Top 7 Best Apps for Teaching History in the Classroom

Are you a history or social studies teacher looking for the best history apps to engage your students in a fun and educational way?

Look no further! In this article, we'll explore the top history apps that will help you teach various topics, time periods, and historical events to students of all ages. From virtual tours of ancient civilizations to interactive maps and games that focus on specific moments in history, there's a history app out there for every teacher and student. I've scoured the app stores to bring you the best history apps and save you precious time, whether you use an IOS (iPhone/iPad) or an Android! These are some of the best educational apps and provide a great way to help you teach history!

There are numerous history apps available that offer a fun and interactive way to teach students about important events and figures from various time periods!

Here are my favorite apps to make learning about history both fun and engaging!

(These apps are listed in no particular order!)

Google Arts & Culture and Google Earth

For Android, iPhone, & iPad

FREE!

With over 134,000 ratings and an average score of 4.7 out of 5, the Google Arts & Culture app is not only one of the most popular and well-rated apps for history and social studies teachers; it also works on practically any mobile device! Teach history through virtual tours, and visit some of the 2,000+ cultural institutions in over 80 countries with the "Google Arts & Culture" app! Go on a virtual field trip with the guided exhibit tours curated by experts, the ability to tour famous sites throughout the world, and the ability to explore numerous cultures with ease with this app!

In conjunction with the "Google Earth" app, these two apps also make it possible to easily learn about almost any historical period and allow you to go on virtual tours of museums and historical landmarks and explore important events from the ancient world to the modern day. They're both GREAT tools for teaching students about the history of the world and the United States!

BBC History Magazine

For iPhone & iPad

Subscription Required

Offer 50% off first 3 months

A great app that is currently only available on ios devices (sorry, Android users), the BBC History Magazine app is another GREAT app to explore almost any specific topic and/or time period in history! From Ancient Egypt and Ancient Rome to the French Revolution and World War II, as well as pretty much everything since, this app is an excellent tool for any history teacher and does a wonderful job at delivering engaging and informative educational content to your students.

History (Today Happening in History)

For iPhone & iPad

FREE!

Want daily facts about history that pop up every day of the year?! This app does just that! One way I LOVE to use this app is by using it as an easy and effortless way to kick off my classes by sharing with my students an interesting historical fact that happened on that date. And if you want to know more about a particular fact, just tap the text, and the app will provide you with additional related links for you to check out!

Today in History

For Android, iPhone, & iPad

FREE!

Similar to History (Today Happening in History), the Today in History app is a similar app and also a free app at that! The Today in History app provides fun facts on some of the most important events in world history. I love these types of apps because I feel that they're among the best educational apps that offer a fun way to break up the monotony of whatever subject you may have spent the last one or two weeks plus in class.

Download a FREE WEEK of lesson plans HERE!

History Vault

For Android, iPhone, & iPad

Subscription Required ($4.99/month or $49.99/year)

7-day Free Trial

While the History Vault app isn't free, I've found it well worth the small price to pay (they offer a free trial!). One of the best apps, in my opinion, is the History Vault app, which features over 2,000 well-curated, high-quality videos from the History Channel. Perhaps the best part is that they're adding new videos to the collection every week! Their videos cover a wide range of important American history topics, from Colonial America and the American Revolution to the Industrial Revolution and modern U.S. history.

National Geographic

For Android, iPhone, & iPad

FREE! (features some in-app purchases)

Featuring amazing photos and in-depth articles, National Geographic is an excellent app for not only social studies and history teachers, but teachers of any subject! The articles are well-written and cover a diverse array of topics, ranging from current events and astronomy to medicine and the many social sciences. The authors weave compelling narratives into their stories, which bring a personal touch to each article you read and share with your class. Your students are guaranteed to have their interest piqued with this app!

The History Channel

For Android, iPhone, & iPad

FREE! (with commercials ...lots and lots of commercials)

*If*, and that could be a big "if," you can get past all of the commercials; the History Channel app features many of the TV networks most popular shows. For example, you can watch with your class previously aired episodes of Modern Marvels, History's Greatest Mysteries, and Black Patriots: Heroes of the Civil War. Because of the vast amount of content provided by the app, it makes the list!

There you have it! The top 7 best apps for teaching history in the classroom (in my ever-so humble opinion)! While there's certainly a slew of other great apps out there when it comes to history, I've found that these are the apps I often go back to and use the most with my social studies students. I hope you've found this article helpful. Give one or more of these apps a try!

Imagine...

• Spending more time on teaching and less on lesson plans

• More time on nights and weekends to share with friends and loved ones

• No longer endlessly searching for amazing lesson plans and resources  

Click HERE to learn more about my amazing history curriculum bundles!

I *think* you'll be happy you did 😉

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Thanks so much for reading!

-Jillian (a.k.a. the "Lesson Plan Guru")  

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• Top 13 BEST World War II Movies to Watch in History Class!