What’s on Your iPad Dashboard?

This week I am presenting at my first conference, so I have spent today putting the final touches on my presentation: Technology-Based Assessment. During one of my ‘Social Media breaks’ I shared this picture on Instagram. After some questions, I decided to take another break and share more about part of my presentation – organizing your iPad Dashboard for easy accessibility!


Why customize your iPad Dashboard?

Keeping your iPad dashboard up-to-date with resources your students are using, gives students easy access to resources. It allows students to gain independence and autonomy when using technology in the classroom. Keeping an up-to-date dashboard is also a great visual reminder of what’s important in your classroom. Am I focusing on skill-specific apps or more robust apps that have applications across multiple subjects?
 What’s on our dashboards?


What’s on our 1st Grade Dashboard?


i-nigma: our preferred QR Code Scanner. Want to learn more about QR Codes? Check out these posts.



Booksy: a fantastic (paid) app that allows students to keep a bookshelf of high-interest books (Dinosaurs, Germs, Mars, Insects, Bats). Each book can be read aloud to students and includes great multi-media features
Spelling and Vocabulary City: with a free and paid version, Spelling City is the perfect place to practice our differentiated spelling lists, as well as, take practice tests


Bitsboard: a very diverse app that provides mini-lessons and practice activities covering a variety of topics/content areas. You download the specific lessons or skill you want to target on your ‘BitsBoard’ and then may actually create your own modules.


ShowMe: an easy-to-use platform for students to show what they know and talk about their learning. While writing on the iPad, students can record their voice – creating a tutorial or presentation over the specific skill or content being taught


Socrative: a simple tool for intentionally tracking formative assessment data. Teachers upload quizzes for their students and get live-feedback as their students complete the assessment. The data can then be emailed or downloaded to track student progress. *Fingers crossed* I’ll be introducing this app to my 1st graders this week! 🙂

What was on our 5th Grade Dashboard?


NearPod: an interactive, audience-dependent avenue for teaching content and informally assessing student understanding along the way. Using NearPod, every student has the presentation at his/her fingertips.


NewsEla: a website that offers current events and news articles for teachers and students, as well as, Common-Core aligned comprehension quizzes. Read how we used it in our classroom here. There is not a NewsEla app; rather, I created the icon using the website link. Learn how to do this here.
i-nigma: our preferred QR Code Scanner.


Socrative: a simple tool for intentionally tracking formative assessment data. Teachers upload quizzes for their students and get live-feedback as their students complete the assessment. The data can then be emailed or downloaded to track student progress. We used this EVERY DAY to take our flashbacks at the beginning of class and our exit slips at the end of class.


Safari: for our daily research and question needs


Dropbox: an easy resource for file sharing and uploading. Each of my students had a folder on our DropBox where they could store articles they want to read, their research, or their assignments

So, please tell me, What is on your iPad Dashboard?