Creativity Apps for iPads

Happy New Year! Welcome to 2017. Time to start using that technology in your classroom to allow students to be creators of knowledge instead of consumers of knowledge. For those with iPads, I have a blog post from Jonathan Wylie titled Getting Creative with iPads in K-12 Classrooms. This is a wonderful list. I have used or heard of most of these apps. Some of my favorites from the list:

• Green Screen by Doink
• IPEVO Whiteboard
• ChatterPix
• All of the Adobe Spark apps
• Snapseed
• Canva
• Sock Puppets

Check out Jonathan's blog post and see if you can find a few favorites of your own.


https://jonathanwylie.com/2016/12/16/creative-ipads-apps-k-12-classrooms/

Appy Hour

In our last Appy Hour presentation for the year, we had two apps that we wanted to demonstrate to our Administrators. For some background, our Appy Hour is a 15-minute block of time at our Monthly Leadership meetings where our Digital Learning team gets to share apps we know about that will help administrators with their daily tasks. Yes, I get that the title should be Appy Quarter Hour, but that doesn't roll off the tongue as easily.

Our first app we demonstrated was Post-It Plus. This app from the makers of Post-It notes allows the user to scan their paper Post-It note into their device to turn that piece of paper digital. Now their notes are stored and won't be lost in the paper shuffle. The app also allows the user to resize the scan size so it really isn't limited to Post-It note size. Teachers could use this by having students work in groups and write out on Notes and gather those notes as a group for evaluation.
Find the iOS App. It is free with some in-app purchases if you want to create notes in different colors.

The second app we showed was Voice Record Pro 7. This free app allows the user to use their iPad as a digital recorder. It allows the user to record voice memos and on-site sounds at unlimited length with configurable quality. Voice Record Pro 7 can record directly in MP4 (AAC), MP3 (MPEG) and WAV (PCM) formats plus convert function for all supported formats. The power comes from what the user can then do with the file. The user can export to Google Drive, DropBox, Microsoft OneDrive, Box, SoundCloud, post to Facebook and YouTube, and more. If you need a simple (ad-supported) digital recorder app this one works great. The in-app purchase removes the ads at the bottom of the screen. 

The September Apple Event

Did you see the new iPad, Apple TV, and iPhone announced today? What was your favorite?

That iPad Pro is huge and looks to be a competitor of the Microsoft Surface. Wondering if it will be the laptop killer. It costs as much once you add the Smart Keyboard and the Apple Pencil.

http://www.apple.com/ipad/compare/

Google Apps for the iPad

If you missed the Google Education on Air event last weekend, you missed many great sessions from real teachers using GAfE in their districts and classrooms. You can view all of the sessions from the Google Education on Air event site. https://educationonair.withgoogle.com/live/2015-may

One that I would point out that I particularly enjoyed was Kasey Bell's session on Google Apps for iPad. It used to be Google and iPads didn't play nicely. But now there are 50 Google apps that work on the iPad. The power of combining the two in the classroom can't be matched.

Make sure to visit Kasey's Shake Up Learning site for her presentation and handout resources. And follow her blog for great Google and EdTech tips.

http://www.shakeuplearning.com/google-apps-for-the-ipad-googleeduonair-2015.html

Appy Hour January

Another Appy Hr (or quarter Hr if you read the last blog) for our district leadership team. Gave an update on the SAMR model and our district walk-through data. We have the Substitution level down pat. Now we need to move up along the framework.

Then I was asked to present some norms to use when using technology in the classroom. We had a brief discussion on classroom management tips that should be taken when using technology. Basically,
1. Place device on left corner of the desk until told to use the technology.
2. If it is a tablet or phone, screen side down.
3. If it is a laptop, screen should be at a 45° angle.
   

(elementary version of the norms, iPads on their Tummy and laptops open and close like a shark)

Interestingly enough, most administrators practiced this and I believe were asked to follow it for the rest of the meeting.

This video on classroom management tips was a good eye opener as well.

Talked about the M in SAMR an bit. M stands for Modification. We are now enhancing the task with technology instead of the S and the A where we are enhancing the technology.

Finally, to Appy Hour (now down to 8 minutes). I talked about the camera app and how more and more apps are utilizing the camera. We also got into a discussion about Augmented Reality and how it is becoming more prevalent in life of our students and the education world.. Here are the iOS apps I presented.



Camera Plus - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/camera-plus-capture-remotely/id330803072?mt=8  - $1.99

Tripod -  https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/tripod/id304112111?mt=8 - $1.99

Photosynth - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/photosynth/id430065256?mt=8

Groopic - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/groopic/id584710005?mt=8

Yelp - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/yelp/id284910350?mt=8

Word Lens - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/word-lens/id383463868?mt=8

Aurasma - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/aurasma/id432526396?mt=8

Photomath - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/photomath/id919087726?mt=8

Anatomy 4D - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/anatomy-4d/id555741707?mt=8

Easy Measure - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/easymeasure-measure-your-camera!/id349530105?mt=8

ARBasketball - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/arbasketball-augmented-reality/id393333529?mt=8

Action Movie FX - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/action-movie-fx/id489321253?mt=8

Tips for iPads as Centers From Teq

Teq.com is a wonderful resource you need to explore. They offer trainings in the NY area mainly, but are expanding their reach to deliver more online Professional Development content.

Their blog is a great one to follow and their news letter comes in handy. In fact, this comes directly from their last newsletter that I received.

3 Tips for Using an iPad as a Center in Your Classroom
One of today’s best classroom technologies is the iPad, however many times schools don't have enough for each individual student. One great way to address this issue is to use your iPad as a center in your classroom. Check out our 3 favorite tips for using an iPad as a center in you classroom below!

1. Be clear and concise with the goal at each iPad center.
Provide written instructions at each iPad center that include the expectations of the student for each app the student should be using. If possible, provide a QR code that connects to a video or written instructions explaining the center’s activity. This is great because at any time the student can refer back to the directions without having to ask the teacher.

2. Organize apps in folders appropriate for each iPad station.
If you expect a student to use 3 specific apps for a center, put those 3 apps together in a folder. This is a great visual cue for the student to find that center’s appropriate apps as well as cut down time locating the apps on the iPad.

3. Use the Guided Access that is built into iOS on the iPad.
Guided Access allows you to “lock” a student into an app by disabling the home button. This is great to keep the students on task and stop them from exploring whatever else is on the iPad. Guided Access also lets you customize what parts of the iPad screen the student is able to interact with. If there is a part of an app that you do not want the student to be able to touch (like for in-app purchases), you have that ability.

Make sure to check out the Community resource page http://www.teq.com/blog/ . There you can follow their blog, download lessons and SMART resources from the Educator Resource Center, view previous webinars and tutorials in their Video Archive, and pick up some eBooks and How-tos in their Teq Resources.

From the iMore blog comes a great tutorial on:

How to record, trim, edit, and share videos on an iPhone or iPad.

http://www.imore.com/record-trim-videos-ipad#share-video

Taking video is pretty easy with your device, but what to do with it when you finished recording.  Follow their post to find out what you can do with just the iPhone or iPad with no other apps required.

Apps

The Texas Computer Educators Association, TCEA, does a really great job of keeping up with the latest apps for the class room. I have mentioned their iPad site before in a earlier blog post.

www.tcea.org/ipad

They also have an Android list. Not as many apps as the iPad list, but it is growing. Make sure you check it out.
  
www.tcea.org/android

Troubleshoot iPad

There are several things you can try when you are having trouble with your iPhone or iPad. Sometimes the device will slow down or freeze and sometimes it is a problematic app. Most of the time number three below, Restart the Device solves the problem. But if it does not, check out these other steps.

1.  Update your apps. 
More often than not an update is there to fix a bug (problem) that has been discovered.

2.  Force quit the app. Good to do periodically anyway.
In iOS 6:  Double-click on the home button.  Find the problematic app on the bottom of your screen where it shows recently used apps. Press and hold on the app icon until it wiggles.  Click on the red circle with a minus sign.  Your app icon goes away.
In iOS 7:  Double-click on the home button.  Find the problematic app image and swipe up on it to flick it away.

3.  Restart the device. 
Press and hold the power button on the top right of the device until you see “Slide to power off” on your screen.  Now, swipe to power off the device.  Then press the power button to turn the device on.

4.  Delete the app and reinstall (use this for app-specific problems).
Press and hold on the app icon on the home screen until it wiggles.  Press the red circle.  The app will be deleted after you confirm.  This sometimes might also delete your data for that app so only try this when you have to.  Then go to the iTunes store and download the app again.  You will not be charged twice if you are using the correct account.

5.  Restore the device.
This wipes out everything and is done by hooking up the device to iTunes.  I’d only use this if a bunch of apps are giving you problems as it’s a headache having to set up all your apps again. Usually I do this as a last resort.

If you have any other troubleshooting steps, please comment them.

Free Digital Literacy and Citizenship Curriculum Books

Common Sense Media has been a wonderful resource in the area of digital literacy and citizenship. They offer a great interactive scope and sequence as well as over 20 videos to use a conversation starters with your students.

Now the site has offered free Digital Literacy and Citizenship Curriculum Books for iBooks. These iBooks will work on an iPad or Mac in the iBooks app.

Find all the titles at itunes.com/commonsensemedia. An introductory movie is below.

Numbered Wallpaper

For your multiple school iPad or Android devices, sometimes it is nice, at a glance, to see which numbered device the student might have in their hand. Some teachers will label the device or case with a sticker or paint pen. But a better way might be to create a numbered wallpaper you can add to the device.

Tony Vincent blogs at http://learninginhand.com/ has created several backgrounds for just such a reason and he shares with you. Go to http://learninginhand.com/blog/numbers and select the background you want. Then you can download all of the numbers that you need. Tony suggests putting the images into a dropbox or other online storage location and pull the images down to the device from there.

He also gives tips on how he created the background in Keynote. You, or your students, could easily create these in Keynote, PowerPoint, or some other paint program like Skitch or Paint.net or whatever your favorite graphics program is.

Need something quick and easy and already created. Try out Tony's wallpaper for your device.

iPad Apps

The often asked question, "What is a good iPad app for X?" with X being whatever subject the student needs help in.
My short answer, "I don't know." Which makes me sound a little dumb, but I usually follow up with the following.

There are over 1 million apps out there and I heard the other day that over 60% of them are geared for education in one way or another.

So how do you sort through all of those apps? Here are a few resources by people who have done so.

TCEA - http://www.tcea.org/ipad - A crowd-sourced app list kept by the Texas Computer Educators Association. It is broken down by curriculum area and is added to often. A good list to check back with.

Kathy Schrock's Guide to Everything - http://www.schrockguide.net/ipads-in-the-classroom.html - Including an extensive iPad apps page. Kathy has listed everything from K-12 List of Ipad Apps, to apps by Bloom's Taxonomy, to tutorials on how to use the iPad, and many more related materials. I especially like the iPad content app evaluation guides that teachers should use to help evaluate apps, especially paid apps before the purchase.

Richard Byrne's iPad Apps for School - http://ipadapps4school.com/ - Richard is always updating tis page with the latest apps he discovers for classroom use. Don't forget to also check out his regular blog Free Technology for Teachers.

From time to time I will highlight an app on here that I find. More often than not it will an app that will address one of the higher levels of Bloom's Taxonomy or a tool that will help a teacher do their job more effectively.

If you discover a great app that I should post, let me know using the contact form on the right side of the screen.

OneNote

OneNote is a program that came with our licenses of Microsoft Office that I use for keeping notes from meetings and conferences. Similar to Evernote but with a Microsoft touch.

A couple of good things going on with OneNote at the moment.

The online version that you can connect to your SkyDrive account (not called OneDrive ) now has it's own direct link. Create your OneDrive account and sign in to http://www.onenote.com/.

I don't know long it will last, but the OneNote iOS app is free. They have had a free version up to a certain number of notes you create, but from the description it sounds like it is free for unlimited notes. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/microsoft-onenote-for-ipad/id478105721?mt=8















I have a been able to take notes on my computer using the actual OneNote program that came with our version of Office, the app on my iPhone, the app on my iPad, and online with a Chromebook. Pretty nice to be able to look up my notes from anywhere.

Not a bad tutorial on setting up that OneNote account.