"Part of the benefit of jumping forward with a 1:1 iPad deployment like we have tried is that we get the opportunity to impart knowledge to other districts looking to do a similar initiative. While that might not seem like a benefit, it actually also means we can make some mistakes because there is not a long history of this type of deployment in the world. "
"In his book "Start with Why" and the accompanying TED talk, author Simon Sinek claims that we're all very clear about "what" we do. In fact, you often define yourself by what you do - "I'm a teacher" for example. You focus heavily on "how" you should do whatever it is you do and usually develop a routine to make it easier."
"I have yet to find the perfect Digital Portfolio app that I think I would use exclusively in a Visual Arts class. Some apps can be used as graphic portfolios or as beautiful sketchbooks, others are great at sharing. Not all of the apps available are great at all of these things. I have spent a heap of time trying to find one and would be more than happy for someone to send me the name of one they are using successfully. Having said that the following are apps that I would consider using;"
Socrative is an app that turns any device into part of a student response system. Not sure why I haven't written about before as it has won all kinds of awards. If you have BYOD or iPad or any type of 1:1 technology, Socrative is a must use so you don't have to buy a separate response system.
"If you're like us, you love the iPad and want to deploy it throughout education. But up until now, there hasn't really been a handy and easy-to-read guidebook for the basics of iPads in education.
"Lots of people have been asking about using the iPad as a way of teaching young students to write. I personally would not advocate this as the primary way of teaching youngsters the intricacies of handwriting and letter recognition but as fun supplementary activity it might provide some motivation. Here are a couple of fun apps that reinforce some of the basic writing skills taught by parents and teachers. "
"Science is one of those subjects that really excite students because they get to see cause and effect, they get to create, record and then document results and they get to manipulate the variables that produce the data. Students then get to make connections between what they do and the real world. Add an iPad, a series of carefully chosen apps and a couple of probes and you can make all of these observations happen in a mobile environment - outside, at home or even on an excursion. I would love to be a student in a classroom with these tools!"
"I aimed to start the teacher training session with the basics, then move onto the functionality of some of the apps. The basics on an iPad are fairly easy to master (hey, my 2 year old daughter can switch between apps) but some of the features of the device can take some time to get used to. Some apps are easy to get to grips whilst other are more challenging and not equal in terms of functionality. "