6 FREE APPS every TEACHER must have

This year at my teacher conference I went to a few workshops that were so super interesting. I learned about a ton of new [and some old] apps that are out there that make a teacher's life so much easier. And let's face it, anything that makes a teacher's life easier is a plus in my book. So since there are so many teachers out there in blogland, I figured I would share some of my favorites with you!! And please, if you have anything to add send me a comment!!

{Remind} - If you've heard of Remind 101, you know remind. It's the "new" version. Remind is an app that allows for you to send text messages to your parents without having to use actual phone numbers. And if you're a middle or high school teacher, you can even use it with your kids. And sign up is super simple. Parents or students text a code to a free number, attach a name and BAM! You're done! There is also a new feature where you can chat one to one with another remind member. So maybe you have a student that needs to make up an assignment before a certain date, or a parent who wanted updates on their child? You can use remind to keep them in the loop! I absolutely love this app and hope you can find it useful, too!!

{Homeroom} - If your parents are just as obsessed with Instagram as their teachers, you need to have this one. Homeroom is a mix between Facebook and Instagram. You can create albums and upload pictures right to the homeroom app. And parents can view the images you post immediately. So, can't take many chaperones on that zoo trip you've been planning?? Take pictures throughout the day and post them to your Zoo album! You're also able to post 30 second videos. So if you have an important accomplishment or something exciting to share with the parents, they won't miss out!!

{Plickers} - Plickers is an app that lets you poll your students without any kind of external devices. All you have to do is print a plicker card for each student in your class. Then, after you create questions, you have the students hold up their plicker to show their answers and you scan the room. Plickers will collect all the data and even graph the classes answers for you in live view. My students love it! The love to see how everyone answered as the results come in, and there is no need to feel embarrassed if they got the question wrong. No one will know who answered what unless you want them to.

{Seesaw} - Seesaw is a digital portfolio app that is kid friendly and the perfect way to keep things organized in your classroom. This is perfect for your parent-teacher conferences because you can keep all of your students' projects in one place. Plus, the kids still get to take them home to show their parents. I don't personally use this in my classroom, but I know teachers who let their students do most of the work with this. Keeping an iPad closeby during small group, kids can take pictures of their progress on computer programs or add their voice to video of how to complete math problems. The possibilities are endless.

{ShowMe} - Ever heard this sentence? "Mrs. {insert last name here} I couldn't do my homework last night because I couldn't figure it out and neither could my parents." Well have no fear....ShowMe is here!! ShowMe is a digital whiteboard where you can record your voice and tutorials for your students to access even when they aren't in the classroom. No more problems doing homework. When students use show me they can watch the process step-by-step as you guide them through it. This is also great for small group sessions. Keep an iPad with access to ShowMe closeby so kids can access tutorials and not bother your small group session.

{Class Dojo} - If you haven't already heard of Class Dojo, go check it out. Go ahead....I'll wait. Class Dojo is the number one way to keep your kids on track. You can download the app on your phone and both students and parents can keep track of the progress at their own leisure. Basically students are awarded points for doing the right thing. How easy is that? And Class Dojo has a chat feature so parents can ask about any possible negative points they might see. And you can turn your points into a spreadsheet to use at parent-teacher conferences. You need to start using this immediately (or well...next year, since this one is almost over).

Linking up for these parties!!