Ways to use Tech to Teach; A long list of ideas for home & school use

By Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

January 15, 2023 – It was back to school in recent days for children around the world. The Christmas holidays are over and for the most fortunate kids, it’s a year which has started with new gadgets.

If you’re an adult who is already worried about your child’s screen time or a teacher wants to incorporate more devices into class time there are several educational opportunities available thanks to the internet.

For Home Use

Apple Books for iPhones and iPads and Kindle for Android devices.

These provide an easy on the go solution to get your child reading. There are boundless benefits to reading for young children. Both Kindle and Apple Books have books for purchase just like in bookstores but a suite of free options are available as well. These range from classics with expired copyright including George Orwell’s Animal Farm to dozens of kids’ books including classics like The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

Adventure Academy 

While this is a paid subscription at 12.99 a year the benefits are absolutely worth it.  Kids will create an avatar just as in a game like Fortnite which then travels around a school-like environment where they are allowed to solve puzzles etc. Suitable for children from grade three all the way to second form this game-like learning app provides your children with hours of engaging and interesting content all while teaching them math, science and languages.

Sushi Monster 

Got a child or student who hates math? Sushi Monster can help, children must solve math problems which then turn into plates of sushi to feed the monster. It’s a good way to get primary school students to practice addition, division, subtraction and multiplication.

Where’s My Water/ Where’s My Perry

Created by Disney these are different versions of the same thing. A straight up game with elements of Physics students must find a way to get puddles of water to the Dino or Platypus while avoiding obstacles. They are smart games that will encourage your children to slow down and use critical thinking to solve each puzzle. They start off easy but they definitely don’t stay that way!

For Teachers Use 

Hangman Multiplayer

For an English class boost students can all join a single hangman game using the multiplayer option and take turns guessing the word by adding letters just as in the traditional game.

MentalUP

With a huge selection of games and activities all educational in nature teachers will be able to find something to occupy the mind of every student individually.

Kahoot!

A game-based learning platform, Kahoot has learning games created by users (in this case the teacher) in the form of multiple-choice quizzes that can be accessed via a web browser or the Kahoot! App this allows students to all take educational quizzes together at once.

Virtual Trivia

Especially useful for online classes, this sort of game allows students to behave as participants in a quiz testing them on prior knowledge that they have learned, one example is online Family Feud where a teacher can set their questions and answers in the traditional game show format. Other game show formats like Jeopardy are also available.

Virtual Field Trips and Tours 

Dozens of live feed and recorded tours are available across tons of platforms for students. NASA provides views of Outer space, various Zoos stream live tours as do Aquariums. Students can see the wonders of the world and many other places  in 4k right at their classroom desks. See a full list here.

Electronics are only as good as what we use them for and there are hundreds of apps and other avenues to use them to enhance children’s learning.  Get learning!