The Most Appetizing Apps for the New School Year

Forget flash cards and books. Studying? Trying to hone your skills? Attempting to read more? Welcome to the world of apps! Never before has your phone been such a great resource for learning. Since most kids are essentially inseparable from their phones and tablets, why not put these devices’ technological punch to good use? There are so many helpful (and not-so-helpful) applications that it can be daunting to find good ones. Whether you are a middle-schooler or a college-bound senior, there are apps for you. Here is a quick list of a few that stand out this year:

Scholly: This is an incredible idea: a way to search available scholarships all in one place. Like a one-stop shop for students looking for college money and grants, Scholly provides a platform through which you can tailor your scholarship search, choosing filters such as amount, requirements, and deadline for submission. The app also gives you access to sample scholarship essays and advice from what Scholly calls “executives with decades of collective experience in education.”

Website: http://myscholly.com/#scholly

Cost for app: Free-$2.99

Epic!: This app essentially aims to be the Netflix of children’s books. At $4.99 a month, Epic! allows users to select titles from a catalog of kid’s books such as Bridge to Terabithia, Where the Wild Things Are, etc. This app provides an “epic” way to save money, as children’s books in 2015 averaged around $20 apiece on the higher end. Not only that, but it also provides a ton (literally, 15,000+) of book choices for readers and includes motivational tools such as progress tracking. This could certainly be the next big thing in reading for young people.

Website: https://www.getepic.com/

Cost: $4.99 per month

Sumdog: How about an app that, unlike Pokemon Go, actually serves an educational purpose? If that’s what you are looking for, Sumdog is the one for you. This app provides a platform of games that teach math. It’s reminiscent of the old handheld video games, only these games teach math skills and offer training in the basics. An added bonus is that students can play against peers and even “the world,” much as one would do on a video game. The idea is to make learning competitive, fun, portable, and modern.

Website: https://www.sumdog.com/

Cost: Free

Shelfie: This is an interesting new twist on your home bookshelf. The app actually lets you turn your existing paperback books into ebooks, simply by taking a photo. After you take the picture, Shelfie will show you which books are available digitally, allowing you then to select the e-versions or audiobooks for download on the cheap or even for free. The idea of bringing print and digital formats together can further students’ chances for reading success, especially in our increasingly paperless world.

Website: http://www.shelfie.com/

Cost: The app itself is free but you do sometimes have to pay for the conversion to digital. If you physically own the book, however, you will save up to 90% on the digital copy.

As a new school year begins, remember that these days, your phone can be used for so much more than just chasing Pokemon!

Written by Phil Lane

Learn More!