Wednesday, September 18, 2013

A Few Thoughts...

Hello Fellow iPad Pilot Peeps,

In reflecting on the big question as to whether teacher iPads should replace teacher laptops, I have decided that my answer is no. Although iPads certainly have their effective uses, I much prefer my laptop for carrying out daily duties related to my job. It is incredibly limiting for me to not be able to access "My Documents" from my iPad. Yes, I know I am supposed to transfer the documents I need to google docs in order to be able to access them from my iPad, but this is a tedious and time consuming task that often results in frustration when things do not transfer correctly or have to be reformatted. Also, if the internet connection drops, then google docs are not accessible. I like the fact that my laptop has a USB port for using files I keep on my Zip drive. I prefer the physical attributes of my laptop. Now granted I would much prefer a Mac Book to a PC laptop.  I would love to see the district supply MacBooks to teachers as the old laptops begin to retire. (wishful thinking, I know. ;)) Finally, I prefer the many options I have for formatting emails when sending from my laptop vs the limitations on my iPad. This may not seem like a big deal, but it's nice to be able to highlight, change text colors, etc when sending or responding to emails.

I have found a few cool iPad apps that I thought I would mention including:
Brain Quest 
Science Grade 5
Brain HQ
Mental Math

Also, I love having my iPad for sharing photographs or documents with students because it's easier to carry than my laptop. For example, I am doing a unit using primary sources from the Library of Congress, and it's nice to be able to quickly display the sources for students to view. 

These are a few of my thoughts. I'll be curious to see how others are feeling.