FREE today only – Comic Book. This app was named Best Photo App of 2011 and was the App of the Week in 12 different countries! Using the app’s selection of image filters, comic fonts, customizable captions, classic comic graphics and page layouts, you can easily change your photos into comics. So many creative uses for the classroom!! Download now, brainstorm later – don’t miss this one.
Fabulous educational app!!! ReadWriteThink’s Trading Cards is powerful FREE app developed by the International Reading Association. This educational app provides a unique way for kids to share their understanding of topics, generate their own study aids, create a fictional world to use in their writing, make their own trading cards, and more. There are 7 categories of cards available within the app: fictional person, real person, fictional place, real place, object, event, and vocabulary. Kids start by choosing a category and typing in the title of the card. Each category has specific questions which help kids create information-rich trading cards. Images can be added by using the device’s camera or by accessing pictures in the photo library. Kids can also sort their cards into collections such as characters from a book, heroes or villains, landmarks, the 50 states, vocabulary by subject, etc. The possibilities are endless! Cards can be shared via email, saved to the photo library, or printed on a wireless printer. And… the kid appeal is tremendous. Kids will LOVE trading their cards with their classmates. 🙂
Highly recommended!!
Professor Garfield Fact or Opinion is a FREE educational app. The comic teaches kids why it is important to know difference between fact and opinion, especially when using the internet. Garfield’s friend, Nermal, gets an F on his report about goats because it includes facts & opinions. With the help of Professor Garfield, Nermal learns that not all information on the internet is true. He learns that fact is “something that can be proven to be true” and an opinion is “something that someone believes but cannot be proven.” Nermal learns how important it is to read with a questioning mind. After reading the comic strip, kids practice what they have learned by helping Nermal write a report about school lunches and by feeding facts to the Fact-Bot. I love this app! Kids start learning about fact vs opinion in second/third grade but many of them struggle with the concept. This app presents the content in a fun way then gives students the opportunity to apply what they have learned. It does a fabulous job of teaching kids an important element of critical reading – in my opinion. 🙂
Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/professor-garfield-fact-or/id401257010?mt=8&uo=4
FREE for a limited time – Earthlapse, an app that turns your iPad/iPhone into a window aboard the International Space Station. The app comes with 7 views of Earth (aurora borealis, a tropical storm, Canadian arm of the ISS, the cupola of the ISS, Earth & clouds, Canada & northern USA, and aurora australis) captured by NASA astronauts. It also has 8 relaxing space soundtracks. Love the music! When you touch the screen, you can control what you see with your finger. You can also enable a clock and/or worldwide weather – a nice feature if you want to use it as a screen saver. It would be great to Airplay this app on a big screen in your classroom when kids were doing creative writing about space, living on the ISS, etc. 🙂
Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/earthlapse/id522003167?mt=8&uo=4
FREE again today – Toca Hair Salon, one of my favorite educational apps for toddlers! Kids go into the salon to groom 6 different characters. They can use the tools in the salon to style their hair – cut it, comb it, make it grow, shave it, color it, etc. Great sound effects are also included in this fun app. Kids or parents can take a photo of the finished creation and save it to their camera roll. If parents wish, creations may be posted on the Toca Boca Facebook page. The developers have also built-in options to turn off sounds, pictures, and news. What a great springboard for creative writing – give a character a whole new look and write a story to go with it. What a fun writing activity for a Wacky Hair Day!!
Just released on February 23 and FREE – YouTube Kids, a child-geared version of YouTube. The app is designed for little ones to navigate – big buttons, easy scrolling, and instant full-screen. Kids can enjoy their favorites such as Sesame Street, Peppa Pig, and Reading Rainbow. They can find videos about things that interest them – science, music, crafts, etc. The app has four sections: shows, music, learning, and explore. I especially love the learning section which includes great programming from TedEd, Khan Academy, WhizKid Science, PBS Kids, and more. There is also a search option which is great for teachers looking for a video clip to enhance a lesson. Google is focused on kids’ safety so they’ve worked to build YouTube Kids to be a family friendly place. Parents can quickly notify YouTube if they see anything questionable. Even though this app greatly limits a child’s access to inappropriate content, supervision of your child’s online activity is always a good idea. 🙂
Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/youtube-kids/id936971630?mt=8&uo=4
March 2 is Dr. Seuss’s birthday. Celebrate with “green eggs and ham” and some of his classic titles – on sale!
Only $.99!!
Green Eggs and Ham: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/green-eggs-and-ham-dr.-seuss/id380751745?mt=8&uo=4
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/one-fish-two-fish-red-fish/id373814871?mt=8&uo=4
Dr. Seuss ‘s ABC: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dr.-seusss-abc/id354855128?mt=8&uo=4
The Cat in the Hat: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/the-cat-in-the-hat-dr.-seuss/id353473931?mt=8&uo=4
Oh, the Places You’ll Go: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/oh-places-youll-go!-dr.-seuss/id371171766?mt=8&uo=4
FREE educational app – Number Pieces from Math Learning Center. This educational app is the digital version of place value manipulatives, hands-on tools used to help students understand place value. Using the place value models within this app, kids can visualize the process of adding and subtracting ones, tens, and hundreds. The app has a function that permits kids to break apart pieces or join them together. This feature is fabulous for kids who need concrete examples. The app also includes expanding edge pieces which can be used to introduce arrays. Other features of the app include: three colors for identifying groups, drawing tools for labeling, a text tool for writing number sentences, zooming & scrolling for larger numbers. Thanks to the Math Learning Center, teachers & their students have another great app to add to their digital toolkits!
Common Core Standards:
Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/number-pieces-by-math-learning/id605433778?mt=8&uo=4
FREE for a limited time – Musical Paint a creative, multi-sensory app for the iPhone/iPad. Kids are welcomed into an art museum by a friendly blue walrus with a French accent. There is also an ensemble of lively musicians (underwater animals) at the museum. Kids are invited to paint a picture on a canvas. Each color is a musical tone so when the kids paint, they are painting music! If the child chooses to save his/her painting, it is hung in the museum – a very cute feature. They even get to sign their work. Kids can also share their paintings via email. What fun it would be for kids to send Grandma a picture of their masterpiece that is in a museum!! The app also has a lesson plan section for teachers & parents. Nicely done app for younger kids!!
FREE for a limited time – Telestory, another fabulously creative app from Launchpad Toys, the creators of Toontastic. Kids can write, direct, and star in their own TV shows with this educational app. Kids choose a theme to start: The News, Star Adventure, Eye Spy, or their own creation. Then they mix and match scenes to create their story. Next they craft a script using the prompts within the app or their own ideas. Then it’s time for the show! Kids choose one of fifty digital costumes for their performance.They perform and record their show which includes animated scenes and special effects. Recordings can be saved to the camera roll to be shared with classmates, family, and friends. How fun!!
Teachers, check out “The News” theme for use in your classroom. Kids can choose to be different types of reporters: The Beat, The Sports Roundup, The News Desk, The Weather, The Critic, or The Eye in the Sky. Then the learning begins. They could choose to read, summarize and report about current events. Or, they could choose to learn the science behind the weather so that they can explain it to their viewers. Or they could choose to write reviews of the literature that they are reading. Telestory News is a great tool for getting kids excited about non-fiction. Make it a part of your weekly routine with a new show rolled out every Friday. 🙂
Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/telestory/id915378506?mt=8&uo=4
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