Using Apps in Your Homeschool ~ Article & Recommendations

We do love our iPad.   Yes, we were "early adopters", getting an iPad when they first were released.   (My husband and I each have an iPhone.... I could devote a whole other post to why we love them so much!) For our family, the iPad takes the place of a lap top.  Over the past year we've gotten quite familiar with educational apps.  I've also been fortunate enough to blog about several and give them away to a few lucky readers. 

National Geographic World Atlas App

Recently, I was contacted by a writer from Moms With Apps, a group of family-friendly developers who seek to promote quality apps for parents and children.    They wanted to know how we used apps in our homeschool.  The end result was an great article, which features how four moms use apps to aid in the education of their children.   

Notice I said to AID in the education of their children.   I believe that the correct apps, used in the correct doses, can enhance and make learning more exciting.   Let's face it:  we live in a world dependent upon technology.  I want my children to know how to use this technology  and use it WELL and to their advantage.   

Visit Moms With Apps to read Homeschooling With Apps, and I'm sure you'll find some creative ways to use them with your children.  

I'll leave you with our top five apps (at this point in time).  Our list is always changing!

1. Stack the States & Stack the Countries
2. Kindle for iPad
3. Math Bingo
4. GeoMaster
5. National Geographic Atlas 

Are you an iPad, iTouch, or iPhone user?    How do you feel about using apps in your homeschool?    What are your favorite apps?  We're always on the lookout for more!

Stay tuned for app reviews and giveaways over the next several days... we've been testing  some good ones and I can't wait to share them with you! 

Three Things I Love This Thursday

I have been wanting to share some fun little things we are using in our homeschool which I LOVE, so I thought I'd pick three of them today. The awesome thing is that one is FREE and one is $.99 (the other is $9.63 - oops!).

KANOODLE!

I bought this game at a toy store last weekend. Wow! The kids have played it a lot and it's fun for adults, too... it is awesome for spatial awareness and logical thinking. It can be alone or with two people, and it has levels from very easy to VERY hard. I've left it on the coffee table and when people walk by they play. Very fun. I found it for $9.63 on Amazon (see link above) ~ I was a sucker and paid $13.99 at the toy store. In my opinion, it is worth it.

Stack the States

is one of the most valuable apps we have purchased for our iPad at a whopping $.99! It's a fun geography game for all ages - teaching state location, capitals, trivia, etc... You can get the lite version for free to see if you like it. It was voted the Best iPad Kids App. of 2010 (how did I miss it in 2010?!?)

image courtesty iTunes

The Wonder Clock
by Howard Pyle - you can read this book FREE online. It is a book of 24 (one for each hour of the day) beautifully crafted fairy tales and exquisite illustrations. Pyle wrote and illustrated this book in 1887 and it really is a gem. Both of my children are enjoying this read-aloud. We are reading it on our iPad (I cannot tell you, by the way, how beneficial the iPad is to our homeschool... much more so than a laptop, in my opinion).

image courtesy Goodreads.com

The iPad and Homeschooling

I am in love with my iPad. I think everyone in the family is, to tell you the truth. One of the largest reasons we decided to get it was because it would be helpful with homeschooling. I'd like to share just a few ways we use the iPad in our homeschool.

1. Netflix - I cannot speak highly enough about Netflix. We can use the Netflix for iPad app and watch any of the "view instantly" titles. There are tons of great shows/series for kids on Netflix on demand:

"Liberty's Kids" Revolutionary War cartoon which used to be on PBS kids. Great.
Most of the Veggie Tales titles - something I will always let my kids watch
Tons of IMax movies - we watched one about the Incas last year which was excellent.
National Geographic series (we will be watching one about China soon)
A&E Biographies (George Washington is in our queue)

2. Geomaster - this is an awesome app which quizzes kids (and adults!) on states and capitals. I know there are countries and capitals as well. It flashes the state and its capital and then you have to find it on the map. If you miss, it shows you the correct answer and then moves on to the next state. It is amazing how quickly you can learn the capitals and locations of states. My five year old has done it from playing endlessly.

3. Math Drills - I really like this app because I can keep track of my children's scores (on both practice and tests) and it gives them a "speed" (in actual mph) for their drills. It is a great way to have them practice in the car or while we are waiting somewhere. You can completely customize which operations and the number variables, too.

4. Wikipedia - this is obviously for general reference. I can't tell you how many times we use it. My kids now as a matter of course will just say "look it up on the iPad, mom!".

5. Feedler RSS - ok, this is just for me. I like to keep track of the blogs I follow and not let my RSS feeds get out of control. I can use this on my iPhone or iPad and it allows me to get new ideas each and every day. Very cool.

I know there are literally thousands more apps out there which would be beneficial in our homeschool. Right now, however, I'm keeping it simple and enjoying what we have. The possibilities, however, are endless!

Blogger Templates