Story Me App

Story Me is an app that allows you to take photos and create a collage, comic strip, and/or cartoon with them. You can add captions, thought, or speech bubbles to add content to the final product. There are 81 different layouts you can choose from when deciding how you want your story to look. You can also change the effect of your story by choosing an effect to add to the overall look (cartoon, pencil, or plain). When you have completed your storyboard, you can share it easily by emailing it, printing it, or even saving it to your Camera Roll. This app is currently free in the iTunes app store.


Here is an example of what one of the finished stories might look like from your classroom:

Classroom Applications:
*Students can highlight an historical figure's key accomplishments from a particular time period (ex. Paul Revere's role before, during, and after the American Revolution)
*Sequencing a story read
*Showing first person point of view of a character in a literacy group
*Students can draw their own pictures, use the iPad camera to take photos of their own work and use those pictures in the creation of their project. (No copyright issues!)



Reading Timer

Reading Timer is an app students can use to log their daily and weekly reading times through the use of an interactive stopwatch. It encourages independent reading in a fun way.  Teachers can use to time the whole class during independent reading time or use with individual students.  As students build reading stamina, the stopwatch time can be increased. For home use, parents can check their child's reading log and access reading tips, book lists and helpful articles to support their child's reading progress.

Classroom Applications: 

• Time students' reading minutes
• Build reading stamina
• Increase reading fluency

Kodable

Kodable is a self-guided app that introduces computer programming to elementary students.  It is just one of the featured learning experiences in the 2013 Hour of Code coming up next week during Computer Science Education Week! Be sure to look at the many learning possibilities for K-12 students available!

What's an Hour of Code?

It's a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify "code" and show that anyone can learn the basics to be a maker, a creator, an innovator.

Classroom Applications:

• Learn to solve problems in sequential steps
• Introduce programming concepts and problem solving
• Set up your classroom or computer lab with learning stations which use various tutorials from the Hour of Code Day!

Venn Diagram and Timeline App - Read Write Think

Venn Diagram is a graphic organizer app that allows students to organize their thinking and/or show their learning.  Users can add 2-3 overlapping circles to their Venn  

   Diagram.  The completed diagram can be saved to the Camera Roll. 

Classroom Applications:
Comparing and Contrasting
Share Facts Learned
Showing Relationships

 

Timeline is an app that allows students to display information in sequential order along a line. Click the timeline to add an event or item and then add a label, a description, and an optional image. The final timeline saves to the Camera Roll.



Classroom Applications:
Historical Data
Biographies
Sequence of Events (science lab, classroom activities, etc.)
Numberline

 Both of these apps were created by the International Reading Association/Read Write Think. They have other apps: Theme Poem, Diamante Poem, Acrostic Poem and Alphabet Organizer. Search the app store for International Reading Association. These tools are all also available online along with other student interactives.
 

Hopscotch: Coding for Kids

 
Students will love this programming app for iPad!  Encourage them to be creative as they build their own games, animations, and programs. Hopscotch uses the drag and drop method to work.  Just drag and drop blocks of code and click "Play" to see the results.  A super way to encourage thinking skills!

From iTunes:



Why coding? By the year 2020, there will be a projected 1.4 million computer jobs but only 400,000 CS students. Computer Science is among the highest paid college degrees and programming jobs are growing at 2x the national average.

Many of the best coders fell in love with programming as kids at the age of 8, 10 and 12 years old. With Hopscotch, kids can build and perfect their own creations while obtaining an understanding of the fundamentals of computer science.

Morfo

Morfo is a free app where you can take a picture of a person (or animal) and create a 3-D character. You can record a message and your character says it for you! You can also save the character as a video in your camera roll to share with others. This app is easy to use and is an unique way to share information.

In the free version (there is a paid version for $0.99), you can record a message up to 30 seconds long.


Classroom Applications:

* Students can morph a famous figure in history or authors and can give a research report about them.
* Students can create a booktalk using a morphed character of their choosing.
* Students can record a book summary in a cool, new way.

Tech Tip: Adding International Keyboards

This short video demonstrates the steps necessary to add additional language keyboards to your iPad.  This is probably most useful for our immersion classrooms but others may find it helpful.

Qrafter - QR Code Reader

Qrafter is a free app that enables you to scan a QR code to receive links to websites, text messages, a link to a Dropbox file, a Google map location, and more!

Scan - is another free QR Code reader app. It works well with the plain text QR codes. Just skip or ignore the prompts to sign in.

There are many websites you can use to create a QR code. One site that is easy to use is http://www.qrstuff.com/. QR Voice will create a QR code that will say the "message" in a computer generated voice. http://qrvoice.net/


Here are links to a couple of resources to learn more:
QR Codes in the Classroom  - includes how to tips and classroom applications
Schrock's QR Codes in the Classroom
Anderson's QR Codes in the Classroom Livebinder

In this 2 minute video, some students explain one way they use QR codes in the classroom to enhance literacy.



Classroom Applications:

• Have students create QR codes for book review videos they create.
• Create QR codes for preselected research websites. Students could collaborate to collect sites for a particular topic.
• Use QR codes to provide exemplars for student projects or an example of mastery of a learning target.
• Provide differentiation by using QR codes to link to remediation or extension activities.
• Use QR codes to share a morning message or a daily quote.
• Personalize learning by using QR codes to provide multiple resources students can use to enhance learning.

Tech Tip: Keyboarding Shortcuts

Here is a video that can be a real time saver for you!  This video highlights several keyboarding tips and tricks that will find useful!  Don't forget to share these shortcuts with your students!!

Tech TIp: Multitasking Gestures

This video demonstrates how you can utilize Multitasking Gestures (using multiple fingers on the touch screen for specific tasks) to efficiently navigate your iPad.









 

Apps Gone Free

Your daily free app finder!

Each day several iPad apps that are available free for a limited time are featured in Apps Gone Free. 

Reviewers handpick the best of the apps that have gone free for a limited time.  You can read a short review of the app, see it's star rating, and also see the regular purchase price of the app.

Apps Gone Free has a scrollable calendar on the left for checking out previous days, too!

Tech Tip: Learning to use the Search Function on your iPad

Learn how to quickly find apps, pics, files, and emails on your iPad.  Easily accessing content on your mobile device is essential to your own use of the iPad and for your students.  Please watch the video below to learn more and consider sharing with your students.

Tech Tip: Speak Selection - an iOS tool

Below you will find a video tutorial that describes how to use the Speak Selection tool in iOS6.  This tool has many classroom applications for both struggling and advanced readers and writers.  Please take a few moments to watch this video.

Please add your comments about how you will or have used this feature in your classroom!

ScootPad


ScootPad is the ultimate way to engage kids in mastering Common Core Standards and Concepts in math and reading with personalized, self-paced and stimulating practice.  Kids love ScootPad!!

 My teachers love the ScootPad app because it is highly engaging practice for their students using Common Core standards, they can make the practice unique for each student, and because it's easy to maintain. 

You can even open it through Edmodo Apps or online at ScootPad.com!

Practice. Learn. Succeed.

Classroom Applications :
*Individual practice of math & reading skills
*Spelling practice
*Can be used in centers!
*Common Core review