I love how we started our last ED 504 class. "20 Questions" has always been one of my favorites. Playing it with friends, playing it on a long hiking trip, or playing it in class has always been entertaining and rewarding...when you get the answer. This game was given with a set of directions I had never had before. The ability for the person with the pen to lie... twice! And to not tell when they lied! Wow. If I ever had a chance of getting the answer right before, I would never get it now. Even still, I had fun with my peers guessing which questions were valuable enough to ask.
This reminded me of my times in AP World History in high school. Every day, my teacher started the class out with "Sponge." This wasn't something in specific, but something that would work our cognitive skills outside of the traditional "academic" domain we are stuck in most of the day. Sometimes this included Boggle or Pictionary, but other innovative games as well such as putting up a picture with inverted colors of a persons face and having everyone guess who it was. I would have loved this game had it just been what it was. But perhaps the better part about it was that we got something in return for doing well in Sponge! If we won/scored in the top three we got a coupon. You could choose which coupon you wanted out of 1 day late pass for homework, 1 free quiz hint, or 5 extra points on something.
This idea of using games in the classroom reminds me a bit of the Tools framework developed for kindergarten classrooms. It seems crazy to connect the two age groups that are farthest apart from each other but it really has to do with play and how it helps development. Students are allowed to depart from academics and excel in play. Cognitive skills are worked and explored, so students are building their brains and getting ready for academic classwork without even realizing it. To the student, it seems like they are having fun with their friends and building a stronger aspect of community in the classroom. It is a win-win for both teacher and student. For these reasons I am extremely excited to test out a video game and learn how to use it in the classroom next week! :)
I really liked the idea of including time for play in the realm of academics you presented in your post! I too think this is crucial within the classroom. The Sponge game sounds pretty cool! I really like the idea of giving kids a break and activating their creative brain waves at the same time. I know that if I do too much academic thinking in one sitting I have to take a break and do something else to free my mind for a little bit--and I think it ultimately makes me think a little more clearly once I return to my academic work. It would be interesting to try and implement this in my English and History classrooms especially with an added incentive to actually get involved in the game.
ReplyDeleteThere's actually this TED Talk I saw a while ago about play and how it makes us smarter! You should check it out when we have free time: http://www.ted.com/talks/stuart_brown_says_play_is_more_than_fun_it_s_vital.html
Ms.Stilman
ReplyDeletePlay does make us smarter and enjoy learning. I have seen students in the classroom transform into active learners that are engaged and ready to learn when a game or similar activity is presented in the classroom. I think play in the classroom also allows the teachers to be creative and view her students from a different perspective. Many times, teaching subject matter material that is structured everyday can become mundane and boring for both teacher and students. Playing the right games allows all the students to participate and feel that they have something to contribute to the class. They feel better about themselves and the class as a learning community benefits.
I'm going to steal that idea from your teacher! One of the things I liked about the activity is that it would show students that they have to cognitive ability to think critically. It gives them no excuse to say, "I can't do this." Giving some external motivation can't hurt!
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