iPad-ifying my classroom...

I had an opportunity to conduct some experiments with some iPad apps this year, but I guess due to the exigencies of time, space, and resources, have only managed to do so intermittently and superficially. But on hindsight, there were several apps that I do find promising, especially in my areas of Art, Design and Media.

I don't claim to have used all the following tools ubiquitously, but I can assure you that I have thought through about its possibilities of usage in the classroom, especially in a classroom of the future. Here are perhaps, my top 20 (or so) tools, that I would continue to try, and would like to explore a little deeper in the coming academic year.

A) Sketching & Visual Graphics:

1) Sketchbook: Sketching ideas (USED)

2) Sketch Rolls: Horizontally-long digital paper, allows for storyboarding and could be a replacement for the whiteboards

B) Online Sync:

3) DropBox; Box.net: use for digital/cloud storage (USED)

4) Evernote: Use for notes sync

C) Comments, Feedback & Peer collaboration:

5a) Twitter: use for collation of ideas and feedback

5b) TweetDeck: use for collation of ideas and feedback; good for collation-type of modus operandi

D) Video & Multimedia:

6) iMovie: editing video clips

7) Photos: consolidating photos

E) Photos, Storyboarding, Ideation:

8) Comic Life & ComicBook:: Creation of storyboards from photos (USED)

F) Portfolio, Visual Graphics:

9) Corkulous: used for consolidation of photographs, ideas, clips, sketches

G) General Works:

10) iWorks suite (Pages, Numbers and Keynote): Keynote specifically useful for delivery of lesson materials

H) Note-taking:

11) Storyist: Creation of storybooks by chapters

12) Penultimate: As an alternative to sketching papers, have a sketchbook instead; able to use for text too

13) MaxJournal: use for journaling and note taking (my mainstay notebook for meetings)

I) Ideation & Visual Presentations:

14) Popplet & (15) iThoughtsHD: Used for mindmapping; Popplet more visually appealing but iThoughts have slightly more functionality (USED)

16) 123D Sculpt: Useful for 3D idea generation; digital clay

J) Blogging, Collaboration:

17) BlogPress: Used for on-the-go blogging

K) Geography:

18) Google Earth: Used for Geographical-based lessons, specifically for Basic Architecture lessons

L) Mechanisms:

19) TinkerBox: Useful for Ruth Goldberg type of mechanisms

20) Cogs HD: Useful for mechanical-type of lessons that leverages on the use of gears