Appmaker Teaching Kit

What is a mobile app?

An "App" is an isolated software program, which allows users to accomplish specific tasks. For example, Android phones come with a Maps App which makes it easier for people to navigate and plan trips on their phone:

What do you wish your mobile app could do?

Think about your own mobile device. How do apps help you complete tasks, or communicate with friends? Try to think of the specific, isolated tasks each app is designed to accomplish.

How can I make one?

Making mobile apps is normally a time-intensive process, requiring some expertise in programming and mobile technologies. However, projects like Appmaker and App Inventor are aiming to help people create apps quickly and easily, without any prior technical knowledge.

There are hundreds of thousands of apps in the world. Some of them are silly, some of them are incredibly useful. The more time spent considering the conceptual goals of an App, the better the final project will be. This activity will help learners focus not only on the specific task or tasks a fundraising app should achieve for a user, but also the method through which the user is able to interact with that app.

Agenda

1. 10 mins Introductions and Setup
2. 25 mins Unpacking Fundraising for Appmaker
3. 2.5 hour Paper Appmaking
4. 30 mins Let's make a Counter App
5. 15 mins Closing Circle

Learning objectives

Learners will understand:

• Collaboration makes ideation more fun and successful.
• App flow is the method through which a user navigates how you present information and how they might interact with that information.
• The challenging part of App development is not the programming of an app, but rather the planning and design of the app and it's content.
• Appmaker is a tool that aimed at making the programming aspect of app development easier for non-developers.
• The interface and logic behind how Appmaker is built

Learners will be able to :

• Design an app using paper prototyping.
• Create a Counter App using Appmaker
• Brainstorm and create in collaboration with others.
• Think critically about mobile applications, smart phone functionality and app flow
• Create storyboards and schematics.

Discussion Questions

• Why is flow in a mobile app important?
• How might Appmaker improve your ability to fundraise?
• How did feedback help you iterate and improve your project?
• Why is it important that apps are designed by many individuals?
• Why is it important for fundraising apps to invite participation?
• Why is it important to comment on other people's work, ideas or commentary?

Assessment criteria