Geocache:Similar to a scavenger hunt, only more involved and detailed, classroom geocaching projects encourage participants to keep the movement flowing by adding their own treasure chests for other users to track down.

Record podcasts:With mobile audio technology, classrooms featuring podcasts can record and share their commentaries and interviews on the go.Translating old stories into contemporary vernacular nurtures a greater understanding of the major themes, characters, and plotlines. Text message rewrites:In order to get younger readers more familiar with the ins and outs of classic texts - such as Romeo and Juliet in this example - some intrepid educators are assigning rewrites in abbreviated speech through text messaging.

Send reminders:Whether through text or apps like Remind 101, smartphones offer greater connectivity so teachers ensure students know when assignments are due, what materials to bring, test schedules, and more.Project Noah:Biology educators love transforming their students into “citizen scientists” by asking them to snap photos and videos of their wilderness finds and sharing them with pros and fellow fans alike.Backchanneling:Turn the classroom into an educational MST3K equivalent by equipping smartphones with Twitter and allow students to offer up their own comments and ask questions via a real-time feed that does not disrupt the flow of a lecture.Shooting video:Whether requiring short PSAs, as the linked assignment does, or another type of video entirely, students with smartphones make it easier than ever to shoot, edit, and share their digital projects.Scavenger hunts:Smartphone scavenger hunts have proven a popular pastime for technophiles, and teachers have been known to use them to provide interactive lessons about everything from natural history to nature.Create educational apps:After familiarizing kiddos with properly navigating smartphone apps, challenge some of the more tech-oriented ones to design and develop their own Stanford already offers an open-source class on the subject!.Use educational apps:One of the simplest strategies for engaging students using smartphones involves taking advantage of the thousands of educational apps as supplements.Let’s just go straight to the suggestions, shall we? So many ruminations on what smartphone technologies offer the wired classroom begin with some permutation of how, at first, smartphones are often the bane of teachers’ existence because they cause disruptions.

Smartphone scavenger hunt apps