Some resources that I know for using handheld computers (Palm OS) in the classroom (and for myself)

If you have suggestions/ additions for this page, please let me know!
Educational Resources (info & non-software)
 Educational Software -- FREE
 Educational Software -- NOT  FREE
General Resources (info & non-software)
 General Software -- FREE
 General Software -- NOT  FREE

E D U C A T I O N A L   R E S O U R C E S (info and non-software resources -- for free and for sale)

Planet 5th - Mr. Vincent's 5th grade class in Omaha Nebraska using Palms in the classroom. See how these students use technology every day.
http://www.mpsomaha.org/willow/p5/index.html

Mr. Vincent has a website "Learning In Hand" that is a compilation of "resources for using handheld computers in schools". Here you'll find his blog with recent activities, ideas, and new products that he's learned about. Plus, he has links to hardware, software, and lesson plan resources for using handheld computers in the classroom (and much more).
http://learninginhand.com/

Mr. Vincent also has a book out that he's co-authored with Janet Caughlin. It is being distributed by Tom Snyder Publications. It's really great, IMHO.
http://www.tomsnyder.com/products/product.asp?SKU=JANHAN

Neal Topp's book "Handhelds in Schools" is short, sweet, and to the point. My favorite chapter is the last chapter that is just a giant listing of quotes from kids about using Palms in their class.
http://www.unocoe.unomaha.edu/handhelds/

Kathy Schrock (Discovery School.com) - This page provides educators with resources for effective use of the handheld computer in support of teaching and learning. The site includes supporting Web sites, links to hardware and software sites, books, and training handouts.
http://kathyschrock.net/power/

The folks at Hi-CE (Center for Highly Interactive Computing in Education at the University of Michigan) are working hard to find new and better ways to effectively use handhelds in education. Use this site as a resource to obtain new freeware that you can help beta test, join in discussions about handhelds, and view videos and articles.
http://palm.hice-dev.org/

This same Michigan crowd (Michael Curtis, Bard Williams, Cathleen Norris, David O'Leary, and Elliot Soloway) have written a great book being distributed by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). They have "distilled their field knowledge into a practical, accessible guide, complete with a technology overview of handhelds, lesson plans, assessment resources, and tips and templates for managing student use. Their book also provides advice on finding and evaluating educational software and accessories. Palm Handheld Computers: A Complete Resource for Classroom Teachers,� has been written for use by K-12 teachers, curriculum developers, technology coordinators, staff development specialists, teacher educators, and preservice teachers."

To buy the books by Curtis, Williams, Norris, O'Leary, and Soloway described above:
resource guide for teachers http://www.iste.org/eseries/source/Orders/isteProductDetail.cfm?product_code=PALMBO
student manual for the software http://www.iste.org/eseries/source/Orders/isteProductDetail.cfm?product_code=PALMSG

A newer book with curriculum and strategies specifically for for elementary school teachers is authored by Curtis, Kopera, Norris, and Soloway and is available at:  http://www.iste.org/eseries/source/Orders/isteProductDetail.cfm?product_code=PALMEC

K12 Handhelds has "Handheld solutions for educators" including a fun brainstorm list of "101 uses of handhelds in the classroom"; comparison of various handheld devices and the different operating systems; descriptions of and links to applications (free and otherwise) for teaching and learning, administration, productivity, and more; professional development resources, classroom solutions, grants, events, and more.
http://www.k12handhelds.com/

The latest from PalmOne themselves on Palms in education (including educational pricing of their products, comparisons of PalmOS to Pocket PC, success stories, webinars (online, live seminars), news stories, resources)
http://www.palmone.com/us/education/

Here's an article with tips for administrators on using handhelds in their schools. It's really geared for how an administrator can use a handheld to do her/his job more effectively.
http://www.edsupport.cc/mguhlin/artifacts/writings/2004/8tipspalm.htm

Here's a blog about handhelds. It says it's for "handheld instructional technology and a few other things". That describes it pretty well. It's a good resource for summaries of the latest news that might impact your use of handhelds in the classroom.
http://scottadams.blogs.com/handheld_instructional_te/

The NW Project (I guess that stands for NorthWest since it's based in Oregon but it's only a guess) has a website that stays pretty frequently updated with a blog for teachers to share what they're doing with handhelds in their classroom, information about hardware and software, information about classroom management issues, online curriculum/lesson plan resources, quick how-to's, information on research in the field, and links to helpful resources.
http://www.nwhandheld.org/

U S I N G   P A L M S   T O   M E E T   S P E C I A L   N E E D S
Palms and other PDA's are being used as Adaptive Technologies for people with special needs. They are being used "as is" but in ways specific to a given need, there is software that can be added to them to meet special needs, and there are hardware adaptations and hardware peripherals that can be added to them to meet special needs. This website at University of Toronto explores some of the innumerable possibilities.
http://www.utoronto.ca/atrc/reference/tech/pda.html

 H O W   P A L M S   W O R K
For those curious about the innerworkings of the Palm or other handheld computer (or PDA), the How Stuff Works website has a great explanation, some good photos, and a good set of linked resources at the end of the explanation.
http://www.howstuffworks.com/pda.htm


E D U C A T I O N A L   S O F T W A R E -- F R E E

Quizzler software for making quizzes and other interactive Palm documents (there's a free version and a more expensive expanded version)
http://www.pocketmobility.com/quizzler/


E D U C A T I O N A L   S O F T W A R E -- N O T  F R E E

goknow - "powerful learning tools for today's digital kids" -- productivity tools for education (there are free versions and more expensive expanded versions). This is the company that is doing the commercial end of the great work being done at University of Michigan.
http://goknow.com/

S C I E N C E   &   N A T U R E   S O F T W A R E
Bray Palm OS Page - This set of pages has scientifically oriented freeware available for download, and discusses Palm OS program development for the beginner. I like the moonphase and sunrise/sunset software and there is plenty of other great software for science exploration.
http://www.40-below.com/palm/

My personal favorite sky chart of the stars, constellations, planets, etc. is SkyChart by Ivan Bacigal. It's available from freewarepalm.com.
http://www.freewarepalm.com/astronomy/skychart2002.shtml

cre@ative-software has some interesting stuff. My favorites are 1.) Sun Compass that tells you where true north is when you face the sun and the current time, longitutde, and latitude are entered, and 2.) GeoFinder World Database that has longitude and latitudes as well as infomation regarding the time zone of a specific place.
1. http://www.ive-software.com/sun-compass-palm.php3
2. http://www.ive-software.com/geofinder-freeware.php3


G E N E R A L   R E S O U R C E S (info and non-software resources -- for free and for sale)

Palm Gear - "THE source for your Palm powered world" software, ebooks, devices, accessories,...
http://palmgear.com/


G E N E R A L   S O F T W A R E -- F R E E

FreewarePalm - Download free software to your Palm handheld...a resource library from Palm themselves.
http://www.freewarepalm.com/

5 Star Shareware - The UK's Premier Website for Shareware and Freeware Downloads.
http://www.5star-shareware.com/

University of Virginia's free Ebook Library - "1,800 publicly-available ebooks from the University of Virginia Library's Etext Center, including classic British and American fiction, major authors, children's literature, American history, Shakespeare, African-American documents, the Bible, and much more."
http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/ebooks/


G E N E R A L   S O F T W A R E -- N O T   F R E E

eReader (formerly Palm Digital Media) - Electronic Books for Handheld & Desktop Computers
http://www.ereader.com/


Resources from workshops I've presented:
PowerPoint for analogy activity (with notes for presenter)
CNETC Palm workshop, Day 1, Reno, NV, Nov 3, 2003
CNETC Palm workshop, Day 2, Reno, NV, Nov 4, 2003
STICs training for TITE-N PT3 grant, Reno, NV, May 19, 2004
Learning Activity Utilizing Handhelds Description Template
(c) 2004, 2005 Theresa Overall
contact me at: theresa@unt.edu