App List for Year 2 of 1:1

Last year, as I headed into teaching in a new 1:1 iPad learning environment, I shared our app list. Now, heading into year two, we have revised the list, based on what we actually used, as well as adding some new apps that we discovered throughout the year.

App Advice-
My best advice is to keep it simple.
It's not how many apps you have that make the program successful. Really, how many apps does anyone use on a regular basis? The idea is to model the use of the tool to create, connect, communicate, organize, document, collaborate and share. Once students understand the process, they can continue to use the suggested apps or can explore new apps. As teachers, we are able to focus on content and skills or whatever else we are teaching.

I feel that my 1:1 year was a great success. The students and I really enjoyed the freedom, versatility and creativity afforded by 1:1 iPads.

App List Year 2 by Andrea Hernandez

My Life as a Reader Infographics

Reflection
Visual Communication
Thinking of oneself as a reader
New forms of writing
Presentation skills

These were some of the goals Karin Hallett and I had in mind when we decided to end the school year by having 4th graders create "My Life as a Reader" infographics. The process was simple and engaging, and the results were beautiful. Even my most vocally negative-about-reading student was talking happily about his earliest reading memories as he created his graphic.

We used Piktochart. It didn't work on our iPads, so we had to check out laptops which students enjoyed as a novelty since we have used iPads all year. I had them create accounts with school email so that they could save their work.

Although I feel like I already know my students really well as readers, I learned new things about each child and those books and experiences that define their reading lives.