The life of a teacher is rarely an easy one, with so much to prepare for eager young minds in order to give them a balanced education. Not only do teachers have to put in a full day of work at school which is usually around 8 hours, but then there are the out-of-school duties too such as researching and creating lesson plans, preparing materials for their students, parent-teacher conferences as well as marking homework.
There may even be activities outside of school hours including preparing students for a school play or if you are a sports teacher busy organizing sporting fixtures and competitions against other schools to ensure that students have access to a wide range of opportunities and are fulfilling their potential.
Some teachers also take on part-time or seasonal work to supplement their income, which makes keeping track of everything they have to do, and the places they need to be, even more difficult.
Teaching is a rewarding career, but with a high level of multitasking can come sacrifices to a teacher’s personal life, so being organized and using the benefits of modern technology to alleviate some of that stress is a welcomed addition to any teacher’s life. One of the best ways a teacher can get organized for themselves and their school duties is to buy a smartwatch with a range of features.
In this article, we’ll be taking a look at some of the best smartwatches for teachers whether you are teaching in junior school, high school, or in college.
What Features of Smartwatches Are Beneficial to Teachers?
Smartwatches these days are more like miniature smartphones and are compatible with just about everything a regular cellular phone can do and access, including a variety of apps.
The smartwatch also benefits from the fact it can track your biometrics, such as heart rate when worn, giving you a much better understanding of your own physiology. Some of the most important features of a smartwatch specifically for teachers include:
Calendar Viewing
At the touch of a button, you can see exactly what you have to get done that day. This is especially useful if your day is busy and you can’t afford to let things slip, whether it’s handing out an assignment or your afternoon at the spa or gym to unwind.
Reminders
Diaries are great, but they can’t sit on your wrist and alert you instantly of reminders for things you need to do. With so many different classes to teach to a variety of student grades, things can quickly get out of order if you don’t remember to do important school-related tasks.
Text and Call
Instead of carrying your phone with you all day, a smartwatch is a convenient go between that doesn’t require you to constantly be staring down. Many smartwatches these days can dictate your messages, read them out to you, and allow you to make calls quickly and discretely.
Stopwatch
Ideal for sports teachers and those who need to time student tests, this handy feature can be used to monitor your student activities, whether you are a sports teacher coaching a game of football or sitting down to do a quick ten-minute multiple-choice quiz.
Our Top 4 Smartwatch Recommendations for Teachers
1. Fitbit Versa 3
Fitbits don’t just have to be all about exercise, and they have a number of great uses for teachers too. Out of school, you can use the Fitbit Versa 3 to monitor everything from your fitness levels to your sleep patterns on the large screen, giving you the ability to see all the metrics you need to at a glance.
When in school you can use it to set a silent alarm, so you can be alerted 5 minutes before the end of a lesson if you need to issue and explain a homework assignment.
You can also better allocate time to your students thanks to the handy timer, giving them a certain amount of time to discuss ideas in groups, or to time science experiments. It also has a calculator for quick maths sums.
2. Fossil Gen 6
A sleek watch from a well-known timepiece brand, the Gen 6 from Fossil will not only look awesome on your wrist but can also help with your teaching.
As the watch is compatible with Google you can enjoy everything from Google Calendar to Google Mail and Google Drive to keep track of all your activities, personal and work emails, as well as all the associated documents.
The screen is smaller than other models, but the voice-to-text function allows you to dictate with incredible accuracy if you need to send a text message in a flash. Like many other smartwatches, you’ll also be able to track your exercises, heart rate, and it also benefits from GPS.
3. Apple Watch Series 6 or 7
The Series 6 is a great choice for teachers who need to stay on the ball whether in school or at home. Not only can you keep track of your scholastic commitments, such as a calendar view and accessing student records, but you will also be able to go swimming in it and record your runs too.
The only drawback is a battery life of 2 days max which can be annoying compared to other smartwatches. Still, you get a lot of value from the watch and it works great if you have an Apple iPhone as well. You can compare Apple Watches on superwatches.com here.
This watch features a browser and voice activation with Siri so you can surf the web to find any information you need in a split second, greatly improving your productivity.
It’s also lightweight at under 15oz so you’ll barely notice you’re wearing it. What’s more, you can use it to play music and listen to your favorite podcasts.
4. Garmin Venu 2 Plus
The Venu 2 plus is a new watch released by Garmin that is a touch screen watch and adds the ability to make and receive calls. It’s got a microphone and a speaker that enable this.
It’s a great sport watch but it is also a great companion for a teacher because it’s very intuitive to use and has got all sorts of health and sports tracking, stress management, hydration management, breathing and respiration tracking, alarms, calendar, reminders, and alerts – everything a teacher needs basically.
Maybe it does not have the best Garmin Navigation features such as can be found on the Fenix Range because it doesn’t support onboard maps, but still – a great smartwatch.
Smartwatches are an awesome accessory every teacher should own, not only to keep their little monsters in order but keep track of their own personal lifestyle and health too.
We give that an A+! Maintaining this fine balance between work and play is made so much easier with the help of a smartwatch, so if you’ve been contemplating it don’t put it off any longer – join the smartwatch revolution.
