Gaming in Literacy

Those of you who know me, or have read my bio page, understand my interest in games based learning.

Please check out my MISA funded research Mario Kart project from last year, and also  my resource page, which shows how other educators are using video games in the classroom.

I was also interviewed CBC radio (and other radio stations) and also by various newspapers.  You might also like to read my blog Using Video Games At Home For Learning Over The Summer.

I'm very excited to bring gaming to our literacy program. Today, we played and critiqued the Wii game New Super Mario Brothers Wii.

Pulling names randomly, students were invited to the front of the room to play the game. Each game session lasted about a minute or so. After each session, we filled out a section on our brainstorming sheet as we prepare for review writing.

We were looking at: finding 5 descriptive words about the game, explaining & summarizing the game play, determining the effectiveness of the controls, the sounds (music, effects, voice), the graphics, and the multi-player function (and justifying those opinions). We also looked at personal connections to the game and then every one gave the game their individual, overall rating.

These points will make up the criteria of our review writing.

Students got quite impassioned in their opinions. Some thought the game too childish (for which they had to JUSTIFY their positon--for example, the graphics are too much like a cartoon, the game play is too easy) while some thought the game one of the best, ever (for which they had to JUSTIFY their position--for example, the music is happy & well suited to the sense of the fun that the game provides).

One thing we have been emphasizing in our reading & writing program is the need for SPECIFIC DETAILS (see previous article 'where's the beef?'). Whether writing reports or answering comprehension questions about Poe's The Tell Tale Heart, students have been encouraged to put in specific details and to justify  their responses with details from the text...or in this case, the video game.

Int his unit, we will be reading game reviews and studying the way writers write reviews (one of these writers is our guest speaker, Luke Navarro). And of course we will continue to play games and critique them! The final assignment will be a review of a game of student choice, either one covered in class or one from home.

Later in the year, we will apply these same strategies to the more traditional movie & book review process.