Appp Media’s New Math app: Understanding Math – Times Tables

appp media have just released a new Mathematics app for multiplication and division, and I was fortunate to be given a copy to review.  The full name of the app is Understanding Math – Times Tables: Learn to fluently multiply and divide within 100, but that is a bit of a mouthful so I’m sure you won’t mind if I abbreviate it to Understanding Math – Times Tables for this review.

I have literally hundreds of Mathematic apps, and most of the multiplication and division apps are drill and practice, which is great for developing speed and accuracy, but Understanding Math: Times Tables offers something new.  The drill and practice element is there, but it is the understanding part that is a new and welcome feature.   The activities in Understanding Math – Times Tables are based  on Jerome Bruner’s  Three Modes of Representation learning theory and they explore the concepts of division and multiplication using different visual representations.

Each activity has been linked to the Common Core Standards for Mathematics.

Tasty Math – Multiplying Acorns

Multiplying Acorns is the third app in Operatio’s Tasty Math App series, the others in the series being Adding Apples and Subtracting Sardines.  It is aimed at young children learning the concept of multiplication, but the characters would be attractive to older students with special needs.  This app is a little different to others in the series, in that it has several learning activities, and some mini-games that are unlocked as rewards for progress.

As with other Apps in the series,  three user profiles are available and these are represented by three squirrels that greet you as you launch the App.  You can assign a name to each squirrel.  Tap on one of the squirrels to start the game.  The screen resembles a large calculator, and a squirrel is there to prompt children to start multiplying.

Guest Blog – King of Math reviewed by Josh

Today I welcome a review from my very first guest blogger.  Josh is an 18 y.0. student from Melbourne who is studying for a Bachelor of Applied Science (Mathematics).  His own blog, Mathematical Mischief (http://mathematicalmischief.wordpress.com/) is aimed at helping everyone to get a better understanding of Mathematics and is a great resource for students.  Do go and visit his blog.

And now, over to you, Josh.

King of Math

Well, erm… Hi. I’m Josh. 🙂

Now, if you’re wondering where I’m from, what I do – let’s just say you can find it all at Mathematical Mischief. Today, though, I’m not here to spiel about my blog, or what I do.

I’m here to talk about a game called ‘King of Math‘, made by the awesome dudes over at Oddrobo Games (they’re Swedish).
The first three level packs are available in game when you download the app (which is free), but to play the remaining levels, you need to buy the in game pack (which is $0.99, well worth the investment).

Click the logo to go to iTunes!

So you’re bored, slightly competitive, and really like math. You’re not quite sure what you could do, though. Here’s your answer, if you’re up for the challenge.

Schools A to Z – the Essential Homework App

I have been remiss in not reviewing this  App earlier as it is a must for parents of school-aged children.  It has been on my iPad for some time now, and it has been in my “going to get to ” list, however I’ve dipped into it a lot lately, so I really need to share it with you.  School A to Z is a free App from the NSW Department of Education and Communities.  Their School A to Z website aims to:

” create an online community with comprehensive homework and ‘school life’ support for parents that is easy to use, relevant and engaging.”

The school A to Z App gives parents access to some of the content on the site and will be a welcome resource for any family of school-aged children.

Using Painting and Drawing Apps for more than pictures.

In a recent post I highlighted just a few of the many  Painting and Drawing Apps available on the App Store and presented my readers with some criteria for evaluating them.  This post looks at some of the ways these apps can be used across curriculum areas.

Mathematics

You may remember I noted that stamps/stickers can make an App more versatile, and that certainly is the case when it comes to Mathematics.  In a classroom, students commonly used counters, paddle pop sticks, blocks and other manipulatives to experiment with number.  Think of stamps as onscreen or virtual manipulatives.   If you don’t have stamps, you can use different colour and painting tools to create marks or shapes.

Save the Solar System (and practice your Math skills at the same time)

 Arithmetic Invaders is a collection of arcade-style apps that can help children practice various Mathematics strategies.  These drill and practice games have a kind of retro-Space Invaders feel.  As I’ve mentioned before, this kind of activity is not going to help a child learn their facts, but they can definitely help the child to learn to recall their facts quickly, which is an important skill when progressing to higher Mathematics.

Unlike other similarly themed apps (e.g. MathBlaster HyperBlast), one does not need a lot of gaming skill to play Arithmetic Invaders.  The controls are very simple so the child can concentrate more on the real task:  defending the Solar System.  Sorry. I mean practising their Mathematics skills.  Children need to calculate the sums shown on the alien spacecraft and then shooting the one that matches the number on their laser gun.  They move the gun by tapping the right or left buttons.  As they progress through the levels, children collect space pilot insignia as a reward. You can set the length of the game to 2, 3 or 5 minutes. Content covered at each level is clearly stated, although you can’t pick levels at random but must unlock each in sequence.  Unlocked levels can be revisited.

Times Table Cloud Click Game

Times Table Cloud Click Game looks exactly as its name suggests.  It is a drill and practice game for multiplication tables. Tables can be selected from 2 to 12, or mixed questions for an extra challenge. The 12 questions for each table are asked in random order, and progress through the table is timed.  Select the answers by tapping on the cloud with the correct answer.  The grey clouds are placed in random order and  become white once their answer has been correctly selected.  Correct responses move you on to the next question, and incorrect answers result in lightning and thunder and another chance to answer.  Upon completion of the table, children receive a prize monster, which is a cute graphic.