1.1. Class Dojo is a great tool for parent communication and for building classroom community. Tally and record points for areas such as hard work and teamwork. Parents may link to the class to receive instant message updates from the teacher as well as view daily progress. This app is available in the Apple Store.
1.2. Remind is an app that makes it easy to stay connected to your school community whether that means parents, teachers, or administrators. You receive and send real-time messages to private groups that you are connected too. Use it to send out homework reminders, ask for parent volunteers or any other important reminders about specific school events. You create a username which allows for your cell number to stay private if you choose. This tool is available in the Apple app store
1.3. Twitter is an app well known as an excellent social media to tool. Twitter is a great way to share out the amazing things that are going on in your classroom, whether it be pictures, videos, questions, or links. Creating common hashtags makes it easy for people in the community to locate tweets showcasing student work. This app is available for free in the Apple app store.
2. Creativity
2.1. Stop Motion Studio is an app that helps produce high quality stop motion videos. A remote camera option is available, as well as a green screen effect. I have used this app to give students a chance to express there learning in a way that gets them excited. It also challenges them to think in a new way. Stop Motion Studio also includes many different theme, colors, and sound effects to use in the videos. Students can publish directly to YouTube, Facebook, Dropbox, iCloud, and other media outlets. This app is available in the Apple app store.
2.2. Quiver is an augmented reality app that lets students create 3-D colorings that they can only view through their ipads. Some of the questions that students begin to consider are; “Is this real?” “How is this happening?” “How does this work?” These are some big ideas, and it creates some great oppurtunities for discussion and for research. Students also create some pretty exceptional works of art! Quiver is available in the Apple app store.
2.3. Book creator is an excellent publishing tool for student work. This app gives students the opportunity to feel what its like to have your work turned into a finished product that has value and is much more visually refined. Students can also add audio and other media to create a multimedia publication.
3. Critical Thinking
3.1. Edgenuity is a student centered app in the truest sense of the word. Students needs are made a priority and the app aligns its activities with exactly what the student requires to grow. After an initial assessment through the NWEA students are provided with individualized dashboards which provide lessons, activities, and quizzes tailored to their needs. Edgenuity can be accessed through their website and then used as a mobile app.
3.2. MyOn provides access to digital books that match students interests and their reading level. This app has thousands of books that are available digitally. Each digital book is provided with reading support tools. Students have access to all types of books and topics. Teachers can create “projects” and link tons of books over certain topics that students can easily access. MyOn also gives teachers a way to track how many minutes a student has read. This app is available in the Apple app store.
3.3. Epic creates an online library for each individual student. Teachers may assign specific books as well as create book sets that the students can explore. Students can recommend books to students, and they are also asked about their own interests so that the app can recommend books to them. After finishing books, students can take quizzes and leave reviews. These can be shared with classmates as well. This app is available in the Apple app store.
4. Collaboration
4.1. Google Docs is a great way for teachers to share documents with one another in a way that allows for comments and other easy changes. Google docs is also a great and easy way for teachers to collect student work so that the student can receive quick and therefor meaningful feedback. This app can be located in the Apple store.
4.2. Google Classroom allows teachers to have students better up to date on what is due and what is expected of them at any given time during any given lesson. Teachers can also use this app to collaborate and share with their teaching partners. This app can be located in the apple store.
4.3. Pinterest gives teachers a great platform to search and save blogs, lesson ideas, worksheets, and other great websites to their individual profile. Teachers can share out these ideas with other teachers and even students who need examples and helpful links.
