Go further
with the
iPad you have.

Touch and hold any empty area of the Home Screen for about a second. The app icons start to wiggle. That is called wiggle mode (or Edit Home Screen). It means everything is unlocked and you can move things around.

When you are done, tap an empty area or the Done button at the top of the screen to lock it back up. You can also leave wiggle mode at any time by swiping up to go Home.

Folders group similar apps together so the Home Screen feels less cluttered.

To open a folder later, just tap it. To take an app out, open the folder, enter wiggle mode, and drag the app out.

Widgets are little tiles that show information without opening an app, like the weather, your next reminder, or the current time in another city.

To remove a widget later, enter wiggle mode, tap the minus sign on the widget, and confirm.

If you have an app you never use, you have two choices: remove it from the Home Screen (still available in the App Library) or delete it from the iPad entirely.

When in doubt, pick Remove from Home Screen. You can always bring the app back from the App Library.

Open the Notes app and start a new note. As you start typing a word, look at the row of suggestions just above the keyboard. The iPad is guessing what word you are typing.

Tap any suggestion to insert it instantly. This saves a lot of taps once you get used to glancing up at the bar.

Imagine you wrote a sentence in Notes and want to move it somewhere else. Here is how:

Cut works the same as Copy except it removes the original. Paste works once or many times — the clipboard remembers the last thing you copied.

The full-size iPad keyboard takes up a lot of the screen. If you want a smaller, one-handed keyboard, do this:

The floating keyboard is great for typing in landscape (sideways) when you only want to use one hand.

Open Notes, start a fresh note, and run through the list below. None of this requires an account, and you cannot break anything.

Tap the blue compass icon on the Home Screen (in the Dock by default). Safari opens.

You do not need to know the difference. Type either one and Safari figures it out.

From the tab overview (the two overlapping squares), tap the small X on any tab card to close it. Or, while you are looking at a tab, tap and hold the two-squares icon and choose Close This Tab.

Closing tabs you no longer need keeps Safari fast and tidy. There is no harm in having a few open at a time though.

On long articles with lots of ads and clutter, Reader View shows just the words and pictures, like a clean printed page.

Tap the small “Aa” in the address bar (left side). Tap Show Reader. The page reformats into a calm, easy-to-read layout. Tap Aa again and Hide Reader to return to the normal page.

This is one of the most loved features in Safari. Use it any time a website feels overwhelming.

At the top-left of Safari are two arrows: a left arrow (back) and a right arrow (forward). Tap back to return to the previous page. Forward only lights up after you have gone back at least once.

If you ever feel lost in Safari, you can usually tap back a few times to return to where you started.

Apple will never send you a security warning in your web browser. Your iPad does not scan for viruses. So any pop-up that says “Your iPad is infected!” or “Call Apple Support now!” is fake. Always.

Real Apple notifications appear in your Settings app or in the system area at the top of the screen. They never appear inside Safari, and they never ask you to call a phone number.

When a fake warning appears:

You are now safe. The pop-up was just a webpage, not anything actually on your iPad.

If you check email in a web browser, you will eventually see a message that pretends to be from your bank, the post office, Amazon, or Apple. The trick is called phishing.

The safe move: do not tap any link in the email. If you think it might be real, open Safari, type the company’s address yourself (paypal.com), and check your account directly.

If something on a website or in an email feels off — too urgent, too perfect, too scary — close the page and ask someone you trust. A son, daughter, neighbor, or staff member at VMPC. There is no shame in pausing. Scammers count on people not pausing.

You are never going to get in trouble for closing a page or ignoring an email. The only mistake is tapping fast when you should have stopped.

On the Home Screen, find the gray icon with the camera lens. Tap it. The Camera app opens to whatever mode you used last (usually Photo).

Quick tip: even when the iPad is locked, you can swipe to the left on the lock screen to jump straight to the camera. Handy when you need to capture something fast.

Look at the row of words next to the shutter button: Photo, Video, Portrait, Square, Pano (and a few more depending on the model). Swipe through them to switch modes.

Try one or two so you know what they look like. You can always switch modes later.

A screenshot is a picture of whatever is currently on your iPad’s screen. Useful for saving a website, an article, or a confusing message to ask someone about.

Press the Top button (top-right edge) and either Volume button (left edge) at the same time, then release them quickly. The screen flashes white and a small thumbnail appears in the bottom-left corner.

This is the same Top + Volume combination you use to restart the iPad, but you only need to press and release, not hold.

Open any photo in the Photos app. Tap Edit at the top right. Tap the marker icon (a small pen tip in a circle). You can now draw, write, and add arrows on top of the photo.

This is great for circling something on a screenshot before showing it to someone, or pointing out a place on a map. When you are done, tap Done to save.

Try the full flow on your own iPad. None of this requires an account.

Find the Maps app on the Home Screen (a folded paper-map icon). Tap it.

Tap the search bar at the top and type a place name (try Vernon Multipurpose Center, or your nearest grocery store). Tap a result. The map zooms in and shows you where it is, plus a Directions button.

Tap Directions to see how to get there from your current location, with options for driving, walking, or transit. You do not need an Apple ID for any of this. Maps just needs Wi-Fi or location access.

Here is the trick that makes the iPad Calculator special. Tap the icon at the top-left that looks like a small calculator with lines, and choose Math Notes.

You can now write a math problem with your finger (or an Apple Pencil if you have one), and the iPad solves it in your handwriting as you type the equals sign.

Try writing: 3 + 4 = and watch the answer appear in your own handwriting. Try a longer one: 12 × 7 + 5 =. Math Notes is great for grocery budgets, splitting a bill, or any quick figuring without picking up a pencil.

Find the Clock app (a white clock icon). Tap it. The screen has four buttons at the bottom: World Clock, Alarm, Stopwatch, and Timer.

Use the Timer for cooking, taking medicine, or any short break. The Alarm is great for medication reminders or appointments.

Find the Reminders app (a white circle on a beige background). Tap it. Tap New Reminder at the bottom.

Type something simple, like “Water the plants” or “Call Maria.” Tap the small i icon next to it to add a date and time. The iPad will pop up the reminder when that time comes.

Reminders work on the iPad even without an account. They just stay on this device.

An Apple ID is required for Apple-specific features (the App Store, Messages, FaceTime, iCloud). A Google account does a different set of jobs: free email at gmail.com, document storage and writing through Google Drive and Docs, watching and saving videos on YouTube, and signing into many other websites that accept Google sign-in.

They are not the same thing. Most people end up with both eventually. This course does not require an Apple ID, so we are going to use Google to do the things people most often want their iPad for: email and saving work.

Type your Gmail address (the part before @gmail.com is your username, then add the @gmail.com part). Tap Next.

Type your password carefully. Tap Next again. The first time, Google may ask you to verify it is really you with a code sent to your phone or another email — follow the prompts.

If you do not have a Google account yet, tap Create account at the bottom. The signup is short: name, date of birth, and a password you choose. Use a password you will remember (long and simple beats short and complicated).

Tap the pencil icon (or Compose) to start a new message. Three boxes:

When you are done, tap Send (a paper-airplane icon). The email is on its way. Use Module 2.2 tricks: dictate the body if typing is slow, or use copy-paste if you need to insert text from somewhere else.

Even faster: put Gmail right on your Home Screen so it looks like an app.

A Gmail icon now lives on your Home Screen. Tap it any time and Safari opens straight to Gmail. This is the closest you can get to a Gmail app without going through the App Store.

If you ever use a public iPad (a library, a community center) sign out of Google when you are done. Tap your profile picture in the top-right of Gmail or Drive, then tap Sign out.

On your own iPad at home, you do not need to sign out. Stay signed in for convenience.