#teachingwithipads

[lrhartley]

LearnZillion

OK, I was just introduced to this site by another teacher and so far I LOVE it. LearnZillion is a website that contains hundreds of mini lessons and quizzes  on topics in Math and Language Arts that can be used for remediation and enrichment for students. Plus, each topic is aligned with Common Core and can be looked up by the particular standard you are trying to teach/reteach.  It's great!

Set-up is very simple as well. Teachers (or parents) can create a free account and send students an enrollment code. Once students have enrolled, teachers can assign Playlists and Quizzes to the class as a whole or to individual students. "Playlists" are the actual lessons (about 5 minutes long) that teach students and give examples of the specified skill. The quizzes are only 5 questions long and the grade is then sent to the teacher.

If you are a teacher, then you know the huge emphasis of technology and differentiation in the classroom. This site will definitely help you accomplish both! I see myself using this site as a homework aid and for enrichment for my higher students. Don't take my word for it, check it out for yourself: LearnZillion.

Also, have a look at this video (scroll down to the bottom) that shows the program in action in a 5th grade classroom: LearnZillion in Action.

*Note: Currently, LearnZillion only has Playlists and Quizzes for Grades 3-8.

[lrhartley]

Try this one: Explain Everything

I hear many teachers say that they want to use iPads in their classrooms but are at a loss in how to implement them "authentically", meaning in a way other than just having students play games. 

Agreed. There are so many good ways to use iPads to enhance learning, but the struggle for many teachers is not having time to sit down and explore all the options.  Today, I am going to share my favorite app that I've used this year: Explain Everything.

Straight from the iTunes app store, Explain Everything is basically "an easy-to-use design, screencasting, and interactive whiteboard tool that lets you annotate, animate, narrate, import, and export almost anything to and from almost anywhere."

You basically use it to record your students' thinking and creativity in just about any subject. My class has used it for book reviews, explanation of math problems, labeling and discussing objects in science, fluency checks, etc. The great thing about it is the project can be as quick, simple and done in 5 minutes, or something that has more components and takes longer to create. 

With a little help, my students (in 3rd grade) caught on quickly how to manipulate all the tools in the app. The tools allow you to import or take photos and videos, record voices and pen movements, and finally, export the project to a number of different places.

The two main reasons I choose this app over similar ones is because: 1. The app allows you to work on a project, save, and then go back in to work on it later (whereas projects on other apps couldn't be worked on again once saved), and 2. The exporting is so easy!  I have set up a dropbox for my class and they all save their projects in a folder with their name on it.  This way they can show their parents at home and I can pull up their projects on my computer as well.

It's really just better to show you how it could be used. In the following link, students explain different ways they use the app:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75IlpvSkC3s

I've also posted some simple projects we've done in class recently just before this blog post. Check them out for ideas!

If you use iPads for nothing else this year, at least try a project on this app. Start with something simple and watch your students get excited about other project ideas! 

To get familiar with the tools, watch this 8 minute tutorial.  The guy actually shows how he uses it as a teacher during lessons...another great idea!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMttsHd0M8M