Apps A to Z: Aurasma to Zapd

It's official the 2012-2013 school year is now history, and for our school history it was! A new school that housed all of the sixth graders in the district, and the first school in the district with a 1:1 iPad initiative. As you can imagine it was a year of many first, and lots of learning for  us as teachers. This summer, I would like to reflect on and share the many apps I used or saw my colleagues use in the classroom. So, with the start of my summer vacation also comes "Apps A to Z!" Apps A to Z will cover apps from Aurasma to Zapd and everything in between. Going in aphabetical order, I plan to feature one or two apps a day.

Today, I begin with Aurasma & Zapd. When first introduced to each of these apps, I struggled with how to use them in the classroom. They have since become two of my favorite apps. See how I've  explained Aurasma using Zapd. 

Aurasma is augmented reality; meaning the physical world and the digital world are combined. Aurasma is a great app for students to share what they have learned. It is also a great way for teachers or presenters to give  more information through a poster, bulletin board, book etc. I did not use Aurasma much in my classroom this year, but I will be using a lot of Aurasma  next year. Especially for student presentations.   

Zapd allows you to create instant websites. It was not until the end of the year that I used Zapd in my classroom; before that I had seen students use it for projects in their computer media class.  I had students create a website for the upcoming sixth graders titled Sixth Things You Need to Know About Sixth Grade. One of the math teachers (iTeach with iPads) used it as a way to present lessons to students, and has a tutorial on ways to use Zapd in the classroom. 

Have you used Aurasum or Zapd in your classroom? If so how? Do you have ideas for using either of these apps? Be sure to leave a comment. I would love to hear your ideas!