How might video games enhance my students' learning?
Over spring break (had such a wonderful time playing with my kids and visiting friends!) I had an excuse to let my kids play video games online. For once I didn't have to feel guilty about my parenting when I let them play computer games! This time they were doing it to help me with my class.
The games I had my kids (lab rats) test for me were The Serum Run, Word Bump, and a Forces and Motion simulation game from http://phet.colorado.edu.
The Serum Run is a game from UAA's LitSite Alaska and AlaskaKids. It was created to teach a few things about the Iditarod, dog sledding/survival in Alaska, along with Alaskan geography and history. Click here for more information about Serum Run. The game can be differentiated to several different levels of difficulty, and the student directs their learning throughout the game. They can simply click through the informative parts and keep playing, or focus more on historical information and that sort of thing. I found with my children that they needed prompting to read through the facts and not just play the fun things.
1. Was the child engaged? Both my children, age 7 and 9, were very engaged in the game. They were able to navigate their way through it alone for the most part. I would say this is the youngest age level for effective learning through Serum Run. My 7 year old is a very good reader for his age, and this was important for doing the game on his own. My 9 year old took more time to explore the game options for herself.
2. Did the child learn the skills that were targeted?/ Can the child demonstrate that these skills were mastered? I could see that my children learned about dog sledding and survival in Alaska. They needed a little prompting to share their information, but when I asked them specific questions they could tell me the answers. This game could be a more effective learning tool for the classroom if children were given a question and answer sheet ahead of time and asked to fill it out as they played the game. There could also be a group discussion about what students learned after they all had some time with Serum Run.
2. Did the child learn the skills that were targeted?/ Can the child demonstrate that these skills were mastered? I could see that my children learned about dog sledding and survival in Alaska. They needed a little prompting to share their information, but when I asked them specific questions they could tell me the answers. This game could be a more effective learning tool for the classroom if children were given a question and answer sheet ahead of time and asked to fill it out as they played the game. There could also be a group discussion about what students learned after they all had some time with Serum Run.
Word Bump is a flash game which simply has you form words from 2-8 letters. "Can you make words fast enough by clicking on the letters to form a word
up to 8 letters? Bump all golden tiles on top to win. Game will end if
any golden tile drops below board and you may use like-colored letters
together for power-ups." My 9 year old tried this out for me and loved it.
1. Was the child engaged? My daughter was definitely engaged. She liked the game and wanted to play it for longer. She kept trying to form words and didn't give up even when it got difficult.
2. Did the child learn the skills that were targeted?/ Can the child demonstrate that these skills were mastered? I'm not sure exactly what was targeted with this game except spelling. My daughter possibly learned how to spell some words correctly when she tried them but they didn't work with her first spelling. She may have also increased her speed and confidence.
The Forces and Motion simulation game was the most interesting to my 7 year old son. He loved adjusting the applied forces, friction and mass to influence the motion of an object. What a great way to learn about physical science! The answer to the focus questions was yes.
One of my favorite things about all these games is that even though they are single-player games, children can easily help each other during the game and make it a shared experience. I think children interacting by sharing tips and strategies during video games makes them much more valuable. During Forces and Motion, my children gave each other tips and worked together the whole time they played it. Another plus is an easy download to the desktop so we don't have to rely on the internet connection for the game.
2. Did the child learn the skills that were targeted?/ Can the child demonstrate that these skills were mastered? I'm not sure exactly what was targeted with this game except spelling. My daughter possibly learned how to spell some words correctly when she tried them but they didn't work with her first spelling. She may have also increased her speed and confidence.
The Forces and Motion simulation game was the most interesting to my 7 year old son. He loved adjusting the applied forces, friction and mass to influence the motion of an object. What a great way to learn about physical science! The answer to the focus questions was yes.
One of my favorite things about all these games is that even though they are single-player games, children can easily help each other during the game and make it a shared experience. I think children interacting by sharing tips and strategies during video games makes them much more valuable. During Forces and Motion, my children gave each other tips and worked together the whole time they played it. Another plus is an easy download to the desktop so we don't have to rely on the internet connection for the game.
My PLN
My Module 2 Project group gave me ideas about games to use. The website for the force and motion game along with the Word game came from them. I also explored other sites suggested by my Tuesday night Twitter PLN. My wonderful kids were also a valuable part of my PLN this week! They actually help me pretty often, by answering questions I have about all sorts of technical resources for children. Anytime the computer is on it emits a strong magnetic field (it's true) which proves irresistible to kids, providing lots of chances to get their feedback.
No comments:
Post a Comment