iPad in the Elementary Classroom

The iPad is a great tool for teachers in an elementary classroom. Often times the mornings can become hectic with children piling into the classroom from buses and drop offs, with the iPad teachers are able to take attendance, eliminating the hassle of having to reenter the attendance after handwriting it.  Also as the students work in class, the teacher can walk and easily assess the students’ work as they are doing it and Asses their class work skills. Again this eliminates transferring the data from hardcopy to online.

The iPad has many applications available for teachers in the elementary classroom. Below are highly rated applications for multiple subjects in the elementary classroom. For each of these applications, teachers are able to connect the iPad to a projector so each student can see the application in use.

Science: Solar System for iPad

This application is great when discovering the solar system. It provides the students an opportunity to feel as if they are roaming the galaxy while they are sitting at their desk. It is also very interactive.

Mathematics: MathBoard

            MathBoard is a great study tool for students. Teachers are able to post study math questions to the application, make practice quizzes and Asses the students progress as they complete study problems and quizzes. Students can access the questions and quizzes from their own iPad through iTunes file sharing, giving them the opportunity to practice the problems at home. It is also compatible with the iPod touch and phone, if the student does not have the iPad available.

Social Studies: American Presidents for iPad

 American Presidents for the iPad is a interactive way to learn all the the Presidents of the United States. Each President is in their respective cartoon form along with a brief history. There is also a timeline of the Presidents of when they were in office.



Spelling: SpellBoard

The same company as MathBoard application created spells Board. It too allows the teacher to post the spelling words of the week. Students are able to write the spelling board on the white board using their finger. With this feature they get used to seeing the words and writing the word. Practice quizzes are available and the teacher can track the student’s progress. Students can access the questions and quizzes from their own iPad through iTunes file sharing, giving them the opportunity to practice the problems at home. It is also compatible with the iPod touch and iPhone, if the student does not have the iPad available

Writing: Toontastic and Puppet Pals

Toontastic allows the students to put their writing into an illustration. The can create a play with their characters and draw the scenery.

 

Puppet Pals is very similar to Toontastic but Puppet pals allow the students to take their own pictures and make them characters in their story.

            

Reading: iBooks and Acceleread

   iBooks is a free application giving teachers and students a wide variety of free books at their fingertips. For students they are able to explore different genres and practice their reading skills.

         
Acceleread is an application to improve reading speed. This targets the slower reader in the classroom and also helps the fast reader. This overall could help improve literacy for underprivileged students.




Below is a video of other uses for the iPad to improve literacy in the elementary classroom.

Using the iPad in the classroom enhance the child's learning experience. A more holistic education is created, using technology allowing the students access to more learning techniques. It also helps to target the troubled learner by presenting the material in a different way.