Keeping your apps updated can be a real challenge, but it can be worth the hassle! With the latest updates of some of my favorites comes exciting new possibilities in the classroom.
Pic Collage Adds Video! You can make your collages even more engaging with adding a You Tube video that goes along with the theme of your photo collage. This is so much fun! Now when you click on the plus sign to add things to the collage, the menu includes Video. When you share the collage through email with someone, they will also see the video. So excited about this new feature!
Shadow Puppet Also Adds Video! In the last few months I have been raving about Shadow Puppet and their ease of use to put together a simple video with photos and your recorded narration. Now they have added a video option so you can insert both pictures and video. To make it even better, you can also add background music from iTunes or a small gallery of background music selections provided. These are fantastic additions to an already wonderful app!
Haiku Deck: Did you know that you can control your Haiku Deck presentation from your iPhone? Yep! Just install the Haiku Deck app on your phone and with a couple easy taps you sync your phone to your presentation and you can move your slides without touching your iPad. Lookin’ techie now!
New App for You!
I came across a very simple, but pretty neat app called Stories on Stix. This is a story starter app for writing. You tap on Choose Sticks and the app randomly selects different Who, What, Where, When, Why, and Detail ideas for students to piece together in a creative writing story. I wouldn’t use this all the time, but it would be great when kids are stuck and are out of their own topics. It could be used whole group as a writing warm up. It would also be a good one to use for teachers to think aloud before, during, and after writing. Students type their stories right on the app and can be shared!
