Tablets in the Kindergarten Classroom

I remember the first time my principal mentioned the possibility of getting tablets for some of our classrooms. I thought, “Well, kindergarten is last on the list for all those kinds of things… I won’t hold my breath.” Much to my surprise, a month later the kindergarten and first grade teachers were called into a meeting. Our principal informed us each of us would be getting six ASUS Transformer tablets to use in our classroom, as long as we promised to attend all of the necessary training it would take to receive them. I enthusiastically told her to sign me up, knowing that tablets would be the golden ticket to get my kiddos excited about learning.

Fast forward to September when the technology assistant in my building popped in to tell me he had good news for me. My tablets had arrived and were officially programed to my username and password. I couldn’t wait to get started. Out of the eight teachers in my building that had received them, I was the first to start the tablets up and start planning how I would utilize them to enhance my curriculum and instruction. In fact, I was so excited to introduce my students to the tablets that I opened up a blank document and let my kids take turns typing their name and the alphabet. We didn’t have any apps yet, but I was not about to let the opportunity to get our hands on the tablets pass me by.

Fast forward to the present. My students have spent eight weeks practicing letters and letter sounds, kindergarten sight word recognition, and reading books I assigned to each individual student that match their independent reading level and metacognitive strategy needs. I’d like to highlight a few of my favorite apps I have been utilizing over the last eight weeks.

Kids A-Z:

My students use Kid A-Z to practice reading on-level text specifically assigned to them from my teacher account. The app allows students to read through the books on their own, listen to the books, and take quizzes on the books to work on comprehension. I can monitor each child's account through my teacher page, which is also where I select and assign books to each child. Each story the child reads helps them gain points on their account. I have been thrilled with the increase in fluency that I've seen since I started using this app. My kindergartners are thrilled when they log-in and see I have assigned them new books or they have moved up a level.

 

Spelling City:

 

My students enjoy using Spelling City to work on spelling color words, unscrambling familiar words, and alphabetizing a short list of words. The app uses engaging games and sound effects to intrigue students and keep them moving forward.

 

 



St. Louis County Public Library:

 

Kindergarten students typically develop a love for reading that is fueled by going to the library and self-selecting books, and being able to enjoy Tumblebooks. For those that don't know, Tumblebooks take existing books and add animation, sound, music, and narration and can be read to the student, or students can read themselves. I haven't utilized every aspect of the St. Louis County Public Library app yet, but I know they have a variety of Tumblebooks available - and my students are thrilled to get to use them!

 

 

 



Scratch Jr.:

 

My district has been expanding its STEM opportunities at the elementary level over the last couple years. Scratch Jr. was recommended to us by the STEM department, and allows students to match together the available programming opportunities to make their character sing, dance, jump around, etc. Student get to use their creativity to create their own interactive stories and games.

 

 



123s ABCs Kids Handwriting ZBP:

 

If your district uses Zaner-Bloser handwriting to teach your students to write, this is a wonderful app for your kids! The app allows students to see the letter or number, trace it with their finger, and listen to the name and/or sound it makes. All students have to do to erase their writing is shake the tablet - which might be the best part for a five year old!

 

 





Al five of these apps have been great for reinforcing lessons and ideas we are already working on in my kindergarten classroom. My students are thrilled to practice these skills when they get the opportunity to use one of our classroom tablets. I hope at least one of these apps could help you in your classroom as well!