Week 10

Essential Question: How do you currently infuse play into your class? How might you change this as a result of some of the ideas you’ve encountered?

Teaching in a high school science classroom lends itself to experimentation and play. I mentioned in one of my previous blog posts that an article written by Ashley Deese states that Dmitri Mendeleev was using gamification, before it had a name, to create the periodic table way back in 1869. She periodic table analogy lesson I introduce my students to the periodic table with is actually one of the gamified lessons that popped into my head first when I started thinking about answering this question. I provide my students with rectangular puzzle pieces (seen below) and they have to work as a team to find the patterns and develop a periodic table with patterns for each property and then use the created periodic table to predict the missing “element”. It is always one of my favorite lessons because they must use a growth mindset to fight through and complete the puzzle.

Periodic Table Analogy Game Pieces

After reading Explore Like A Pirate by Michael Matera (2015), I have begun thinking about ways to gamify the lessons that don’t already lend themselves to curiosity and exploration. I love that Matera gives details about so many different game mechanics and ideas about how to incorporate them into the classroom.

I am going to be teaching a middle school math class next year and I have been thinking about ways to apply some game mechanics to that course. One thing that sounds like it could be fun and simple is embracing the use of dice. Matera states “There is something about playing with dice - the cool anticipation as they roll around in your hand and the fearful hope as you watch your fate tumble across the table” (2015, p. 157). Dice could add some excitement to a simple lesson like adding and subtracting integers or could be more complicated. While researching, I found a game called Number Neighborhood that has students using operations and writing expressions to create specific numbers and earn the most points (Deleeuw & Kilmek, 2009). It looks like a game I would really enjoy playing with my students and the best moments in teaching are when I can have fun with my students!


Resources:
Deleeuw, S., & Klimek, S. (2009, April 22). Math Games for the Classroom: Grades 6-8. Retrieved July 15, 2020, from http://www.mathematicshed.com/uploads/1/2/5/7/12572836/sarahnsarahmiddle.pdf

Matera, M. (2015). Explore Like A Pirate: Gamification and Game-Inspired Course Design to Engage, Enrich, and Elevate Your Learners. San Diego, CA, CA: Dave Burgess Consulting.

Comments

  1. Coby HaasJuly 20, 2020 at 1:42 PM

    That periodic table game looks interesting. My last days of chemistry class are far behind me, but that kind of missing element and re-categorization appeal to my style of learning. In looking at information over this semester, I have come across a number of periodic table games, which sure beats rote memorization that I remember.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousJuly 20, 2020 at 3:13 PM

    Nice post. I think the elements of gamification have been used by teachers for years, but they are just now seeming to be more easily employed. Technology has really spurred the movement.

    ReplyDelete

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