Intro to Apple district planning

My all time favorite app is Keynote. It is a one stop shop. You can make GIFs, videos, posters, everything! And then once you master Keynote, Pages and Numbers are so much easier to learn.

ARMakr is a fun intro to AR app. Pretty easy to use! For math teachers, GeoGebra 3D calculator. I had Algebra 2 students graph rational functions in AR and then be able to go into their video and point to where the asymptotes would be.

They would not need to recreate everything in their Google forms on Apple apps. You can convert them relatively easily!

Just a few of my thoughts. Good luck! There is soooo much more you can do with iPads than with Chromebooks in terms of students creating!

Hi,

Started my learning and teaching Apple journey with ipad mini. Started with Basic built in apps with 1 to many and 1:1 classes . Built in apps are great tools for beginners , helps learners to explore the gadget along with brushing up on their digital literacy skills. eg., photos, camera, notes , i works...namely pages, numbers and keynote make teachers work lot more easy. Lots of new features are added with the latest ipads. Everyone can create and Everyone can code using Swift is fun to teach. Keynote has lots of features now. imovies, clips and garage band are students favourite.

EV3 classroom for robotics, Google's Art and Culture , google earth, google maps, Tinkercad, co-spaces and measure along with Classroom App are few apps which i used with students of different grades and while conducting PD's for teachers as well.

Hope this is of some help.

Regards

Manjula.M.G

Speaking on the professional learning side, teachers in my district have access to a Mac and an iPad. Although our students are on MacBooks, we do have access to iPad carts as well if teachers would like to switch the device. Because of this, I have used technology playgrounds for our teachers to try out how they can use the device with their students.

The playgrounds are available throughout the day and are themed to completing a set task. I provide a task card with two different options utilizing a specific tool like - Magic Move or Line Draw in Keynote, creating videos in Clips, scavenger hunts, etc. By providing the playground, the situation is low-pressure/low-stress for the teachers, but it's done in an environment that encourages their curiosity and creativity.

We have used stations for a lot of professional learning events. I would suggest looking at the Everyone Can Create Projects and picking some from each area. There are subject specific examples at the bottom of each lesson too.

My personal go to projects are

1. Create Pop Art
2. Design with Shapes
3. Create green screen effects
4. Record a podcast

Hello! You are off to an exciting explore!  I love your idea of a stay and play event.  There are also some great suggestions in this discussion you’ve started - so thanks for the questions.

When I’m looking for ideas in the Forum I use the search feature in the upper right to narrow what I’m after.  For example here is a listing of some great AR activities with how tos.

Also if you want specific curriculum content visit the Forum Area Teaching and Learning and scroll down to the Content by Topic.  If you keep scrolling you’ll also see Featured posts which always have great ideas.  You can also see Featured posts in each Topic area that you select.  For example, I frequently work with social studies teachers  so I often visit the Social Studies area.  One featured post in this area I love is “Create a school motto for inclusion” by Miriam Walsh.  Also the Guess Who? Biography Podcast by Chuck Langston is very cool!

And for both teacher and student engagement you just can’t beat the examples in “Create Lessons that pop!  (Scroll down on the Forum Page) to access the many popping ideas there.

I’ve also gotten a ton of ideas from the Back to School section of the Forum which can be used throughout the school year.  The What Can I do with iPad video collection by Bethany Nugent is so helpful (and fun).  

A very strong feature in Apple Tools that we all appreciate is Accessibility.  Here is a recent favorite post that mentions some great tips - Accessibility from the Beginning by Melissa Piette and Felecity Treptow gives a nice list in her reply to the post.  Check out others in the Accessibility topic in Teaching and Learning

And for some quick tips, I always fall back on the “30 ideas” lists in the Learning Center:

• 30 Time-Saving Tips for Teachers
• 30 Creative Activities for Kids
• 30 More Creative Activities for Kids

The Apple Education Community Learning Center has some quick and easy PD for those new to Apple Tools in the iPad and Mac Foundations section

For me in professional development Notes is my must have app (Researching with Notes) 

Looking forward to hearing about more favorites and ideas!

I don’t have much more to add than what has already been mentioned. From my personal experience, when working with teachers new to Apple products, it’s best to keep it simple and allow plenty of time for focused exploration. Educators are like students; they enjoy pressing all the buttons and playing around.

With over two million apps on the App Store, it can be overwhelming. I suggest sharing a few apps at a time. Don’t forget that Apple offers amazing free apps. Pages, Numbers, and Keynote can be used for much more than their intended purposes. My students use Pages to write, draw, and make collages; they use Keynote to animate and present; they use Numbers to create portfolios of their work. Additionally, GarageBand, iMovie, Swift Playgrounds, and Clips can create magical learning experiences for students. With so many apps available, people often overlook these fantastic apps that are already on their iPads.

One of my favorite apps to explore and get teachers excited about is GarageBand. The Learning Center offers some amazing and easy-to-follow activities for GarageBand on iPad.

I think the power of the Apple tools lies in their simplicity. Let's take Markup in photos for example. There are so many lesson ideas from Kindergarteners taking pictures of shapes and drawing the shape on the picture to high school where Geometry students can find and markup real life examples of angle and line relationships. It's one tool that can do so many different things!

I agree that the App Store can be overwhelming. In our district we really focus on what the iPad can do right out of the box at first. This keeps it simple and allows them to build a strong foundation in the core iPad tools to build upon later.

Hi HG

A wealth of high-quality advice has already been shared here, and I will reiterate what Jennifer and Brian have said about keeping it simple.

Using the camera app is fun and achievable, and it caters to all learners. Markup is an invaluable tool in any learning area.

Also, perhaps using this 'get to know you' activity whilst building skill at the same time is a Scavenger Hunt (which has been used at an Apple Institute event) could support staff new to Keynote and of course adapted for students.

Please share how it goes!

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Human Scavenger Hunt 2.key

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