Top 25 Sites & Apps of 2018

It's the time of year again for my favorite annual sites and apps.  Once again, this year's list sees a lot of tools for STEM that focus on programming and coding.  As with any of my previous annual top lists, all tools listed in previous posts will not be eligible for this year's list. 

1. YO Teach! - With Today's Meet shutting down this year, Palms created a very user- friendly tool for creating a "backchannel" that can be used in any number of ways in education. 
2. Book Creator - A fantastic mobile (iOS/Chrome) app for creating stunning eBooks/presentations that can be used for digital storytelling, project-based learning and more. 
3. Think Fluency - A wonderful iOS/Google Play app for assessing a student's reading fluency.  This is done without the user of paper, provides instant real-time feedback, and saves teachers valuable time. 
4. Dystopia 2153 - An innovative new site that teaches programming/coding through the use of game-based learning and graphic novels. 
5. Night Zookeeper - An excellent new free writing tool filled with interactive lessons as well as an educational portal to help teachers track and monitor student progress. 
6. Hippo Video - One of my favorite sites around for creating digital videos that can be used to "flip" a classroom or create explainer videos. 
7. TypeTastic - The best site around for K-12 students (with educational portal) learning how to type/keyboard. 
8. Socrates - A cutting-edge new site where educators can seamlessly differentiate instruction through game-based learning. 
9. Project Pals - A great all-in-one collaborative learning platform that is ideal for project- based learning. 
10. I Know It - One of my favorite new free sites around for math grades K-5.  Best of all, educators can assign lessons and track student progress. 
11. Oodlu - An excellent new site/app for creating games that lets parents or educators track student progress. 
12. Klassroom - A free mobile (Android/iOS) that reminds me of a cross between Remind and ClassDojo, where educators can share photos, videos or documents in a secure environment. 
13. Badaboom - A new game-based learning tool (similar to Kahoot) where educators can make quizzes/games to assess student's learning. 
14. Edji - An innovative new site for annotating texts for collaborative learning. 
15. Elementari - A fun site for digital storytelling and project-based learning where students can create digital stories, portfolios or choose-your-own adventures.  There is an educational portal in the works for easier student tracking/management. 
16. Codemoji - A cool new site where K-8 students can learn how to program/code through the use of emojis. 
17. Pixorize - A interesting site for U.S. history that reminds me of ThingLink where students learn facts through the use of pictures. 
18. Reading Racer - A wonderful new iOS app that uses speech recognition to assess a student's reading ability and comprehension. 
19. CodeCombat - A fantastic way for educators to teach programming/coding through an innovative game. 
20. UMU - An excellent mobile app (iOS/Android) that can be used in a any number of different ways.  Educators are using it for assessing students, creating quizzes/games, professional development and blended learning. 
21. Waypoint EDU - An innovative new iOS app that uses augmented reality to let educators create scavenger hunts or geocaching. 
22. Grasshopper - A cool mobile app (iOS/Android) that teaches students how to code in Javascript through fun puzzles/games. 
23. Typing Agent - A great web-based typing/keyboarding tool for grades K-12 with features such as multiplayer games, certificates, type-to-code and more. 
24. Khan Academy Kids - A new iOS/Google Play app for finding educational resources for math, reading, writing, and more. 
25. ClassPad - A free digital scratch paper that students can use to solve math problems. 

cross posted at cyber-kap.blogspot.com

David Kapuler is an educational consultant with more than 10 years of experience working in the K-12 environment. For more information about his work, contact him at dkapuler@gmail.com and read his blog at cyber-kap.blogspot.com.