iPod touch, Apps & Wirenode in Fourth Grade
Lauren Haber teaches fourth graders at Sandy Plains Elementary in Maryland. She's got a class set of iPod touches, and her students and she are having a blast learning with them! Lauren shared some of her favorite apps with me (and she assured me that they have many favorites at Sandy Plains).
Math
- Sticker Shop - Lauren used this as a review of counting money. She wishes it could have different ability levels because it doesn't challenge her students, but they love it.
- Math Carries - Practice regrouping.
- Dice - Great for when they play games in class, random number generation, and probability. There's no real dice for students to misplace or leave scattered around the classroom.
- Multiples - This is another great multiplication game, with expressions represented as arrays.
- Math Dr. Lite - Lauren loves how it can be customized for the needs of each student (they use it for multiplication and division facts) and she likes the variety of helpful aids while students are in review mode (number line, repeated addition, multiplication table, nearby facts).
Social Studies and Science
- Discovery News - Read about currently events.
- NASA - Terrific space resources.
- Live Moon - Display a picture of what moon looks like on this day and access a current calendar of moon phases.
Language Arts
- Make Words - Use root words, prefixes, and suffixes to create words.
- Dragon Dication - Transcribe what students speak into a microphone with this free speech-to-text app.
- Dictionary.com - Great for word of the day and choosing appropriate definitions.
Lauren has created a mobile website for her students and their parents using the free Wirenode service. It makes it simple for Lauren to share links with students, and it gives her students a place to go on the web related to each of their subject areas. Parents find the page helpful for keeping updated on what's going on in class. The site also guides students when they research topics at home. Check out the mobile site at misshaber.wirenode.mobi.
Lauren says her students are so much more engaged while using the iPod touches. She can't imagine teaching without them as much as her students can't imagine learning without them!