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"Some mandatory apps that your students might not life without, in your math classroom. I will only give you the top 5 to save room and not overwhelm your iPads when you try to download them all. I only purchase apps that are free, because educators are strapped for cash as it is."

"There are a lot of dangerous stereotypes out there. "Asian students are always better at math." "Boys are always better at sports." And perhaps the most dangerous of all: "The current generation are all digital natives." It is easy to see the danger in the first two stereotypes. They tend to influence the way teachers, parents, peers and society in general classify, justify and treat whichever group is represented by the stereotype. I'm not sure enough people give enough thought to the third, equally dangerous, stereotype."

"But in order to see results like those in Singapore, a cultural change must take place in the classroom, points out Norris. It's not enough just to introduce technology into the learning environment and expect results, she says; you must change everything, from devices to curriculum to pedagogy. "You must give them curricula with the technology activities baked in," she asserts, "so students don't have to keep going back and forth from their paper and pencil textbooks to their technology activities." "

"In the past two paperless posts I covered applications that can help educators begin the paperless process. Note, I apologize for the overuse of alliteration in that preceding sentence. Once you have mastered Google Drive and Genius Scan, you can now begin the process of sharing content with your students. Google Drive gives us a cloud option for storing and…"

"Reading for Meaning is a research-based strategy that helps all readers build the skills that proficient readers use to make sense of challenging texts. Regular use of the strategy gives students the opportunity to practice and master the three phases of critical reading that lead to reading success, including Previewing and predicting before reading. Actively searching for relevant information during reading. Reflecting on learning after reading."

"In Texas, there are 180 days of instruction, taking away 30 days for state testing so that leave 150 days for instruction. Let's say that a teacher gives a curriculum-based test once every two weeks and the district benchmark test three times a year. That is 21 less days of instruction or 129 days. Now, schools typically have three days of teacher in-service. Five special assemblies, two holiday parties, two half days, four emergency drills and three sick days takes away 15 more days bringing it to 111 days."

"For a variety of reasons (which we'll get to shortly), the iPad is the pre-dominant technology form in K-12 environments. They dominate blog headlines, promote incredible user loyalty (you could say cultish, but you said it, not me), and make adults drool like teething infants. Walk by any Apple store and through their wide glass storefront you'll see otherwise rational human beings swoon and fawn, listening intently as Apple experts explain how a slideshow works, how to use iCloud, or how to sync their iPhone with their iPad. School districts buy them, teachers buy them, and parents even send their students to school with them on occasion. So it makes sense that this kind of popularity would carry over to the classroom. Educators have officially had their curiosity piqued. They want to know how to integrate it into activities, lessons, and curriculum in general, and judging by our traffic patterns here on TeachThought, they come bearing questions."

"How about using iPad to create awesome sketches and paintings, wouldn't that be awesome ? Well, I have curated a list of some excellent iPad apps that can allow you and your students to tap into the artistic capabilities of iPad. Wherever you are with an Internet connection, just tap on one of these apps and give vent to your imagination and creativity, capturing the world around you in beautiful sketches to share with others."

"APP GROUPS Create app groups that consolidate up to 20 apps into one convenient group. (Works just like a folder) Tap and hold an app. Once you see the icons start jiggling, move the app on top of another app. Name your group whatever you would like and place up to 20 apps within it. BOOKMARK FAVORITE WEBSITES TO THE HOME PAGEWhile on the Internet, (using Safari) load up your favorite websites. Tap on the box with an arrow in it, alongside the URL Bar. Select "Add to Home Screen" and give each site a short name so it doesn't abbreviate itself. CAPS LOCK Double tap the shift key for caps lock. Tap once to turn it off. CHANGE NOTES FONT The default in notes looks like comic sans, which I detest. Go to Notes in Settings and choose from three fonts. CREATE A TOUGHER PASSWORD"

"I made a quick list of the ways we have seen administrators using Google Docs this year at their buildings so I thought I'd write this sequel to last year's post to give you some more ideas to try. If you're not an administrator, be sure to share this with him/her!"

"A screencast giving tips on how to make best use of the keyboard on an iPad"

"I'm a big fan of digital storytelling apps. There are lots of them, and most of them are very good, but many are aimed at elementary students. So, when I find something new, innovative, and a little less cartoony like Blurb Mobile, I am always glad because it gives me another app to share with secondary teachers"

"Quite few families are planning to give a tablet to the kids for a holiday gift. After getting the device, it is time to find the good apps to put on the iPAD or iPod Touch. I am going to start listing "Best Educational Apps for Kids" by age and subjects. As a starter, today's list is Math Apps for Kindergarten and Early Elementary Kids. I am sure there are a lot more apps out there, if you have an app you'd like to add to the list, please add the app's name at the comment area. I will periodically update the lists based on readers' inputs. It will be very helpful if you can attach a link to the App Store. Since some apps have the same titles, a direct link to the app store can help minimize potential confusions. B"

"You got a new iPad Mini for your religious holiday of choice! Congratulations! Take it out of the box, give it a good sniff and then power it on: We've got some apps to download. Below, we've got 13 of our absolute favorite apps for iPad and iPad Mini: The essentials, the best of the best. These aren't the only apps you need for your new Apple tablet, but they are certainly a good start. Let's get downloading."

"I am an Apple Distinguished Educator based in the South East of England helping schools to get the most from their iOS devices and other Apple technologies. I created iPad Nuggets as a resource for schools I have been working with. The main purpose is to give direct links to apps that I have shared."

"The internet has revolutionized information collection. The answer to virtually any question or problem is at our fingertips. Google has made this possible. While I am a great admirer of Google and an avid user of its products, in a way, Google has made my life as a teacher a LOT more difficult. Let me explain. In the "old days" (that would be pre-internet) when a teacher assigned a worksheet with a series of questions on it students had a few options to get the answers. 1. Ask mom. 2. If mom doesn't know, ask Dad. 3. If Dad doesn't know look it up in the textbook. 4. If the answer isn't in the textbook, give up."

"The iPad has proven to be an especially useful communication tool for young people with autism. It provides a way to express themselves through words and images; it can be used to teach them about everyday scenarios and give them more independence. It's also far less bulky than some communication devices of the past. "

"Narrable is a neat service for creating short narrated slideshows. Wes Fryer wrote a glowing review of Narrable and when Wes gives a service high marks I know that I have to try it out. My initial impression of Narrable is that it is kind of like VoiceThread mashed with Animoto."

"It's an age-old saying, "Give a man a fish, and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and feed him for a lifetime." What separates good teachers from the excellent ones? The excellent ones are handing out fishing poles; creating a culture in the classroom of independence and self-reliance. These students don't just recite facts or regurgitate information- they have learned how to learn. They know that if the answer isn't in front of them, they have the tools to do the investigation and research. So how do you cultivate a culture of "I can…" in your classroom?"