Math Moves U

A great website hosted by Raytheon, a supporter of First Robotics, MathCounts, and STEM Education. There are fun games, resources and math scholarships.

Discovery Education Digital Textbook

Check out this new textbook Discovery Education is launching.
http://www.discoveryeducation.com/administrators/curricular-resources/science-techbook/

TEDxBloomington - Shawn Achor - "The Happiness Advantage: Linking Positi...

TED Video - The Happiness Advantage: Linking Positive Brains to Performance
Here is his website - http://www.shawnachor.com/

Adora Svitak: What adults can learn from kids

This is a great TED video that I learned from my history teacher. Adora Svitak talks about the value of learning from kids.

Dictionary Apps

The Two Best Free apps for using a Dictionary are
1. Merriam Webster Dictionary
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/merriam-webster-dictionary/id399452287?mt=8

2. Dictionary.com
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dictionary.com-dictionary/id364740856?mt=8

*The advantages of using Dictionary.com is that they also include a thesaurus.

Visual Thesaurus

This website allows you to look up synonyms and antonyms in a visual mind map.  On the right hand bar, you are able to identify the part of speech.  Below is a screen shot of a search for the word, "retrograde".  This site is great for understanding the usage of a new vocabulary word.  Not only can you look up words, you can also find the words that appear the most in a historical document or newspaper article, using the Vocab Grabber (a feature on the homepage of Visual Thesaurus).  Also, if your school subscribes to this website, students are able to save word searches and word lists.

http://www.visualthesaurus.com/

Evernote Peek: The First Smart Cover App for Your iPad 2

This iPad app allows you to test flashcards with a flip on the smart cover.

Evernote Hello

Evernote Hello is a iPhone app that allows you to remember the friends and colleagues you meet at a meeting, Starbucks or school. You can take a picture of your new friend and write where you met them.

Skitch

Evernote Skitch allows you to draw attention to an image, map or screen shot.

Evernote Food

An iPhone app that helps you remember the delicious food memories.

Free Books App

I recently downloaded the Free Books app and have instantly feel in love with.  This app allows you to read classics, biographies, epic poems, myths and books for young readers.  You can read the book from the Free Books app, Dropbox or through your email.  Once you download the book, you can copy, define, highlight or tweet.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/free-books-23-469-classics/id364612911?mt=8

Why I Love Evernote: The Student Perspective

A student's perspective of Evernote and the applications of Evernote.

Evernote Tutorial

Here is a great tutorial and overview of the evernote.

Evernote

I recently discovered this great app called Evernote, an app which makes it easier to remember things.  As a student, I have been using Evernote for all of my class notes. Not only can the Evernote app be installed on the Mac or PC, it is also available on mobile devices.  Along with the Evernote family, they have developed an app called skitch.  Skitch allows you to draw attention to a particular part of an image, and screen shot.  I believe Evernote is a great way to organize your notes, shopping lists, and to- do lists.
Here is a link to their website
http://www.evernote.com/evernote/

Alice -3D Computer Program

The AP Computer Science teacher at my school recommends using Alice for teaching AP Computer Science. It is a program initiated by Carnegie Mellon University.

"Alice is an innovative 3D programming environment that makes it easy to create an animation for telling a story, playing an interactive game, or a video to share on the web. Alice is a freely available teaching tool designed to be a student's first exposure to object-oriented programming. It allows students to learn fundamental programming concepts in the context of creating animated movies and simple video games. In Alice, 3-D objects (e.g., people, animals, and vehicles) populate a virtual world and students create a program to animate the objects.

In Alice's interactive interface, students drag and drop graphic tiles to create a program, where the instructions correspond to standard statements in a production oriented programming language, such as Java, C++, and C#. Alice allows students to immediately see how their animation programs run, enabling them to easily understand the relationship between the programming statements and the behavior of objects in their animation. By manipulating the objects in their virtual world, students gain experience with all the programming constructs typically taught in an introductory programming course."


Here is a link to their promotional video.
http://www.alice.org/what_is_alice/alice_promo.mov

Subtext

Here is the link for the subtext app
Subtext
This app allows the readers to read google books in a great interface. This app allows you to take notes in the margin, beginning of the book and at the end of the book. Not only will you be able to take notes as you read, you will be able to get access to author notes.

Chade-Meng Tan: Everyday compassion at Google

TED Video on Compassion at Google. Compassion is fun.
3 types of Compassion
1. Affective (I like you)
2. Cognitive (I understand you)
3. Motivational (I want to help you)

Ron Gutman: The hidden power of smiling

A TED video on the power of smiling.

"TeacherCast" a great app!

This is information on the Teachercast app from their website.
Welcome to TeacherCast.net, a place where Teachers help other Teachers.  TeacherCast is designed for both the seasoned teacher who is searching for great resources and the teacher who is a unsure how to start incorporating newly developed 21st-Century skills.  

We are here to help you get to know the latest websites and apps that are driving today’s classrooms.  We want to help you learn how to use these technologies to enhance your teaching and better engage your students.

How do we do that? 

At TeacherCast, you will find Screencasts demonstrating software, websites, and little tricks that will become essential for you in your classroom.  We record Audio Podcasts featuring interviews with great professional educators. Finally, we will also maintain a great collection of links to some great apps, websites, and journals where we will feature the latest gadget reviews and how they can be best used in the classroom.

Please subscribe to our RSS Feeds and check us out often on iTunes, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and on Google+.

Just introduced on the app store, TeacherCast now has an iPhone/iPad app  to provide you with our excellent content.

Thank you for visiting. If you like what you see, please leave a comment on our iTunes page.

If you are enjoying your TeacherCast experience please leave us a great review on iTunes.

TEDxHunterCCS - Justin Hahn - They Eat With Their Mouths: Growing Up Kor...

Growing up as a 2nd generation Korean American

TEDxHunterCCS - Emma Hartung- The Importance of ______ in Community Service

Great video on the importance of community service!

Pearltrees

Pearltrees is a fantastic application where you can organize your books marks and webpages in pearltrees. Pearltrees is a great for doing research projects.

Here is the link
http://www.pearltrees.com/

Schools using Macs

Check out these links. I got these links from the front page of Apple's Education webpage. These links show the value of getting macbook computers in the school classroom.
Greene County School
Senior Leadership Academy
Punahou School

Khan Academy Exercise Software

Here is the Khan Academy Exercise Software.

What High Schools Don't Tell You

I high recommend this book.  This book, What High Schools Don't Tell You, outlines a plan for your child to get into the college of their choice.  The author, Elizabeth Gross,  explains to her readers that getting into Ivy League colleges and other prestigious colleges require more work.  I am not saying that if you do not follow this book, you will not get into your top college choice, but this book is written for students who have trouble finding their passion.
I have followed some of the tips the book gave me and they have really helped me achieve my goals.
Here is her website
http://educationalstrategy.org/

How to Study Like a Tiger Cub

This is a post from Amy Chua's daughter, Sophia Chua's blog (http://tigersophia.blogspot.com/)

I’m publishing this over break, while I still feel qualified to give advice before my soul is crushed by new classes. This is the first in a series of posts I’m working on, which will take the form “How to _____ Like a Tiger Cub.” My mom’s book is not a how-to guide. This is. I’d like to stress the following:  there is no good reason you should do anything the way I do. This isn't necessarily the right way; it's my way. But if you so choose, ask in the comments and ye shall receive my advice. Today, I give you:

HOW TO STUDY LIKE A TIGER CUB

Q:  I was just wondering if you could share some studying tips? 

Like how to study smart or more efficiently?

Preliminary Steps

1. Choose classes that interest you. That way studying doesn’t feel like slave labor. If you don’t want to learn, then I can’t help you.
2. Make some friends. See steps 12, 13, 23, 24.

General Principles

3. Study less, but study better.
4. Avoid Autopilot Brain at all costs.
5. Vague is bad. Vague is a waste of your time.
6. Write it down.
7. Suck it up, buckle down, get it done.

Plan of Attack Phase I: Class

8. Show up. Everything will make a lot more sense that way, and you will save yourself a lot of time in the long run.
9. Take notes by hand. I don’t know the science behind it, but doing anything by hand is a way of carving it into your memory. Also, if you get bored you will doodle, which is still a thousand times better than ending up on stumbleupon or something.

Phase II: Study Time

10. Get out of the library. The sheer fact of being in a library doesn’t fill you with knowledge. Eight hours of Facebooking in the library is still eight hours of Facebooking. Also, people who bring food and blankets to the library and just stay there during finals week start to smell weird. Go home and bathe. You can quiz yourself while you wash your hair.
11. Do a little every day, but don’t let it be your whole day. “This afternoon, I will read a chapter of something and do half a problem set. Then, I will watch an episode of South Park and go to the gym” ALWAYS BEATS “Starting right now, I am going to read as much as I possibly can...oh wow, now it’s midnight, I’m on page five, and my room reeks of ramen and dysfunction.”
12. Give yourself incentive. There’s nothing worse than a gaping abyss of study time. If you know you’re going out in six hours, you’re more likely to get something done.
13. Allow friends to confiscate your phone when they catch you playing Angry Birds. Oh and if you think you need a break, you probably don't.

Phase III: Assignments

14. Stop highlighting. Underlining is supposed to keep you focused, but it’s actually a one-way ticket to Autopilot Brain. You zone out, look down, and suddenly you have five pages of neon green that you don’t remember reading. Write notes in the margins instead.
15. Do all your own work. You get nothing out of copying a problem set. It’s also shady.
16. Read as much as you can. No way around it. Stop trying to cheat with Sparknotes.
17. Be a smart reader, not a robot (lol). Ask yourself: What is the author trying to prove? What is the logical progression of the argument? You can usually answer these questions by reading the introduction and conclusion of every chapter. Then, pick any two examples/anecdotes and commit them to memory (write them down). They will help you reconstruct the author’s argument later on.
18. Don’t read everything, but understand everything that you read. Better to have a deep understanding of a limited amount of material, than to have a vague understanding of an entire course. Once again: Vague is bad. Vague is a waste of your time.
19. Bullet points. For essays, summarizing, everything.

Phase IV: Reading Period (Review Week)

20. Once again: do not move into the library. Eat, sleep, and bathe.
21. If you don’t understand it, it will definitely be on the exam. Solution: textbooks; the internet.
22. Do all the practice problems. This one is totally tiger mom.
23. People are often contemptuous of rote learning. Newsflash: even at great intellectual bastions like Harvard, you will be required to memorize formulas, names and dates. To memorize effectively: stop reading your list over and over again. It doesn’t work. Say it out loud, write it down. Remember how you made friends? Have them quiz you, then return the favor.
24. Again with the friends: ask them to listen while you explain a difficult concept to them. This forces you to articulate your understanding. Remember, vague is bad.
25. Go for the big picture. Try to figure out where a specific concept fits into the course as a whole. This will help you tap into Big Themes – every class has Big Themes – which will streamline what you need to know. You can learn a million facts, but until you understand how they fit together, you’re missing the point.

Phase V: Exam Day


26. Crush exam. Get A.

Edit: Yes, feel free to share this with anyone you like!
Let me know what you think. If you have a request for the blank in "How to ____ Like a Tiger Cub," leave a comment and I'll do my best!

Khan Academy

Great video that explains the Khan Academy Exercise Software
Now, students can watch videos and do practice problems.
Teachers can use Khan Academy to make sure every student is given the extra help needed.
http://www.khanacademy.org/video/khan-academy-exercise-software?playlist=Khan+Academy-Related+Talks+and+Interviews

Flashcard

Flashcards
Best free app to download flashcards from Quizlet and to make personalized flashcards!
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flashcards/id403199818?mt=8

iStudious Lite
Best app for making flashcards with pictures and diagrams. This app allows you to handwrite on your card.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/istudious-lite-flashcards/id488134612?mt=8

Math Apps

Math Apps

Calcupad
Easy to use Graphing Calculator
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/calculator-hd-calcpad/id368182280?mt=8

Free GraphCalc
Enlarged Graphing calculator
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/free-graphing-calculator/id378009553?mt=8

MathDrills Lite
Practice your basic arithmetic
- addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/math-drills-lite/id302881372?mt=8

Quick Graph
Graph your equations visually on a Cartesian coordinate plane
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/quick-graph/id292412367?mt=8

Math Ref Free
List of equations
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/math-ref-free/id312756358?mt=8

iFormulas
List of equations
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/iformulas/id346888659?mt=8

Math Pentagon
Free worksheets of math problems
Able to do the worksheets on the iPad
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/math-pentagon-work-sheets/id467548534?mt=8

Flipboard

Flipboard is a free app that acts as a personalized newspaper. You can read your RSS feeds from your google reader, read your twitter updates and facebooks updates. This app allows you to keep up to date on your favorite topics such as world news, science, or fashion.
I use this app to build my vocabulary and to research for project ideas. This app can also be used to read positive affirmations daily. I subscribe to the tweeter Che Garman who is the found of www.affirmyourlife.blogspot.com. These are just ideas to help you see the value of this app.
http://flipboard.com/

General Science Apps

General Science Apps

Life

• Trivial Questions on Life Science 

Life Science

• A textbook app on biology
• Table of Contents
• Search Widget
• Settings for the Font
• Bookmarks

PLoS Reader

• Access to 7 science journals
• Biology, Medicine, Genetics, Pathogens, Computational Biology, Neglected Tropical Diseases, One
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/plos-reader/id370880976?mt=8
 

 Science Mobile

• Recieve up to date Science News
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/science-mobile/id387940999?mt=8

Science Glossary

• Glossary for scientific terms
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/science-glossary/id331657060?mt=8

Science 360

• View images and videos
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/science360-for-ipad/id439928181?mt=8

LabTimer

• Have multiple timers for labs on one app
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/labtimer/id292202454?mt=8

Physic App

Physic App

College Physics 101

• Flashcards on Physics

Physics HD

• Gives information and lessons on Physics
• Divides into units

Chemistry Apps

Chemistry Apps

Elements

• Overview of each element from the periodic table in the form of flashcards
• the atomic weight, state, period, group, discovered date, melting point, boiling point, sublimation point, category, covalent radius, and atomic radius
• Links to Wikipedia and Wolfram Alpha

Periodic Table

• Overview of the elements
• Provides the same information as the Elements, but it has a visual picture of the molecular structure
• View the periodic table by number, group, metal, electronegativity, radioactivity, melting point, boiling point, and state
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/periodic-table-elements/id364894399?mt=8

TCT Lite

• Similar to Elements and Periodic Table
• The image of the periodic table is bigger than the Periodic Table
• Able to convert from Fahrenheit to Celsius and Kelvin 
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/the-chemical-touch-lite-edition/id300111574?mt=8

Flashcards

• Flashcards on chemistry
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/chemistry-flashcard-s/id402591537?mt=8

CHemByDesign

• View the molecular structure of sequences
• By name, author, year, and drugs
• http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/chemistry-by-design-learning/id451791347?mt=8

Biology Apps

Biology Apps

Video Biology
There are videos on Biology by Mr. George Wolfe.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/video-biology/id377011725?mt=8

Mitosis
This app allows one to explore, read, learn, and test yourself on mitosis.  Also, there are videos, images, a glossary and resources.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/mitosis/id348184626?mt=8

College Bio 101
This app provides the important vocabulary words that will be on the AP Biology Exam.  The vocabulary words are formatted into flashcards.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/college-biology-bio-101-flashcards/id381991113?mt=8

iCell
This app allows you to see the cell organelles in 3-d.  I like this app because I can see the differences in size of the organelles.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/hudsonalpha-icell/id364882015?mt=8

Click and Learn
This app has biology interactive videos.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/click-and-learn/id443814512?mt=8

Build a Body
You can test your knowledge of the human anatomy with this app.  This app tests your knowledge of the location of the apps.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/build-a-body/id489938737?mt=8

Gene Screen
This app is a fun way to learn about genetics and why reccessive genes cause diseases.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/gene-screen/id447754230?mt=8

Note-taking apps

These are my favorite note taking apps that are free from the app store.
1. Simplenote
This app is great for taking notes because you can make tags on your notes, a disadvantage on the normal apple app, Notes.
http://simplenoteapp.com/

2. Stickies
You can write little post-it reminders.  These reminders are able to pop up on your lock screen.

3. Smartnote
These app is great for taking handwritten notes, audio notes, and typed notes.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smartnote/id362165952?mt=8

4. iDo notebook
I personally use this app as a journal, but this app can tag your note as an idea, to do list, shopping list, a diary and a journal. The difference between the journal and notebook is that in order to view the diary you have to enter a password first.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ido-notepad-diary-journal/id363455392?mt=8

5. Springpad
This spring pad allows you to make a note or a task. Also, you can decide which notes you would like to keep private and public with your twitter, facebook and friends on springpad.
http://springpadit.com/

6.UPAD lite
This app is the best app for handwriting. When you write with your hand, this app captures the letters very accurately as if you were writing on paper.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/upad-lite/id409143694?mt=8

Why I Am Creating This Blog

Hi Everyone,
I am a high school student who would like to share apps that are useful in Education. My goal is to create a description of the educational apps. Not only do I plan on writing what the app does, but also would like to give you my input on how this app can be used in the classroom. The followers may write comments regarding how to do particular objectives on the app. Thank you for visiting my blog. I hope you will find the information useful.

Ipads in Educaton

As I make more posts, I will also add website resources, additionally to apps. I will also put links of websites that I follow. I hope you like my posts. Feel free to comment on the posts. :)