Mathematics Apps for School

We are always hearing about new apps and trying to find ones that are great for students. There are so many mathematics apps available, it is hard to find the ones that are best for student learning.

Recently we sat down with our school's Mathematics Coach, Tilson Crew, to evaluate what apps we should put on the Infant (K1, K2 and grade 1) and Junior (Grade 2-5) iPads. Tilson has an incredible understanding of mathematics and what is best for students of all age levels. 

So many of the mathematics apps out there are ones that have the student just practice algorithms. We were looking for apps that would set themselves apart in a number of ways. 

So what sets a great mathematics app apart from others? There are a number of features that we really like which make the app great in a school environment.

1. Is the app customizable? Can you start at different levels or do you always have to start from the beginning? If we can start further ahead, it is easier to customize the app so the older students don't have to start with levels that are much too easy for them.

2. Does the app allow for different users? In a classroom, there isn't always one iPad for each student. So having an app that allows students to log in and have their own experience is a great feature. Mathematics apps often increase in difficulty (as they should) as the student gets better. But what happens when a student who is very proficient uses the app and then another student who isn't as proficient tries it and it is too hard. Having different users in an app allows for each student to progress at their own speed. Many of the apps that have different users also allow a teacher (or parent) to go and monitor the progress of the different users.

3. Does the app require more complex thinking? Or is it simply drilling and practice of math facts? Some apps require students to think in multiple ways when solving a problem while others are repetitively solving problems. Not that there is anything wrong with repetitively solving problems, but many apps do that. You can find worksheets or internet based games that will do that. 

4. Is the app engaging? Student engagement is an important factor. Of course, not every student is going to be engaged with everything that is done at school. However, when I hear a student say that they have to get this 

5. How much time does the student spend on mathematics? Some apps have a lot of bells and whistles and fancy graphics. They look great on the outside, but students might not spend that much time actually engaging in mathematical thinking.

6. Does the app put the pressure of time on the students? Timed mathematics practice can be a very touchy subject. Generally, we don't like apps that put pressure on students when they are learning. This isn't an absolute, but it is nice if this feature can be turned on or off.

Of course we are not saying that all apps have to have all of these features. But these are some of the things we are considering when we evaluate mathematics apps.

Here are some of the apps that we found that we really liked.

Addimals - A great app that teaches adding strategies.
Appropriate for: K - 3

1.  Is the app customizable? You can't customize where students start. But the students are taught about different strategies in adding.

2. Does the app allow for different users? Yes. Teachers can also monitor the progress of individual students.

3. Does the app require more complex thinking? The app encourages students to try different addition strategies. They can choose the best strategy for the question.

4. Is the app engaging? Students enjoy the app and enjoy the progress they see.

5. How much time does the student spend on mathematics? Although there are videos in between levels, I find that students are very motivated to get to the mathematics and often skipped over the videos.

6. Does the app put the pressure of time on the students? The only time that the students are under time pressure is when they are working on the memorization part of the app.

Cost - Free


Overall - This is a great app for school. I love how students can be tracked and progress in their own time. One of my favourite things about this app is that it teaches students different mathematics strategies. Must have.

If you like Addimals, you should take a look at the Mt. Multiplis app by the same Teachley Group. It is designed to teach multiplication strategies and is in the same style as Addimals. Here is a quick video.

Subitize Tree - An app to teach quick recognition of numbers
Appropriate for: K - 3

1.  Is the app customizable? You can choose different level to start.

2. Does the app allow for different users? No

3. Does the app require more complex thinking? No

4. Is the app engaging? Somewhat - because the app does one thing (shows a number quickly and then gets students to recall what number was displayed), students can sometimes lose interest.

5. How much time does the student spend on mathematics? There are some breaks in the app and I wish it moved along a bit faster, but overall it is quite good.

6. Does the app put the pressure of time on the students? Yes. The whole point of subitizing is to quickly recall how many items are in a group. But the amount of time that is allowed is customizable.

Cost - $0.99

Overall - This app is designed to do one thing - test the student's ability to see a set of objects and recall how many there are in the set. It does a good job of this and one can customize the level which students start at. Great for specific skill.

Friends of Ten - Using two rows of 5 to teach concepts around recognizing numbers to ten without counting them.
Appropriate for: K-2

1.  Is the app customizable? No, but there are a number of activities in the app

2. Does the app allow for different users? No

3. Does the app require more complex thinking? No

4. Is the app engaging? There are a number of different activities to engage the students

5. How much time does the student spend on mathematics? The mathematics is the focus of the app

6. Does the app put the pressure of time on the students? No

Cost - $0.99

Sushi Monster - An app which requires students to find two numbers that when added together (or another part of the app, multiplied together) form a number.
Appropriate for: K - 5

1.  Is the app customizable? No. You need to go through the levels to get to the next level. But once you have gone through a level, you can go back to it

2. Does the app allow for different users? No

3. Does the app require more complex thinking? There can be multiple options to add a set of numbers together.

4. Is the app engaging? Students can choose from addition or multiplication and they enjoyed trying to beat their score.

5. How much time does the student spend on mathematics? The mathematics is the focus of the app with a little wait time for the question to be asked.

6. Does the app put the pressure of time on the students? No

Cost - Free

Overall - I really like how there are multiple options that the students can choose when solving a problem using this app.

Jungle Time - An app to teach student about time.
Appropriate for: K - 3

1.  Is the app customizable? There are lots of options to customize including the sounds and different time intervals.

2. Does the app allow for different users? No

3. Does the app require more complex thinking? No

4. Is the app engaging? Young students will enjoy the animals in the app.

5. How much time does the student spend on mathematics? The majority of time students spend in the app is trying to tell time but some of their time is spent waiting for the hands of the clock to spin around.

6. Does the app put the pressure of time on the students? No

Cost - $2.99

Overall - The app does a good job of helping students learn to tell time and has a number of options to customize the app.

Blackboard Madness Math - A great app for challenging students' thinking. Very much like Fruit Ninja.
Appropriate for: Grades 4 - 5

1.  Is the app customizable? No

2. Does the app allow for different users? No

3. Does the app require more complex thinking? Yes - students are required to look at nontraditional questions and solve them quickly.

4. Is the app engaging? Students enjoy the way the nature of the game where they have to slash the correct answer.

5. How much time does the student spend on mathematics? Students are always engaging in complex mathematics

6. Does the app put the pressure of time on the students? Yes - the students are under pressure to solve problems quickly.

Cost - Free

Overall - This is a wonderful app for challenging students in terms of complex thinking and problem solving. The pressure of answering questions quickly won't be for all students though.

Mathboard - A Mathematics learning focused app that isn't flashy, but focuses on helping students learn about the four basic operations.
Appropriate for: Grades 2 - 5

1.  Is the app customizable? Yes - This is the best app for customization. You can customize the language and even customize the way each word is said (e.g you can change sum to add or plus or any other word).

2. Does the app allow for different users? Yes - and you can track the progress of the different students.

3. Does the app require more complex thinking? Yes - students are required to look at nontraditional questions and solve them quickly.

4. Is the app engaging? This app is not flashy like some mathematics apps, but it is based on learning.

5. How much time does the student spend on mathematics? This app is all about learning. Students can even put in their own question (addition, subtraction, multiplication or division) and the app will show them how to solve it step by step.

6. Does the app put the pressure of time on the students? No

Cost - $4.99

Overall - Check out the video below to see the features in action. It is one of my favourite apps and totally worth the $4.99 price tag. You can track students and it is very customizable. 

Kakooma - An non-traditional addition app which requires the student to look at nine numbers and find a set of three related numbers.
Appropriate for: Grades 3 - 5

1.  Is the app customizable? There are 4 different levels one can try

2. Does the app allow for different users? No

3. Does the app require more complex thinking? Yes - students scan a series of numbers and try multiple combinations to find a set of three. It is a puzzle type format and can be challenging.

4. Is the app engaging? Once you know how to play, the app can be very engaging. 

5. How much time does the student spend on mathematics? There are no bells and whistles on this app. There aren't even clear instructions. The whole time students are on this app, they are working on addition skills.

6. Does the app put the pressure of time on the students? It is timed activity but the running clock is small and in the top corner of the app.

Cost - Free

Overall - I love this puzzle app. There are so many problem solving strategies that students can use while trying to find the set of three numbers.

Writing a Real Book Makes a Difference to Students

I have been lucky enough to work with our Grade 3s in the publishing phase of their informational book writing process. What an adventure!

Steve Kay (the Digital Literacy mentor) and I both hoped the team might consider creating digital books with iBooks Author, and were thrilled when all 7 classes got on board.

We set up a time to take all the teachers through some of the features, and they practised creating their own book, complete with sourcing Creative Commons images, and experimenting with widgets. This step was crucial, as it meant we had a real partnership when introducing iBooks Author to the students.

One of our aims was to help students make connections between the functions available on Pages and those on iBooks Author. We began by getting students in pairs (and later, groups) to identify the similarities and differences between the two programmes. This encouraged them to explore the menus and try different features before getting started. We shared these as a class.

Prior to this, with their class teacher, the students studied non-fiction informational texts and noted the features common in the genre, such as labelled diagrams, images and tables. They chose something they knew very well to write about. There was a diverse range of subjects selected - from Christianity to Minecraft - and everything in between!

Students wrote their drafts in a Google Docs template provided by their teacher. It was peer edited using the commenting function. Words to be included in the glossary were made bold, and images they thought they might look for were identified in a different colour on the side (see example below).

Once the text was ready, it was time to transfer it to iBooks Author, and add the features the students felt would help convey an understanding of their topic to their reader.

Students used Creative Commons Search to look for images to use in their books. Referencing the majority of these images was made extremely easy due to the use of Cogdog's Flickr CC image bookmarklet (drag the blue button to your bookmarks bar and click to attribute from Flickr).

Building on our work with the design principles of CARP (Contrast, Alignment, Repetition & Proximity), students worked carefully to make sure their choice of colours fit their content, was easy to read, chose a font which matched their content, and considered the alignment of their text boxes etc. They were very mindful and deliberate in their choices.

One of the excellent features in iBooks Author for informational books is the interactive image widget. It allows you to zoom into parts of an image, and provide more details. Labelling the parts of a flower, then zooming in to each part and getting more information is one example of how this can work. This was very popular with the students.

In addition, some students chose to add 3D images, which they sourced from Sketchup's 3D warehouse. The ability to get just about any 3D image (from Touch Rugby pitches to the latest Lamborghini) made this a popular option!

A Dad correctly guesses a review question

Many pupils used the review tool to create interactive quizzes to check for understanding of their content. Being able to use images and labeling diagrams in the reviews as well as typical multi-choice questions meant there was a lot of variety.

Students added glossary terms they identified in their draft writing, and it was lovely to see their definitions written in their own words.

Some chose to record their blurb as their intro media to the book, while others decided to create keynote files to add.

Once finished, students exported their finished books as .ibooks files, and uploaded them to Google Drive. This allowed for easy transfer to the iPads.

I loved watching their faces as they opened their books for the first time.

When reflecting on the process, the students I spoke to were unanimous about their enthusiasm for using iBooks Author as the platform for writing their book. They were able to articulate many reasons for this, however, one student summed it up nicely by saying:

"Google Docs is good for drafting, Pages is good for posters, but iBooks Author is best for books, because we're supposed to be writing a book! This feels like a REAL book, but better, because we can add all the extra features for interactivity."

A celebration followed, where students showed their completed books to their very impressed parents. The final piece in the puzzle is our growing list of published authors on the Write Now bookstore. Follow this link for examples of our published books. More will be added as they come to hand.

A huge thank you to the tireless Grade 3 teachers for all you have done in getting students to this stage.

Photography by Dave Caleb