Throw a Tablet into the Mix!

One of the amazing things that came out of my time at the Google Teacher Academy was the opportunity to pilot the use of a Nexus tablet with my students. Today was the first day with the tablet in the hands of my students. They showed great interest in using the device and they ended up having a lot of fun.

I started things off by showing them the tablet and giving them a brief introduction on how it works. I used our document camera to project the tablet screen to our white board. When I say brief, I mean it. I showed them the apps they could use, the ones they couldn't use, how to return to the home screen, how to close apps, the volume controls, and the power button.

For its inaugural use, I loaded three math apps - Math Duel: 2 Player Math Game, Math Maniac, and Math vs Undead: Math Workout. I chose to start with math because:

1) it has been my experience that young students require lots of practice when it comes to the basics of addition and subtraction;
2) there tends to be a lot of variety when it comes to basic facts/addition/subtraction regardless of the device/operating system being used.

Another factor that I considered when looking for apps was the fact that I have a lot of 'high energy' boys in my class. It is tough to keep them interested in anything for long periods of time (which tends to be true with many primary aged students) so I wanted to 'hook' them and really get them turned on to the fact that they would be having a lot of fun while working on math basics.

Mission accomplished! They enjoyed playing the games - boys and girls. The feedback they provided me with was quite helpful. Many of the students enjoyed the competitive nature of the games - one game allows you to go head to head with another classmate while the other two apps have time limits. They said that they really had to focus in order to answer questions correctly. They said they had fun and they wanted to continue to have fun. They even said that when they didn't answer questions correctly they would continue to try because they were enjoying themselves. This is key information for me as I continue to get to know my students and plan interesting and engaging activities and experiences for them.

Here is a quick video of two of the students playing Math Duel. They were playing on an easy setting and were quite focused. They played several games and told me after that they would make the math harder next time. You can hear them answering the questions out loud as they work to process the questions as fast as they can. It really is awesome to witness this first hand.

Another student decided he wanted to use the Math vs. UnDead app. I must admit, I wasn't sure about this app because the point of the game is to stop zombies from getting to you by correctly answering addition/subtraction questions. After playing it with my son before introducing it to my students I quickly realized that its cartoon form was harmless and that the students would not be offended by it. This student told me that he liked that he was given multiple choice in answering the questions. He admitted to making lots of errors but that he would improve by playing more often.

 

In this last video, the student is using the Math Maniac app. This one was voted the 'toughest' by the class. In the bottom left hand corner is a number - the player has to select numbers in the middle of the screen that add up to the number in the bottom left hand corner. There is a timer counting down at the bottom of the screen. The grid of numbers in the center of the screen allows students to get to the answer in a variety of ways.

They called it 'challenging' and said that you really had to think in order to answer the question and beat the timer. One student even said that it involved more than two-three steps to actually get to the answer! I was blown away by the way they were describing this app. Watch the video and pay attention to how the student talks her way through the problem and her reaction when she is wrong and when she is right.

We have had a great start with our Android tablet. The students and I are looking forward to having it mixed in with our Chromebooks. I can already see its positive potential in our classroom community and I look forward to using it to engage my students and meet their particular needs. This is not the first time I have integrated technology like this in my classroom but it is the first time that I am excited at the challenge and opportunities of having only one tablet for my students to use. 

I am excited to be part of this pilot project and can't wait to share our learning with you!