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I have researched and reviewed apps that I believe could be helpful in a high school math classroom.  Some of these apps I have had the opportunity to try out with my classes, and others I have not.  I would love to hear opinions from others in the education field on these apps or other apps that might be helpful.  Please feel free to leave your ideas/comments here or anywhere else on this blog.  Thanks!

myHomework

Price:  Free ($1.99 for the ad-free version)

Purpose/Capabilities: 

The myHomework app is a student planner that allows students to make a list of their classes and record their daily homework assignments.  The homework section has three categories: complete, late, and upcoming.  The user can check off the assignment (an upcoming or late assignment) when he or she completes it.  It will then move to the completed section.  There is a calendar feature that will show the user the assignments marked on the day it is due.  The user can change the priority or type of assignment, perhaps listing a test as a high priority. 

Recently added is the teacher feature.  Teachers can create accounts through Teacher.io (https://teachers.io) that students can link their myHomework accounts to.  The teacher and student both must create accounts in order to do this.  Teachers can post their syllabus, any assignments, and notifications of any upcoming tests with corresponding descriptions.  The teacher an also upload attachments for the students to download.

Positive Aspects: 

This app has 469 reviews through the iPad App Store with 4 ½ out of 5 stars and almost all good reviews.  The myHomework app seems extremely easy to use.  It is a great way for students to keep track of their assignments and upcoming assessments.  The teacher component of this app is very new but seems like a great added bonus.  A student can simply search for their teacher by finding their school and going through the teachers who have accounts through Teacher.io.  The student can then select to join their class.  The assignments and announcements the teacher posts will automatically be added to the student’s agenda.  The student can then check the assignments off as he or she completes them.

Negative Aspects: 

The app does have ads at the bottom of the screen that can be an annoyance.  It costs $1.99 to remove them.  The teacher component of the app is very new, and therefore there is not much information available on it.  I did create an account for myself and linked it to my myHomework account.  It seems to work well.

Quizlet

Price:  Free

Purpose/Capabilities: 

Quizlet is a website and an app that aids students in studying.  The app has three modes – flash cards, learn, and scatter.  The flash card mode shows one side of the flashcard and allows you to swipe to see the answer side of the card.  You can also play it like a slideshow and go through the different cards automatically.  The learn mode allows you to key in your response and mark whether you got it correct or not.  Once you got it correct twice, it says you mastered that card.  It tracks your progress and saves it for you to view at a later point.  Finally, the scatter mode is more like a game.  It times the user in matching up the expressions/terms that go together.        

Positive Aspects: 

One of the great features of Quizlet is that you can share flashcards and use another person’s   Quizlet has over 21 million flash card sets already created to choose from.  The site also allows users to create new sets and choose whether they want to make it private, share it with their “class” (group they are in with others, which might be great for teachers to share with their students), share using a password, or make it public for everyone to view.

already made flashcards.

Another great feature of the app is that it works offline.  Once the user has the flashcard set, he/she can use it without connecting to the internet.  This is great if a student does not have internet access at home or if students are using it in school and the network is slow or busy.

Negative Aspects: 

The Quizlet app does not yet allow you to create your own flashcard set through the app.  You can, however, create it using the Quizlet website (http://quizlet.com) and then it will automatically appear on the app so long as it is linked to the same Quizlet account.  The app does claim this feature is coming soon, which would be a helpful addition.

Obviously, since anyone can create or share a flashcard set, it is possible to have incorrect information on the cards.  Students should be careful when selecting a premade set.

Math Ref

Price:  Free/$1.99

Purpose/Capabilities: 

Math Ref Free is the free version of Math Ref.  Both apps, as the names suggest, are reference tools for middle and high school level math courses (and physics).  The topics include algebra, geometry, trigonometry, series and sequences, differentiation, integration, probability and statistics, physics, algorithms, financial, Greek alphabet, and prime numbers.  Within each of these topics, there are subtopics to get more information about.  It gives the definition or equation for the given subtopic and provides helpful explanations and examples for these topics where applicable.  Also included is a section for you to write your own notes about the topic.  You can print or e-mail the information to yourself.

Positive Aspects: 

The free version of the app has over 700 formulas, figures, tips, and examples, and the full version has over 1,400.  It is a great, quick way for students to reference information on different mathematical concepts that is all in one place.  When going through the material, students have the opportunity to add their own thoughts in the notes section for when they refer back to the reference tool.

In addition to all the reference material the app has, it also contains “tools” which include a quadratic solver, a remainder finder, triangle solver, angle converter, and more.

Negative Aspects: 

The information for each of the topics is limited, but it is a great starting point for students to turn to in which they can add their own notes in order to make it more complete.  The other issue that may occur is the definitions or formulas may be slightly different than the ones given in class or in the course book.   Students should be made aware of this.