Middle school students get good at ‘app smashing’

E.T. Booth Middle School sixth-grade students are "app smashing" using iPads to master technology and math concepts. App smashing, using multiple apps to create projects or complete tasks, gives students creative ways to showcase their learning and allow educators to assess their understanding and skills. Cherokee County instructional technology specialist Jim Berry leads the lessons during teacher Lisa Burns' math classes. "By focusing on the iPad native apps like Numbers, GarageBand, and iMovie, we are taking advantage of the uniqueness of iPads and the tremendous potential they offer as powerful classroom tools for creating," Berry said. After the training, students collaborate to create group presentations using multiple software formats. The projects center on math concepts they are learning such as ratios, rates, order of operations and exponents. "It has been an amazing experience, and the children truly enjoy the new knowledge," Burns said. "I plan to use this more and more in my classroom."