Social Gaming in the Classroom

This was written for an assignment in the technology class that I am currently taking, but I wanted to share it will all my teacher friends outside of the class as well!

 

 

English Language Learners and Social Gaming

by Brooke Carlyle
Summer 2013

For quite a while (as long as I have been teaching, or a student myself), teachers have used games with an academic focus to interest and engage kids in their learning. In my classroom, my students have played math games that help them think critically about order of operations, multiplication and division fact fluency games, word games to boost spelling and vocabulary, and have even created their own games focused in several content areas. As a teacher, I also implement more traditional board games that still help support specific skills that I want my students to master. Some of these games include Boggle, Scrabble, Pictionary, and Bananagrams.

Today, I would be willing to bet that some of these games are being played more than they ever have before, both by children and adults. Why? Because of Web 2.0. These games have turned into social networking obsessions and are more commonly referred to as Words With Friends (a Scrabble variation), Scramble With Friends (a Boggle variation), and Draw Something (a Pictionary variation). These games, which are already incredibly popular with upper elementary and older students (and their parents!) can greatly benefit ELL students as they work to develop their English vocabulary. However, as with most technology, there are possible barriers that could make using these games in an educational way, difficult for those students. With planning and foresight, those barriers are easily avoided.

	Logistics and Benefits for ELLs	Barriers and Solutions
Words With Friends	Words With Friends (WWF) is a game based on Scrabble by the company Zynga Games. It became incredibly popular over the last few years in a wide variety of age groups. WWF can be downloaded and played on iPhones, iPads, iPod Touches, Android, and Windows phones/tablets, Kindle Fire, and Nook Tablet (many schools have access to some or one of these technologies.   The idea of WWF is to take turns arranging all or some of your 7 letter tiles to form words on a “game board.” Points are based on the value of the letters in the word, and where they are placed related to bonus squares on the board. Play continues as both players build off the words already on the board.   This is a great way for students to work on their spelling and vocabulary. A dictionary is allowed when there is a dispute about a word (or its spelling) and that could provide the opportunity for students to learn new words. I would also encourage my students to challenge themselves by giving a definition or synonym for the word they are using.  WWF can be played with two people on the same device, or two people can play against each other using separate devices.   This is a game I would use in 5th grade and higher classrooms.	The use of technology often requires specific directions. I wouldn’t expect a student (ELL or not) to just pick up a classroom iPad and know exactly how to navigate through the programs, find WWF, and use the game exactly as I intended them to. Their knowledge of this is also highly dependent on their schema with technology and these games. Maybe their parents play WWF on their iPhones all the time, or maybe they’ve never held an iPhone or iPad in their life.   To overcome this, I would provide direct instruction to my students as I use the device and show them how the game is played. You could also play traditional Scrabble at some point before introducing WWF. That way you are not focused on navigating the technology, but more so the rules of the game.   Also partnering students strategically, with one having more knowledge of how the game works, could be a helpful strategy as well.
Scramble With Friends	Scramble With Friends (SWF) is another game produced by Zynga Games and it plays off the traditional board game Boggle. Players are shown a 4 by 4 grid of letters (16 letters total) and slide their finger to connect letters to form words. Words can as small as 2 letters, but points are earned based on length of the word. Words can be formed vertically, horizontally, and even diagonally.   Even when I play this game I notice TONS of easily formed sight words, making this game more appropriate for younger students (as Boggle generally is).   This is a game I could see used in primary classrooms, along with intermediate and higher. The beauty of this game is that it is as hard as you make it. It does an excellent job of meeting children at their level.	Just as with WWF, anytime you are introducing new technology or instructions on who to play a game, students (especially those who are not native English speakers) may struggle. This struggle would be benefitted by direct instruction from the teacher on how to access and play this game and actually playing Boggle in the classroom beforehand.
Draw Something	Draw Something was created by a company called OMGPOP. It is a game that is based on the classic game of Pictionary. Draw something can be played on iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android devices. Just like in Pictionary, each player is given a word and they must draw a visual representation of that word to help the other player guess what it is. Draw Something is great because players are given a choice of 3 words that they would like to draw (easy, middle, and hard). This is built in differentiation! I love this game for ELLs because one of the most effective techniques to use when supporting language acquisition is to provide visual representation of vocabulary. That is exactly what this game does!   I could see this game being used in primary grades with support from an adult or older student. I would not hesitate to use this game with my 6th graders and older students.	Similar barriers exist for ELL and any student when using this game. Students must be specifically taught how to use the device on which they are playing AND the rules of the actual game.   Again, this can be helped with direct instruction, and playing the non-technology version of the game as a whole or small group in the classroom.   If younger students are playing Draw Something, it could be helpful to have an adult or older student there for support.

More information about these games and more can be found at:
http://www.zyngawithfriends.com/en/about/index.html
http://omgpop.com/drawsomething

Pins for the Win: Art Edition

I have a mental list happening of the final posts for my "Pins for the Win" theme happening here on my blog. I know I want to do writing, management, motivation/quote posters, and art. Art seemed the most fun out of all of those options, and it's one of those days where my motivation is quite low to do anything productive (as I hear my fiancé upstairs deep cleaning the master bed and bath *oops*), so I need something fun to write about! Here are my top art pins from over the last year or so. Again, some I have done, and some I haven't!

I have done this project with both my 6th graders and kids at the summer camp I used to run (ages 6-11). It's super easy, and they look so cool when finished. The 6th graders and I hung up all of our finished hand drawings on a wall in our classroom, and they looked great together, even though they were all a little different! http://pinterest.com/pin/234327986832245365/

I also did this with my 6th graders this past Christmas. I used a large canvas I got on sale at a craft store and had each one of my kiddos put a handprint. I helped them with the layout of their handprints so it looked like a Christmas tree. After their handprints dried, I stenciled colored circles that looked like ornaments and wrote my students names on them with black Sharpie (2 names on each). On the bottom I wrote "Ms.Carlyle's Class 2012." I'll definitely do it again this year! http://pinterest.com/pin/234327986833186599/

I really like the look of this art project. The mix of patterns and color is really interesting to the eye. I pinned this quite a while ago but have not done it with my class. It looks pretty tricky and I'll need to go back to the website linked to the pin to get better directions. This is definitely a project that I would want to do alone first before introducing it to the kids! The one awesome thing about finding things on Pinterest is that it's great to have a visual example. I'm a new-ish teacher, so I don't always have examples of everything I want to do stored away! http://pinterest.com/pin/234327986834520605/

I did this project just the other day actually! This is what I call an "all-inclusive" pin. You don't have to mess with following the link to the website, because it has step by step pictures right here. This was super easy but did take some time to make it nice and neat. I will definitely be doing this with my 6th graders this year. One thing I like is that they can choose which color(s) to complete the picture with (I did pink and white!) http://pinterest.com/pin/234327986834830031/

I told you this was low-motivation Monday, so that is all I have in me for this blog post. I definitely do have more art projects on my Teacher, Teacher Pinterest board if you're interested!

Pins for the Win: Classroom Organization

I am a strange breed of teacher. I have extreme anxiety (anyone who knows me knows this is no secret) and get myself incredibly worked up when things "feel" messy or cluttered. What makes that strange? I bring it upon myself with my lack of organization skills. I'm not like, hoarder status, but I just don't take the time to do things right (put those papers where they need to go, file that lesson, etc) and it comes back to bite me in the butt. When you walk into my classroom it doesn't seem messy. Because I am more likely to just throw clutter away (most likely losing valuable papers and such) than sort through it like I should. I'm starting out the school year in a new classroom, and am hoping to use that as a clean slate/fresh start to staying on top of everything. Today I am going to pin things that I found related to keeping that classroom clean and organized, and didn't seem too overwhelming. I don't have many...because like I said, I am no organization maven, but it's better than nothing!

This is a picture of my room that I actually uploaded to Pinterest last year. I only copy things week-by-week. I know some teachers do whole months or even semesters at a time, but I work best just doing it week by week. I keep my copies for the week in these manilla folders. One huge benefit to this, is if I am unexpectedly absent one day, it makes it that much easier to write sub-plans and explain where things are. In the very back, I usually keep extra worksheets for kids who are done, or if I do have a sub and they need something for the kids to do. http://pinterest.com/pin/234327986832704228/

Wow. Would I want this in my room? Yes. Do I think it will ever happen? No. http://pinterest.com/pin/234327986834848826/

This year, in my new classroom, I have a whiteboard like this at the back of the room behind my desk. It's obviously not going to be a very effective teaching space, so I like the idea of using as a big calendar like this. I can mark off the lines with tape (I found painters or masking tape works best, NOT duct tape) and adjust the calendar each much by adding velcro backed laminated numbers, or even just writing the days in. It's a great way to share with the kids upcoming events, due dates, and changes in school schedules. http://pinterest.com/pin/234327986834848820/

This is something that I actually took a picture of in my classroom and uploaded to pinterest. My room is a portable, so I'm always bringing papers and what have you to and from the main building. I realized that I was losing track of things on my desk, so I stapled a few manilla folders to the wall, near my other important documents (calendar, pacing guides, etc). It worked out really well for me!

This is not a new concept, but it's one that I have never tried. I get nervous doing things with student numbers, because I have a high rate of turnover in my classroom (in our school). This year, I want to modify this idea a bit and use it in my room. Instead of a bin with individual numbers, I think I'll use an absent folder. If a student is absent, a folder will be placed on their desk by me or a student helper. Throughout the day, any worksheets or whatnot that are passed out can be put in that folder. This avoids lost worksheets, the usual "but I didn't get that one" a week later when something is due, and a messy desk covered in papers. http://pinterest.com/pin/234327986834663437/