App info: Phoster for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod / Cost: 1.99$
Quick overview: An app that allows students to easily create posters on an iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad. This app can be used for any course that requires students to produce a very simple presentation or idea. Phoster is similar to the Smore website I posted a few weeks back. The main difference is that Smore is a Web 2.0 tool that is meant to be used on a Mac or PC (and allows for more complex posters) while Phoster is an app that allows you to create quick and simple posters on Apple mobile devices.
How does it work? Students start by picking the look of their “Phoster” poster by choosing from a list of included templates. Once they choose a template, they can add their own image from the built-in camera or the Internet, a little text, and then export the whole poster by e-mail (JPG) to a computer so it can be printed on a color printer. It’s easy to use too!
How can this be used in the classroom? Literacy students could create a “Phoster” about accessing a service in their community or a PSA about a civic responsibility. As each Phoster can only contain one image and a very small amount of text, students could be asked to create a whole series of simple posters around a central theme. This activity could be used as an opportunity to help Literacy level students with very basic writing skills, such as grammar and spelling. Otherwise, individual posters could be created by the students as a “my name is” sign and include a picture of themselves (taken with the iPad’s camera) to be used at the start of the term. Higher level students could use this app as a way to create a class announcement to post up around the school, classroom, or community.
How does it work? To see an overview of how it works, please watch this 4 minute “quick look” video by AdoramaTV:
