Note: Check out Back to School with the New Nexus 7 for an updated list of great Android apps for teachers and students.
Google’s new Nexus 7 is proving to be a exceptional tablet for schools. The Penn Manor IT Team has been evaluating Nexus 7 for several weeks. Based on our tests, here are five apps for educators and students to explore. Note that all apps are free to download from the Google Play store.
Note Everything
Super note taking app supports text, voice, and paint notes. Easy to use and highly customizable.
Math Workout
Practice mental math and exercise your mind–a great math practice tool for student and adults.
Common Core
A handy pocket reference for the Common Core K-12 Math and Language Arts standards.
SimpleMind Free
Inspiration fans take note: SimpleMind Free is a useful brainstorming and mind mapper for Nexus 7. The free version has a few minor limitations but is a powerful tool nonetheless.
Google Sky Map
Launch Google Sky Map, point Nexus 7 to the heavens and enjoy a detailed map of stars, constellations and other celestial objects.
Bonus: MIT App Inventor
Not finding an app to fit your needs? Create you own using MIT’s free App Inventor. Similar to the popular Scratch educational programming tool, students can craft Android apps from a web browser running on Linux, Mac OS X or Windows. After building a code masterpiece, budding programmers can send the app directly to Nexus 7.
This list is by no means exhaustive–Google’s Play store contains hundreds of thousands of apps for Nexus 7 and other Android phones and tablets. Future Tech Blog posts will feature additional Nexus 7 apps for education.
Read Part Two: 5 More Classroom Apps for Nexus 7