ThinkFree online included in Rasmussen College’s

“Top 100 Applications for Tech-Savvy Teachers” article.

100 Apps for Tech–Savvy Teachers

Teachers have one of the most difficult jobs out there. As an educator, you have to manage a
classroom of boisterous students, organize heaps of data, stay up–to–date with current events
and plan lessons day in and day out. In today’s technologically linked world, the ability to use
web applications is at your advantage as an educator, and we are here to tell you the best
tools to use. Here is a collection of 100 web and iPhone applications that make the grade for
tech–savvy teachers:

1) 37 Signals: (http://37signals.com/) More than three million people use this application for a reason — it’s
extremely effective for businesses and educators. 37 Signals makes it easier to collaborate, share, discuss and
get work done through its programs — Basecamp (http://basecamphq.com) (a project management system),
Highrise (http://www.highrisehq.com) (where you can track your contact with parents and students),
Backpack (http://www.backpackhq.com) (where you can organize your life) and Campfire
(http://www.campfirehq.com) (an instant messaging system).

2) AVG: (http://free.avg.com/us–en/get–basic–protection) Education in today’s world has become mostly web–

based, so it’s important that teacher’s computers are virus–free. AVG is a downloadable application that
protects your personal computer against security threats like spam and malware.

3) Book Glutton: (http://www.bookglutton.com/portal/about.html) Book Glutton is a great application for lit–

hungry English teachers. It allows users to read books over the web as well as annotate and discuss books in an
online community forum.

4) Backboard: (http://www.getbackboard.com)This web application serves as an online docking management

system that facilitates real–time communication. The service can automate the process of getting feedback
and approval on projects created with just about any file type.

5) BrainHoney: (http://brainhoney.com/about.html) BrainHoney is a free web application that educators can

use to author online curriculum, map course standards, personalize lesson plans, access online grade books
and interact with parents and students.
6) Broken–Notebook: (http://www.broken–notebook.com/spell_checker/) If there is one faux pas as a
teacher, it’s bad spelling. The online application, Broken–Notebook corrects the spelling of online
content...similar to a word processor...but online.

7) Chalksite: (http://create.chalksite.com/signup) Chalksite is an uncomplicated web–based application

where teachers can streamline grade and assignment tracking. The app can also host a class website and
facilitate two–way communication between students and teachers through a chat function.

8) ClassMarker: (http://www.classmarker.com) ClassMarker is an online–based test generator that allows

teachers to create quizzes with a blend of multiple choice, true or false, short–answer, fill–in–the–blank or
essay questions. Classmarker is the quintessential example of a successful Web 2.0 application, as results are
instantly dispersed to students and emailed to professors.

9) Comapping: (http://www.comapping.com/education.html) This tech–savvy web application allows students

and teachers to engage in real–time collaboration online. This application requires a minimal learning curve
and teachers can easily implement this program into their coursework.

10) CreateDebate.com: (http://www.createdebate.com/index.php/teachers) CreateDebate is a dynamic

virtual learning environment created to help students discuss and debate their thoughts online.
11) Curriki: (http://www.curriki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Main/WebHome) This wiki–based online application is
used by teachers to share educational ideas and coursework. Great for teachers stumped on ideas for activities,
this application has a stock of lesson plans, handouts and study guides.

12) Edmodo: (http://www.edmodo.com/) Edmodo is a secure social platform for teachers and students to
micro–blog and share files, events, documents, assignments and grades. The app is formatted to emulate
Twitter and is crafted with the classroom in mind. But unlike Twitter, this site blocks the general public from
seeing the content, providing a safe haven for students and teachers.

13) Edublogs: (http://edublogs.org/) Edublogs is an academic micro–blogging platform created with

WordPress–powered blogs. With Edublogs, teachers can include class publications and newsletters, online
discussions, allowing student blogs and adding multimedia. This free application also suggests tips on how
educators can integrate blogs into their coursework.

14) Engrade: (http://www.engrade.com/) Engrade is an application that fosters organization and efficiency in
education. Teachers can use this tool to manage grade books and attendance books, post assignment due
dates and add individualized student reports. One of the most popular applications for teachers, the site has
more than 200,000 users per month.

15) DOC Cop: (http://www.doccop.com/index.html?nc=41078331) This tech–savvy web app allows teachers to
catch plagiarizing students through software that cross–checks online and offline sources. DOC Cop emails a
report indicating how much of the document may have been copied and where the copied lines may have
originated.

16) Footnote: (http://www.footnote.com/) Footnote is a history teacher’s dream app, with more than 60
million original historical documents to peruse through. Users of Footnote can use the site to view never–
before–seen historic documents from renowned institutions like The National Archives and The Library of
Congress.

17) Flickr: The Commons: (http://www.flickr.com/commons/) This application is great for presentations with
its vast collection of public photography. Images from The Library of Congress, National Media Museum,
Oregon State University, Brooklyn Art Museum and many credible institutions are showcased on this colorful
application.

18) GlogsterEDU: (edu.glogster.com) Glogster EDU is a unique academic resource for interactive and visual
learning. It allows teachers and their students to make online multimedia documents with text, photos, videos,
graphics, music and other multimedia in a secure virtual classroom.

19) Gmail: (http://mail.google.com/mail/) Google is the ruler of email: with the ever–so–popular Gmail
application. With 2.5GB, label creators, email search, multi–language support, rick text formatting, contact
importing and automatic custom signatures: this app is a teacher’s dream.

20) Google Voice: (http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/03/here–comes–google–voice.html) Google Voice is a

fantastic app used to help web users manage their voice communications. Educators can use this system to
transcribe important conversations with parents of students.

21) Google Base: (http://googlebase.blogspot.com/) For prospective teachers, Google Base can serve as an
untapped resource for job postings.

22) Jalenack's AJAX Periodic Table of the Elements:(http://code.jalenack.com/periodic/) This online

periodic table of elements is great for science teachers. When you toggle through the elements, users can
essential facts such as atomic number, symbol and weight — plus links to Wikipedia
(http://www.wikipedia.com) and ChemiCool (http://www.chemicool.com/).

23) Lesson Planner

Advanced:(http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/home_learning/lessonplanneradvanced.html) Created
by educators, Lesson Planner Advanced helps teachers deliver great lectures with digital resources. Throw
away the pencil and paper...This online lesson plan grid serves as an amazing tool for teachers to create lesson
plans in one place.

24) Mindomo: (http://www.mindomo.com/) One of the most effective ways to organize information and
critically think is to visually draw out your thoughts. Mindmaps does just that — with its web–based mind
mapping software.
25) Moodle: (http://moodle.org/) Moodle is a virtual learning environment that is a free for educators — great
for creating class websites. In addition, this application offers a haven for education–related events, forums,
books, manuals and downloads.

26) MindMeister: (http://www.mindmeister.com/) Another online mind–mapping tool, MindMeister promotes

free–flowing thought processes with its interactive map–making.

27) My Studiyo: (http://mystudiyo.com) MyStudiyo is a web app that serves as a portal online tests and
quizzes. Users simply have to add content to quiz templates and create a customized quiz for your audience.

28) Nibipedia: (http://www.nibipedia.com/index.html) Nibipedia is a mashup of YouTube’s

(http://www.youtube.com) educational videos. The app that relies heavily on community contribution and is
built using a wiki–like construct where the web community can comment and share video clips.

29) ObjectGraph Dictionary: (http://www.objectgraph.com/dictionary/) ObjectGraph is a web–based

dictionary application. This efficient app can save teachers time while prepping for a lesson or grading papers.

30) Pandora: (http://www.pandora.com) Though this app doesn’t directly correlate to academia — it allows
teachers to relax with a fully customizable internet radio.
31) Picasa: (http://picasa.google.com/#utm_campaign=en&utm_source=en–ha–na–us–
bk&utm_medium=ha&utm_term=google%20picasa)The blend of the name of famed artist Pablo Picasso and the
phrase mi casa for "my house" and pictures is Picasa is great for creating visually–rich learning tools for
students.

32) Plagiarism Detect: (http://www.plagiarismdetect.com/) Plagiarism Detect is another high–tech plagiarism

program crafted for educators. The program has a small monthly fee but the cost is worth it, as it can save
teachers tons of time by eliminating endless Google phrase searches.

33) Remember The Milk: (http://www.rememberthemilk.com/) Organizing your personal and professional life
can be a daily struggle — but applications like ―Remember the Milk‖ can ease your pain. This online list
management application allows users to create many different lists, schedule tasks, sync lists to email and
instant messaging and generate time estimates on projects.

34) SchoolTool: (http://schooltool.org/) SchoolTool is a free online bookkeeping source for school
administrators. The application delivers organization tools for grading, scheduling, attendance, learning
assessment and report card generation.

35) SchoolRack: (http://www.schoolrack.com/) SchoolRack is a free website where teacher can design their
classroom’s website. The app allows teachers to build colorful, customizable websites, while storing mailing
lists and moderating private discussions with students and/or parents.
36) Scribd: (http://www.scribd.com/) Scribd is the largest social publishing company in the world, where tens
of millions of people each month can publish and discover documents online. On Scribd, teachers can utilize
the web publishing function for PDFs, Word, PowerPoint presentations and Excel documents.

37) ScribLink: (http://www.scriblink.com/) Scriblink is a free digital whiteboard where users can share online
copy and design in real-time on a digital whiteboard. Whether you're using the site for fun or tutoring a
student in Algebra, Scriblink brings the power of free hand expression in a digital setting.

38) Schoopy: (http://www.schoopy.com/): Powered by Amazon (http://www.amazon.com), Schoopy creates

a weekly list of hot Amazon books using skillful algorithms.

39) Shmoop: (http://www.shmoop.com/teachers/) Despite this application’s silly name, Schmoop is actually
an incredibly useful tool for liberal art educators. This application has amassed hundreds of study guides, essay
labs and ―Best of the Web‖ sections for arts and humanities written by Masters and Ph.D.-level graduates.

40) Symbaloo: (http://www.symbaloo.com/us/) Symbaloo, an ancient Greek verb that means 'gathering' does
just that on this website. Educators from around the globe use our platform to create a collection of specific
links for their students. Teachers are encouraged to create an aggregation of URLs related to subjects in
homework assignments to aid with research or take-home projects.
41) Sparknotes: (http://www.sparknotes.com) Known by former generations as the ―little yellow handbook‖
of abbreviated text, Sparknotes has since evolved to serve students and teachers on the World Wide Web.
SparkNotes.com helps students learn and practice basic skills, write a paper, study for a test and achieve their
academic goals. From summaries of classics like The Scarlet Letter and To Kill A Mockingbird, to Science
guides — teachers can utilize this app for supplementary learning.

42) TaDa List: (http://tadalist.com/) It is no surprise that educators are burdened with a heavy workload. List
making is a great solution for organizing the hectic lives of teachers — and TaDa is a great resource for that.
The application allows users to create, share and utilize more than four million lists.

43) TeacherTube: (http://www.teachertube.com/) TeacherTube was conceived in 2007 by a veteran

educator — and is used to augment lessons through an online community. The application’s goal of ―teachers
teaching teachers‖ has proven to be successful as in the past few years, it has evolved to include document,
photo, video and audio sharing.

44) The Phone Company: (http://www.tpc.int/) The Phone Company serves as a free online fax service used
to send text–based faxes via email or a web browser. It is a great tool for teachers to use to connect with co–
teachers, parents and administrators.
45) ThinkFree Office Online: (http://www.thinkfree.com/) ThinkFree is a Microsoft® Office compatible
application suite comprised of word processing, spreadsheet and presentation graphics software – all usable
online and offline. ThinkFree Office can automatically install and upgrade over the internet with features such
as Internet–based file sharing and storage.
46) Wikipedia: (http://www.wikipedia.org/) Wikipedia is a vast online encyclopedia that covers just about
any subject under the moon. Though submissions are user–generated, the content is accurate and detailed and
the site can serve as a great resource for teachers and students.

47) WriteCheck: (http://writecheck.turnitin.com/static/home.html) WriteCheck (powered by Turnitin) is the

ultimate plagiarism detector... The solution allows teachers to check originality by serving as the "third check"
for any paper – first: spelling check; second: grammar check; and, third: originality check.

48) Yahoo Bookmarks: (http://bookmarks.yahoo.com) Bookmarks is great for teachers who want to store and
organize personal bookmarks. If you use a Yahoo–powered search browser, this application allows you to use a
practical built–in bookmark manager and integrate a myriad of web services.

49) Yola: (http://www.yola.com/) Yola is an application that channels the average Joe’s web developing skills
by offering simple tools to design a website. Though this application can be used outside the academic world,
it is useful for teachers who want to create online materials to augment their coursework.

50) Zoho: (http://www.zoho.com/) A 2008 WebWare winner for ―Best Online Application,‖ Zoho serves as a
suite of web–based office applications in which word processing documents, spreadsheets and databases can
be created and saved online. Teachers can save their notes or create assignments all in one place with this
clever application.
 iPhone Apps for Teachers

Currently, Apple has more than 60,000 iPhone applications in existence, so it’s no wonder that
there are great programs to choose from.

1) 10,000 Science Facts: (http://www.macworld.com/appguide/app.html?id=298184&expand=false) Become

well–versed in biology, chemistry and physical science with this great iPhone/iTouch app. With a complete
database of scientific subjects, teachers will be able to answer every quirky query their student pose.

2) 30Boxes: (http://30boxes.com/blog/index.php/2008/01/25/30-boxes-for-iphone-oh-so-sweet/) Stay on top

of assignments, meetings and deadlines using this calendar iPhone application.

3) AccelaStudy Vocabulary Builder: (http://www.accelastudy.com/) Teachers can expand their English

vocabulary and share their knowledge to the inquiring minds of students. The application imbeds educational
flashcards, vocabulary lists, quizzes and audio pronunciations.

4) Air Sharing: (http://www.apple.com/iphone/apps-for-iphone/staff-picks/air-sharing.html) This app allows

users to access documents from their computer onto their iPhone. Talk about efficiency!

5) Assignments: (http://www.apptism.com/apps/assignments) Assignments, as the name suggests, allows you

to keep track of assignments and coursework—and works great for teachers and students. Not only can you add
an assignment with a due date, but you can also add recordings and note the priority of each assignment.
6) Attendance Countdown:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/productivity/attendancecountdown.html)
Attendance Countdown is the ultimate tool for project managing and tracking time.

7) Brain Tuner: (http://www.apple.com/webapps/games/masterbrain.html) Give your brain a workout with

this fun application. It’s great for students and teachers alike.

8) BookShelf: (http://iphone.iusethis.com/app/bookshelf) Paper–bound books are so 90s. Apple is now

offering an application called BookShelf, where users can read books straight from a mobile device.

9) Creative Whack Pack:(http://iphoneapplicationlist.com/2009/03/31/creative-whack-pack%C2%AE/)

Teachers can find ways to inspire the creativity of their students with Creative Whack Pack, an app with more
than 64 illustrated creativity strategies created to inspire.

10) Cliff Notes on the Go:(http://www.appsafari.com/productivity/9292/cliffnotes-to-go/) The CliffNotes

that you know and love has emerged into the mobile device scene. Teachers and students can read
abbreviated texts and summaries of classic literature through this application.
11) Easy GPA: (http://iphoneapplicationlist.com/2009/03/20/easygpa/) This application allows students and
educators to calculate grade point averages on the go.

12) eBooks by Shortcovers:(http://iphoneapplicationlist.com/2009/10/06/ebooks-by-shortcovers/) Read

from a collection of thousands of essays, short stories and books directly from you iPhone to pick the perfect
books for the classroom.

13) EditGrid Spreadsheets: (http://www.editgrid.com/) EditGrid offers one of the leading online spreadsheet
programs that now available on your iPhone. This app allows users to manage their Excel spreadsheets in a
web–hosted database.

14) Educate: (http://www.appsafari.com/productivity/9237/educate/) The Educate application is a perfect

mobile project manager for teachers, offering the ability to personalize your weekly timetable and plan for
individual lessons all from a single interface.

15) EngLits: (http://appshopper.com/education/englits–the–tempest) Download and read hundreds of classic

books with detailed audio and text summaries of books and plays by Shakespeare, Dickens, Austen, Hawthorne,
Bronte, and other authors.
16) Evernote: (http://www.evernote.com/about/download/iphone/) This iPhone app will make it easy to
capture and tag items and notes so you can retrieve the data when it’s convenient for you.

17) Facebook: (http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=2915120374&b) Check up on your

students via Facebook for the iPhone and iPod Touch. You can even keep them updated on class assignments
and due dates through this application.

18) Foreca.Mobi Weather: (http://www.apple.com/webapps/weather/) Concerned that there may be a snow

day in store? Foreca.Mobi Weather is a cool weather app that gives a 10–day forecast of more than 140,000
locations.

19) Geek Logik:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/entertainment/geeklogik.html) The ScientificBlogging.com

author has harnessed the power of algebra to help teachers and students learn simple formulas for algebraic
success in this cool app.

20) GPA Calc:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/calculate/gpacalc_johnrouda.html) Set your students up with

GPA Calc, where they can track their grade point average on a 4.0 scale.
21) Grammar Up:(http://eknathkadam.com/grammarup/Grammar_Up_For_iPhone.html)
(http://www.macworld.com/appguide/app.html?id=66862&expand=false) This English grammar application
allows users to refine their grammar through stimulating quizzes.

22) GPA.me:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/productivity/gpamefreestudentwebsites.html) GPA.me

features include grade and class checking, photos, schedule, grade point average stats and class notes.

23) GlueyNotes:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/productivity/glueynotes.html) GlueyNotes is the original

list–making application for the iPhone. Educators can utilize this program for note taking, accessing telephone
numbers and archiving information.

24) iBlueSky: (http://www.iphoneappreviews.net/2008/10/23/ibluesky-mindmapping/) iBlueSky offers mind

mapping for the iPhone, so you can get your thoughts, lesson plans or presentations mapped out from
anywhere.

25) iDictionary:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/searchtools/idictionary_1webappscom.html) iDictionary is

the ultimate dictionary source on the iPhone—in fact, the application can pull from up to 16 sources at once.

26) iHistory: (http://www.appsafari.com/productivity/8557/ihistory/) iHistory is a perfect tool for teachers

and students to brush up on their historical facts. This ever–expanding application hosts an encyclopedic
collection of information about art history, past wars and inventions.

27) iSchool:(http://iphoneapplicationlist.com/2009/09/18/ischool/#ixzz0WNy70aIC) iSchool is an educational

suite focused on teaching scientific and mathematical principles. The application explains the concepts and
principles behind mathematics—which enables teachers to grasp the complex ideas before presenting the
information to students.

28) jkPassword:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/productivity/jkpassword.html) Privacy is important for

educators and jkPassword is the perfect application to safeguard personal information. jkPassword safely
stores (and encrypts) all your sensitive information with templates that store everything from website logins to
credit cards.

29) NYTimes: (http://www.apple.com/iphone/apps-for-iphone/staff-picks/ny-times.html) A 2009 Award–

winning Mobile Application, the NYTimes app is an essential tool to access current events.

30) Omnifocus:(http://www.omnigroup.com/applications/omnifocus/iPhone/) Winner of the 2008 Apple

Design Award for Best iPhone Productivity Application, OmniFocus brings task management to your fingertips
through software that systematizes tasks by project, place, person and date.

31) Quote of the

Day:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/entertainment/quoteoftheday_nerdofnewyorkcity.html) Seaching for
an inspirational quote or just want to a this app makes it simple to look up info. Quote of the Day displays a
carefully selected quote, updated daily and formatted for your iPhone or iPod touch.

32) ReaditLater: (http://readitlaterlist.com/iphone/) Perfect for busy educators, this application lets users
save pages to read later—even without an internet connection.

33) Remember the Milk:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/productivity/rememberthemilk.html) Make your

iPhone or iTouch work harder than your brain with ―Remember the Milk,‖ an application that is used to
streamline productivity through digital list making.

34) Poptiq: (http://www.poptiq.com/) Multimedia videos are (literally) at your fingertips with this
iPhone/iTouch application, so teachers and students can enjoy educational videos anywhere.

35) Presidential Trivia:(http://iphoneapplicationlist.com/2009/10/26/presidential-trivia/) This app allows

users to dive into the rich history and dynamic personalities of the 44 Presidents of the United States.
36) School Supply List: (http://iphoneapplicationlist.com/2009/07/04/school-supply-list/) Creating school
supply lists is made easy with this app, where you can choose from a database of more than 150 school items
and send out the list digitally.

37) Scientific Calculator:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/calculate/scientificcalculator.html) This

application serves as an advanced calculator that can calculate cosines, sines, tangents, square roots and
exponents.

38) Stanza: (http://www.appcraver.com/stanza/) This e–reader app makes it easy to read digital books,
newspapers and other publications on your iPhone. It supports a wide variety of e–book formats: DRM–free
Amazon Kindle, Mobipocket, Microsoft LIT, PalmDoc, Word, RTF, HTML and PDF.

39) Today in History:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/entertainment/todayinhistory.html) Another great

history app, this program presents fun facts in American and World History with 40,000 events listed each year.

40) TouchType: (http://ithinked.com/archives/2008/10/spellcheck–for–the–iphone/) With this tool, teachers

can cross–check research papers with this of an online spell check app.
41) Unit and Currency
Converter:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/calculate/unitandcurrencyconverter.html) Math teachers can
utilize this app to teach students conversions between currencies, length, temperature, speed, volume,
weight and mass, computer units, time, metric units, area, energy and work, power, pressure and angles.

42) US States and Capitals:(http://iphoneapplicationlist.com/2009/03/06/usstates/) Teachers can gain

knowledge on U.S. geography with this nifty application.

43) Verbatim:(http://www.apple.com/webapps/productivity/verbatim11.html) The iPhone can aid

memorization or lectures or speeches with this sleek and unique application.

44) VoiceNotes: (http://www.apple.com/iphone/iphone-3gs/voice-memos.html) VoiceNotes allows teachers

and professionals to quickly record a quick note or even a lecture. VoiceNotes allows you to sync notes back to
your computer using some additional software provided by the developer.

45) WorldCat: (http://www.worldcat.org/default.jsp) Find the location of a book in a library near you by
using this app on the iPhone.
46) WeDict: (http://app.weiphone.com/wedict/) The WeDict application allows users to reach into a
database of thousands of words right from your pocket.

47) Webster’s Third New International Dictionary:(http://www.appstoreapps.com/2009/01/08/merriam-

websters-collegiate–dictionary/) With more than 2225,000 words, definitions, literary references, origins and
illustrations, Webster’s Dictionary iPhone app is an essential source for academic information.

48) Wikipanion Deluxe: (http://www.macworld.com/appguide/app.html?id=67157&expand=false) Access

Wikipedia (http://www.wikipedia.com) to research background information on your next unit.

49) WordPress for the iPhone: (http://iphone.wordpress.org/) Hosted by the web app for bloggers,
WordPress, this app allows educators to write posts, upload photos, edit pages and manage comments on your
blog from your iPhone or iPod Touch.

50) Word of the Day:(http://www.apple.com/downloads/dashboard/reference/wordoftheday.html) Expand

your vocabulary with the World of the Day application, a tool that sends out unique words to your mobile
device on a daily basis.