Automated lesson plan reminders to educators

Purpose

1.1. Ensure educators receive timely, consistent reminders about upcoming lesson plans, tasks, and updates for after-school programs.
1.2. Reduce manual effort in reminding staff, eliminate human error in scheduling, and maintain program compliance and curriculum structure.
1.3. Enable seamless curriculum cohesion, improve communication, and drive staff accountability through persistent automation.

Trigger Conditions

2.1. Calendar event/due date for a specific lesson approaches (e.g., 24 hours prior).
2.2. Program director uploads or updates lesson plans in a shared system.
2.3. Weekly or monthly curriculum rotation or scheduled event triggers periodic reminder cycles.
2.4. Completion status not updated by educator within a defined timeframe.

Platform Variants

3.1. Twilio SMS
• Feature: SMS API — Configure to send automated lesson reminders via SMS to educators.
• Sample: Use "Messages" endpoint with scheduled triggers.
3.2. SendGrid
• Feature: Email API — Set up workflow to distribute reminder emails.
• Sample: Invoke "Send Email" with dynamic templates and merge educator data.
3.3. Slack
• Feature: Incoming Webhooks — Post reminders to educator channels
• Sample: Webhook URL with JSON payload: {"text": "Lesson plan reminder"}
3.4. Microsoft Teams
• Feature: Teams Connector — Post adaptive card reminders to educator group chats.
• Sample: Configure Connector webhook, send POST with lesson summary.
3.5. Google Calendar
• Feature: Calendar API — Insert event-based reminders or notifications.
• Sample: Use "Events.insert" and set "reminders.overrides" for popup/email.
3.6. Outlook Calendar
• Feature: Graph API — Automated appointment creation with reminder flag.
• Sample: POST /me/events with reminders settings.
3.7. Mailgun
• Feature: Messages API — Trigger batch email reminders.
• Sample: Send message POST with recipient variables and scheduled sends.
3.8. WhatsApp Business API
• Feature: Message Templates — Automate template sending to verified educators.
• Sample: /messages endpoint with dynamic parameters.
3.9. Zapier
• Feature: Scheduler + Messaging — Chain Google Sheets/Forms triggers to email/SMS reminders.
• Sample: Use "Schedule" trigger, action with "Email by Zapier" or "SMS by Zapier".
3.10. Google Sheets
• Feature: Apps Script — Custom script to scan lesson due dates, auto-send reminders.
• Sample: Installable trigger with MailApp.sendEmail().
3.11. Pipedream
• Feature: Scheduled Workflows — Automate multi-platform reminders.
• Sample: Schedule trigger + Slack or Gmail actions.
3.12. Airtable
• Feature: Automations — Configure database to watch fields and auto-email assigned educators.
• Sample: "When record matches conditions" -> "Send email".
3.13. ActiveCampaign
• Feature: Automations — Scheduled or conditional reminder campaigns.
• Sample: "Date based trigger" + "Send email" step.
3.14. Salesforce
• Feature: Process Builder — Workflow rules for lesson plan objects, triggers email/SMS.
• Sample: "New lesson event" -> "Immediate action: send reminder".
3.15. HubSpot
• Feature: Workflow Automation — Educator sequence emails based on curriculum due dates.
• Sample: "Enrollment date" property trigger -> "Send internal email".
3.16. Trello
• Feature: Butler Automation — Card due date triggers with reminder comments or email notifications.
• Sample: "When a card is due" -> "Send email to member".
3.17. Monday.com
• Feature: Automations — Board due date automation to remind assigned educators.
• Sample: "When date arrives" -> "Notify person".
3.18. Asana
• Feature: Rules — Task deadline automation to send reminders via email/app notification.
• Sample: "Due date is approaching" -> "Send notification".
3.19. ClickUp
• Feature: Automation — Remind assignees when tasks are due.
• Sample: "Task due soon" -> "Send email to assignee".
3.20. Basecamp
• Feature: Notifications — Scheduled check-ins or message-board pings.
• Sample: Post scheduled message or auto-check-in with lesson plan context.
3.21. Gmail API
• Feature: Scheduled send — Use API to queue and send reminders.
• Sample: createDraft/send with scheduled date.
3.22. Discord
• Feature: Bot Message — Schedule bot reminders to educator channels.
• Sample: Bot sends message via webhook on schedule.

Benefits

4.1. Eliminates manual follow-ups and repetitive administrative workload.
4.2. Improves curriculum delivery consistency and educator readiness.
4.3. Enables director oversight and accountability tracking.
4.4. Ensures program compliance and maximizes utilization of educator focus time.
4.5. Provides multi-platform flexibility for diverse educator communication preferences.