With my purchase of an ipad this year I have been interested in what education apps are on offer for the primary teacher and teacher-librarian.
One app that I found was the National Geographic Atlas app for the ipad. This is no ordinary picture of a map, in fact the app provides 3 different map types that users to select from, the ability to zoom in on a town in a country, and provides detailed information about the Country and it’s flag. The 3 different map types are classic (which has a blue ocean), executive and satellite. I believe this app would be very useful for a primary school ipad collection as it does provide a professional, easy to use and inexpensive (99 cents in the apple appstore) atlas.
Another app that I thought would be a good app for a prep or kindergarten classroom would be the Wheels on the Bus by Kids Games Club. This app provides a full sing-a-long version of Wheels on a bus. The sing-a-long includes 11 different verses to use and is accompanied by corresponding interactive pictures. This app also contains nine games relating to the song. The games allow students to learn basic spelling, maths, the ability to create and record music, and to develop fine motor skills. Based on all the reviews given to this app, it is a comprehensive and great value app for the early years classroom. I believe young students would enjoy listening to the song, interacting with the various games and activities, and learning basic skills in an enjoyable way. The app is free but to be able to get more song pages and other activities the user will need to purchase them individually.
These two apps are really the tip of the iceberg when it comes to educational apps available for mobile media and demonstrate the quality that is out there for educators to use.
