Checking out @vwindman’s recommended manipulative math apps for iPad via @techlearning

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For 30 years, Tech & Learning has served the K-12 education community with practical resources and expert strategies for transforming education through integration of digital technologies. Our audience includes all job roles within the district community, with district-level technology coordinators the primary recipients. Beyond that, our magazine is often used as a professional development tool to help educators across the board get up to speed with the newest technologies and products in order to best prepare students for the global digital workforce.

A recent newsletter included the following article by Vicki Windman (@vwindman) which I immediatey forwarded to the math faculty at The School at Columbia University…

Manipulative Math Apps for the iPad to meet the Common Core Standards

The iPad offers many math apps to help students who need visual tools and manipulatives to help understand basic functional concepts to more advanced math. 

Hands on Math Hundreds Chart $1.99 – Teachers, have “green” friendly interactive 100’s chart on your iPad. It also has sound for students to hear the numbers- fantastic for ELL and special needs students. An extensive Instructor’s Guide for this app is available at the support website. Download the document and install it in iBooks to access ideas about how to use the Interactive Hundreds Chart for teaching elementary mathematics.

Common Core Standards:
Kindergarten: Know number names and the count sequence.

BaseTenBlocks $1.99 – Stop losing your unifix cubes teach place value- including Whole Numbers, reading and writing numbers, decimals addition and subtraction and regrouping. Unifix cubes cost $99.92 for 1000 at a discount. This app is $1.99 and gives you all of the unifix cubes and interactive activities built in- no more worksheets or workbooks. A comprehensive instructor’s guide is available at Base ten guide.

Common Core Standards:
Grade one and two- understand place value, use place value understanding and properties of operations to add and subtract.

Mathboard $4.99 Here is an app to help students with four basic operations. It also includes square cubes, square roots and integers. Random problem generation (up to 250 questions per quiz). – Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, Division, Squares, Cubes and Square Roots – Includes One Step Equation style problems. e.g (6+x=12; x-8=2; 5x=25;) – Number ranges are configurable from -9999 to 9999, including the ability to require certain numbers to be in each problem.

Common Core Standards:
Grades 1-3 Operations and Algebraic Thinking

First Grade- Represent and solve problems involving addition and subtraction.
Second Grade- Add and subtract within 20.
Third Grade- Represent and solve problems involving multiplication and division.

VM- Virtual Manipulative Free- Set the app for Percents, fractions or decimals- App provides you with a slide bar. Drag pieces such as 1/5 press and hold and your are provided with the equivalent. App includes an area for student work and a folder to save work.

Common Core Standards: Number and Operation
Grade 3- Develop understanding of fractions as numbers
Grade 4-Extend understanding of fraction equivalence and ordering.
Grade 5- Apply and extend previous understandings of multiplication and division to multiply and divide fractions.

Vicki Windman is a special education teacher at Clarkstown High School South.