Blogging Our First Year with 1:1 iPads Week Four

I have begun to notice that as the year progresses there is becoming a normalcy to our iPad routines. This week was more about perfecting old learning and less new shiny things to do with them. That may be because it was a totally crazy week overall, and there was just not much time. This weeks post will be short and sweet...here we go!

We discovered that the other spelling app A+ Spelling https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/a+-spelling-test/id501211008?mt=8

 I had been looking at requires recording the words, which requires quiet, which we don't have in our classroom. Quiet is just not the way these kids roll! If I could mix this app with Spelling Free then I would have the perfect app, but alas that is not to be. Since I can't do that I added recording, and adding their words to their Monday homework (stay tuned to see how that works out).

I did make a great find this week! Some of the books from Raz-Kids are free to download in the app store! Seventeen different titles to be exact! Some of my kiddos don't have internet so being able to download books right to their iPad is great. It also saves me from having to make copies, and losing guided reading groups that sometimes never come back. This week one of my groups read and downloaded Bananas Sometimes, and they were very excited to keep them forever!



We also started math workshop this week, and one of our rotations and we used this app as one of our rotations.

Flash to pass https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flashtopass-free-math-flash/id330482882?mt=8 is a great way for kids in all grade k-6 to practice their math facts with no pressure.

It was a slow iPad week, but I have perfected my use of guided access, and  the kids have perfected logging in when they need to. Many of them have also memorized their Apple passwords which I am so incredibly thankful for. One of the kids had a great idea about their passwords that I had to share. I keep their password cheat sheets for when they need to download because I don't really want those taped to their case like their other logins. However paper is easily lost, so one of my girls took a picture with of hers with her camera. Brilliant!!! Now they just take a quick peek at their picture if they need to and off they go!

We have big things ahead for next week so stay tuned!