The iPad has turned the traditional classroom into a space where kids can innovate, brainstorm and create together. Classroom styles like the “flipped classroom” (a style where all the learning is done at home via screencasts) become more realistic and feasible. Best of all, most teachers will agree that classroom productivity skyrockets. However, the iPad itself is not the driving force behind this newfound productivity. It’s the apps that power the iPad that make this tablet the real educational winner.

While the mass adoption of technology in academia continues to enhance the educational experience, it is also the single biggest distraction students face heading into the 2015/2016 school year. Gaming, social media and messaging platforms are all ‘fun and games,’ until students can’t get enough and the apps pull them away from their studies.

Vokal, a Chicago-based mobile Innovation agency, asked their team of apprentices (student developers and coders), along with their talented iOS and Android mobile developers, to come up the Top 5 List of this school year’s biggest Brain Boosters and Brain Busters. Brain Boosters will help make students more productive and empower them to excel. The Brain Buster Apps will do the opposite – waist time, distract and become full-on tech addictions. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

BRAIN BOOSTERS

1. Notability

Notability is a simple note-taking app that allows you to create notes, import media, and edit multiple file types. The app allows you to use a unique drawing and highlighting tool that makes file annotation super easy and intuitive. It’s pretty much impossible to go through a day of high school or college without using this app.

2. Nearpod

Presentations suck. Nearpod makes them suck less. The presentation tool turns the iPad into an individual slide deck, which allows teachers to send surveys, ask questions and present slides.

3. Schoology

Schoology is a content management system that allows teachers and students to interact, share assignments, distribute assessments and receive tests scores. Schoology makes it simple to share content quickly and easily between the educator and the student.

4. Google Drive

Google Drive is a personal cloud storage service from Google that lets users store and synchronize digital content across computers, laptops and mobile devices, including tablet and smartphone devices. Whether it’s a group project or edits from a teaching, Google Drive is a must-have this year.

5. Reminders

While many people may dismiss Apple’s default to-do list, in the educational world it provides a wealth of tools to keep track of homework, projects and upcoming tests. The Vokal team would take this app over any “homework app” any day.

BRAIN BUSTERS

1. Trivia Crack

The biggest fad of December 2014: Quizzing your friends (and random strangers) on trivia questions. As fun (and addicting) as this app is, it only provides numerous opportunities for distractions inside and outside of the classroom.

2. Messages

Students can sit across the room and message each other funny pictures, things about the teacher/other students, or in worst case scenarios, test answers. The messaging app is a substitute teacher’s nightmare and one massive distraction tool for students.

3. The Homework App

The Homework app is recommended by many teachers as a way of managing homework assignments. However, the app is hard to get used to, requires a lot of time to enter data, and is just plain cumbersome. The Vokal team favored a pen and paper over this app.

4. Candy Crush

We’ve all heard of this app, and chances are, you’ve played it. Candy Crush is a pretty simple game in which your goal is to eliminate rows of candy by swiping. If you’ve played it before, you know that this app is ridiculously addicting. Playing Candy Crush in the classroom will not get you any brownie points with your teacher.

5. 8-Ball Pool

The other fad that swept across the students at my school was a game called 8-Ball Pool, which was essentially just a video game simulation of a real pool game. However, students could connect their iPads and play against each other, making it a game that teachers despised.

The post Top 5 Brain Booster and Brain Buster Apps appeared first on AKAMom Magazine.

Babies can grow up at an alarming rate (and not just physically!). Their brains, along with their five senses, needs the right kind of stimulation for proper development. Some parents start as early as the pregnancy stage by listening to classical music and taking pediatrician-recommended supplements. Once baby is born, however, you should continue to stimulate their mental, visual, auditory, and tactile capabilities with these simple but effective daily brain-boosters.

Talk to your baby all the time

Conversing with your baby in a soothing voice is a great way to bond with them. It’s also highly effective in building language skills and word association. You can read stories out loud with your baby, or simply “narrate” things you do regularly, such as describing the colors during outside strolls, or the texture of certain objects. Doing these will also aid you in developing baby’s visual, auditory, and tactile senses.

However, talking constantly in a loud, intimidating voice must be avoided. Many people are inclined to think that this is a form of discipline, but it will only create negative associations for your baby, and hinder learning progress.

Sing, dance & clap

Let the no-holds-barred silliness help you with your baby’s brain growth. Every chance you get, sing and dance for baby, with or without music. You can also clap along to nursery rhymes and encourage them to do the same.  It will help stimulate your child’s coordination skills and spark creativity at an early age.

Regularly provide all baby necessities and comforts

When your baby’s needs and comforts are met regularly, you are providing them with an environment conducive to learning. A baby who’s hungry, constantly needs diaper changing, is uncomfortable with the temperature and noise levels in the room, and who’s generally miserable will not be able to learn anything new.

Take baby out for walks

Invest in a durable and comfortable stroller that you can use to take your baby out for daily strolls. Choose one with a sun-protection canopy, a reliable safety harness, and durable wheels so you can focus on stimulating your baby’s senses outdoors. Point out trees, interesting cloud formation, and outdoor vignettes that can pique their interest. You can also bring baby to a place that’s filled with nice, aromatic smells, such as a bakeshop or a field of flowers.

Give your child gentle massages

Stimulating by touch, paired with talking in a calm voice, have been proven to aid baby with positive association. Many parents practice baby yoga on their little ones, but tactile development can be as easy as rubbing baby’s legs and arms with a gentle massage oil, and simply rocking them in your arms to sleep.

Get age-appropriate toys

Newborns and babies under a year old can appreciate a softly padded jungle gym. These typically come with playmats they can lie down on, and dangling soft toys of different textures which they can grasp or look at. Some can be installed on cribs and playpens, and can play music. As baby grows, toys usually become more colorful and educational. Soft building blocks and things that run on wheels can help with baby’s brain growth and sensory development.

Before buying a new toy, make sure to look up reviews to see if they are age-appropriate, and meet safety standards. Always be on the lookout for toy recalls so you can avoid those that pose safety and health hazards.

Enjoy your baby!

Julie McCaffrey

About Julie McCaffrey

Parenting expert Julie McCaffrey is a proud mommy to 3 kids and owns BabyNav Baby Planners where she offers personalized consultation to new and expecting parents along with functioning as the Chief Brand Officer at PishPoshBaby.com—the high-quality baby store that supplies the facts and advice, along with the right choice, to parents who are completely lost in the whirlwind of baby gear. She loves to help moms and dads navigate everything from baby gear, preparing for multiples, getting back to work and getting the whole family on a routine.

The post Great Brain Boosters for Your Baby appeared first on AKAMom Magazine.