Our school has been 1:1 for more than 5 years now. I love the flexibility of students having the iPad at their fingertips at any moment. There are a ton of reasons I love using technology in my class but for now I will focus on 5 apps I just can't live with out.
1.) Desmos
Desmos is an app but I must confess that I am partial to the web based version. To put it in simple terms, Desmos is the most amazing graphing calculator but it is so much more than that. Desmos allows students to explore advanced concepts using tables, expressions, sliders and much more. Concepts that used to take weeks to teach (ie. transformations of functions) can be tackled in just a few short class periods. Desmos also allows students to express their creative side using combinations of different functions to create beautiful works of art.
2.) Explain Everything
Explain Everything is a screen casting app that allows students to create, animate and narrate their own presentations. It allows students to draw, as well as insert pictures and video, to create professional looking finished products.
In my class, I like to get my students up an moving around. This is easily accomplished by posting QR codes around the room for students to scan with their QR Reader. These codes can link to anything - videos, questions, webpages, the next step in a scavenger hunt.
4.) Pattern Shapes
Pattern Shapes is an app that allow students to construct patterns using shapes (hence the name). I've used it to help students solidify their understanding of concepts ranging from fractions to functions.
5.) Gizmos
Gizmos is a Science and Math simulation app published by Explore Learning. With Gizmos, students can explore topics such as the arcs and central angles of circles and discover patterns independent of direct instruction. Each simulation comes with an editable student exploration guide.
No comments:
Post a Comment