first digest arrives on Sunday.
- Reply with fixes, like "Leo has swimming on Thursdays now", and your agent remembers it for next week.
Tips for a better result
- Include the PTA, clubs and the district or council, not just the school. Closures and deadlines often come from there.
- Ask for a quick weekday check too: "if a school email says something is needed tomorrow, message me at 19:00".
- Send it to both parents so nobody misses the form.
- Ask for a term planner as a PDF at the start of each term, with every known date for all your children.
school news digest: FAQ
- Can it read the PDF newsletters schools send? Yes. It reads PDF and Word attachments in the emails and pulls out dates, things to bring and deadlines. Scanned or photographed letters work too.
- What about school apps that do not send email? Many apps can forward notifications to email, which your agent can read. Otherwise you can forward a screenshot and it will read it.
- Will it pay school fees or sign forms for me? No. It tells you what is due and where. Payments and signatures stay with you.
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