I Built a Smart Calendar to Keep My Family Organized
Since I followed someone else’s idea for this project, I won’t be giving a step-by-step how-to. Instead, you can check out the YouTube video that inspired me right here. In this post, I’ll focus on how I took that concept and adapted it to fit my family’s needs using tools like dakboard, todoist, and a Raspberry Pi, and how this smart calendar has completely transformed our family’s organization.
Why Build a Smart Calendar?
We have a busy household, and keeping track of everyone’s schedules was becoming a challenge. I wanted a central place where all our commitments could be displayed and updated—something more engaging than a traditional paper calendar. Additionally, I wanted a system to help build accountability for my kids’ homework and keep to-do lists for everyone in the family. My wife had been managing a Google Calendar, but there were still too many moments when someone would ask, “What’s happening next?”—including me! That’s what led me to the idea of building a smart calendar.
Key Features of the Smart Calendar
The smart calendar integrates with Google Calendar for both work and personal schedules and syncs with todoist for task management. This setup allows my wife and me to manage the family calendar, our individual calendars, and even assign to-do tasks to everyone in the family.
Since we were already maintaining the family calendar in Google, the transition was seamless—no need to change our existing workflow. The smart calendar simply brings it all together in one place, where everyone can see it, which makes a huge difference.
How I Built It
I didn’t design this from the ground up. After seeing some ads for smart calendars on Facebook, I thought, “I could build that.” So I did a bit of research and came across this YouTube video. The video offered several software options, but I chose dakboard because I wanted to spend less time coding and more time enjoying the system with my family.
To keep it simple, I used Dakboard’s service to pull everything together and installed it on a Raspberry Pi 4 Model B. I bought a used Dell 24” QHD monitor from eBay, mounted it on the wall using a low-profile wall bracket from Amazon, and that’s pretty much it. The entire setup was straightforward, and I’ve linked the specific parts I used below for anyone interested in replicating it.
Here are the components:
• Dell 24” QHD P2418D Monitor – Purchased from a great seller on eBay in excellent condition.
• Raspberry Pi 4 Model B – Running Dakboard’s Debian variation, installed via the official Raspberry Pi Imager.
• dakboard & todoist Subscriptions – For managing the smart calendar and family to-do lists.
• Low-profile wall mount – A simple, affordable option from Amazon.
I also plan to 3D print a custom frame using this Thingiverse design to give it a more polished look, but that’s a project for another day!
How the Smart Calendar Changed Our Family’s Organization
This smart calendar has been a game-changer for our family. With everything displayed in one central location, there’s no more confusion about what’s happening next. Each family member has their own schedule and task list, and it’s all easily visible on the calendar.
The biggest impact has been on the kids—they now have accountability for their homework and chores, and we can all see when tasks have been assigned and completed. No more excuses or missed deadlines! It’s also been a great tool for my wife and me to manage both our work and personal calendars without missing a beat.
A Flexible System for the Future
One of the things I love most about this smart calendar is its flexibility. Since I opted to use dakboard’s paid service, I have the ability to create multiple screens, manage various devices, and customize the setup as our needs change. As the kids grow older or our schedules evolve, I can tweak the calendar to fit those changes without having to rebuild everything from scratch.
It’s also expandable. As mentioned, I plan to 3D print a frame for it, and who knows what other enhancements I’ll think of in the future!
My Advice for Others
Normally, I’m the type of person who prefers to write my own software and build everything myself. But in this case, because the project is so crucial to our daily lives, I decided to keep things simple and use existing solutions like dakboard. It’s a paid service, but the simplicity and ease of use are worth it, especially for something that impacts how we run our family.
If you’re thinking about building something similar, my advice is to avoid over complicating it. Use a service like dakboard and focus on getting it up and running quickly. It’s not about showing off your coding skills—it’s about creating a system that works for your family and makes life easier.
Kris Clark | Solutions Architect | Tech Enthusiast | DIY Builder