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"AUTHOR: ISSIE LAPOWSKY. ISSIE LAPOWSKY DATE OF PUBLICATION: 05.04.15. 05.04.15 TIME OF PUBLICATION: 7:00 AM. 7:00 AM INSIDE THE SCHOOL SILICON VALLEY THINKS WILL SAVE EDUCATION Click to Open Overlay Gallery Students in the youngest class at the Fort Mason AltSchool help their teacher, Jennifer Aguilar, compile a list of what they know and what they want to know about butterflies. CHRISTIE HEMM KLOK/WIRED SO YOU'RE A parent, thinking about sending your 7-year-old to this rogue startup of a school you heard about from your friend's neighbor's sister. It's prospective parent information day, and you make the trek to San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood. You walk up to the second floor of the school, file into a glass-walled conference room overlooking a classroom, and take a seat alongside dozens of other parents who, like you, feel that public schools-with their endless bubble-filled tests, 38-kid classrooms, and antiquated approach to learning-just aren't cutting it. At the same time, you're thinking: this school is kind of weird. On one side of the glass is a cheery little scene, with two teachers leading two different middle school lessons on opposite ends of the room. But on the other side is something altogether unusual: an airy and open office with vaulted ceilings, sunlight streaming onto low-slung couches, and rows of hoodie-wearing employees typing away on their computers while munching on free snacks from the kitchen. And while you can't quite be sure, you think that might be a robot on wheels roaming about. Then there's the guy who's standing at the front of the conference room, the school's founder. Dressed in the San Francisco standard issue t-shirt and jeans, he's unlike any school administrator you've ever met. But the more he talks about how this school uses technology to enhance and individualize education, the more you start to like what he has to say. And so, if you are truly fed up with the school stat

You probably saw the title of this post and thought 'okay there's no friggin' way he's going to assemble a list of the best 50,000 education apps. But thanks to a partnership between Edudemic and FindTheBest, we've done just that. We've been working hard behind the scenes to build a robust directory of, as of this writing, about 56,000 education apps. But it's not just a list… it's a finely tuned directory capable of sorting out all the apps in ways not even available in the iTunes or Mac App stores. For example, you can now find out the average price of all education apps to see where your app falls. (Hint: the average price of an education app is $2.66)

There are a couple tools out now that I see bantered around in educational circles that I just hate! And there are some pretty awesome tools out there that are being used in rather old and traditional ways, and I don't hate the tool, but I hate the use of them. Exceptions don't contradict what I'm trying to explain here, but rather prove the point that: A tool is just a tool! I can use a hammer to build a house and I can use the same hammer on a human skull. It's not the tool, but how you use it that matters.

"At our small, fast-moving nonprofit company, everyone does a couple of jobs - and productivity apps help us manage roles that shift between coding, writing/designing and running a full-scale conference twice a year. We asked the TED staff what apps they can't live without. And beyond the classics-Instagram, Google Maps, Spotify, Uber, Seamless-we found some great apps that might help you too. (A star denotes that the app is free, or at least has a free version.)"

This free site allows you to design web apps for iOS and Android devices.

Google Apps Education Edition is a broad IT solution that schools can use to bring communication and collaboration tools to the entire academic community for free. Google manages all the technology details, so you can focus your time, energy and budgets on teaching your kids. Students, teachers and staff can share ideas more quickly and get things done more effectively when they have access to the same powerful communication and sharing tools. Google Apps Education Edition lets tech administrators provide email, sharable online calendars, instant messaging tools and even a dedicated website to faculty, students and staff for free. There's no hardware or software to install or maintain, since everything is delivered through a standard web browser -- anytime, from anyplace.

Why I Like Prezi In my life, I have given a *lot* of presentations. In high school, they were presentations on group projects. In university, they were presentations on research projects. At Google, they're presentations on how to use our APIs. When I first started giving presentations, I used Powerpoint, like everyone else. But I kept thinking there must be a better way, and I experimented with other options - flash interfaces, interactive Javascript apps. Then I discovered Prezi, and it has become my presentation tool of choice. Prezi is an online tool for creating presentations - but it's not just a Powerpoint clone, like the Zoho or Google offering. When you first create a Prezi, you're greeted with a blank canvas and a small toolbox. You can write text, insert images, and draw arrows. You can draw frames (visible or hidden) around bits of content, and then you can define a path from one frame to the next frame. That path is your presentation. It's like being able to draw your thoughts on a whiteboard, and then instructing a camera where to go and what to zoom into. It's a simple idea, but I love it. Here's why: It forces me to "shape" my presentation. A slide deck is always linear in form, with no obvious structure of ideas inside of it. Each of my Prezis has a structure, and each structure is different. The structure is visual, but it supports a conceptual structure. One structure might be 3 main ideas, with rows of ideas for each one. Another might be 1 main idea, with a circular branching of subideas. Having a structure helps me to have more of a point to my presentations, and to realize the core ideas of them. It makes it easy to go from brainstorming stage to presentation stage, all in the same tool. I can write a bunch of thoughts, insert some images, and easily move them around, cluster them, re-order them, etc. I can figure out the structure of my presentation by looking at what I have laid out, and seeing how they fit together. Some people do this

A breathtaking array of 'learn to code' Apple, Android and Windows phone apps. Learn C++, Python C#, HTML, SQL, JavaScript, Java, CSS, php and Swift via the site or apps. These are 'must try' tools for anyone starting out with coding. The site even has a 'Code Playground' to experiment with your code.

This is a superb site for creating mobile browser apps online. The builder is quick and easy to use with lots of functions to include. You can continue to update and tweak your app. It's a great way for your class to begin making apps before they move on to full coding. http://ictmagic.wikispaces.com/ICT+%26+Web+Tools

Great list of Android apps for education - 93 in total - sorted by Pre-k, elementary, Middle School, High School and "apps for everyone.'  Some interesting (and new) apps to try!

Why leave your document to use an external tool when you can integrate the functionality you need into Word? Check out these five free mini apps to add power to Word 2013.

Help your students make their own Android apps with this useful tool from MIT. The site comes with some good tutorials and guides with example projects. http://ictmagic.wikispaces.com/ICT+%26+Web+Tools

Approximately every 7-10 days participating teachers will get an email describing the new app being released. In the email there will be a link where interested teachers can order a free copy of the app in question. When you order an app, an install link will be sent to you a few days later. seems like it is mostly for Ipads for now but the idea is great.

"We all know that students find it far more challenging to answer word problems than simple equations. In Math Shake, learners practise the vital skill of solving word problems in a fun, focused way. Learners engage their critical thinking skills as they use the keywords to change word problems into equations and use interactive learning tools to visualise, image and work out their answer. Not only do learners have a range of learning tools at their fingertips, they can share their thinking by recording their working.Teachers and parents can also use Math Shake to teach learners with the interactive tools; including tens frames, number matrixes, fraction parts, number lines and counters. "

This is a 'must try' iPad app where you can design a 3D creature. Tap, drag and pinch your creation until it is just right and then 'paint' it with the patterns you want. It's a great resource to use alongside creative writing or science work. If you have access to a 3D printer you can even fabricate your design. Download the app at https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/123d-creature/id594014056. http://ictmagic.wikispaces.com/ICT+%26+Web+Tools

This is a great iPad app which lets users design and play simple games by drawing the character and backgrounds. Download the app at https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/sketch-nation-studio/id506337826 http://ictmagic.wikispaces.com/ICT+%26+Web+Tools

This is a fabulous GPS and mapping Android app that gives you everything you need to go geocaching and exploring the great outdoors. There are location, compass, photo and tracking tools which should ensure you can always find your way... until your battery runs out! Download the app at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mictale.gpsessentials http://ictmagic.wikispaces.com/PSHE%2C+RE%2C+Citizenship%2C+Geography+%26+Environmental

This is a great iPad app which lets you make amazing games with the minimum of coding experience. Use the pre-made characters and props or make your own using your camera or gallery images. Control the behaviour of each item to make some intricate games with a flick of your finger. Your designs are only limited by your imagination. Share your games with others at the click of a button. Download the app at https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/GamePress/id637370800?mt=8 http://ictmagic.wikispaces.com/ICT+%26+Web+Tools

Try these great math apps the next time you are looking for a new way to challenge your children with their number work. These apps are tried and tested classroom tools and would be a great addition to your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch.