10 iPhone apps for early childhood educators

Teaching children, especially those of the very young variety, can make staying organized a challenge for early childhood educators. Even the most “put together” teacher is likely to need a bit of assistance from time to time. Thanks to Apple and their App Store educators now have access to an unprecedented amount of technological help at the tips of their fingers. For the harried early childhood educator with an iPhone, here are ten of the most useful applications currently available.

iBlueSky

This “mindmapping” app is designed to help professionals from all industries and walks of life brainstorm more efficiently, organize their thoughts, plan events, and keep track of tasks. Thought and note branches can be edited, color-coded, clipped and copied. iBlueSky is a great app to help teachers get organized and prepare for class.

Price: $9.99
Attendance

The straightforward, no-nonsense name of this app lets prospective buyers know exactly what to expect: an intuitive, easy-to-navigate attendance tool for use in the modern classroom. Attendance even allows iPhone users to assign photos to each student in the class, helping teachers to learn the names that go with those precious little faces.

Price: $4.99
TeacherTool One

As the pared-down free version of TeacherTool, TeacherTool One still packs a major functionality punch. Grade books, calendars, attendance tools and journaling options that sync with a Mac or PC for back-up purposes are all part of this app. Teachers with more than 30 students will need to choose the more powerful paid version, but those with small class sizes should find

Price: Free
TeacherPal

Available for both the iPhone and the iPad, TeacherPal is a simple app that allows teachers to take attendance and track grades while also making notes about the behavior of individual students. Because young children may have trouble remembering that certain foods are off limits, the ability to store allergy information for each child is also a useful tool for pre-K and kindergarten teachers.

Price: Free
Teacher’s Assistant Pro: Track Student Behavior

Because pre-K and kindergarten teachers spend so much of their time documenting both good and problem behaviors in their students, an iPhone app designed to track these observations is a blessing. Called one of the “best teacher apps” by USA TODAY, Teacher’s Assistant Pro: Track Student Behavior is definitely a worthwhile investment.

Price: $7.99
Evernote

Free in the App Store, the Evernote iPhone app syncs with other devices to allow access across the board. Take notes, create lists, and record voice reminders for later use with this award-winning app, called one of the “Top 10 Must-Have Apps” by the New York Times.

Price: Free
Numbers

Apple’s Numbers app is an answer to Microsoft’s Excel in mobile form, and includes a ready-made attendance template straight out of the box. Teachers that are fond of spreadsheets and iPhones might find that the endless data-storing possibilities of this application make it worth the $9.99 price tag in the App Store.

Price: $9.99
Remember the Milk

The only thing better than Remember the Milk’s wealth of features designed to eliminate forgetfulness and boost organization is the fact that it’s free of charge in the App Store. Lifehacker calls Remember the Milk “a veritable Swiss Army knife of to-do list management,” making it a must-have for educators.

Price: Free
Teacher’s Helper – Kindergarten

A companion application to the venerable Teacher’s Helper magazine, Teacher’s Helper – Kindergarten allows digital subscribers to access more than 30 pages of skill sheets and activities specially designed for kindergarteners. The app itself is free, but requires a $24.99 yearly subscription for full functionality.

Price: Free
DropBox

The days of carrying heavy briefcases or bags laden with books, papers, and magazines have officially come to a close with the advent of applications like DropBox, which allows users to sync all of their devices and access files stored on the cloud remotely with their iPhone. Even tiny flash drives are rendered almost obsolete with the DropBox service, making it one of the best choices for educators

Price: FreeThe App Store makes it easy for teachers and caregivers to bring the power of technology to the classroom, providing apps like these and others of their ilk. Augmenting the functionality of the iPhone for educators across the board, these organizational and professional tools can help teachers spend less time on tedious administrative tasks, and more time doing what they love: working with and expanding the minds of youngsters.The above article is reproduced from Kiwi Commons, a news and information weblog