Organizational skills are not developed overnight, and for some students can be very difficult to master. Thanks to advancements in mobile technology, there are applications that make tracking homework and efficiency much more pleasant than scrawling in a print-based student planner. These five apps have the potential to bring students, parents, and teachers together with complementary goals and straightforward communication.
ClassDojo for Students (iOS Universal Android Free, Ages 4-12)
ClassDojo for Students, developed by Class Twist Inc, charts in-class student behavior, aiming to help kids develop “character strengths” that will make them well rounded and successful over the course of their lives. A lofty goal for sure, but ClassDojo for Students – which pairs with teacher version ClassDojo – allows students to create avatars and check in on individual progress, which is shown as a percent, along with achievement badges for Persistence, Working Hard, Teamwork, and more. Students need a student code in order to use the app, which they can obtain from their teacher.
Study Cal – Student Planner and Organizer (iOS Universal $1.99, Ages 11-18)
Study Cal is rather new to the App Store and belongs in the pantheon of sensational homework tracking apps. Through the wonders of iCloud syncing all of a student’s courses, assignments, grades, notes and important reminders are linked across all devices. The app serves as a space to keep every semester totally organized with a clean user interface. Study Cal even produces small graphs showing grade progress based on logged assignments, as well as overall GPA and shows what percentage is needed on an assignment or upcoming test to maintain one’s current letter grade. If a student thrives on organization, Study Cal is a pairing that can last from middle school through the college level.
Remind: Safe Classroom Communication (iOS Universal Android Free, Ages 12-18)
Remind: Safe Classroom Communication provides an innovative messaging system for teachers. The app’s creation was inspired by a Harvard University study that found teacher to parent communication significantly increases the completion of homework and other assignments. Teachers can use this app to message, remind, assign homework, and send words of encouragement to students and parents. Once recipients get the messages on their phones – all phone numbers are kept private – they can work toward classroom goals, whether they are academic or behavioral.
myHomework Student Planner (iOS Universal Android Free, Ages 11-18)
If your or your child’s teacher is on Teachers.io, you can simply tap a few buttons to “join their class” via myHomework Student Planner. The app’s push notifications that remind of upcoming assignments and tests are absolutely essential. Students should see an upswing in productivity and reduced stress once they manage their course load with myHomework Student Planner. Through the app’s passable display and color-coded system separating classes and distinguishing urgency, they can sort homework assignments based on class, priority, type and due date. Younger students will feel accomplished when they swipe right to remove completed assignments from their homework list!
Sunrise Calendar (iOS Universal Android Handset Free, Ages 12-18)
The free Sunrise Calendar app works with Google Calendar, Exchange, and iCloud. Parents should note that this app is advertised as for ages 4 and up, but it is more realistic for use at the middle school, high school or university levels. The app default interface reformats calendars so they are easier to read and process, putting scheduled events into a continuous, scrollable feed (on iPhones) displaying the calendar at the top of the screen by default. While there is no inherent academic goals or assessment tethered to Sunrise Calendar, students can potentially use it to organize their extracurricular activities, stay apprised of upcoming school social events, and more. Owing to its customization and openness, the sky’s the limit for Sunrise Calendar.
