Video Games in the Classroom By Chris, Jonathan, and Kristjan

A) They Read DifferentlyB) They Notice Things Differently C) They Learn DifferentlyD) All of the Above Why are Digital Natives different from Digital Immigrants??

A) They Read DifferentlyB) They Notice Things Differently C) They Learn DifferentlyD) All of the Above

Gaming Statistics The amount of time children spend gaming is on the rise! 30% of children in the U.S. are spending more time gaming this year than last Grade 8 boys are spending on average 23 hours per week and girls are spending about 12 hours per week gaming An average kid spends 316 hours per year gaming At 6 hours per week, the grade 11 girls tend to spend the least amount of time gaming

Speak Their Language!!

Students want to play Games, We want them to Learn

Why Are Games Effective?? Anchored Instruction o Case study or problem situation that allows exploration Situated Learning and Cognition o Exploring topics in practical situations o Knowledge has a situated nature, learn in the situation it will be applied Play Theory o Play has historically developed cognitive abilities Intrinsic Motivation o Motivation comes from the pleasure in the task (internal) Stimulates Multiple Intelligences o Depending on the context, can target different intelligences

Deveolping Literacy James Paul Gee from the University of Arizona states that; "Some people even say that games are killing reading and writing- far from it! They're actually engaging kids with reading and writing more then ever." Story lines and visual cues act as scaffolding for developing readers...

Developing Skills Creativity o Students want to create and explore Critical Thinking o Problem Solving: Students must make decisions, think logicaly and impliment strategies o Learn to fail, readjust their thinking and then try again Social Skills o Myth: Games are individual, secluded activities o Fact: Games now have large social components, often including communication. (ex/online games...)

Approaches Top Down Learning Game as an engaging activity Used to frame the lessons and activities that follow Bottom Up Learning Students apply and utilize learned skills to games Form of evaluation (of, as and for learning)

Games are Effective When a) instruction is matched to the medium b) content is integrated into the game c) student has previous experience with the game d) a + b e) b + c f) all of the above

Games are Effective When a) instruction is matched to the medium b) content is integrated into the game c) student has previous experience with the game d) a + b e) b + c f) all of the above

Ideas for Curricular Implementation Science: Use of a simulator to explore the various principals involved in flight Planet Earth DVD game Social Studies: Use of a game like Civilization or Age of Empires to explore ancient cultures Using flight simulators to teach history as seen herehere Language Arts: Video Games such as this, where there are interactive links to activities related to novel studiesthis Physical Education: Nintendo Wii makes a great addition to a gym class. Not only is it fun, but it can also be very physically challenging.addition Economics: Can be taught using various games that involve commerce. Here is a good example.Here

Conclusion Don't be afraid to try it! The research backs it up Kids will have more fun (and so will you!)

Resources htm http:// mes_as_teaching_tool/ mes_as_teaching_tool/ video-games-for-teaching/ video-games-for-teaching/ /oct/middleyrs.pdfhttps:// 006/oct/middleyrs.pdf 04.htmhttp://mentalhealth.about.com/cs/familyresources/a/videotv4 04.htm

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