Math Apps and Digital Games

With schools gaining more and more technology, math apps and other educational digital games are on the rise.  Math apps allow students to directly manipulate images on screen and usually involves children answering mathematical problems correctly in order to advance through the game. This allows room for scaffolding within the learning as well as opportunities to review skills that the child may already know. There are many benefits to using math apps and other digital games in the classroom, some include: teachers being able to progress monitor, regulate the pace of the students learning, create an individualized learning path for each student, and having complex math procedures broken into smaller steps. Immediate feedback is also available with many apps, taking the burden of grading papers off of the teacher and helping students correct mistakes as quickly as possible. When a student is not answering questions correctly, many times the app will even show the steps necessary to find the correct answer. Schools across the nation have already begun using subscription based math apps to supplement instruction such as stride academy and math IXL, but there are hundreds of free apps available as well that can help children as young as two years old develop math skills. Math apps should not be used to replace math instruction, but should be utilized as a tool to enhance student learning experiences. The video below showcases several free and paid for math apps specifically designed for elementary math. Some of the apps in the video include: quick math, show me, mathDoodles, 5 Dice, Geoboard, Measures HD, and Chicken Bounce. 

What I love about math apps is that they get students excited about learning. Not only are they getting to play games, but many times these games include their favorite characters and motivate students to learn with digital reward systems. It is important to keep students engaged with learning and I believe that apps can be a fantastic way to do that! I have learned that not all apps are a good fit for every classroom, but there are great ones out there. Some apps are even aligned with common core state standards!