We built this for our boys.
We want them to learn, make decisions, understand their feelings, and think about how they treat people. It Adds Up gives us a place to work on those things together.
Schoolwork is part of it, not the whole of it. We’re still figuring out what helps.
This week
Taking care of things
“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.” Luke 16:10
Try today: Put everything you used today back where it goes.
Tonight’s reflection
What was difficult today? What did you try?
- Today’s list
- 3 of 4 done
- Saving for
- $36 of $60
What we work on, a week at a time
The year has 52 weekly themes in twelve parts. Each week has a verse and a small thing to try each day. Some of the daily ones:
- Three times today, name exactly how you feel in one word.
- Stay with a hard problem 10 minutes longer before asking for help.
- In one conversation, ask two questions before you share your own story.
- Only promise what you will really do today. Do all of it.
- Know yourself
- Showing up · What you’re good at · What you value · Your patterns
- Build momentum
- Small wins · Consistency · Starting again · Momentum
- Your body
- Fuel · Moving · Sleep · Clean and ready · Strong body, strong mind
- Where your time goes
- Seeing your time · First things first · On time · Rest and play
- Money
- Earning · Saving · Giving · Wants and needs · Taking care of things
- Talking and listening
- Listening · Kind words · Speaking up · Making it right
- Hard things
- Not quitting · Asking for help · Mistakes · Courage
- Your space, your mind
- Clear space · Focus · What you feed your mind · Quiet · Curiosity
- Feelings
- Naming it · Anger · Worry · Bouncing back
- Making good calls
- Thinking it through · Friends · Online choices · Integrity · Owning your choices
- Being someone people count on
- Keeping your word · Helping without being asked · Gratitude · Loyalty
- Seeing your growth
- Looking back · Giving season · Finishing strong · Who you’ve become
It doesn’t happen in a day.
It adds up.
The app keeps the day’s facts: what was due, what got done, where they asked for help. That frees the evening for the part that matters, which is talking about the choices.
We read what they choose to share. Reflections they keep private aren’t shown to us, with one narrow exception, explained below.
And we get things wrong too. Sometimes the expectation wasn’t clear, or their explanation changes our minds. When that happens, we say so.
How the day is set up
Each child gets their own schedule. Everything here is optional.
- The week’s theme
- One theme a week with a Bible verse we talk about, and a small thing to try each day.
- Evening reflection
- One question, answered in their own words. They choose whether to share it.
- Morning check-in
- Pick a time. If they haven’t checked in by then, you get an alert.
- Classes from the school calendar
- Paste the calendar link. Live classes show up on their list with a reminder to join.
- School computer rules
- During school hours only school sites open, and the sound stays on during live classes.
- Work first, then free time
- The rest of the computer opens after the day’s list is done, during the free time you set.
- Asking for help or more time
- One tap, with a reason. You answer from your phone. Asking early is never held against them.
What we collect and who can see it
On the school computer: which site is open each minute, whether the computer is idle or locked, and whether school rules were changed. If school rules are on, a screenshot of the school page at sign-in to show it’s their own account. In the app: assignments, chores, allowance, and the reflections a kid chooses to share. No location, camera, microphone, keystrokes or messages.
Reflections a kid keeps private aren’t shown to us, with one exception. Everything they write is checked against a fixed list of phrases about being hurt, hurting themselves, or being told to keep something from their parents, plus any words we add. If one appears, we see that one entry. It’s a word match, not a judgment: it can miss things, and it can catch harmless ones, like a surprise gift. The kids are told how it works in their app.
Parents sign in with an emailed code and an authenticator app. No ads, no trackers, nothing sold. Minute-by-minute activity and screenshots are deleted after 90 days; the list of events, like a rule being changed, is kept. Read the privacy notice.