Apple Pencil: The Math Game Changer

After struggling in Chemistry to see problems on a worksheet, Jillian decided to use an Apple Pencil instead of traditional pencil and paper to work out math and science problems. This one piece of technology made STEM fields more accessible.

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My chemistry class in my sophomore year of high school was very difficult. The teacher had these old transparency worksheets from fifteen years ago, and I could not see what I was writing. I used a Visio to do chemistry and math. The Visio is a device that helps me see and magnify a piece of paper. I write on the paper while looking at the TV-like screen. Since

the chemistry teacher’s worksheet was so bad, I wanted to know what type of technology can help fix the problem. I talked to my mom about the issue, and she did some research with my help.

After hours upon hours of research, I came home from school one day and my mom asked, “Have you heard of the Apple Pencil? It’s a special pen that allows you to write on the screen. It’s like a stylus, but better since it looks like a pencil.”

My first reaction was, “That sounds interesting, but wouldn’t it be hard to write with it? What if the writing is too thick on the screen.

“You can change the thickness of the writing with drawing apps like Notability and Microsoft Word.”

“That makes sense,” I said, but I was still skeptical. It was intriguing, but it also seemed hard to learn. Nevertheless, I was willing to try anything to see my chemistry worksheets. “Is it difficult to learn?” I asked my mom. “It’s not that hard, it might just take some time to get used to the feel of it in your hand and how to work the apps with it, but you’re tech savvy. You’d be a natural.” After that conversation, I started to get more comfortable with the thought of using a brand new technology. I knew that using the Apple Pencil was going to be a change in technology, but I would have never guessed the amount that it had changed my life.

A few days later, my mom and I went to the local Best Buy to demo the Apple Pencil. The clerk who helped us was very knowledgeable with iPads and Apple technology, it was meant to be. The clerk brought us over to the counter with the iPads. Whe I had tried the Apple Pencil, it was great! I could see what I was writing with better clarity because of the Retina display iPad Pro screen. We asked the salesperson if the Apple Pencil only works for iPad Pros and he said yes. I already had an iPad Pro and the specific apps for the Apple Pencil, so we bought it that day.

The day we had bought the Apple Pencil revolutionized the way I complete math and science assignments. It took me a long time to get used to handwriting on the iPad and to make it legible enough for people to read, but after a few weeks, I mastered it. I told all my friends about the Apple Pencil at school and they fell in love with it. I told them that it costs $100, but they did not care. Nearly every person that I talked to wanted one. It looked neat and professional when I would write complex math and chemistry equations on my iPad. I learned that sometimes, having a bad experience like my chemistry teacher can lead to good outcomes without even realizing it.

My mom is now a special education advocate. She attends meetings and requests students the services they need throughout their school years. I have always been pioneering new technology. I was the first legally blind student to use iPads in New Jersey, and now, I am the first person to be using the Apple Pencil. The Apple Pencil has not only changed my life, but the lives of other visually impaired students throughout the country. It has been two years since I bought the Apple Pencil and two students now use it. The Apple Pencil even helps me and other blind students to mark up their electronic sheet music. Today, I want to become either a computer scientist, engineer, or an orchestra musician. The Apple Pencil can help me with all three of these fields. The pencil has changed my life and it will change other people’s lives in the future. I hope that through this piece of technology, there will be more visually impaired students interested in STEM fields.

Jillian, New Jersey

Written as a senior in high school