iPad Curriculum

Grammaropolis Word Sort

February 15th, 2011 Comments Off

Application: Grammaropolis Word Sort

What it is: Grammaropolis Word Sort uses the characters from one of my favorite grammar websites, Grammaropolis, and makes learning the basic parts of speech fun. Students “grab” a word as it flies across the screen and drag it to the correct part of speech container. Grammaropolis personifies each part of speech making learning grammar relatable and fun instead of reducing it to a tedious list of rules to memorize. Students learn about the parts of speech by “meeting” a Grammaropolis character. There are three levels of game play. In level one, students play with nouns, adjectives, and linking verbs. In level two, students play with pronouns, prepositions, and interjections. In level three, students play with adverbs, conjunctions, and action verbs. Within the game levels there are also three levels of difficulty for play. Grammar Champ has one word on the screen to sort at a time. Grammar Fiend has two words on the screen to sort at a time. Grammar master has four words on the screen at a time. The game includes in-game character review and a high-score page.

How Grammaropolis Word Sort can enrich learning: Grammaropolis Word sort is a fun way for students to practice their recognition of the parts of speech. I love that this app goes beyond just drill and introduces students to the parts of speech by personifying them as characters. Students learn the parts of speech not because they have memorized a list of rules, but because they recognize the character traits of the Grammaropolis characters. The game is great for visual learners who will associate the part of speech with a visual character representation. The game is wonderful for the elementary classroom and has enough level adjustment to meet the developmental needs of all students, adding a level of difficulty as they become proficient in their parts of speech recognition.

Devices: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.1.3 or later

Price: $1.99 (iTunes Link)

How it Works: Machines

August 31st, 2012 Comments Off

What it is: How it Works:Machines is another spectacular app from Geek Kids. The app includes 9 vehicles and machines that students can assemble including: a car, washing machine, hair dryer, lawn mower, vacuum cleaner, rocket, steam engine, wind mill and pump. Not only do students get to see the inner workings of everyday machines and vehicles, they also get to learn how to put them together to make them work. The puzzles in How it Works: Machines are easy enough for young students to put together the major parts of the machine. When students complete the puzzle, their is a short animation that shows how those parts work together to make the machine operate.

How How it Works: Machines can enrich learning: How it Works: Machines is a great way for students to be introduced to engineering and the mechanics of how things work. I love the way that this app guides students in the discovery of how things work. Students play their part in putting a machine together and then see the result of how all of the parts work together to set a machine in motion. This would be a great app to use when learning about simple machines. Students can identify the simple machines and forces in each machine they build.

Devices: iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad iOS 4.0 or later

Price: $1.99

Iceberg Kids

November 3rd, 2010 Comments Off

Application: Iceberg Kids

What it is: IceBerg Kids is an eReader designed especially for kids. Iceberg Kids brings children’s books to the iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch. The free eReader comes with excerpts from Princess Hyacinth; Mr. Funny; Fred and Ted Like to Fly; Merry Christmas, Curious George; The I Love You Book, The Polar Express, and The Night Before Christmas. Iceberg kids is more than just an eReader, students can record their own audio book, image exploration, a visual table of contents, and auto read to hear the story read aloud or recorded in your own voice.

How Iceberg Kids can enrich learning: Iceberg kids is a great eReader for beginning and emergent readers. The titles available are popular with kids and range from Sesame Street, Curious George, Mr. Men, Veggie Tales, Todd Parr, Candlewick, and kindermusik. The additional titles can be purchased directly from iTunes. My favorite feature of the Iceberg app is the ability to record. In a classroom setting, students can record themselves reading and listen back for voice, fluency, pronunciation, and annunciation. Fluency is hard to teach without the ability to voice record. We can ask students to read a passage again and again telling them to listen to us pronounce words. The student may be convinced that they are repeating the word exactly and yet we tell them it still isn’t right. The ability to record themselves reading means that students can listen to themselves and compare it to the teacher. When they can hear their fluency or pronunciation, suddenly they understand what changes need to be made. The record feature would also make reading records infinitely easier to complete. Teachers could listen to the recorded reading again and again and thoroughly compile a reading record.

Devices: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later

Price: Free!** (iTunes Link)

iDev Books: Column Addition

January 20th, 2011 Comments Off

Application: Column Addition

What it is: The Column Addition app gives students a great place to practice and study the column addition method. Students can choose to solve random problems or input their own problems to solve. The carrying of number is handled automatically with a clean animation. When students solve the operation for each column, the correct answer “flies” to the right place. If the answer is incorrect, it will not move. As students solve an addition problem, they earn another piece of a six piece puzzle of an animal. There are 21 complete puzzles in all, in order to complete them all students will have to solve almost 200 addition problems. Students can add two or three numbers, they can practice with randomly generated problems or enter their own, each number can have between 1 and 5 digits, the current operation for each column can be hidden, students can swap color themes of the apps for increased individualization, and the speed of the animations can be set by students.

How Column Addition can enrich learning: What makes the Column Addition app so great is the immediate feedback it gives to students. They don’t work through an entire problem before realizing their mistake, but instead can take a closer look and re-solve as they go to come up with the correct answer. The app is very easy to use and has some nice customization options that will appeal to students using it to study. The step by step animation and guidance will help students get the column method of addition down in no time. The ability to enter their own numbers means that students can input problems from a math curriculum or text-book and work through the step by step process with any problem. Your reluctant math students will love this app, it will act as their own personal tutor sitting with them and encouraging them on!

Devices: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later

Price: $3.99 (iTunes Link)

iDevBooks- Long Multiplication

January 20th, 2011 Comments Off

Application: Long Multiplication

What it is: With the Long Multiplication app, students can solve random and user inputted multiplication problems using the column multiplication method. Just like the Long Division app, when students enter the correct answer it “flies” to the right place. If the student enters the wrong number the answer will not move. Students can practice long multiplication with up to 5 digits in the upper number, 1 or 2 digits in the lower number, enter a custom problem, hide the current operation for each column, highlight the operands for the current operation, choose from three different color schemes, and change the speed of the animations. Students can choose the position of the regrouping (either above or below the equation) based on the method they are using in your classroom.

How Long Multiplication can enrich learning: What makes the Long Multiplication app so great is the immediate feedback it gives to students. They don’t work through an entire problem before realizing their mistake, but instead can take a closer look and re-solve as they go to come up with the correct answer. The app is very easy to use and has some nice customization options that will appeal to students using it to study. The step by step animation and guidance will help students get the column method of multiplication down in no time. The ability to enter their own numbers means that students can input problems from a math curriculum or text-book and work through the step by step process with any problem. Your reluctant math students will love this app, it will act as their own personal tutor sitting with them and encouraging them on!

Devices: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later

Price: $3.99 (iTunes Link)

iDevBooks: Long Division

January 20th, 2011 Comments Off

Application: Long Division

What it is: The long division app lets students solve long division problems step by step with each step animated. In the app, students will divide, multiply, or subtract to get their answer. If the answer is correct, it will “fly” into the correct place; if the answer is wrong, it won’t move into place. Students can practice long division with dividends up to 5 digits, divisors with one or two digits, input their own numbers, allow or disallow remainders, allow decimals in the dividend, hide the current operation for each step, choose different color themes, and choose the speed of animations.

How Long Division can enrich learning: What makes the Long Division app so great is the immediate feedback it gives to students. They don’t work through an entire problem before realizing their mistake, but instead can take a closer look and re-solve as they go to come up with the correct answer. The app is very easy to use and has some nice customization options that will appeal to students using it to study. The step by step animation and guidance will help students get the long division method down in no time. The ability to enter their own numbers means that students can input problems from a math curriculum or text-book and work through the step by step process with any problem. Your reluctant math students will love this app, it will act as their own personal tutor sitting with them and encouraging them on!

Devices: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later

Price: $3.99 (iTunes Link)

LearnBoost Gradebook

October 1st, 2010 2 Comments

Web Application: LearnBoost

What it is: LearnBoost is a free online gradebook and classroom management system that has recently added support for the iPad! LearnBoost is a suite of online tools for the classroom including attendance management, seating charts, class rosters, policy management, and lesson plan capabilities with integration with Google calendar. The LearnBoost gradebook is easy to use allowing automatic weighted grading, support for custom grading scales, and the ability to export to third party applications. Manage your lesson plans from right within LearnBoost, create and manage lesson plans with this excellent visual editor. There is support for multimedia file attachments for lesson plans and even support for aligning elements of a lesson plan with Common Core State Standards.

How Inkling can enrich learning: Use LearnBoost for all of your classroom management needs. LearnBoost on the iPad keeps you where you should be, with your students. Add notes to your gradebook and lesson plans as you interact with students, keeping everything organized and at your finger tips. Take a look at the LearnBoost tour below:

LearnBoost Free Online Gradebook Tour from LearnBoost on Vimeo.

Devices: iPad in Safari

Price: Free

Math BINGO

November 3rd, 2010 1 Comment

Application: Math BINGO

What it is: The popular educational website ABCya.com has released an app version of their popular Math BINGO game. This game lets students practice their math facts (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division) in a fun way for faster fact recall. Each skill has multiple skill levels so students are continually challenged in their play. Students can try to beat their own score…low score wins (a combination of time it took to play the game and mistakes made). As students earn a high score, they can collect and play with BINGO Bugs. (When you tilt the iOS device, the Bingo Bugs move around, tap on them to make them giggle and spring.)

How Math BINGO can enrich learning: Math BINGO is a fun way for your students to practice math facts for faster fact recall. I like that this game has students trying to beat their individual bests. They are competing against their own best times and working to improve their own scores. Students will begin to play the game with strategy as they realize that they don’t just want to choose the correct answer, but choose the correct answer in a place that will get them the fastest BINGO.

Devices: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later

Price: $.99 (iTunes Link)**

Math Girl Number Garden

January 7th, 2011 1 Comment

Application: Math Girl Number Garden

What it is: Math Girl Number Garden is a much talked about app. It has been nominated for an iEAR award and won a Creative Child Magazine 2010 Award of Excellence. Play for a few minute with this app and you soon learn what all of the buzz is about. Number Garden is a math app designed specifically with girls in mind. The fun graphics will draw girls in and the game atmosphere will keep them interacting with, and enjoying, math. Number Garden is a great place for girls to practice counting, addition, and multiplication in kindergarten through fourth grade.

In the Number Garden students can:

Count flowers and hands/fingers in patterns.
Practice faster recall by recognizing patterns.
Earn stars for correct answers and replay levels to earn more stars by getting faster.
Use stars to “buy” items for the garden to fill the garden with flowers, bunnies, snails, butterflies, dragonflies, a soccer ball, a tire swing, a magic pond, a tree house, and more.
“Sell” items to upgrade to bigger items.
Students can play in, and save their own personal gardens. Up to 4 players gardens can be saved within the app.

How Math Girl Number Garden can enrich learning: Math Girl Number garden is a fun application for helping your female students fall in love with math. The graphics are darling, students will love growing their own garden while learning and practicing their math. The ability to go back and improve scores for each lesson keeps the app engaging enough for ongoing practice. The application allows girls to learn and practice at their own pace, encouraging them to keep trying to earn more items for their gardens to grow. Number Garden is a welcome change from flash cards!

Devices: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.1.2 or later

Price: $1.99 (iTunes Link)

mobimaths-bringing math to life

July 24th, 2012 1 Comment

Mobimaths

What it is: mobimaths is a brand new math app for iOS and Android devices. I love the mission of mobimaths: to move away from textbooks and rote memorization and toward real world problems with an emphasis on communication and collaboration. It doesn’t get better than that! I wish more education app developers would take note and follow suite! The app has great learning tools including the angle of elevation tool, the outside distance tool, the angle of rotation tool, the inside distance tool and the visual mapping tool. There is also a rods game that focuses on fractions, decimals and percentages.

The current version of mobimaths for iDevices is a lite, free version. It includes the angles and distance tools. The Visual Mapping tool that is coming will allow learners to take a picture and overlay a grid to work out ratios and areas. Students will be able to move and resize the grid and add points on the grid to measure area. On the mobimaths website, you will find fantastic lesson ideas for using mobimaths to learn. Math teachers will love this launching off point, I’m sure you all will come up with new brilliant ideas for using the apps in your math classroom.

How mobimaths can enrich learning: mobimaths is a great addition to the math class. Just like a protractor, ruler, or compass this app aids students in measurement. I like that the app doesn’t focus on drill and kill (the way so many math apps do), instead it acts as a tool to make learning more authentic. There are some fantastic lesson plans on the mobimaths website, but the sky is really the limit. If you teach measurement, this app can be used by students to get them out of the textbook and applying their learning to the world around them. Currently the lessons include: an angle of elevation activity, angle of elevation exercise, and trigonometry activity guide.