Widgets and Daily Use

by | Aug 24, 2023 | iPad | 0 comments

Are there tasks that you do often on your iPad that you would like to have easier access to? Would you like to be able to see notifications at a glance across a few apps?  

Today’s Tip:

Widgets will help you accomplish both objectives. You can only see what is happening inside an app if you open the app, unless you use a widget. A widget is a preview of what is happening in an app or across multiple apps. It can also create a menu of shortcuts to tasks that you complete often. 

Creating a Widget

  1. Press and hold your finger down on your iPad screen until a plus (+) sign appears in the top left corner of your screen.
  2. Click the plus (+) sign. The Add Widget screen will appear.
  3. On the left-hand side, scroll to find the widget you would like.  Select the option you want. Note: You can search for additional widgets in the field across the top.
  4. On the right-hand side are options to customize the widget. Swipe to the left and right to look at the options.    
  5. Once you’ve decided which format you prefer, select + Add Widget.
  6. The apps on your screen will be wiggling.  You can move your widget around on your screen. 
  7. When you are done, click Done in the top right-hand corner. 

Shortcut or Smart Stack Widgets

A Shortcut widget will populate with common tasks completed on an iPad. A Smart Stack widget rotates through widgets based on relevancy throughout the day. They are both added in the same way that all other widgets are added and may make sense for your workflow.

Editing a Widget

  1. Press and hold a widget until a contextual menu appears. 
  2. Click Edit Widget (or Edit Stack).
  3. Select from the options provided to you. Clicking the minus (-) sign will remove an option from a widget.

Adding widgets to an iPad screen reduces the effort needed to complete tasks. Rather than multiple taps, a user can complete tasks with fewer taps. This can increase accessibility for ourselves and our students.  

Additional Support:

A brief video tutorial about Creating iPad Widgets (runtime 6:07) has been created to guide you through the process. 

Check out some of the resources we’ve curated on this topic for more support: