KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 17 — World Teacher's Day was observed earlier this month on October 5, which was also when Apple announced new (and more importantly, free) classroom resources.
The new resources are just a small part of the Apple Education Community that allows educators to not just source material and ideas, but connect with their peers.
What's new
Apple's Everyone Can Create is a series of project guides that teachers can adapt to suit their subjects, assignments or lessons.
The latest in the series is Creative Activities, which Apple describes as: "a collection of quick, interactive, and fun lesson ideas that empower educators to sprinkle imagination and originality into their learning plans."
For students aged four to eight, there's Creative Activities for Early Learners while for those aged 8 and up, there's Creative Activities for Students.
These new Creative Activities include:
Drawing: Reveal a Constellation
Photo: Create a Sticker Collage
Video: See More in Slo-Mo
Music: Lay Down a Beat
The media were given a demonstration of the new activities and as someone who's taught after school creative activities for preschoolers before, the activities were fairly easy to follow along with, even if you're not super tech-savvy.
For teachers who want to get up to speed with Apple tech, there are also various free guides available to follow at their own pace via the Apple Education Community but they can also make use of the Education Ministry collaboration with Apple, the Apple Learning Coach program to get up to speed.
On the App Store, there's also a curated list of Great Tools for Teachers.
In a statement, Lisa Jackson, Apple’s vice president of environment, policy, and social Initiatives, said: "At Apple, we have always believed in the power of education to open new doors and give people the tools they need to build a better, more equitable world.”
Commenting on the latest initiatives, Susan Prescott, Apple’s vice president of education and enterprise marketing added, “We’re inspired by the incredible work coming out of classrooms and communities across the globe, and the myriad of ways Apple products like Mac and iPad empower learners to create and build on their passions.”
Besides schools, Apple's education initiatives also include the Apple Foundation Program as well as the Apple Developer Academies that bring coding education and skills training to keen developers as well as entrepreneurs.
Free resources available for those keen on exploring Apple's developer landscape include Everyone Can Code, Develop in Swift Tutorials, Everyone Can Create, Challenge for Change, and Today at Apple sessions at all Apple Store locations.
