Our Complete Guide to OurPact
Why OurPact?
What sets OurPact apart from Apple’s Screen Time is:
The Parent-friendly user interface
The easy Block and Grant screen time feature
Multiple Schedules (school vs. summer)
Multiple Blocks in 1 Day (Bedtime AND School)
Easy-to-setup parental controls
When your child has a schedule switch up, OurPact can accommodate. You can easily create multiple schedules and save them. You can also control every single app as compared to other third-party competitors which just focus on a bundle of the most popular ones. Lastly, OurPact reduces Apple’s labyrinthine maze of parental controls to one screen for easy setup of the most important ones. To get the full benefits of OurPact, we recommend the Premium version ($6.99/month). Our Friends say it’s the best money they’ve ever spent!
Click below to see OurPact in action:
Setting Up OurPact
Before You Begin
You’ll need a computer to set up OurPact
Time required: ~30 minutes
Here’s What You’ll Need:
- Your child’s device and device passcode
- Your child’s Apple ID password if Find My iPhone is enabled
- An Apple-supplied USB cable
- Access to Safari from your child’s device
We recommend adding your Touch ID to your child’s device to simplify setup (Go to Settings, Face ID/Touch ID & Passcodes). You may also find it useful to have a second screen to reference this guide during setup.
Here’s what to expect during setup:
Set Up for New OurPact Premium Users
Start here if you are new to OurPact or upgrading to the Premium (the $6.99/month version)
Set Up for Existing OurPact Premium Users
Start here if you want to Add a Child or Device
Once you’ve completed setup and OurPact JR. is installed on your child’s device, you can create Schedules, set App Rules, grant Allowance Time from your parent account. Do from your computer or download the parent app.
Before proceeding, be sure to turn Find My iPhone back on (Settings > Your Child’s Account > Find My or Find iPhone > toggle ON. You will also likely want to toggle on Enable Offline Finding and Send Last Location.
Best Practices for Using OurPact
How to Create Schedules
From the Schedule tab, you can create multiple schedules. The important point to understand is that you are essentially telling OurPact when to block your child’s device. You can:
- Set multiple block periods throughout the day
- Create different schedules for when you’re on vacation as compared to a normal school week.
How to Set App Rules
From App Rules tab, you can designate each app as:
Always Blocked – you can grant access as needed
Counted as part of Allowance time
Always On – these apps are on 24/7, regardless of whether you’ve scheduled a block
How to Set Allowance Time
Parents can set a daily screen time allowance.
From the Allowance tab:
- Slide Allowance to the ON position
- Define allowance for each day of the week
Now your children’s devices will be governed by Allowance time. They can decide how to budget their time within the Schedules that you’ve set. Because they need to start and stop their screen time using the OurPact Jr app, children learn that technology has an on and off switch. This helps them to build self-regulation skills and makes them more aware of their digital habits. Best of all, you know their devices will shut off automatically without requiring any intervention from you.
How to Set Other Parental Controls
From the world tab , parents can set other parental controls. The ones to focus on include:
How to Set Up Different Profiles For iPads and iPhones
We’ve found that when children have access to multiple devices, it can be helpful to set designate the phone for communication purposes and the iPad for entertainment. Then it’s easy to establish different use parameters.
What Parents Should Know
How OurPact Works from Your Child’s Perspective
- To use Allowance time, your child must open OurPact Jr. and press the play button.
- To stop the clock on Allowance time, your child must hit the pause button.
- When Allowance time runs out, your child’s device will go into the Block mode.
In this way, OurPact Jr can help to teach children self-regulation skills.
How to Keep Your Kids from Getting Annoyed
OurPact’s technology may scramble how apps are organized on a child’s device. It’s easy to prevent this from happening:
From your child’s device, tap into Ourpact Jr., tap the App organizer
- Turn on the App Organizer feature
- Organize App
- Select Save(top left)
What to Do When You Travel
Allowance time does not work without a WiFi or cellular connection. Similarly, your kid’s devices cannot receive a screen time grant without the internet. To ensure a smooth journey and happy kids:
- Use the Grant access mode rather than Allowance time when you’re en route.
- Be sure the grant went through before you leave the house.
Connecting to a Personal Hotspot or WiFi at the airport can serve as a plan B, just do it before that flight takes off!
What to do if OurPact isn’t working
On occasion, a child’s device can become unpaired (this can happen completely independently of any action your child might take). You should receive an email to your account email or you’ll see a warning signal when you check your child’s profile:
How to Prevent Your Child from Hacking OurPact
When kids know their parent’s device passcode, they may be tempted to make changes to OurPact settings. Prevent this by locking your parent account:
From within the parent app, make sure you’ve activated these setting under the
During setup, OurPact requires you to log in to your Parent Account from the child’s device. For some of us, saving passwords is so routine, that you may have accidentally done this in the setup process. Some wily kids may discover OurPact password credentials.
To check on their device , go to:
- Settings
- Passwords & Accounts
- Website & App Passwords
- Swipe left to delete