Top 5 Digital Tools I Like to Use in the Classroom (and Why)

 Top 5 Digital Tools I Use in the Art Room

    As technology becomes a more tangible reality in the future workforce, educators must prioritize arming their students with digital literacy. Technology is not replacing the creative process, but it is redefining how humans create, connect, and collaborate. There are well-chosen tools that can enhance the collective creativity of aspiring scholars and even surprise students who did not know they could create! 

    Here are my top five favorite digital tools to utilize in the classroom:

 1. Scribble Together Whiteboard

    Scribble Together has quickly become my go-to digital whiteboard of choice. This collaborative whiteboard allows me to draw in real time, whether I am modeling a step-by-step guided drawing or explaining the basics in color theory, students can join me in real time to collaborate on these creative fundamentals on the same board with great ease, making it a great tool when teaching on a hybrid or virtual instructional modality! I particularly love this application because it provides a path to instant collaboration and sharing capabilities as I watch students' ideas come to life alongside mine. Of course, learning should take on a constructivist approach where the class can apply what they know about the elements of art and implement digital literacy knowledge, thus creating something entirely new altogether. 

2. Scratch by MIT

    I must admit that Scratch is a complete game-changer in the art room. I can recall a young Mrs. Beltran learning the basics of animation in high school, and now the modern student is learning these basics as soon as second grade! Classes from elementary to middle school light up when introduced to this tool. They crave platforms that allow them to explore narrative structure, character design, and motion. Simply by introducing students to various sequences and commands, students build interactive stories. Some even make their original artwork into playable games. This platform makes computational thinking incredibly palatable to young audiences with accessible tutorials that explain how to break large tasks into small bite-sized steps. 

 

3. Google Sheets (for Pixel Art!)

    I love to tell students that I am a master trickster. I enjoy "tricking" them into realizing that art is not a simple task. The best artists in the world engage every kind of knowledge in the pursuit of creating meaningful images for diverse audiences! Google Sheets is more than numbers and formulas. With digital pixel art, students fill each box with color to create characters, landscapes, and abstract art. This concept can be made simple for upper elementary-aged students or complex for high school students. Google Sheets reinforces concepts like symmetry and geometry while introducing them to spreadsheets in a creative, low-pressure way. Sheets are also easy to assign, save, and share on Google Classroom, boosting the ability to utilize it on every kind of instructional method. 

 

4. Chrome Music Lab- The Kandinsky Experiment

    Music has been an inspiration to many creative people, as it is a nexus for human connection. Music breaks language and cultural barriers to engulf the community in a singular experience. Chrome Music Lab allows students to create shapes and hear how they sound. It is a joyful way to combine art and music, boosting the enjoyment of sensory exploration. We typically use this application when discussing artists like Wassily Kandinsky or taking a break between more in-depth lessons. This experience allows kids of all ages to jump in and converse about how we all can "see" and "hear" an experience very differently. 

 

5. Blippar (Augmented Reality App)

    I must admit that finding an augmented reality application that is free to use required a lot of searching and testing on my part before I found something accessible. With Blippar, students can create drawings or paintings that come alive through 3-D digital overlays. After designing their base artwork, they are able to layer in animations, audio, and embellishments. When the art is scanned, the work becomes an interactive experience for all who choose to explore it. Students feel empowered as they take on the role of professional artists with advanced tech at their fingertips. They have integral computational habits instilled in them as they design, test, and publish animations to be activated on smartphones and tablets. This is a great resource to use during community art shows to bring families in on the fun. 

Final Thoughts

    Digital tools do not just make art more engaging but also more inclusive. Whether students love coding, storytelling, design, or traditional drawing, there is a platform to watch their unique gifts shine. As an art teacher, I strive to meet students where they are and introduce them to a world of endless possibility. These tools help me in that humble pursuit. Have you used any of these tools? I would love to hear how you are using technology in your classrooms! Leave a comment or share your favorite tool. I am always growing, and conversing with the community is one avenue to improve further. 

Art and Augmented Reality: Preparing Creative Minds for the Future

Join me on a journey to the year 2012. The world is undergoing a digital renaissance, and young students are engaging with social media at a pace that has not been seen before. Platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram have taken the world by storm as humans connect and utilize their features to stay informed on major news events. (Brenner, 2013)

In terms of the creative arts, digital media has become increasingly more visible. Modern artists have innovated artistic practice by exploring the uses of image design via coding, interactive design through gaming technology, and creating virtual 3D spaces outside of the physical world. Programs like Adobe Creative Suite are booming with engagement, as artists all around the world use them for logo design, magazine visuals, and photo retouching. (Carter, 2021) At this particular time, teachers were actively overwhelmed at the thought of keeping up with their aspiring scholars.  In the midst of capitalism, the world demands a faster means of human connection, increased productivity, and an ever-changing digital landscape. Does this all sound a bit familiar? This is because society is still undergoing this renaissance in the year 2025. As AI and augmented reality become more woven into our cultural fabric, educators everywhere are asked, once more, to arm their diverse demographic of learners for a workforce that is being aggressively pushed into the future, so how do we undergo this daunting task like the educators before us? Well, I cast my focus on how all these enhanced tools can improve the pursuit of knowledge acquisition and modernization. 

            As noted before, Art education has always evolved alongside technology, from cave walls to canvas, from film photography to Photoshop. Now, another wave of innovation is here: Augmented Reality. Once the domain of sci-fi and gaming, AR is becoming an exciting, accessible tool in today’s classrooms, redefining how we teach, learn, and experience art.

Now that we have experimented with digital media and creation over the past decade, society seeks to blur the barrier between the virtual and physical world in order to boost interactive experiences.  Augmented Reality blends digital content with the real world using devices like smartphones, tablets, or AR glasses. Unlike Virtual Reality, which immerses users in a completely virtual environment, "AR uses apps, consoles, screens, and projections to overlay or combine digital information with real-world environments." (Hayes, 2025)

I know what you are thinking. "Hold on, Mrs. Beltran. What does this all mean for our students? How in the world would this innovate the common American classroom?" I will tell you. With these new innovations, students can really make their artwork take flight like the world has never seen! Imagine pointing an iPad at a student's artwork and watching it transform into a virtual 3D sculpture. Online platforms like Artivive and Blippar achieve this very result. This revitalizes the creative space as youth tap into a new realm to explore. Students can create traditional drawings and paintings that trigger an AR experience, thus inspiring a sense of magic and pride!

Other applications like Google Arts and Culture allow students to place themselves in history. Whether a class is in-person or learning on a virtual modality, students can explore famous artworks, historical sculptures, and architectural masterpieces in 3D. One can walk through Van Gogh’s bedroom, zoom into brushstrokes, and discuss art movements with immersive context. Furthermore, Google Arts and Culture provides the educator with aids such as downloadable lessons that cover a wide range of creative topics. (EdTech Classroom, 2022)

Ultimately, one does not have to be a technology expert to implement these strategies into the pedagogical practice. Take a breath, my fellow educators. Start small. Start with one application in your lessons and allow your students to share their findings. Much like the humble beginnings of education, instilled by Aristotle, we only serve as a guide for the next generation. Art, after all, thrives on curiosity and risk-taking. Augmented reality is simply another tool to encourage these necessary attributes. As art teachers, we can utilize these new innovations to lead scholars into a world without boundaries, not even the edge of a page.

References

Brenner, M. D. and J. (2013, February 14). The Demographics of Social Media Users — 2012. Retrieved June 4, 2025, from Pew Research Center website: https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2013/02/14/the-demographics-of-social-media-users-2012-2/

Carter, E. (2021, November 11). The Rise and Fall of Adobe Inc. Retrieved June 4, 2025, from Design Harder website: https://designharder.substack.com/p/adobe

EdTech Classroom. (2022, January 26). Using Google Arts & Culture in the Classroom. Retrieved June 4, 2025, from EdTech Classroom website: https://edtech-class.com/2022/01/26/using-google-arts-culture-in-the-classroom/

Hayes, A. (2025, March 2). Augmented Reality (AR) Defined, with Examples and Uses. Retrieved June 4, 2025, from Investopedia website: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/augmented-reality.asp