This morning the fourth graders welcomed Dr. Karl Kosko, Kent State Assistant Professor of Mathematics Education to the AT&T Classroom. Dr. Kosko introduced the students to “Number Line Touch: Multiplication”, a new app for building students’ understanding of facts and concepts related to multiplication and division. The app utilizes an educational puzzle-type game in combination with a number line to develop and test students’ multiplicative reasoning. The app targets key multiplication and division concepts by taking students through a series of levels in which they are instructed to place rods with assigned values onto a number line and then determine the missing numbers for each of the puzzles. The app is available for free download from the App store.
The app was developed in conjunction with Kent State’s SpedApps Project. Partially funded through a corporate contribution from the AT&T Foundation, SpedApps is investigating the use of mobile applications and devices to support students who have special learning needs. The project has developed a website cataloging over 500 apps that can be used across the curriculum with an emphasis on content in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, and math). Educators and families can access the app database at the SpedApps project website http://spedapps.kent.edu.
