Cell Phones in the Classroom...

There are two apps that I had my students download Monday. SyncSpace is used for Android devices and the iPad while Whiteboard is for iPhones. I had them pull out their phones at the beginning of class and put them on their phones. Some students weren't able to connect to the app. store so I told them to write it down and get it when they got home.


Remember, I'm trying to go paperless....DIFFICULT!! Anyway, I found these two apps this past weekend and spent my entire Sunday playing around with them. I have an Android and an iPad 2 so it was great that I could work on both of them. SyncSpace for Android or iPad (not iPhones) has a zoomable space for drawing and can be shared over the net. You can sync the document and send it to others (also through e-mail) for editing. I like this app. because students can write notes on the drawing area and e-mail them to one another or friends that may have been absent and may have missed a lesson. Also, a student could write down a problem and place it in Dropbox for me to correct or help them with. I had students mess around with the app. at the end of class and a couple students said they would like to start taking notes on it. Another thing that I really like is that when you have written on all the drawing space, you can click on the arrows and move the virtual whiteboard up or down to create more drawing space without erasing other material.

Whiteboard is for iPhones, iPads, and iPod touches. This is basically the equivalent app. for SyncSpace just with a different name. It is a collaborative drawing tool that enables two iPod touch devices or iPhones to create pictures together over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth peer-to-peer. I can also do this through my iPad 2. Students in the same class period could work on the same problem using this app. They would just have to connect over Bluetooth and the creativity could begin.

These are two apps. that I will be incorporating into my classroom over the next couple weeks. I still have to figure out about the handful of students that don't have either of these devices. I will keep you updated and post a follow-up blog in a couple weeks with "the good, the bad, and the ugly".

If anyone has already incorporated these two apps. in their classrooms, I would love for you to share. I am always eager to learn better ways to teach "outside the box".


Enjoy!!