Book Bytes: Physics for Future Presidents

I love to read! I’ll share my thoughts (book bytes instead of sound bites) on old favorites and new books for children and adults here.

Never in my right mind, or wildest dreams, would I imagine myself purchasing a book about physics!

The last book I purchased having anything  to do with that kind of science was Star Trek: I’m Working on That by William Shatner.

However, I read an  essay by Professor Richard A. Muller about “Nuclear Waste” in They Say, I Say this afternoon and actually understood what he wrote.  When I found out Physics for Future Presidents was available on Kindle, I decided to treat myself to a copy for my upcoming 60th birthday.

Thank you, Professor Muller,  for ‘kindling’ my interest in a topic that I sure didn’t wake up pining away to read about!!

Timely Tips #31: The iPad Learning Studio: A Gold Mine of Ideas

Have iPad, need ideas?  Then check out The iPad Learning Studio by Acalanes Union High School District.

From the website:

It’s collaborative, compact and connects students to our “flat world”. It is also a different approach to computing and learning, one that doesn’t necessarily replicate how we’ve had students use computers in the past.  If the expectation is that an iPad will be used as a computer replacement, then its potential hasn’t been tapped.  

An iPad used as a learning studio fosters a different kind of connection to information and learning.  It provides immediate and quick access for classroom questions, or for teams of students to enter content, analyze data or interact with literature.  It provides the basis for differentiated learning. 

Take some time and browse through their suggestions for how to utilize the iPad to the fullest, whether you teach Math, Science, Social Studies, Language Arts,World Languages, or Visual & Performing Arts.

iLiveMath: Animals of Africa

iLiveMath: Animals of Africa is another wonderful app from iHome Educators.  It is one in a series of word problem apps with themes that include Oceans, Winter Sports, Animals of Asia, Speed, Trains, Ford cars, Farm Fresh, and Entomology.

In Animals of Africa, students can solve word problems on three levels. Level I is addition and subtraction, Level II is multiplication and division, and Level III adds percents, mean, median, mode, and range. Each word problem is paired with a stunning photograph an animal.  There is a ‘picker wheel’ for choosing the correct answer, which is confirmed or not.

Other features include links to articles and youtube videos about the animals, the capability of showing the program to a whole class using a VGA adapter, and a function to email results of the student’s session to parents or teachers.   The report not only includes the number of correct, incorrect, and skipped problems; it also shows the problems worked on, with the equation, so the adult will be able to tell the student’s strengths and weaknesses.

Word Problems are a challenging area for many students.  With this app, I’ve had students work to solve up to 20 problems before stopping.  And that was without accessing the videos or articles.  Learning the correct answer immediately is a good motivator.

iliveMath: Animals of Africa is available in the iTunes store for  $4.99.

Oh, My Goodness! I Can’t Wait to Tell You About iHomeEducator apps!

…but I need to play with them first. In the meantime, check out the site for iHomeEducators. Their stuff is incredible!