Enhanced capabilities of modern smartphones offer the potential to design tools that support new forms of teaching and learning. Increased access to mobile‐networked environments and geospatial systems provide opportunities for developing new educational experiences that support a geospatial approach to science, fostering new ways of thinking about science. However, designing effective innovative educational mobile applications remains a challenge. Applications need to be accessible to teachers that are not tech‐savvy as well as those that are, foster active learning pedagogies, enable flexible and creative use, as well as fit within the curriculum. This paper describes a smartphone application developed together with pre‐service science teachers, designed to be customisable by teachers while supporting a geospatial approach to science education. The design process and trial illustrate application use, how it supports a geospatial approach to science education and raises issues around mobile technologies, teacher pedagogies and adoption.