What is App a Day?

With i-touches, i-pads and i-phones becoming more popular, the apps are increasing in numbers too. With so many apps out there, how do you know what is good and what isn't. That is what I am hoping to help you with in this blog. If you have a suggestion of an app to share...please send me an email to jdief99@gmail.com.

After taking a year off with a new job...I have many apps to discuss. Follow me for at least 3 new apps at week.

Updated: 1/25/2013

Sunday, October 31, 2010

Free Halloween Find the Differences HD


Next year I will post my Halloween apps before the actual holiday!! With this app there are two pictures shown side-by-side and you need to find either 3 or 5 differences between them. It is a great way to pass the time with your kids and it is free.
picture from http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/free-halloween-find-differences/id393802010?mt=8

Halloween Sound Shelf

There are two apps for this. I have used the free Halloween Shelf which has a lot of different sounds to scare the neighbors with. My kids handed out candy this year and would use the spooky sounds as background noise.

picture from http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/halloween-sound-shelf/id398908619?mt=8

Pumpkin Pal

This is not as good as Talking Tom but it is free. Whatever you say...is repeated by the Pumpkin Pal.

picture from http://www.iappphone.com/apps/396862161/talking-pumpkin-pal/

Pumpkin Pal

Do you want to carve pumpins without the mess? This app is $0.99 and has premade designs for cutting out of the pumpkins or it lets you use a knife to cut with. It will keep your pumpkins on display so you can enjoy the families pumpkins every day.

picture from http://www.appspy.com/pumpkin-pal-review

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Fire HD

Need to relax, create the moment...then this app is for you. For $0.99, this app gives you a candle movie, 3 fire place movies and a fireworks movie. It also includes some music along with the app. One downfall people have brought up...is the fact that you can't use your own music.

picture from http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fire-hd/id383439282?mt=8

Whirly Word (free)

This is a fun Free game for students to use. They are given 6 letters to create as many words with the given letters as you can.
picture from http://www.1888freeonlinegames.com/iphonegames/whirly-word-374.html

My Homework

This free app lets students organize the due dates of homework, tests, projects, etc. Some students need the visual to remind them of upcoming assignments...and this may be their answer.
picture from http://techcornor.com/3-apps-in-iphone-4-for-primary-school-students%C2%A0/

Tally Counter

Tally Counter is a free app that helps you in keeping quick tallies for class.

picture from http://iphone.iusethis.com/app/tallycounter

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Better Letters

A co-worker of mine suggested trying this app. It does cost $1.99 but according to the reviews...it is a great way for practice in writing cursive and manuscript.

Picture from http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/better-letters/id335485938?mt=8

Travel Wisconsin

I just saw this on the news tonight. A free app about traveling in Wisconsin. I have not tried it yet but thought I would share so others can try it with me. The app says that it will help in finding the nearest attractions, events, dining and accommodations as you travel and explore the state of Wisconsin.
Picture and info from http://www.travelwisconsin.com/iphone

Aircoaster

If you are a fan of roller coasters...then this app is for you. You can design your own roller coaster and then actually ride it. It does cost $0.99 but according to the reviews...most people love it.
Picture from http://apps.su/program/6234/aircoaster-pro.html

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Poetry Magnets

I held an app share day at our library this morning so I have a big list of new educational apps to share. Here is a quick way to have students make poetry on the ipad or itouch. Click and drag the words from the word list below up to the work space above. You can scroll to the left or right for more words. This is a free app so enjoy!

Picture from http://a1.phobos.apple.com/us/r1000/019/Purple/32/31/3e/mzl.vcucbxsn.480x480-75.jpg

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

iSeismometer

I never realized how sensitive the ipad is. With "free" app, you can leave it on your desk and even a little tap will register on it. It even has an alarm you can set so if there is too much movement...the alarm will go off. A teacher was fidgeting next to me at a conference today so I turn on the app making sure my volume was down. I think he got the hint...good thing we are friends!
Picture from http://a1.phobos.apple.com/us/r1000/035/Purple/d5/fd/69/mzl.lkhrpjqv.320x480-75.jpg

GoSkyWatch

Many people suggested this app called GoSkyWatch. This free app shows you where the stars are in the sky and when you hold the ipad up to the sky, it will actually move the screen to the real orientation of where the stars are. I did not believe it until I tried it.

Picture from /apps.su/program/3518/GoSkyWatch+Planetarium-free-ipa-download/#axzz12vGTaS6J

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Pinball HD

If you are a fan of pinball...this is an awesome app. It comes with three different pinball tables. The Wild West, The Deep which is an under sea adventure, and Jungle Style. The app does cost $1.99 but I feel it is well worth it. The flippers are controlled by touching the bottom left or bottom right corners of the ipad. Easy to control and fun to use.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Name My Tunes

How well do you know the music on your itouch or ipad? Well, this Name that Tune game selects music out of your very own music library and puts it into the game. There are two modes, normal mode or lighting mode. In normal mode...the balls will gradually fall to let you know how much time you have left to guess. In lighting, the clock counts down so you are racing the clock. The quicker you answer, the more points you will receive. It does cost $0.99 but is well worth it. You can play one or two player which means you can share your fun!!
Picture from http://www.filecluster.com/iPad/Name-My-Tunes-Music-Quiz--14414.html

Spin Art

Do you remember when we had a spinning table and paint...and as the table was spinning, you would let one drop of paint fall on your page and it would make a nice splatter design (and also a big mess)? Well, this is the same art project without the mess and it's FREE. First, tap the star and pick new. There are 6 free shapes for you to pick from. Once you have selected one, click next and you can select what color paper. Next, click on the arrow button and spin your page with your finger. Now that it is spinning, click on the paint brush and paint away. The color my daughter loves the most is the rainbow on the far right. Make sure you try using glitter too. When you are finished, click on the star again to save your project.
Picture from http://www.bestkidsapps.com/ages-0-4/spinart/

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Talking Tom

Talking Tom is hilarious. No matter what you say, he will listen to you, and then repeat it. I added this app to my collection last night and my kids have loved it. It is easy to use and FREE, that is unless you want the extra options as "farting". You can even pet Tom and make him purr, hit him in the head, sock him in the gut, step on his foot and pull his tail. None of these features though are as funny as him repeating everything that is said. My family was laughing after the first time Tom talked so Tom repeated the laugh. You can even save what Tom says and upload it. Enjoy!! I also found this link to 50 Best Free ipad apps so far at http://artoftheiphone.com/2010/05/25/the-best-free-ipad-apps-so-far/

Picture from this site.

Friday, October 15, 2010

Lemonade Tycoon

I have been playing this app for a long time on both my itouch and ipad. If you are a fan of the old Apple Lemonade Stand game...then this is for you. In this game, you start with a small lemonade cart. You need to make a recipe for lemonade, purchase the needed supplies and come up with a cost to charge. Once you have earned enough money, you can upgrade your stand, many items in your stand, you can rent a new location or even hire help. This app is free. They also have one for $1.99 but reviews said it is the same game.

Picture from http://goodiphonegames.com

ABC News app


Do you want a fun way to look at the national news? Then, ABC News is for you. The daily news is displayed on a globe that spins. We use this with our document cameras in our classes to discuss current events in the news. It also has a ""shuffle" button that will spin the globe and randomly pick an event. The kids love it and the app is FREE.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Bloons TD

If you have a middle school child of your own...you already know that Bloons is a popular game for kids. Now...it is an app for the itouch and ipads. Very addicting if you like strategy games. The object is to set up a defense to stop the balloons before they make it to the end of the page. I got the free app and within a few hours...I had already purchased the full app. My sons who is 8 loves it!!

picture from http://www.appsafari.com/games/11646/bloons-td/

Make Dice Lite

As I was talking to a fellow teacher today...they recommended Make a Dice Lite as a great app to use. This app lets you take a die or dice and change each and every side, even changing colors if you choose. After I added the free app, I quickly thought of many different ways to use it. A fun way to make a lesson a little more fun!! ONE PROBLEM WITH THIS APP...IS THAT THE FREE VERSION DOES NOT SAVE THE DICE YOU CREATE.

picture from http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/make-dice-lite/id379873571?mt=8

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

All Stuck Up


Do you have problems with organization? This free app lets you use the visual of post-it-notes on a bulletin board to help in organizing different events or to do's. You can change choose between 5 different colors of post-its to keep you even more organized.

picture from http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/all-stuck-up-lite/id391043552?mt=8

Colorsplash


I was unsure about spending money on a photo editing app, but after paying the $1.99, I am very excited about the purchase. Once you have imported your own photos into itunes, this app will turn your photo black and white and let you pick out a specific item or items that you would like to be in color. It is done very easily by brushing your finger over the area you would like in color. It only took me about 30 seconds to save my first edited picture.

picture from http://www.juxtaposer.info/ColorSplash_screenshots.html

Pocket Frogs

I was looking for a free game and this was top on the apps list. Every review of this game was possitive and said it was very addicting. Well, they were telling the true. You could say it is educational because you need to purchase frogs, breed frogs, feed the frogs, keep the frogs happy by decorating their environment, etc. I am currently on level 7 which has taken many weeks. Many of my students have now gotten this app which makes great discussions in class.

picture from www.gamesuncovered.com