ThatQuiz

ThatQuiz is a really cool assessment resource for teachers to use as an online testing center. Teachers and students simply take nine seconds to register and they will instantly have access to very effective, albeit basic and not very flashy, study tool.

There are quite a few tests and quick little activities that anyone can complete when they visit the site, but to unlock the site's full capabilities, teachers can design their own tests for registered students to complete, which will instantly provide testing results and valuable data in a tidy format.

How does it work in the classroom?

Spend a day (preferably at the beginning of the year during all your procedural shenanigans) to get your kids registered and show them the ins and outs of ThatQuiz. It may take some time to get yourself acquainted with the features of the site and designing tests, but if you'll just hang in there and give it some time, you'll have a great online formative assessment tool at your disposal.

SmileBox

If you're looking for a fun alternative to MixBook or a simple, straightforward digital scrapbooking program that yields eye-popping results, you should definitely check out SmileBox, a free downloadable program for Mac or PC that will turn your photos and even videos into a sleek digital keepsake.

You start by downloading and installing the program, and don't worry because it's not a RAM hog and runs fairly quickly and smoothly even on an older machine. Right when you start up the program the first time, the interface feels very familiar and easy to operate. Just upload your photos and even your videos into the project and simply begin inserting and arranging all your stuff until you're ready to finalize it. When you're finished, you can export your SmileBox to DVD or email it as a video file (my personal favorite), or even send SmileBox a little money and get an actual professionally printed copy of your scrapbook sent to you.

How does it work in the classroom?

SmileBox provides students and teachers alike with a great way to chronicle everything that happened throughout the course of a project, a class, a school year, a sports season, or even something as simple as an assembly or any special event. Students will have no difficulty at all picking up the fine nuances of getting the most out of the program, and their creations will be sure to raise some eyebrows. And remember if a student's work is truly worthy of high praise and lasting admiration, you can even cough up a little cash to get it printed and mailed to you.

Click here for a sample of what you can do.

Hipstamatic

Hipstamatic is an iPhone/iPad app that is an alternative to Instagram or any other photo capturing/doctoring tools that you may use. You can, of course, take photos, store and organize them, and apply filters that are provided in the app. One of the coolest benefits of the app is that you can shoot layered images with ease from within the app. The cost is a mere $0.99, which is worth it for the tools you get, and plus, it's not Instagram, which is a good thing.

The app was optimized for compatibility with the iPhone 5, and has exclusive features that work with iOS 6, but there are several reports of bugs within the app when it runs on those platforms.