Archives For apps

Screen Shot 2012 09 24 at 10 08 20 PM

Teaching Table is a Math App for the iPad that allows math teachers to create interactive lessons for their students. The teacher-created lessons allow students to interact with digital manipulatives to solve problems and learn math concepts. 

This is a great iPad app for Math that allows educators to create lessons that match their curriculum. Teachers will no longer be forced to purchase apps off the store to address single concepts and lessons; teaching table is adaptable to any lesson by using visual representations of math concepts within an interactive user interface for the learner. 

Using Teaching Table, educators can Continue Reading…

IMG_0208Marble Math is a math skills practice game designed for older elementary age students. This app from Artgig Apps is a lot of fun, and for the $1.99 price tag, its a deal for you and your students.

Marble Math has three different levels of Math games that you can play. Each level has a variety of different types of math problems that you solve by rolling a marble through a maze and avoid fun obstacles.

The maze games can be played two ways, you can roll the marble with your finger, or use the iPad as a surface and as you tilt the surface the marble rolls towards the lower side. I really like this method of game play because it can work with students who need practice with manual dexterity.

Marble math works on a variety of different math skills. The easier mazes can work on adding, subtracting, roman numerals, fractions, and even money. As you progress into the higher levels division and multiplication are added, as well as decimals, comparisons, and sequencing. A real handy feature for parents and teachers, is the ability to customize what skills your students or children practice with Marble Math. Specific skills can be selected for practice in each of the three levels. Continue Reading…

Review: MathBlaster for iPad

kcroy —  July 6, 2012 — 2 Comments

MathBlaster.com has a new game out for the iPad called “Math Blaster: Hyperblast 2″. It is currently available in the Apps store for free and is one of a handful of other apps f0rom the Math Blaster family created by Knowledge Adventure.

The Math Blaster apps are an extension of the online world kids can join at MathBlaster.com. It is a multi-user domain similar to Secret Builders or Poptropica in that users create an avatar and then safely interact in a virtual alien world with activities centering around math. There is a currency system and credits can be earned through game play on the apps if the users is logged in at the time with his or her Math Blaster account.

One feature that I appreciate as a parent is the ability to create accounts for your children that are connected to a central family account. Parents can add up to six children on the accounts. This is great for a parent but may be limiting for a teacher trying to create student accounts. Students can always play as guests and practice the same math skills without needing to access their accounts.

The user interface of Hyperblast 2 is that of an alien adventure where the hero rides a type of rocket cycle through  a series of three dimensional tubes and tunnels, avoiding barriers and blasting away at obstructions. After a certain number of distance is cleared, users take on the Alien Boss who holds in its tentacles the answers to math fact problems. By solving the Alien Boss’s problems quickly, users unlock more ammunition, weapons, and levels.

The game play can be controlled and each adventure is customizable by Continue Reading…

Shakespeare & The iPad

larryreiff —  June 13, 2012 — 3 Comments

By Larry Reiff

 

Since the introduction of Apple’s first iPad, tablet devices have been finding their way into classrooms all over the world. Their portability, adaptability, and ease of use make them the perfect tool for teaching Shakespeare to our students.  As an English teacher, I believe the that the best way for my students to learn Shakespeare is to interact with his words.  The iPad and other iOS devices are the perfect tools allowing students to fully connect with Shakespeare’s text.  Most English teachers are aware of the basic Shakespeare apps, most of which are just a collection of his works.  Some other apps, such as Shakespeare in Bits, are useful, but they are somewhat limited and don’t really offer the student an opportunity to immerse themselves in the text.  However, there are plenty of other apps that can transform the way you teach Shakespeare in the classroom.

Is it sacrilege to cut lines out of Shakespeare? Continue Reading…

Lorrain croy

There is increased speculation amongst Apple rumor blogs that a seven inch iPad could possibly be in the pipeline.

The rumors propose that this smaller iPad will have the identical specifications of the new iPad, including the retina display, just a smaller size. The rumored price for the new device is an amazing $200 to $250. The conjecture for the seven inch iPad is based around a belief that  Apple wants to have even greater dominance in the tablet market and a seven inch tablet would strengthen their hold against competitors like the Kindle Fire, Nook and other devices.  The rumors also point to an October 2012 release. Continue Reading…

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“lorrain croy” lorrain croy

I love reading on the iPad, and iBooks is by far my favorite reading app. In my opinion iBooks has the smoothest user interface and offers the best reading experience. I love that it syncs with my iPhone and I love the ability to search, leave notes, define words, and highlight text. I really get a lot of reading accomplished between my iPad and my iPhone during the day as I wait in lines and other places. (The other reading apps I have downloaded and have used include: Kindle, Nook, and Google Play Books. iBooks trumps them all.) There are some features I like on the other apps and some new ones I’ve dreamed-up I’d like to see added in a future upgrade of iBooks.

Here are my 8 suggestions to improve iBooks:

1) Moveable Bookmark: The red bookmark in the top right corner is great as it always remembers where I am in a book, even when syncing with my iPhone. Sometimes, however, when I open my book I have to hunt around where I am on the page.  I wish the red bookmark was moveable. I would simply drag it down to the paragraph I was reading on the righthand side.
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Iphone pocket

“lorrain croy” lorrain croy

One of the most amazing statistics in education that I have recently read is from a Piper Jaffray survey indicating that one third of American high school students own an iPhone, and that 40% plan on purchasing one in the next six months (via MacRumors article 4-3-12). This survey does not even account for other types of smartphones and tablet devices.

I found the number to be so amazing that I had to do some informal surveying of my own with friends who teach in various locations across the nation.  Not only did they support the findings of the survey, but they also shared interesting stories that shed light on usage within the classroom, and even debunked preconceived notions of the economic background of an iPhone owning student. (A friend told me that even some of his students on free or reduced lunches own iPhones. I think most people assume that iPhones are owned only by affluent homes.)

How can teachers and schools capitalize on the proliferation of iPhones and iOS devices to better the learning experience?


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How to Print from Your iPad

kcroy —  April 3, 2012 — 3 Comments

Printer options turbotax ipad

Yes, you can print from your iPad!

I know, I know… Why?!? When I first started researching this article and posed the question of printing from an iPad, I was reminded by many, many friends and colleagues that one of the many benefits of using the iPad is that it eliminates the need for paper. It’s a huge step forward in going paperless.  You can carry around enormous quantities of emails, books, PDFs, and so much more in one sleek, speedy, super-organized, marvel of a device. Why would you want to print from it? Well, the first two questions I’m always asked from iPad newbies and critics are: “How can you view Flash on an iPad?” which I have already covered, and, “How can you print from an iPad?” So, I have decided to tackle the latter in this post. I will attempt to cover it from several ability levels.

The iPad is great for going paperless, but from time to time you will have a need to print a paper to sign or a form to fill out, or something, and when that time arrives you will know what to do.

Here’s a few methods I’ve used to print from an iPad:

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EXPLORING WORDS WITH VISUAL THESAURUS APPS “lorrain croy” lorrain croy

Two new interactive apps for the iPad use tree-like branching to visualize words, and excite students about words and the relations between them. The apps have hot new user interfaces, and very different business models.

WordNodes on Ivory

The first app (codenamed ‘WordNodes’) aims to be published this summer. It pairs a great experience with a low price. Created by nonprofit IDEA.org (http://www.idea.org/about/), the app will display visual clusters of related words, including synonyms, antonyms, as well as more general, and more specific words, and commonly confused words. Within the node for each word are multiple parts of speech, definitions, and etymologies. Students can bookmark works, label them with tags, or share using email, Twitter, Dropbox, or Evernote.

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By Larry Reiff

Is it possible to be both a wired and unwired educator at the same time? Sounds like someone trying to explain Schrödinger’s cat (the cat is both alive and dead at the same time, Google it).  I’m talking about being “an untethered teacher.”  Sometimes, we end up tethered to the technology in our classroom.  To me, this is most evident with the interactive white board at the front of my classroom (I’ve intentionally omitted any particular brand name devices). Fortunately, I’ve been using AppleTV to untether myself from the front of the room.

I’ve spoken to a lot of administrators about what they look for when performing teacher observations.  One of the comments I heard over and over again was, “I want to see the teacher circulating among the students.”  You can’t do that if you’re attached to the interactive white board.  I have an AppleTV in my classroom hooked up to a projector.  Using my iPad and AirPlay, I can wirelessly Continue Reading…