Five Apps for Friday ~ June 6, 2014

This was my last week of work ~ just cleaning up and professional development.  I am linking what I learned in my PD with Kacey at Doodle Bugs Teaching.

Last Thursday I went to a PLAYDATE, where I got to investigate lots of apps with a facilitator and other teachers.  I had a lot of fun learning about lots of different apps I didn't know much about.  The best part is that ALL of these are FREE!

1.  The first session I went to was all about the app Evernote. Now I have had this app on my ipad for quite some time, but I have never really used it.  Wow!  There is so much I could do with this app!  And Evernote Peek is even more fun!  All of it is free.

With Evernote, I can make notes about students in SCT meetings and sync it to different devices.  That means I don't have to carry my notebook with me anymore!

Students can use it to record ideas and even their own voice.  What a great tool to use during running records, so I can check on what they read if I have any questions!

2.  One of my favorite apps I played with was StoryKit.  In StoryKit, kids can create their own stories by taking pictures, writing their story, and even recording their voices.  I loved using it because the students can use it for so much more than just telling stories.  They can also use it to write reports and show the class, all with an iPad! 

3.  Another great storytelling app is 30Hands.  This was another easy to use app that students can work with pictures and words to create their own stories.  I didn't spend as much time with it, but it was fun to use!

4.  Nearpod was another great app.  It helps you guide your students through the presentation.  The students move at your pace and cannot get ahead of you.  This would definitely be helpful for students in the middle and high school grades who like to get ahead of you.

5.  I didn't go to this session, but this was one of my favorites!  You don't even have to have an app for this but a laptop and Smartphone/tablet will work just fine.  Kahoot! was a hit with all of us! 

In this app, you can create quizzes for your students to answer with their devices.  You don't have to have a SmartBoard but just a projector and computer.  Here are some examples I did with their own quiz and my phone.

By answering the questions quickly and correctly, the students earn points and get on the leaderboard.  It was fun to see who was getting them correctly the quickest!
 
Which app would you be most apt to use in your classroom?

What did you do this week?   Link up with Kacey at Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday and let us know!

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Book Talk Thursday ~ Dot.

My little girl loves to go to the library, and the book she picked out the other day is perfect for Book Talk Thursday this week.

She loves to browse the books on the shelf and picked out this cute book called Dot. by Randi Zuckerberg.

The book depicts a young girl, around the age of 5 or 6 who loves electronics. She loves them so much that she forgets to enjoy the world outside.  She knows how to "tweet" and "surf" on her electronics, but she spends all of her time on those.  When she goes back outside, she remembers how to "tweet" and "surf", along with many other fun things to do with her friends.

I don't think I would use this book with the younger crowd, since they really can't do many of the things that Dot does in the book.  Though it is a simple book, I would use it with students in 4th grade and up to remind them to go outside and enjoy time with their friends.

To help them with this, I created a simple activity they can take home with them to remind them of things they want to do over the summer.  The students can think of what they will do over the summer to be outside and draw or write them on their iPads.  One version has a blank screen, and the other has 4 "apps" students can draw their ideas in and write the title underneath them.  You can grab your freebie by clicking {here} or on the pictures below.

What do you do to help your students remember to get out and enjoy the summer?

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