iPad+Apps

**6th Grade Content - Educational Apps** **1. Everyday Mathematics - Equivalent Fractions **

Currently in our math units we are looking at equivalent proportions. To help struggling students, I have given them time with this app to work on equivalent fractions which compares nicely to proportions. Developed by McGraw-Hill, this app has students identifying equivalent fractions in a game that reminds me a lot of Golf Solitare, where they have to find the pairs and those cards disappear revealing the new cards behind them. Each fraction is labeled and has a visual representation of it behind the label to further help the students out.


 * 2. Logic Factors Puzzles Lite** **

Factor puzzles are a large part of unit 1 in our new Math Expressions series in Pewaukee. This app plays off of the factor puzzle concept and has the students use their math skills to solve their puzzles. The students can be timed, prompted from a multiplication table or solve through the use of story problems. It's a fairly simple app, but it gets the job done well. Without the bells and whistles, students are more focused on the math in this app. The paid version cost $1.99 and adds more puzzles and scenarios for the kids.


 * 3. Virtual History ROMA **

This is an app that I have lost myself in and am really looking forward to our ancient Rome unit when I can bring this in for the kids to study alongside our content. This app has rebuilt ancient Rome with students allowed to look at what it would have been like to be a citizen of Rome through their daily life, their emperors, the army, battles won and lost, religion, art and more. My favorite part app has to be the 3-D buildings which allow you to zoom in and out of famous structures along with rotating it to see what it would be like from all angles. While not the most interactive app out there, the sheer amount of information and the style in which it is presented makes it well worth the $10.00 if you can use it in your curriculum.


 * 4. Greek God **

Ever since Rick Riordan introduced us to Percy Jackson and his half-blood Olympian friends and enemies, our students have taken a greater interest in the Greek gods. Thankfully Riordan has done an amazing job of staying true to the myths and lore of the ancient Greek gods, so teachers do not need to go back and make corrections. Some students have felt more inspired to study more, and this app allows them to do it. This app supplies a great deal of information in an easy-to-read format and allows for students to look at a visual family tree of the major gods and how they are all part of the same family. From there, pick a god, click on him or her and you're off to read about their life, starting at their birth.


 * 5. Myths and Legends **

To continue with the gods for a moment, this app allows for students to explore the myths of 16 different cultures including the Chineses, Egyptian, Greek, Mesopotamian and Romans, all of which are cultures studied in the 6th grade. The myths and stories are displayed on a graphical papyrus paper to give the illusion of reading an old document. While it does lack an interactive component and graphics, the information is very detailed and organized. All of the major and minor gods and goddesses are represented. I would probably stick with my more advanced readers for this app, but the information is solid.


 * 6. Tap Quiz Maps **

One thing that I want to make certain my kids leave my classroom with is a good idea of where countries are in this world. So often we hear about our troops in Afghanistan and Iraq, yet most of my 6th graders can't pick it out on a map. Pakistan, China and Japan we're all big in the news this past year and my kids knew where they were. We often hear about the Middle East ... which countries are part of that? This app tests that knowledge for the kids. Pick a region and it will zoom in on it and give you a test. It will display a countries name, you tap on that country and it moves on. It will both time you and keep track of your accuracy. At the end, it will give you a star rating very similar to the Angry Birds rating at the end of the level. 3 being awesome, 1 meaning try again. A nice free app for the kids.


 * 7. Google Earth **

Same as on your computer (for the most part), Google Earth for the iPad lets kids explore the world (or just their house) with their fingertips. Great for social studies and math (find the perimeter of your school!).


 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">8. Geo Walk **

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">This app puts pictures on the globe and allows students to zoom in on them and learn. Students can see where the ancient wonders of the world were, famous places, people and events as well as animals and where they are located in the world. It even has a quiz after the students finish reading the backs of the pictures. An easy to manuever app that will keep your social studies minded kids busy for quite some time.


 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">9. Science 360 **

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">You know when an app prompts you about the amount of data it will bring in that you're in for something special. This app is filled with science video's from tutorials on experiments, documentaries on the arctic to how geometry affects quarterbacks in the NFL. Imagine sitting inside the Epcot dome, except there is no roller coaster inside. Instead, each panel is a different panel of information, some video's, others pictures. While not great on organization within the panels the content is pretty neat. Jumping spiders, viruses in 3D, penguins, drill-ships and robotic ships are all in here. If you have any science kids who just want to explore different fields, this is the app for them!


 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">10. Star Walk **

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">Gazing up at the constellations has never been so informative thanks to this app. It will show you what the nights sky will look like, which lights are stars and which are satellites. Click on either and it will give you a list of information about it. You can zoom in to a single start within a constellation, the entire constellation or a major portion of the nights sky to see all that it has to offer. You can search by constellation, figure out the current phase of the moon and the rising and setting time of not only the sun, but also the planets, on a daily basis. This app is incredibly easy to use and if you're ever in the need of feeling cosmically small, this will do it for you.

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">**Personal Apps** <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">1. Flipboard **

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">Advertised as a social newspaper, this is the app that I spend the most time on, hands down. Not only will I scan through the news and different sections of the paper (like a sports section, lifestyle section, fashion section, etc.) but I have my Facebook and Twitter accounts connected to it. So, I can flip through my Facebook account like it is a newspaper and scan the articles that people I follow on Twitter post. There are a ton of sections you can add and it allows you to update your various accounts that you link it from the app. It's definitely worth your time to check it out.


 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">2. Edmodo **

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">Connects right to my Edmodo account allowing me to keep connected with my students during non-school hours.


 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">3. TBS for iPad **

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">Full episodes from TBS streamed onto my iPad after I put in my Uverse information. Roommate watching television is no longer a problem - and TBS started airing __Big Bang Theory__, so if you're anything like me, that's a huge plus to this app. <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">A great app for quickly scrolling through the news stories. Video reports and text reports are both available through the app. <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">Because sometimes shooting Zombies from an AC-130 and flinging birds at pigs is the best cure for a stressful day at school
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">4. CNN **
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">5. Zombie Gunship and Angry Birds **