My Gaming Experiment

Play a video game for 3 hours.  That is the assignment that I have been given for this week.  My 9 year old son would LOVE and assignment of this nature, but me, not so much.  I know that the average gamer is 32 and 1/2 of those playing games are women, but I have never been one to sit and do anything for a large amount of time. 

I am a rule follower, so I choose one of the games, Food Street to play on Sunday.  I chose this game because it reminded me of a show that I watch with my family, The Great Food Truck Race.  If any game could create a FLOW for me, this would be it.  I found a comfy spot and I got started.

To begin, players are walked through a tutorial.  This is helpful but monotonous.  I was soon bored with the slow pace and took a break from the game.  I was not fully absorbed at this point, but I would try again.....

This time I sat down with some goals in mind:

*  How does this game relate to learning?
       -  This simulation most closely connects to mathematics as far as I can tell.  Players use their knowledge of money, estimation, adding, subtraction, multiplication, and division in order to be successful.  There is also a reading component to the game, which I particularly liked because of the relevance it puts on reading and its value beyond school.

*  How does this change my ideas about gaming?
       -Unfortunately, this experience did not change my thoughts about gaming a whole lot.  I have always understood that certain games can be thought of as educational in one way or another.  Minecraft, for example, is a simulation that uses exploration, strategy, and judgement to problem solve.  When putting these components to work, there are consequences, either good or bad.  This follows the the Taxonomy Alignment for Gaming very closely.

And all of that is wonderful and essential, but I have a hard time tying this to my standards and skills for 4th graders.  I DO see a benefit for gaming, I am not sure of its place in the classroom, though. 

*  What are the thought processes I go through to problem solve throughout the game?
       -In order to work my way through this game, I had to analyze the cause and effect relationship of many factors.  Also, I had to prioritize needs and wants.  These are all great practices for people of all ages.

This platform was easy for me, a non gamer, to play.  I teach 4th grade, and I believe that they would agree that this game does not pose much of a challenge.  I know that they would quickly become absorbed in the game because of the real-life connections they can make.  However, I am not sure that they would benefit academically from the experience and they may loose interest quickly.