Smartphones and tablets are no longer considered taboo in the classroom. In fact, teaching apps can be effective tools for streamlining monotonous classroom tasks and helping to immerse youngsters in the learning environment.

Teaching apps also help bridge the gap between classroom and home – and between parents and teachers – and are a great way to extend the classroom and make learning fun. The apps can help with everything from expanding the classroom to organization and lesson enhancement if you know which ones to use.

Communication Teaching Apps

Many teaching apps make it easier for teachers to send out assignments, give feedback and even grades. They also allow parents to track their child’s progress more actively throughout the school year. Some of the best communication teaching apps are:

ClassDojo – Teachers can easily message and communicate with parents. Photos and videos can be shared individually and even used to show parents their child’s classroom. It captures and generates behavior data to improve classroom behavior, and the app contains teaching tools such as Group Maker and Pair Share, syncing all of it across all devices.

Teacher’s Assistant Pro – Student actions, behaviors and achievements can be tracked and recorded, and teachers can add dates, times, notes and even photos. When conference time rolls around, they can have all the information they need in a single app.

Slack – A fantastic messaging app used by professors and teachers to host text-based office hours and send out reminders. College students love it because they can stay in touch with professors and others in the class when they’re not in the classroom. The app connects with many existing tools and allows you to read documents anywhere.

Technology Enhanced Learning Teaching Apps

Technology-enhanced learning is transforming education as we know it. Many apps allow children to learn through game play and even do additional work when necessary. Most of the apps enhance the teaching and learning experience inside and outside the classroom. Such apps help teachers reach students and convey information in an understandable way.

Blackboard – A free app that is ideal for online courses. It helps everyone in the classroom stay informed and allows teachers to update content, take assignments and tests from students, video chat for tutoring sessions, and even manage homework.

Educreations – This is an interactive whiteboard app with a screen-casting tool that helps teachers create easy-to-follow tutorials and lessons. They can create animations and diagrams with supporting audio of any kind to help students with assignments. Teachers can also share videos with the help of Facebook, Twitter and email.

Kahoot! – Another free for-fun learning app that helps teachers and students. Teachers can use exciting learning games and set up live games with students. The app allows them to challenge each other to competitive learning games and makes homework loads more fun.

Streamlined Organization Teaching Apps

Classrooms are busy from early in the morning until the afternoon, and it can be hard to stay organized. Throw in 30 kids and it’s nearly impossible. Teaching is easier and far more fun when teachers and students stay organized. Here are some great apps to help them do it:

Google Classroom – A light version of the G-suite used by teachers to store class materials in Google Drive. Teachers can also use it for making announcements and holding debates. The best part is that students can have easy access to materials that have urgent requirements.

Additio – Lets teachers ditch much of the paper by acting as a digital classroom and gradebook. They can take attendance, plan time tables and calculate grades using a smartphone or tablet. For a nominal fee, they can also get additional features such as the ability to take notes and performance analytics.

Seesaw – Allows teachers to record student strengths and weaknesses throughout the year for discussion at annual parent-teacher conferences. It’s often referred to as a student portfolio app because parents can see their child’s achievements and progress. Students love storing their best work on the app.

Financial literacy is important, and it should be integrated into modern education for all children. Students of today shoulder a lot of burden. Sending them out into the world without a financial education is an injustice that results in a lifetime of hardship. While it can be difficult to teach children and young adults about money, there are some creative lessons available that can make the job easier and help ensure that they are prepared for their future.

The key is to start with an age-appropriate lesson. Later financial lessons will build on your foundation. Financial literacy for school children can be divided up into three main categories by grade level. General money knowledge begins in elementary school. Middle school students build on their financial literacy foundation by beginning to learn how to manage money. High school students can prepare for financial independence with valuable lessons about responsible financial management skills.

Elementary School: The Basics

It’s never too early to foster financial literacy in children. Elementary school is a great place to teach children the basics of exchanging money for goods and services. Teaching elementary age school children about money can be fun. Many educators incorporate games into lesson plans about money. This leads to open discussions and demonstrations about saving, spending and sharing money.

Earning & Spending Money – These activities for the very young include simple but important lessons like recognizing different coins and understanding what they’re worth.

Coins For Money – Download this free game for your students to learn how to recognize and count money $1 and under.

Money Booklets – Download these free printout booklets to introduce and review coins with your students.

Bank It! – Use this game to teach your students how to add and how probability works.

Peter Pig’s Money Counter – In this interactive game, kids practice identifying, counting and saving money while learning fun facts about U.S. currency.

Middle School: Money Management

As children move into middle school, they are more familiar with the concept of money management. It is time to begin molding and shaping their perception of money and responsible financial management. As youngsters become more independent in middle school, they are ready to learn how to apply some of the concepts they have learned about money. This is a good time for them to learn about banking and balancing a checkbook.

Writing Checks – Use these check print outs to teach your students how to write a check.

Financial Football – Give your brain a Financial Football workout — play the NFL-themed video game developed by Visa.

Financial Soccer – Put your financial skills to the test with Visa’s World Cup-themed Financial Soccer, a multiple choice question video game. Are you ready to play?

Money Metropolis – Navigate Money Metropolis’ multi-dimensional world while making life decisions that will affect whether virtual bank accounts shrink or grow.

High School: Real-World Lessons

High school students are preparing to embark on real-world journeys, financial and otherwise. They are starting to make choices that will affect their future, and it is critical to instill responsible money management skills. With more advanced lessons on budgeting and bill paying, high school students have a better chance of becoming financially independent.

Balancing a Checkbook – Many high school students will soon start working their first jobs, so it is important for them to learn the difference between gross and net pay. They are learning to drive and preparing for college as they move closer to independence. It is a good time for them to practice budgeting successfully with take-home pay through classroom activities that can be reinforced at home.

Making a Budget – Information provided on topics such as: What is a budget? Why do I want a budget? How do I start a budget? How do I make a budget? How do I use a budget?

How to Read a Credit Report – Teach your students what a credit score is and how they can make sure that theirs is a good one.

Teacher Discounts & Freebies

Teachers work hard all year long, and they should feel appreciated all year long, too! Below is a list of all the freebies and discounts different businesses offer teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week and all year long. Know of another freebie that should be added to the list? Let us know by sending an email to marketing@gcefcu.org.

YEAR LONG DISCOUNTS

Gulf Coast Educators FCU

About Gulf Coast Educators: We are a credit union dedicated to serving the financial needs of educators and school district employees in the state of Texas. Here you will find all the products and services of a big bank, but designed to help make our members more money, save time, and provide peace of mind.