Tag: apps

From classroom to the living room

The five best mobile apps to help parents with home schooling

 With a stark rise in the amount of time kids are now spending at home with the national lockdown, many parents are feeling the strain of having to play teacher whilst balancing their work life.  

To help parents swat up on subjects they might have forgotten from their school days, or give their children easy-to-access educational resources, online smartphone retailer, e2save, has curated the best educational apps you can start using in seconds.  


  1. BBC Bit    esize (available for iOS, Android) 

The popular GCSE BBC learning tool is packed full of resources across a large variety of core subjects within the school curriculum. With a variety of learning methods, such as flashcards and videos, there’s plenty to keep children engaged in their studies and the interface is easy to navigate on mobile or tablet.

By using this free app, you have all the exam specific learning material available at your fingertips, with exam level interactive quizzes to help parents keep their year 10 and 11 students on track whilst they’re unable to attend school.  


  1. Photomath     (available for iOS, Android) 

Maths is often the Achilles heel of students and adults alike, especially when it comes to getting your head around complex equations and theory. To aid any parent struggling to help their children with maths lessons or homework, the simple to use Photomath app is free and allows you to scan in live images of your maths problems using your phone camera to help solve them. 

The app comes with a step-by-step tutorial of how to upload the images and then offers a number of logical solutions for the maths problem for you to work through. Whether it’s addition and subtraction, multiplication, fractions or even trigonometry, this app will help you find easy to understand solutions for maths at every level, and understand the theory behind it, with no internet access or data usage required. 


  1. Duolingo     (available for iOS, Android) 

Learning a new language is difficult enough, but without the help of teachers and official learning material, the process becomes much harder for parents to replicate at home. Duolingo is a free app that allows students access to bite sized lessons to practice speaking, reading and writing in more than 35 languages. 

Duolingo is suitable for any ability, starting from as young as primary school age, right through to teaching adults for business and travel purposes. The app allows you to log and track your progress each session, making organising learning around other subjects effortless.  


  1. TED-ed     (available for iOS, Android) 

TED-ed has been developed to allow educators and teachers around the world to submit succinct, easy to follow lessons on virtually any subject at the touch of a button. All videos uploaded have been refined to make sure they are less than 10 minutes long and are combined with high quality, fun animations to ensure children are kept engaged throughout. 

This app is available for free and parents can use it to replicate virtual lessons on subjects and specific topics. If your child is struggling with a particular problem in English for example, which you may not be equipped to solve, you can find the solution on TED-ed, providing a virtual teacher in the absence of the classroom environment.  


  1. Epic!     (available for iOS, Android) 

Epic! gives you access to a digital library of 40,000 high quality e-books and audiobooks, as well as learning videos and interactive quizzes suitable for children as young as nursery level, right through to start of secondary school. 

The app is designed to be as easy to navigate as possible, allowing parents to set their children up with easy access to their favourite stories and new books to help them develop their reading and literacy skills. Epic! also hands out progress badges to keep children engaged and excited to read. The app is free for school teachers and librarians but will be free on a one-month trial for parents too, paying just £5.85 a month thereafter.  

Karl Middleton, mobile expert at e2save, commented: “Schools being closed nationwide has resulted in many parents having to balance working from home with their children’s studies, which can be an incredibly stressful time. 

“While parents may have studied many of the subjects their children do whilst they were at school, being suddenly relied on to help with maths, English literature or even modern languages can be a daunting prospect. 

“However, these handy apps are readily available for anyone with access to a smartphone or tablet and will certainly be a real help to parents to organise and support their children’s studies, creating a virtual classroom at home in lockdown.”  


All these apps are available to download on the latest smartphones. Find great SIM-free and contract deals right here at e2save.com. 

David Lloyd Clubs opens its (virtual) doors free to all

  • David Lloyd Clubs @home App now free of charge
  • Up to 600+ classes with new live and on demand content available every day
  • Includes David Lloyd Clubs exclusive signature classes and wellness sessions
  • For children, a virtual after-school club including sport skills, cooking & story time
  • Exclusive virtual social and wellbeing events to support mental health

With Lockdown 3 and nearly a year of restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic taking a physical and mental toll of the nation’s health, David Lloyd Clubs wants to do its bit to help by opening its doors (albeit virtually) for the first time.

With health, fitness and wellbeing content previously only available exclusively to its members, the UK’s largest health club is today making its David Lloyd Clubs @home available free of charge to the nation.

In response to the recent news that nearly half of the UK population are exercising less during the current lockdown than during the first in early 2020* the aim is to provide everyone the opportunity to access fitness and wellbeing content.  

With David Lloyd Clubs @home, users can access some 600+ classes ranging from yoga and Pilates, to high intensity interval training (HITT), post-natal workouts and mobility sessions for runners, all delivered by David Lloyd Clubs expert team.  A series of challenges across different genres enables users to progress and challenge themselves.

With loneliness a key symptom of the pandemic, providing access to a friendly virtual community is another key driver behind the launch, aiming to support users who may be struggling alone, those looking for an escape from working on the frontline or juggling the demands of home working and home schooling.

Virtual coffee mornings hosted by social enterprise coffee traders Change Please have seen members develop their barista skills and whip up tasty brunch options, quiz nights have opened up some friendly rivalry, and future plans include a virtual book club and more live interactive workshops.  

If you need encouragement, advice and motivation to get you and your family off the sofa and into the great outdoors,  DL Run Club group offers a warm welcome to runners of every level, and the David Lloyd Mile provides a friendly online community for families to share their daily outdoor exercise and offers younger ones the opportunity to win certificates for miles clocked up.

With reports suggesting the country’s third lockdown has triggered an unprecedented mental health crisis** there’s a dedicated wellness section too. Content includes meditation sessions, mindfulness programmes and beauty tutorials. There’s even a series of hair tutorials – ideal for those who may have been victim to a lockdown haircut! 

For parents worried about their children’s development, a series of skills videos have been exclusively created focusing on Agility Balance and Co-ordination (ABCs). 

These skills are the basis of all movement and physical activity and the windows of opportunity when children can develop the ABC’s more easily and quickly are typically between the ages of 5 -10/11.   Armed with no more than some balloons, tennis balls, a racket and a bucket, children can follow along the fun 10-minute sessions.  More family focused content within the app includes a daily story time session and cookery classes.

And for older people who may have struggled to leave the house to exercise during lockdown, the wide range of specially tailored fitness workouts and wellness content will help everyone keep fit and healthy until we can all confidently leave our homes again.

Glenn Earlam, CEO of David Lloyd Clubs says: “Our members have told us that David Lloyd Clubs @home has proved to be a lifeline over three lockdowns, keeping them fit, well and feeling connected. 

“We know the last year has taken its toll on the nation’s physical and mental wellbeing and we wanted to be able to offer everyone the opportunity to benefit from the huge range of the content delivered by our friendly David Lloyd Clubs @home team.

“Exercise not only boosts physical health, but also has a huge impact on mental health. I genuinely hope we can encourage everyone to take a look and find something to help them.

“You don’t need to be a regular exerciser or feel confident in the weights room, there’s plenty of sessions that need no equipment and can be done in the house. But its far more than just fitness – we have meditation, mental wellbeing advice, hair and makeup tutorials, kids clubs and even quizzes and coffee mornings, so our @home App really is like a virtual David Lloyd Club experience in your own living room.”

Now available on Apple and Android – just search David Lloyd Clubs.  

Find out more here: https://www.davidlloyd.co.uk/clubs/david-lloyd-clubs-at-home/

WhatsApp groups set up as communities pull together

“Street level” messenger groups are springing up across the UK as communities forge new relationships to help each other through the Coronavirus self-isolation crisis.

Messenger apps such as Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp are being conscripted to connect whole streets worried about how to survive self-isolation and loneliness.

Young and old are uniting to help those without and those needing help and support at their time of need.

“A neighbour set up a group and we now have 10 of 12 houses on the street subscribed”, explains Jonathan Ratcliffe, who lives on Windermere Avenue in  Menston, Yorkshire.

Ratcliffe, who is currently running national office agency Offices.co.uk from home, has been in self-isolation since Monday juggling work and family life.

“We haven’t been to the shops this week, life is testing let’s say! John down the road asked on WhatsApp if anyone needed anything, and 30 minutes later we had bread, bananas and paracetamol – it really helps morale”, explained Jonathan.

Being able to draw on neighbours for help and social interaction is going to become a hallmark of the efforts needed to get the country through the next 12 weeks.

“No one knows where this is going and who might need help. We have a 10-week-old baby with a heart condition, and so we are being extra careful”, added Jonathan. “My neighbours help now will be paid back twice over when we are out of isolation– it’s lovely knowing that there is support on our doorstep should we need it”.

Other groups have sprung up locally in Menston supporting streets and even whole estates.

One such group has been set up covering Menston’s Moorfield Avenue by resident David Williams.

“We are in the process of setting up a WhatsApp group to cover our street,” David explained. “We started by dropping a note through everyone’s door, so they knew who to text to join the group. 

“We are then identifying those who need to self-isolate and pairing them up with people who can help out so people can self-organise as much as possible but also stay in touch as things develop.”

Zoe Edwards, who lives in the centre of the village, added: “We have done similar on our road although tricky when some people don’t use or have WhatsApp. We are trying to keep in touch with those people separately”.

The Windermere Avenue group: 10 houses have joined out of 12

  • 18 people have joined the group
  • Age ranges from 38 to 75
  • One house currently in self-isolation

Resident Alison Wilson in Menston is using the platform to forward-plan a big party to celebrate the community spirit locally in Menston: “Once this is over, we need a massive big street/village party to cheer ourselves up and thank everyone for their kindness and community spirit”.

“Creating support groups now is really important. Being able to ask for help should you need it is going to be a lifeline for many people, young and old – the love and support I’ve seen on our street for neighbours has been humbling”, concluded Jonathan.

GOOGLE now tells you how busy your bus is likely to be

On days when everything runs smoothly, taking public transit is one of the best ways to get around town. Not only is it cost-effective and efficient, but it also lets you stay hands-free so you can sit back, relax and maybe even read a few chapters of your favorite book.

However unexpected delays or overcrowded vehicles can quickly turn your ride from enjoyable to stressful – but Google Maps is rolling out two new features to help you better plan for your transit ride and stay more comfortable along the way.

 Edinburgh is one of 18 towns and cities included in the roll out to have access to this new feature: Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Coventry, Crawley, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Newcastle, Nottingham, Oxford, Reading, Sheffield and Southampton.

Live traffic delays for buses

When you have an important meeting, a date with a friend, or a doctor’s appointment, often the first thing you’ll do is check the transit schedule to make sure you can make it on time. Unfortunately, transit schedules don’t always reflect real-time traffic conditions that impact your ride, which can cause a lot of unnecessary stress when you end up arriving later than you thought you would. 

To solve for this, Google Maps is launching live traffic delays for buses in places where we don’t already have real-time information direct from local transit agencies. You’ll now be able to see if your bus will be late, how long the delay will be, and more accurate travel times based on live traffic conditions along your route. You’ll also see exactly where the delays are on the map so you know what to expect before you even hop on your bus.  

Crowdedness predictions

There’s nothing more uncomfortable than being packed like a can of sardines on a hot, sweaty train. We’re introducing transit crowdedness predictions so you can see how crowded your bus, train or subway is likely to be based on past rides. Now you can make an informed decision about whether or not you want to squeeze on, or wait a few more minutes for a vehicle where you’re more likely to grab a seat.

These features are now being rolled out on Google Maps in nearly 200 cities around the globe on both Android and iOS.

Cyber security experts issue Snap Map warning

SNAPCHAT users are being warned of the inherent dangers associated with the opt-in ‘Snap Map’ feature that can allow live locations to be visible to other users. In the run-up to Safer Internet Day, the Scottish Business Resilience Centre (SBRC) is urging users to be vigilant when using the feature which, when opted-in, grants the app permission to publish your exact location to everyone on your friend list. Continue reading Cyber security experts issue Snap Map warning

Ask Alex: new Messenger “bot” to teach Scots about causes of youth homelessness

15% of Scots think young people are homeless by choice

A Scottish charity has launched a new Facebook Messenger “bot” to teach Scots about the real causes of homelessness amongst young people after research found nearly half believe it is through choice or a refusal to accept assistance. Continue reading Ask Alex: new Messenger “bot” to teach Scots about causes of youth homelessness