Tool 10: ilearn iblog ishare

It boggles my mind that technology has become so advanced.  In my lifetime, computers have evolved from a big and heavy box to an interactive touch screen that fits in my hand.

Because I do not own an "igadget," I borrowed my brother's iTouch.  At first, I couldn't image what elementary age students would use these for besides playing games.  However, the more I "played" with the free educational apps, the more I enjoyed myself.  I installed and explored: ABC Phonics, BrainPOP, BrainBox, BrainTap, Stars, Brainscape, the Italian and French 24/7 Tutor, and finally, the IQ Test.  My favorite ones for the classroom were BrainPOP, where you can view videos from different subjects (there's a great one on main idea), and Brainbox.  Brainbox was so neat!  It has different timed activities for math and language: fastmath (practice + - x facts), fifteen (put numbers 1-15 in order), sudoku, sequence (recall letters in alpha order), wordsort (tap words in alpha order), and wordbuilder (build as many words as you can with the letters given).  Kids can practice all these skills at the "tap" of a button.

My WOW moment happened as I learned how to use the iTouch - I realized that they can be a powerful tool in your classroom.  These mobile devices are easy to use, move around and has accessibility to many education apps.  To me, it portrays how "teachnology" has become something we need to embrace.  These "igadgets" are great to differentiate instruction as they meet different learning levels and styles, while adding a whole new dimension to teaching (what paper and pencil?).  It's "teachnology" in action!

P.S. for my personal use, I really enjoyed the free language tutors.  Ciao!  ;)