What is schooltime on Family Link?

School time on Google Family Link is a parental control feature that limits a child's device functionality during set hours, like school or bedtime, by showing only essential apps (e.g., for calls/texts) on a restricted home screen and silencing notifications to reduce distractions, while still allowing parents to permit calls/texts from approved contacts and set breaks. It creates a focused environment, ensuring the device is used for learning and emergencies rather than entertainment during key times.

What happens during school time on Family Link?

School time enables parents to set their child's personal device to a dedicated home screen with limited functionality during school hours, which helps reduce distractions during class. Parents can schedule and select which apps are allowed during School time in Family Link, our parental controls app.

What does schooltime do on parental controls?

Schooltime blocks notifications and disables the use of all apps on your child's Apple Watch. You choose the days and times when Schooltime is active—for example, if your child has school from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., you can set their watch to go into Schooltime automatically during that time.

What is the difference between school time and downtime on Google family link?

Your child's notifications, such as notifications for calls and texts, will be silent during School time. Your child can call and text during School time. Downtime: For your child to text during Downtime, your child's messages app must be an unlimited app. Calls are always available.

What happens to Family Link when a child turns 14?

When a child turns 14 (or the local age of digital maturity, usually 13), they get the choice to either continue with parental supervision or manage their own Google Account, with parents being notified if supervision stops, which can temporarily lock devices and remove access to features like YouTube Kids supervision. If they choose to keep supervision, controls continue, but if they opt out, features change, and parents can still add supervision back, though the child must agree. 

Google Family Link - How To Manage Your Child's Screen Time

Does Family Link stop at 18?

No, Google Family Link does not automatically stop at 18; supervision continues until the parent or the user (if over the minimum age, typically 13 or 18 depending on the region/account setup) actively stops it, and even then, the user often needs parental approval to remove it without restrictions, meaning it can persist past 18 unless the parents agree to remove it or the child successfully opts out (which can trigger device locks and notifications). 

Why can't I remove my 13 year old from Family Link?

Important: You can delete accounts only for children under 13 (or the applicable age in your country). If your child is older than 13, they need to delete the account themselves.

What are the disadvantages of Family Link?

Downsides of Google Family Link include limited monitoring (no texts/calls), easy bypassing by tech-savvy kids, poor iOS support, potential for stifling independence, privacy concerns over data collection, technical glitches, dependency on internet, and the ability for teens to remove supervision at 13, potentially harming trust and driving kids to sneak around for more autonomy. 

Why is my daughter's screen time not showing?

Check that Screen Time is installed on your child's device and is running in the background* Check that Location Services are enabled for Screen Time on your child's device. If this is being disabled then you can prevent that by opening Apple Settings >> General >> Restrictions >> Enable Restrictions.

When should parents stop using family links?

On the day they turn 13, children can choose whether they want to manage their own Google Account or continue to have their parent manage it for them. As a parent, you can also choose to remove supervision at any time when the child is over the age of 13.

What is the 7 7 7 rule of parenting?

The 7-7-7 rule of parenting has two main interpretations: one focuses on three daily 7-minute connection blocks (morning, after school, bedtime) for undivided attention to build emotional bonds, while another divides a child's life into three 7-year phases (play, teach, guide), adjusting parental roles from 0-7 (play), 7-14 (teach), to 14-21 (guide). Both emphasize mindful, intentional presence to foster secure, capable, and well-adjusted children by meeting their developmental needs at different stages. 

Is FamilyTime a good app?

Winding up this FamilyTime review, I'd say this app allows you to monitor all of your kid's mobile activities and GPS location, at the same time they can stay connected with you and send alerts if they need you right there. It's the best parental control software I have experienced and I'm quite impressed so far.

Can my parents see my texts on Family Link?

It's understandable that parents want to check their children's text messages to ensure they aren't receiving inappropriate content. However, due to privacy concerns, Google Family Link doesn't offer this feature. So, even if you're set up as a guardian in Family Link, you can't view your child's texts through the app.

Can my child turn off Family Link?

Yes, a child can turn off Family Link supervision once they reach the age of majority in their country (usually 13), but Google recently changed the policy to require parental approval for the teen to fully graduate to an unsupervised account, meaning they can't just opt out unilaterally anymore; they must ask for permission, and parents can also remove supervision at any time for older teens. For children under that age, they cannot turn it off, but if supervision was added to an existing account, they might be able to disable it without permission, which would lock their device temporarily, according to older info. 

Can you make phone calls during downtime?

Your parent can set a downtime and school time schedule, which will lock your device at a certain time. You won't be able to open it until downtime or school time is over but you will still be able to make phone calls if needed.

Can my child bypass parental controls?

If children have access to the administrative settings, they can disable or change the parental control settings. Sometimes they can simply reset their device to the factory settings. What should parents do? First, you should set strong passwords for accessing system settings and administrative functions.

Can my child delete Screen Time?

Yes, kids can often bypass or delete screen time controls, especially on Apple devices where some settings (like app installation) need extra locks, and on Android, third-party apps can sometimes be uninstalled unless you use specific methods like device admin settings, but the best defense is parental control settings like locking Screen Time with a passcode and teaching responsible use. 

Can parental control apps track text messages?

Bark scans your child's text messages, 30+ social media apps, web browsers, emails, and other online activity, keeping you informed and your child protected.

At what age does Family Link stop working?

When children whose accounts are managed with Family Link turn 13 (or the applicable age in their country), they can decide to: Keep parental supervision for children over 13 (or the applicable age in their country) Manage their own Google Account.

Is Family Link good or bad?

Generally, Family Link is a good option for your family if: Your family uses Android devices or Chromebooks. Your family doesn't use a shared computer (or if you do, it has filtering enabled/installed). You only need basic controls and restrictions.

What happens when your child turns 14 on Family Link?

When a child turns 14 (or the local age of digital maturity, usually 13), they get the choice to either continue with parental supervision or manage their own Google Account, with parents being notified if supervision stops, which can temporarily lock devices and remove access to features like YouTube Kids supervision. If they choose to keep supervision, controls continue, but if they opt out, features change, and parents can still add supervision back, though the child must agree. 

What happens if I click stop supervision on Family Link?

If you add parental supervision to your child's existing Google Account and your child is above the applicable age in your country, you or your child can stop supervision at any time. If your child stops supervision, you'll be notified and your child's supervised devices will be locked temporarily.

What happens if a parent deletes a Family Link?

The user will lose access to all shared content and services. The user will also receive an email explaining they've been removed from the family group. Your family payment method will be charged for any pending purchases made by the removed member.