How should we equip our students? TI or iPod Touch – Snow Day Work
I think our school will need to suggest the best tools for our students. I had suggested in the past that all students would need an Apple Digital Learning device. Many in the audience looked confused. I meant an iPod Touch. I like the Touch more then the iPhone only because I am not prepared to suggest that students pay for a data plan ($), have a camera (quick shot of the exam), make a call/text during class when a Touch will what we need.
That said, I am very excited to see how far Lou can go with his search for the perfect tool for his students as I think our school will benefit.
I wrote earlier about a teacher who has a fire in his teaching about getting the tools into the hands of his Physics students.
His passion is evident as he is now looking for the best calculator. He did this on a Snow Day!
Here are his latest exchanges:
March 2, 2009 1:36 PM – Snow Day – no school
Hi Karl, Mike, Trevor and my Science and Math colleagues,
This e-mail was also posted in the all school site but thought this select group might miss it there.
With Karl Schaefer’s help, I am exploring the possible use of the iphone/touch as a classroom teaching tool. So far my exploration has been very interesting and I have found several apps that I can use right now in my physics classes.
The other day I was looking through the itunes store for graphing calculator apps. I have heard that some of the calculator apps are competitive with the TI’s the kids use. Some may be even better. Since these apps cost much less than an new TI calculator ($120.00 note by karl ) I thought it would be worth investigating-especially considering the much larger and vibrate display screen used by the iphone/touch compared to the TI calculators. As it turns out, I discovered several graphing calculator apps, all with some pluses and minuses. None got reviews that would encourage me to buy the app. in place of my TI…although my TI is quite old and in need of updating.
THEN I stumbled on a graphing calculator app that got incredible reviews. 2D graphing, 3D graphing, etc. Everything you’d want and more. Better than the TI’s. It was one of the most expensive apps I had ever seen (about $20 I think) but that is a LOT cheaper than a new TI calculator. And if it is better. Well, you do the math.
But, darn it… I can’t find the app again. I have tried every search tool in the itunes store I can think of. Unfortunately, I can’t remember the name of the app. This has happened to me before. One day an app is there, next day it is gone. Moved to some other location.
Has anyone ever heard of an app that fits this description? Has anyone bought it and used it?
I know this must be coming off as a pretty weird e-mail, but I would be embarrassed to even give you a hint as to how long I have spent trying to relocate this application again so I can buy it and test it out in “real time” in my teaching.
Lou
The first response was from a department chair: “Silly Lou I do not have a cell phone”
Monday March 2, 2009 8:30 PM – Still a Snow Day!
From Lou,
Danielle found the app I was looking for. It’s called SpaceTime. I have included an attachment that is a screen shot of its description. Math, science, etc. teachers might enjoy checking it out. It’s expensive and there are other graphing apps, but this one appears to be the most advanced. Thanks Danielle, Lou
Julie Williams sent the links to these other two graphing calculator apps. They are much cheaper, do a lot…although not as much as SpaceTime. They are also worth a look.
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=289940142&mt=8
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=293275263&mt=8
