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Game Plan

Lesson plans for gaming

Global Warming Simulation

By kylemawer  |  2010/05/25 03:58 Posted in All Posts, Game Plan  |  Comments (1)

Lesser controlled speaking activity.

Level: Advanced

Location: Computer room

Topic: Global Warming

Language Focus: Modals of obligation

Game: Global Warming Interactive

“CO2FX is a web based multi-user educational game which explores the relationship of global warming to economic, political and science policy decisions. The game is driven by a systems dynamics model and is presented in a user friendly interface intended for the high school user.”

Screen shot 2010-04-22 at 8.54.33 AM

Preparation

Download and print off enough copies of the CO2FX Global Warming Simulation role cards and print a copy for each 3 learners in your class and cut each card out.

Pre Play

Screen shot 2010-04-22 at 10.18.33 AM

  1. If you are in a connected classroom its a nice idea to have the game on the board to help you illustrate the situation.  If you don’t, don’t worry.
  2. Explain to your class that Brazil has decided to deal with the global warming issue and brainstorm in open class a few ideas how they might do this.
  3. Divide your class into 3 groups or 3 tables (blue, orange and green) of advisors together (see right).  Give out the science advisor (blue) cards to one table, the Policy advisor (orange) cards to the other and the Economic advisor (green) cards to the last table.  Ask them to read the cards then turn them over and summarize the card to the person next to them.
  4. Now they make notes on what arguements they might use to achieve the challenge they have been set.

Play #1

Screen shot 2010-04-22 at 10.18.48 AM

  1. Ask your learners to stand up and form a group of 3 consisting of one person from each table (see left) and then go to the computer room.
  2. Learners sit in their groups of three at a computer.  Because the game itself is not very intuitive it’s a very good idea to get your learners to read the gameguide. It may be a good idea to explain before hand that because of the serious nature of this game that they may not get a chance to play it until next time.  This time is dedicated to understanding how the game works.
  3. Learners take notes from the game guide on parts of the game that are relevant to their role.

Play #2

  1. Learners sit in the groups they were in when they read the game guide in the computer room (see advisors gaming diagram above) and compare their ideas on how the game is played.  They may use any notes they took from last class.
  2. In their groups you return to the computer room and play the game.

Post Play

  1. The advisors all sit together on three separate tables (see Advisors Together diagram above).
  2. They compare their success at the game and try and establish the best way to play the game.  This will involve feedback on not only their role in the game but those of the other advisors.
  3. Each table makes a ’strategy guide’ consisting of a list of tips on how best to play the game.
  4. Learners return to their computer game teams (see advisors gaming diagram above) and compare their ’strategy guides’.
  5. In open class decide on the best tips and write them on the board and learners copy it down. (You could do this as a relay dictation).

Extra Activity

Return to the classroom and play the game using the ’strategy guide’ from step 5 in Post Play.

OR

Learners use the ’strategy guide’ from step 5 in Post Play to play the game at home.  They could then report to the class and find out who did the best.  That person then tells the class what it was that they that made them do so well.

Useful Language

We should . . .

It has to be . . .             lowered                    raised                      kept the same

We must . . .

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State of Debate

By kylemawer  |  2010/05/21 09:43 Posted in All Posts, Game Plan  |  Comments (1)

Level: Upper Intermediate

Skills focus: Listening & Reading

Location: Connected classroom/ computer room

Language Focus: Modals of Obligation

Game: State of Debate

“It’s the year 2020 and Just-Co have banned hoodies, and you’ve just been spotted wearing one. Can you talk your way out of trouble using your English Language skills?”

Screen shot 2010-05-18 at 10.08.29 AMIn this game you are spotted by a regulator (police) who approaches you and tells you about your crime in a video sequence.  You then have to read and choose from three options (written text) on how you deal with the situation and see how they react.  Other situations appear in the game like giving advice to a friend and trying to get into a disco past a bouncer.

Preparation.

  • If you are doing this in the computer room treat it as an autonomous listening & reading activity.  As you monitor help learners understand the game’s language content.  The colleague who showed me this game had his learners play the game as a reader/ listener.
  • Presentation on modal verbs of permission and obligation if you are doing this in a connected classroom as an open class activity.

Play

NOTE There is a button on the bottom left hand side that provides you with subtitles for the video sequences in the game.

  1. Play the video intro and ask a few concept questions such as “When is it set?”, “What crimes are there?”, “What sort of government is it?”
  2. Divide the class into pairs.  They watch the video sequence and should ask their partner 3 wh- questions.
  3. They then read and discuss what option they should choose before taking a class vote.
  4. They watch the video sequence that shows a reaction to their choice and learners repeat from step 2.
  5. Play the game for as long as you think is necessary.

Post activity

  • Discuss in class which were the best ways to deal with each situation.
  • The situations in the game may be extreme but what are the unwritten rules and regulations affecting young people today.  Discuss.
  • Write their own rules and regulations for adults.
  • Write a role play between a ‘regulator’ and an adult breaking the law.

Homework activity

  • Learners write a composition about advice they give to friends, dress codes or laws and regulations that effect them as young people but not the adults.
  • If learners didn’t finish the game in class they could continue at home.  You could ask them to take notes using a simple table:

Screen shot 2010-05-18 at 11.03.58 AM

There is also a ’save’ button which I’ve never used so in theory you could save a game and come back to it in later classes.  Whatever you choose to do I hope you enjoy playing the game.

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An Educational Game – Disaster Watch

By kylemawer  |  2010/05/18 03:20 Posted in All Posts, Game Plan  |  Comments (1)

Level: Intermediate +

Location: Computer room

Topic: Food shortage, flood and earthquake disasters

Language focus: Writing

Game: Disaster watch

An Educational game commissioned by Christian Aid to raise awareness of the threat of Food shortages, flood and earthquakes in a Central American country.

Screen shot 2010-03-22 at 11.13.48 PM

Pre-Play

I started this activity in a connected classroom by dictating these four questions:

  1. What’s his name?
  2. Where does he live?
  3. What disasters /do they watch for?
  4. How many disaster clues /do you have to /watch for?

Then I played the video intro to the game until learners had all the answers to the questions.  In feedback I elicited the three disasters (earthquake, flood and food shortages) on to the board and put learners into groups and gave them the task of predicting what possible ‘warning signs’ there might be before each disaster. Learners brainstorm them into three categories which they draw in their note books.

Play

Learners take their notebooks to the computer room.  Sit learners in pairs at a computer.  Direct them to the game and let them play the game Disaster watch.  Stress that they have to complete their tables in their notebooks.  There is enough text in the game for learners to get some good reading practice.  As an alternative/ extra activity you may like to get them to record any difficult language items.

Post Play

Back in the classroom feedback on the answers.  Ask learners if there were any warning signs that they predicted at the beginning that i) appeared in the game ii) didn’t appear in the game.

Extra Activity

Learners write a short composition entitled “The warning signs for __________” and write about one of the three disasters.  They can structure their composition in 4 parts:

1 About the Country – Learners write a little background information about the country.  They can use information from, the intro, research, what they know.

2 A disaster – a little bit about the disaster they have chosen to write about (what it is, what it does, who it effects etc).

3 The Warning signs – Use their notes from the game to complete this paragraph.

4 What can be done – What possible solutions there are and how best to combat the disaster (later parts of the game will give learners some ideas).


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Room Fake

By grahamstanley  |  2010/05/14 08:21 Posted in All Posts, Game Plan  |  Comments (1)

Room Fake is another ‘Escape from the Room’ puzzle game that is almost impossible to do without the walkthrough, which I have added below.

This works well as a live listening activity, but I recommend playing it first as a race to see who finishes first in the computer room. With the students in pairs, give out the walkthrough (unnumbered) and ask them to order it as they play. To make it harder, remove some of the information (such as the codes in number 16) or (even more devious) change some of the clues so they give wrong information and then later in the classroom, ask the students to rewrite the errors and deal with all vocabulary questions.

COMPLETE WALKTHROUGH:

  1. Click on the dresser, click underneath it, and get the battery.
  2. Back out, turn right, get the number 4 tile and the wadded paper out of the garbage can.
  3. Examine and uncrumple the wad of paper.
  4. Back up so you’re looking AT the can, click on it to lift it, and click it again near the base to find the color for the letter O.
  5. On the desk, near the left side of the plant, will be a green 3 cylinder. Get that.
  6. Click on the bed, turn back the blanket, and get the number 6 tile from the edge of the blanket. At the bottom of the bed is a red 3 cylinder, get that as well.
  7. Back out, turn right again. Between the bed and the cabinet on the floor is the number 7 tile.
  8. The top drawer of the green cabinet has a clue but nothing to get. The middle drawer has a safe that we don’t have the combination for yet. The bottom is locked. Open the cabinet at the top and get the battery from the right side of the second shelf, and the scrap of paper from the top shelf. That should tell you the color of the letter C.
  9. Turn right again, open the curtains. On the curtain rod will be a blue 3 cylinder.
  10. Next to the curtains is a diagram for the magic sqare. Click the bottom corner: Taped to the back is a scrap of paper that has the safe code (196 – it’s shown upside down).
  11. Go back to the green cabinet – put the combination in the safe, and get the number 7 tile and the screwdriver. Examine the screwdriver and pull the cord to extend the bit.
  12. Turn right, click the wall plate, and use the screwdriver to remove the cover. Take the screws.
  13. Turn right again, and look at the SIDE of the small wooden dresser. Unscrew the screws (and take them!), return to the front, and open the stuck bottom drawer. Take the battery charger and the red 3 cylinder.
  14. Examine the battery charger and put the batteries in it, then go back to the left to the outlet. Plug the charger in, click away, click back, and take the charger and charged batteries. (That was fast!)
  15. Turn right again, click on the little dog statue, and put the batteries in the holders. Press the button on the front to turn its head and get the number 9 tile.
  16. On the desk is a magic square puzzle – put the tiles in so the grid becomes:
    8 3 4
    1 5 9
    6 7 2
     and press the button. This will give you the color of the K.
  17. When you back up, the picture will have fallen. If you turn left, two circles of light on the side of the dresser will give you a time, and the controls behind the painting are to set the clock. Set the short hand to 5 and the long hand to 6 (30 minutes).
  18. When you turn left again, there is a small box extended under the clock. Click it and get the silver key and the blue 2 cylinder.
  19. The silver key opens the bottom drawer of the green dresser. Open it and get the pink tissue and the small red sword.
  20. On top of the small wooden dresser is a vase – knock it over and use the pink tissue to absorb it. Turn left, open the curtains, and clean the window off with the tissue. This will show you the color of the L (on the right), and a secret about the door (on the left).
  21. Return to the dog statue, put the red sword in its neck slot (as marked) to get a red 1 cylinder. Pull the string left over to get the gold key.
  22. Turn to the door, click on the bottom left corner to zoom in, and again to take off the panel. Plug the door into the wall outlet. Get the blue 3 cylinder.
  23. The gold key opens the safe behind the paper to the right of the window. Open it, and get the doorknob, and the green 2 cylinder.
  24. Click the door, use the doorknob on it, and the screws to secure it. Pressing it will open a panel with the word “LOCK” above it.
  25. THE COLORS CHANGE, but the puzzle works like this: Any two colored cylinders of the same value will blend (blue and red become purple, red and green become yellow, blue and green become teal). If you kept note of the colors each letter should be there will only be one combination of the cylinders that will fit and make the right colors for each letter. Place the cylinders so the colors are right, and OPEN SESAME!
    Now you can exit through the cabinet, OR, find the REAL exit…
  26. Clicking the bottom right of the green cabinet should show you the side – get the hammer out from behind the drawer.
  27. Turn around, break open the vase to reveal the color of the letter A.
  28. To your right, the magic square on the desk can be clicked and turned over – that reveals the color of the backwards K.
  29. The back of the cover from the electrical panel will give you the color of the letter E.
  30. Believe it or not, with this, you have enough information to re-solve the puzzle for “FAKE”. Go back to the door, and solve the puzzle again. FAKE will turn to TRUE, and there will be one gold cylinder now – a token with a dog on it. Take that.
  31. Return to the dog statue, detach the head, put the dog token in the neck slot, and reattach the head. He will open the TRUE exit for you.

The end!

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Mystery Of Time And Place (MOTAS)

By kylemawer  |  2010/05/11 03:50 Posted in All Posts, Game Plan  |  Comments (3)

Level: Intermediate+

Location: Computer room

Skills Focus: Live listening

Language Focus: It’s something you use to + verb / for + gerund

Game: Mystery of Time and Space (MOTAS)

Screen shot 2010-04-20 at 9.54.54 PM

This game was probably one of the first point-and-click games I used with a class and many consider it a classic ‘escape the room game’.  It has got over a hundred rooms in which you have to find objects, work out puzzles and escape from the room.  What’s nice about this game is that if you hover your mouse over the objects in a room it is annotated (see below).  This is worth pointing out to your learners at a very early stage.

Screen shot 2010-04-20 at 10.10.36 PM

The pre-gaming activity below orientates learners to the annotation function within MOTAS.   You need to do this in a connected classroom before moving to a computer room.

Preparation

Print off a copy of the MOTAS walkthrough (rooms 1-8) or use an electronic copy of the MOTAS walkthrough (rooms 1-21) or the MOTAS video walkthrough (rooms 1- 5) to ‘dictate’ the game play to your learners.

Pre-Play

  1. Present the game to the class and show them the first room.
  2. Tell them they have 2 minutes to write down the name of as many objects as possible that they can see on the screen (whether they may use dictionaries is up to you).
  3. When they have finished ask them to swap lists with another group.
  4. Tell them that they get 2 points if the name of the object appears on the screen and 1 point if you accept it.
  5. Move your cursor over each object on the screen.  Learners give 2 points if the object name appears.
  6. Add up the marks and hand the list back to the original group.
  7. Groups can now argue over the 1 point score words on their list e.g. ‘Locker’ is annotated but you can give 1 point if they say ‘cupboard’

Play

  1. In a computer room tell learners they have to listen to you tell them how to escape.  The first one out the room and says stop gets 1 point.
  2. They have to either find the annotation to find an object or ask you to describe the object to them e.g. Learner: “What’s a pillow?” Teacher: “You use it to put your head on when you go to sleep.”
  3. Use a copy of the walkthrough or the video walkthrough to dictate to your learners how they should complete the game.

Post Play

As learners to write down some of the objects they remember from the game and to write a definition for the objects using the grammar:

It’s an object you use to + bare infinitive

It’s an object you use for + gerund

Alternative activity

Instead of doing a live listening activity or gaming dictation you could give learners a reading in which they have to sequence jumbled walkthrough sentences by playing the game in the computer room.

Screen shot 2010-04-20 at 10.40.15 PM

If you would like to try this why not download a copy of the MOTAS Sequencing Activity and make enough copies for each group in your computer room.

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Alan Wake – A Video worksheet

By kylemawer  |  2010/05/11 03:00 Posted in All Posts, Game Plan  |  Comments (0)

At the beginning of this review there is a warning about the video having a violence content so it is recommended you watch to assess whether this activity is appropriate for your learners.  There is a lot of shooting, scary voices and a dark foreboding atmosphere throughout.

Level: Upper intermediate /advanced

Location: Connected classroom

Skills Work: Listening

Video:  Alan Wake Video Review

Screen shot 2010-05-10 at 3.05.21 PM

Preparation

Download the Alan Wake Worksheet and make sure the video plays in your classroom.

Pre-watch

Your learners look at the worksheet and discuss the ‘Before you watch’ video.

  • an alternative/ extra activity is to get them to predict ten words that they think will be mentioned in the video.

Learners then work their way through the ‘Can you predict . . ‘ questions writing notes on what they think the answers might be’

Watch activity

Tell your learners that as they watch they should correct their answers and make notes.

Post watch activity

Learners compare their answers and expand on their notes where possible before feedback in open class.

Extra Activity

  • Learners find a trailer to a video game and write their own review using their notes to help them.
  • Discuss with learners what makes a game too violent or have a game rating.
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Anika’s Annotated Odyssey

By kylemawer  |  2010/05/04 03:27 Posted in All Posts, Game Plan  |  Comments (2)

This game walkthrough is annotated with links from difficult words to a page with images of the object.

Level: Intermediate & above

Location: Computer room

Topic: Reading and dictionary work

Language Focus: Non defining relative clauses

Game: Anika’s Odyssey

Screen shot 2010-04-20 at 11.07.10 AM

This is a fun walkthrough reading activity for the computer room followed by a writing activity using non defining relative clauses.  You may also choose to do some recording vocabulary work during the game so that they have some language to work on when they return to the classroom.

Pre Play

Once you have done a presentation on non defining relative clauses (yawn!) tell your learners they have worked very well and that they are now going to go to the computer room to play a game (hooray!).  Good news is they will enjoy it a lot and there is a walkthrough to help them.  Bad news is that they have to make a note of any words in blue that they don’t know.  For this reason they need a pen/ pencil and notebook.

Play

1 Tell learners to open up two internet explorer pages.

2 In one internet explorer page direct learners to this site.

3 Learners copy and paste the address into the other internet explorer page.

4 Learners play the game on one page and read the walkthrough in the other.

5 Monitor to make sure they are playing taking notes of difficult language.

6 Stop the game when one team finishes playing and has got ten words noted down (slow them down by getting them to write down more and with a translation).

Post Play

Learners write ten non-defining relative clause sentences using words from the game.

Learners take it in turns to read out their non-defining relative clause sentences but NOT the word from the game.

The first learner to put their hand up and say the correct word from the game gets a point.

When you feel the activity has gone on long enough declare a winner.

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3rd World Farmer Note Taking Activity

By kylemawer  |  2010/04/27 03:28 Posted in All Posts, Game Plan  |  Comments (1)

Level: Upper-Intermediate

Location: Connected classroom

Skills focus: Note Taking

Game: 3rd World Farmer

Screen shot 2010-03-22 at 11.11.12 PMSCREENSHOT

Preparation

Download a copy of the 3rd World Farmer Worksheet (which contains learner worksheet and teachers’ notes).

Play

Hand out a copy of the student worksheetUse the teacher’s notes to play the game.  The interesting thing about this game is that is purposely designed to be difficult to win and progress.  The reason for this is that the game is intended to raise awareness and mirror the plight of third world farmers who themselves may live in no win situations.  In effect the game simulates the impossible to win situation that third world farmers can face.

Post Play

Learners use their notes to complete a writing for homework.  Possible writing activities:

Write a letter to a newspaper from the view point of the farmer to ask for help.

Write a letter to a bank for the farmer asking for a bank loan.

Write an information pamphlet entitled ‘The Plight of 3rd World Farmers’.

Write a composition entitled ‘3rd World Farming is a ‘no win’ situation’.

If you have any suggestions on other writing activities or ways to scaffold the then please feel free to share them in the comments section.

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Cartoon Crazy Zimmer Twins

By kylemawer  |  2010/04/20 03:26 Posted in All Posts, Game Plan  |  Comments (2)

Lesser controlled computer room writing activity.  This activity can be adapted to the level and grammar area of your choice.

Level: Intermediate & above

Location: Computer room

Topic: Writing direct speech in a cartoon

Language Focus: Direct speech, present tenses etc

Time: 30 minutes

Game: Zimmer Twins

Screen shot 2010-02-08 at 3.33.45 PMScreenshot of Zimmer Twins game

Preparation

1 Play the game yourself and make a note of any language to preteach that appear in the four file categories:

Screen shot 2010-02-08 at 3.31.36 PM

Screenshot of the four types of clips

2 In class ask your learners to make a table in their books with four columns and to label them ‘talking’, ‘doing’, ‘feeling’ and ‘writing’ (based on categories in clip screenshot above).

3 Call out vocabulary (that appears in the game and learners have to write the words in the correct category.

4 Encourage learners to ask for the meaning of any unfamiliar words.

5 Go to the computer room and direct learners to the site.  Click on ‘Make a movie’ and then ‘Make from scratch’.

Play

You should tell tell your learners that they are going to make a cartoon by listening to your instructions.  Tell them you are going to tell them the order which they have to use the ‘clip icons’.  This is to make sure that they concentrate on the speech bubble and star icon which involves learners having to write something.  Other than that they can write the story that they want.  Allow them to discuss the storyline as well as what to write between each ‘dictation’.

Also tell them that they can change the person, place and other things by clicking on the green writing in the middle.

Dictate the icons in the following order:  STAR (clapperboard), SPEECH BUBBLE, SPEECH BUBBLE, SMILEY, RUNNER, YOU DECIDE, RUNNER, SMILEY, SPEECH BUBBLE, SPEECH BUBBLE, YOU DECIDE etc

Learners write their story.  When they have finished they can go and look at the cartoons their classmates have done.

Alternative

In the preparation stage instead of asking your learners to make a table, ask them to tear up a piece of scrap paper into four pieces.  Then ask them to draw a “speech bubble, a stick man running, a smiley face and a star”.  Learners place the four icons they’ve drawn in the middle of the table.  Learners play this game in groups of 2s, 3s or 4s.  Call out the vocabulary from the game and learners have to grab the correct icon from the middle of the table.  The fastest to get the right one is the winner.  Mix the vocabulary you call out with words they are familiar with and possibly unfamiliar with.

You could also control the activity a little more by asking your learners to include targetted language. e.g. if you’ve just done a specific tense, phrasal verbs or other language area, then tell them they have to include 5 examples of that in their story.

NOTE

The disadvantage of this game is that it doesn’t save your work unless you have registered as a member with the site.  It’s free and doesn’t require too much information so you should consider joining.

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Problem solving game to generate conversation

By grahamstanley  |  2010/03/19 08:08 Posted in All Posts, Game Plan  |  Comments (1)

Here’s a problem solving game that is best played in a connected classroom (i.e. a classroom with a PC/data projector) – it’s even better if you have an interactive whiteboard (iwb)

  • The game is called Crayon Physics Deluxe and a free demo can be downloaded from here: http://www.crayonphysics.com/
  • You will need to install the game (you cannot play online only) but you could install it on a pen drive if this is a problem

Here’s a video to give you an idea of what it looks like/ how to play it:

Crayon Physics Deluxe from Petri Purho on Vimeo.

How to use Crayon Physics Deluxe in class

1) Start the game and explain how it works by talking the class through the first couple of screens

There are a few simple concepts behind the game that will need to be explained to the class:

  • The object is to move the ball to the star in every level
  • You have to draw shapes (lines, squares, triangles, circles, etc) to move / block the ball
  • You can fix a shape so that it doesn’t move by drawing a circular ‘hinge’ (they’ll see this explained in the second screen)
  • The trick is to think how to do it before trying it out

2) Show them the third screen. Ask for a few volunteers to tell you how you can move the ball so that it touches the star. Listen to their ideas and ask the class to choose the one they think will work best. Ask that student to come out and draw the solution.

3) Continue in this way (it gets harder) and each time ask the students to explain exactly what they plan to do before letting them tray to do it. Deal with any vocabulary as it emerges and keep a record of it on a board or a piece of paper (review this later)

4) Finish by showing them the video above and ask them to compare the differences between how they solved the problems and how the person in the video did.

Another way of playing could be as a team game (awarding points to the team who solves the puzzle)

Thanks to Matt Ledding for introducing me to this idea at the 2010 TESOL Spain convention.

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