25 creative ideas for using mobile devices in school

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#DitchBook Twitter chat | Friday, September 20, 2019

25 creative ideas for using mobile devices in school

Mobile devices and apps can bring an added level of engagement to an activity or lesson. Here are 25 ideas for using mobile devices with your students.

Whether you have iPads, Android tablets or a bring your own device policy for students, mobile devices are a great way to engage our students.

And the best part is that these devices encourage our students to get up and moving because they are made for using on the go.

So how can we utilize mobile devices and available apps to make our teaching different?

Whether your classroom provides a device for every student or not, there are lots of ways you can engage with your students during or after school with mobile devices.

During our weekly Twitter chat (Thursdays at 7 p.m. PST / 8 p.m. MST / 9 p.m. CST / 10 p.m. EST), we asked educators to share their favorite ideas for using mobile devices in the classroom. They shared ideas for teacher productivity, 1:1 or group settings, along with the apps they love the most.

Below you will find 25 ideas for using mobile devices in or out of the classroom. Check out this Wakelet to see even MORE ideas from the chat.

 25 creative ideas for using mobile devices in school

1. Use Seesaw to connect with parents and show student learning.

Resource: 20 Seesaw ideas with Chromebooks for K-12 classes

2. Use Google Keep to organize photos during projects for later presentations.

Resource: 10 ways Google Keep can help streamline life at school

3. Utilize the Google Classroom mobile app to increase productivity.

Resource: How to use Google Classroom’s secret productivity tool: the mobile app

4. Use Apple Clips to create outside of the classroom and showcase learning.

5. Use Instagram to communicate with parents and house tutorial videos.

Resource: Instagram for Teachers by Tony Vincent

6. Use AR apps like Froggipedia in science and in math!

Resource: Froggipedia review on Common Sense Media

7. Use Flipgrid on a mobile device to record writing conferences.

Resource: 20 activities to “Bloom” with the new Flipgrid camera

8. Take your students on a virtual field trip around the world.

Resource: 20 virtual field trip ideas and activities for your classroom

9. Use the Everyone Can Create curriculum on iPads to teach drawing, photography, and movie making.

Resource: Everyone Can Create curriculum from apple.com

10. Use an interactive whiteboard app like Doceri to present to the whole class.

Resource: Doceri Interactive Whiteboard review from Common Sense Media

11. Record videos on mobile devices then add to an Adobe Spark Video project.

Resource: 5 ways to use Adobe Spark Video in your classroom

12. Give students the opportunity to use a tool like Snapchat to show what they know.

Resource: 15 ways to use Snapchat in classes and schools

13. Create a scavenger hunt with the Goosechase app.

Resource: Scavenger hunts in the classroom from GoosechaseEDU

14. Use iMovie to create short movies to teach school expectations.

Resource: iMovie review for teachers from Common Sense Media

15. Create AR projects using CoSpaces and share using mobile devices.

Resource: 6 ways to start using Augmented Reality in your classroom

16. Create “about me” acrostic poems using Adobe Spark Post.

Resource: 5 ways to use Adobe Spark Post with your class tomorrow

17. Use an app like Geogebra to teach math concepts using AR.

Resource: 3 tips for creating a positive AR and VR experience in every classroom

18. Use an app like iMovie or Adobe Spark Video to create “A Day in the Life” videos to highlight staff and students.

Resource: 20 video project ideas to engage students

19. Have students take pictures of a project over time then turn it into a stop-motion video using Google Slides.

Resource: Learning in motion: EASY stop-motion animation with Google Slides

20. Use a QR code creator to make a scavenger hunt to practice writing directions or foreign language skills.

Resource: Tech Tuesday screencast: QR code scavenger hunt

21. Use an app like StarTracker to teach students about constellations or to study the night sky during the day.

22. Use mobile devices to create BookSnaps then upload to Seesaw to share with parents.

Resource: #Booksnaps – How-To Videos and Examples by Tara Martin

23. Use a few mobile devices with a small group by playing a Kahoot in team mode.

Resource: Using Kahoot! and others the way your brain craves

24. Use one mobile device to record interviews for a class podcast.

Resource: Why your students need a podcast: How to do it fast and free

25. Use a tool like Quizizz or Quizlet Live in a new way if you only have a few devices.

Resource: 6 new ways to play a Quizlet Live game

Looking for even MORE ideas? Check out these related posts:

What are your favorite ways to use mobile devices in the classroom? Leave your recommendations in a comment below.

Want to get in on the next #DitchBook Twitter chat?

Having trouble? Still unclear on how a Twitter chat works? Feel free to tweet to these #DitchBook ambassadors and they’ll help — Karly Moura @karlymoura, Sean Fahey @seanjfahey, Sandy Otto @sandyrotto, Rachel Marker @rachelmarker, Evan Mosier @emosier3, Mandi Tolen @TTmomTT, Craig Klement @craigklement, Tara Martin @taramartinedu, Krista Harmsworth @zonie71, Anne Kamper @annekamper, Rayna Freedman @rlfreedm, Lance McClard @drmcclard, Stephanie DeMichele @sdemichele or David Platt @herrplatt!

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