Kidspiration has been a software program for many years and many classrooms have used this mind-mapping software. Whether you are creating a timeline, flow map, or bubble map this app is easy to use. Add shapes, preloaded images, or photos to give your map more dimension. The free version even comes with preloaded activities in ELA, science, social studies, and math. Be aware this free version only allows you to create 5 maps. 

Toontastic has been around for a while, but the new updates since Google acquired this app has made it much more education-friendly and easy to navigate. If you haven't seen the new version of Toontastic, you should take a look. A great story-telling app, the format follows the basic five part narrative introducing terms such as conflict, climax, and resolution. Students choose a setting and characters from a large selection or can even draw their own. Dragging the characters around the set while adding their own voice means even young students can create interesting cartoon stories.