Summer is going to be over before you know it and that means scholars from middle school to grad school will once again be hit with heavy homework assignments and reading materials that don’t exactly qualify as beach-worthy thrillers. Filing back into the classroom can be a shock to your system after a few months of lazy days or working – suddenly everyone expects you to keep it together, show initiative and know your stuff. Luckily there’s an app for that. Here are five apps for Android tablets that will help keep you organized in and out of the classroom.
1. My Class Schedule
This is the app that is going to save your life because it will be running your life for the next 10 months or so. No need to waste valuable brain space remembering where you need to be or what you ought to be doing when you’re using this app for Android tablets. You probably guessed that it knows your class schedule. It also knows when exams are coming. And it knows what homework is due when. My Class Schedule can even remind you to hit the books when you have unfinished assignments or a test next Tuesday so you never have to convince a prof that your dog ate your essay. (Free)
2. SparkNotes
Read the assigned book? You’ll get around to it. Until you do, the SparkNotes study guide app can give you the knowledge you need to hold your own in the classroom. You get access to 50 pre-installed study guides that summarize and analyze some of the literature, poetry, drama, short stories and philosophy texts you’re most likely to encounter in the classroom, plus hundreds more that you can download when you need to. If you’re feeling social, you can check in to share what you’re studying on Facebook or start a SparkNotes study group for all your classmates who also haven’t read the book yet. (Free)
3. Evernote
Taking notes can be a drag and no app is going to change that. But if you have to take notes, you may as well do it right with this app that lets you sync your notes across computers and other apps. That means you can access the class notes you need anywhere on any device. On top of that, Evernote lets you create and edit to-do lists, search for text in images, email new notes to your account, add audio and video to your notes, and then share it all on Facebook and Twitter. You’re going to be so hyper-organized that the As are just going roll right in. (Free)
4. Merriam-Webster Dictionary
A dictionary app? Hear us out. Let’s say you find yourself facing a word like opprobrium. Googling can be unreliable for more obscure terms and the internet is overrun with rinky-dink Merriam-Webster wannabees. Maybe you find a solid definition – now how do you pronounce it? A week later, opprobrium is no longer in your own memory or your search history. With this app, you can search, review and favorite new words; go back through your recent searches; and even learn something new with the in-app Word of the Day. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary for tabletswill even read pesky words like opprobrium (which is another way to say harsh criticism) out loud so you sound super smart when you use it in a convo. (Free)
5. CamScanner HD
Photocopies are so old school and Instagramming every assignment is a huge waste of space (not to mention annoying for your followers). Scan notes, whiteboards, textbooks and even multi page docs instead with CamScanner, which is essentially an image processor that does everything a scanner can do. You snap a pic, then it detects edges and auto crops, auto enhances and creates a high-quality PDF that you can save to the cloud and share with that certain good looking someone who’s always missing class. (Free)