I have had an iPad since May and this semester (fall 2010) I have a class of pre-service teachers that I was Santa Claus and gave them all an iPad.  Boy, was that a fun day in class and a huge surprise for them.  Anyway, WE (my student and I) are doing lots of exploring and using of our iPads.  We are on the lookout for articles, blog posts and anything we can find about iPad and using them as a teacher, as a student and in the classroom with kids.  Today in Ed Galaxy: Where Education and Technology Meet, Kevin Cummins has an interesting post 5 Apps that will make you a more productive teacher. I agree with Kevin when he says there is no shortage of apps and like Keven we are all wondering if it might just replace our laptops in the classroom. What do you think?

Kevin recommends the following apps and to read his full post, CLICK HERE

Numbers for iPad:  wow, first on Kevin’s list, but would not be first for me. I don’t even use Numbers or even Excel on my laptop, just not a spreadsheet person, in fact, I run kicking & screaming when somebody wants me to use spreadsheets. But, I also know I am not normal!  I am sure I just need to get over it!

GoodReader for iPad:  “access your documents including pdf files, MS office documents, iWork, html files, hi res photos, up to 1 gig in size and even audio and video straight from your school or home network in seconds via wireless or USB cable.“  I have installed, but have not used it yet, so no opinion, do you have an opinion?

DropBox for iPad: Dropbox is software that syncs your files online and across your computers. Put your files into your Dropbox on one computer, and they’ll be instantly available on any of your other computers that you’ve installed Dropbox on (Windows, Mac, and Linux too!) Because a copy of your files are stored on Dropbox’s secure servers, you can also access them from any computer or mobile device using the Dropbox website.  HINT: read the instructions and watch the tutorial video, it is save you time in the long run.  Again, I have installed, but have only used a little.

Omnifocus all in one organization tool for iPad but is one of the more expensive iPad apps at $37.99.  OmniFocus for iPad combines the in-depth task management functionality of a desktop app with the advanced mobile experience of the iPad. With flexible viewing options, location-aware task lists, and on-the-fly task entry with voice notes and image attachments, OmniFocus for iPad is the trusted system you need for managing everything in your busy life.  Wow, 37.99, I have to come up some really compleeling reasons to need it to fork over that much money.

Pogo Sketch:  OK, I like this idea, I bought one of these for my iPhone to make typing text messages easier, but I kept loosing them.  But since I got my iPad, I kept thinking I would like a stylus of some type.  I also noticed in the Sunday Flyer for Best Buy, that they have a Tagus Stylus for iPad.  And of course, there are others, here is a link to the BoxWave site with a variety of different brands, features and prices for iPad Stylus.  I think a stylus is in my very near future.  And with the Stylus, WritePad looks to be a good handwriting app.

Evernote:  I have written about this before and I have to admit that I still have not given it a good try. But Kevin feels it is is a must have app.

By the end of this week (hopefully Friday), there will be a post about the top apps my class has landed on, I hope you will be back to learn what these future teachers have to say.

Click on Comments and tell us what your favorite apps for education or personally are so far.

Related posts:

1. Webinar Opportunity for Educators about mobile devices-iPhone & iPad,
2. iPad: Keep students connected to your curriculum from home and back.
3. iPad & MobileMe are finally more CLOUD friendly
4. Classrooms of the future are on exhibit at national tech summit
5. WOW: I will have iPads in a section of my technology class for future teachers