A Pair of Great Guides for IPad Users - And a Prezi

Usually, I only post to the Summer Learning Blog during the summer, but I just posted the following entry to the blog for teachers that I maintain during the school year.  The items I mention below are fantastic, and I suspect parents that follow this blog might also be interested in these resources for educational iPad apps... so here goes.  Parents, comment below if you'd like me to continue to share items like this during the school year...

Earlier this week, I received a pair of super-cool guides in my inbox that I'd like to share:

First, Edutopia published a booklet titled:  Mobile Devices for Learning: What You Need to Know... Getting kids engaged with learning, focused on working smarter and ready for the future.  This guide is jam-packed with ideas - especially for our iPad users.

In his "GeekDad" Blog for Wired, Daniel Donohoo sums it up this way: "Along with the usual app recommendations, the guide offers some analysis that looks at the positives, but also the challenges, of using mobile devices to support learning. It presents a wide range of diverse resources for teachers and parents to access as they undertake a journey to using technology to support learning. The whole process can also be overwhelming, so the guide doesn’t feel like it has excessive information, but instead acts as a launching pad for those interested in exploring how these devices can be used with students both inside and outside the classroom."

Plus, it is free. Of course, free these days means signing up to the Edutopia site, but if you do you’ll find the complete guide at http://www.edutopia.org/mobile-learning. 

I found a couple of ideas from the guide to be particularly useful, especially the following links to help to find new Apps:

• I Education Apps Review - IEar.org - Resources are organized by grade and subject by a community of educators and app developers.
• Appititc  - Appitic.com - A directory of apps for learning by Apple distinguished educators
• Teachers with Apps - teacherswithapps.com - Two teachers write easy-to-read reviews on educational apps for educators and parents.

Arriving in my inbox soon after was a huge guide from Common Sense Media called "Bring Learning to Life."  Divided by subject and again by learning level, it offers hundreds of ideas for Apps, online games and other resources.

According to their website, "no matter what your kids like, you'll find media here to spark their imagination and cement knowledge.  Discover inventive apps for kids struggling with addition, fluency games for advanced readers, websites to help with social skills, and more."   We do have a number of the recommended Apps available on our Lower School iPads, but we will be looking at the list carefully over the next few weeks to add to our offerings.  If you'd like to peruse the list and add your own suggestions, here is the link:

http://www.commonsensemedia.org/guide/back-to-school-guide

Then, when I was planning our 7th Grade class for tomorrow I stumbled across this amazing Prezi titled: 60 Educational Apps in 60 Minutes. Yet another resource to explore when searching for Apps.

60 Educational Apps in 60 Minutes on Prezi