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How do I get My Middle Schooler Fortnite & Snapchat?
By Shelsea Greenleaf, Western Peaks Elementary School Innovation Academy Teacher
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very time I tell someone I teach middle school the response is always the same, “Oh, that’s a hard age…” or something along the lines of, “Oh, bless your heart!” While “big, bad middle schoolers” can be daunting to many, the key to success when dealing with middle school students is understanding their passions and triggers. One aspect of this in the digital age is being able to provide them with constant entertainment, which often times is found by utilizing a digital device, whether it be their cell phones, a tablet, or a gaming console. Most middle schoolers can run circles around many of us when it comes to technology. Rather than fighting students every step of the way, as the saying goes, ‘if you can’t beat them, join them.’ As infants and toddlers we encourage them to learn while playing. As middle schoolers we can use the same concept by introducing them to the correct apps and games for their devices. Below is a list of some useful apps that can be used to help students focus and organize their lives, as well as, learning while playing.
English Language Arts:
Some apps that can help students improve their vocabulary include Mad Libs, Goodreads, Words with
Friends, and Wordscape. All three of these apps are available on iOS and Android. Goodreads is an online catalog of books, it provides suggestions for books based on interests and authors you have read before. Mad Libs helps students practice the basic parts of speech by completing stories with friends to create humorous scenarios. Words with Friends and Wordscape are both online interactive games that students can play with friends or even family members.
Math:
Middle school is the age level when many students experience algebra concepts for the first time; many parents look at their homework and wonder if they ever really learned anything in middle school? If you or your teen is needing some support in the higher level math concepts, a couple of helpful apps include, Photomath Camera Calculator and Free Graphing Calculator 2, both of these are also available on iOS and Android. DESMOS is another useful math tool that can be used to graph and solve algebraic equations as well as review and practice certain math concepts.
Science:
The NASA app is always a good go-to for any science lover. Students are given access to videos and images and can keep updated with the latest scientific news and mission information. Zooniverse.org provides people of all ages real world experiences in science by becoming part of an online community of researchers who work on projects that include classifying distant galaxies and discovering the secret life of chimpanzees. Design Squad Global is a site sponsored by PBS which 16 APRIL 2020
