It seems that as educators we never have enough time in a day, in a plan period, in a conference, in a PD session or in our classroom to accomplish everything that we wish to. There are so many lesson ideas out there that all good educators want to implement, but where do we find the time?!?!?
If you have seen in an earlier post of mine (found here), I have recently found the benefits of using an iPad in your classroom. But owning the iPad is not the only step you need to take - you need to find apps that would be beneficial to your students! Here is my list of go-to apps/programs that I love. Keep in mind, I too encounter the time crunch and don't have an extensive list - but this is at least one to get you started. Most are focused on the science field, but others can be adapted to to any subject across the curriculum.
First up - Doceri! I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Doceri. I use it in the classroom to make slide shows of my powerpoints and then present to my students. It allows me to write on the screen of the iPad instead of projecting on the whiteboard and writing on it. I hate using the whiteboard because my back was to the students and there was always a glare I had to avoid. With Doceri, i was able to face the students and have them participate in doing the example problems. I also was able to create screencasts and videos for my students to use in the mastery units and also as resources at home.
Here is a video I made using Doceri about momentum.
My second favorite application is Dropbox. Dropbox is basically a cloud where you can store all your documents. I have it installed in my home laptop, my iPad, my phone and my school desktop so that where ever I am - I can have access to all my folders and documents. This has saved me SO much time because I used to put everything on a flash drive and then I would forget it at school. Or I would have to email myself back and forth to send documents home to work on them and then forget to email myself back with the edited documents. Dropbox has completely eliminated all of those issues for me.
I have also used dropbox in school to help make things go more eco-friendly. With my A&P classes we set up a collaborative folder that all of my students had access to. This is where I would post documents/examples/links/rubrics they needed to complete a project. They would also post in here if they did a powerpoint presentation to make the transitions between presenters more smooth. Then each student had a folder that they labled "A&P Grades - their initials." Only that student and myself had access to it and this is where they would turn in their ppt, papers, popplet etc to be graded. I would then post back a picture of their graded rubric.
In my freshmen Physical Science my kids all have access to the same dropbox account (a general one I created solely for their class) and it has all the documents they need for their mastery level units. They log on and they print out the assignments they choose to do and I don't have to waste paper printing out the assignments they did not want to do.
Next up is Popplet! Popplet is a graphic organizer maker that is all online. Once you create your account you can access all your popplets on a desktop, iPad, or phone device that you have installed the app. I love it because my kids can add me as a 'collaborator' and I can see exactly what they have gotten done everyday. You can make them as big as you would like (no running out of room on the paper) and you can color-code/edit/insert pictures and links. I love it.
AutoRap is one of the newer apps I have downloaded. I have a colleague that teaches a foreign language that has used it more than me - but it is freaking fun! All you do is talk into the app and it then converts what you said into a rap. This is fabulous for people like me who don't feel very creative when it comes to rapping - but this does it for me! What a way to get kids more interested in something that isn't just a lecture - but its still giving them in the information.
Bamboo paper is awesome! I have used it for multiple professional and personal reasons! You can create notebooks for different subjects and then add in pictures or whatever you want to do. I did my grading for a project all paperless with bamboo paper and dropbox. Here's how:
- Took a screenshot of the rubric in dropbox (do this by clicking the sleep button and the home button simultaneously)
- Went into Bamboo Paper and inserted the screenshot of the rubric.
- While the student was presenting/me reading their paper/reviewing the popplet/reviewing their ppt i was writing on the rubric.
- When i finished scoring, I took another screen shot of the rubric. Then upload the screenshot picture to the individual grade folder of each student. (remember, only the student and I have access to the folder that has their grade in it.)
- It sounds complicated - but its actually really easy once you get the hang of it. And its completely paperless - talk about going green!
I use the Elsevier Sobotta Atlas with my A&P the most. I LOVE THIS APP. It was pricey - and I realize not most people want to spend this kind of money...but i promise you that it is worth the investment! Not only do you have access to some awesome pictures, but it also shows small pieces of information with each picture, you can chose to put labels on or off, it has a training mode where it quizzes you on the anatomy using the pin function. It has pictures of medical traumas and CT scans (normal and abnormal). In short words: IT IS EPICALLY FANTASTIC!
Pocket Brain is also an app that I love when discussing the CNS. It has the ability to take off and add layers of the brain and then has pins where it will tell you what it is pointing to and give information about that structure. and - it looks 3D! You can rotate the brain sideways, up and down and manipulate it any way you want.
Nova Elements is an app I would use with my freshmen Physical Science. It has an interactive periodic table that has a lot of good information on it. It also has an element builder where you can add in the number of protons, neutrons and electrons.
Gas Laws HD is an app that shows Boyle's Law and Charles' Law. You can collect 'data' from it and then graph the relationships within the gas laws.
These are just a few of the apps that I have found the most successful in my classes of Physical Science and Anatomy & Physiology. If you have any questions of how I have used them - feel free to comment and I will try to respond in a timely manner. Hopefully this helps you with your limited time schedule to grasp how useful and fun your iPad can be in your classroom.
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