Tuesday in class, we saw a wonderful presentation over games and gaming. I learned so much from this presentation, including my own ignorance of the topic. This presentation and discussion, coupled with the topic of using simulations and games with gifted students in another class of mine, brought this whole idea into new light for me.
Especially influential in the presentation was an activity that we did: We were given a game and asked to connect it with the Iowa Core Curriculum. I initially thought this was going to be hard, perhaps a stretch to make it “fit.” I was so incredibly wrong! Once I examined the parts of the game and what the players were asked to do, “academic connections” starting jumping out at me! My group was looking at Rollercoaster Tycoon, a game in which you build roller coasters and manage the amusement park in a number of ways. In an elementary science class last year, we built “roller coasters” with foam tubes and tape using little toy cars to test our construction skills. Rollercoaster Tycoon would do a similar thing without wasting tape and even providing students with a more realistic reaction of each piece of the puzzle!
How important gaming has become in our world today! Why not use these helpful tools in the classroom with students?
Images from: http://www.openclipart.org/image/800px/svg_to_png/generic-game-desktop.png and http://www.openclipart.org/image/800px/svg_to_png/brunurb_Retro_Joystick_002.png
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