Play, Design and Learn

  "Pandemic" redesign project for engaging students with math and science topics Project goal:  Supporting students to engage with mathematics and science topics through playing and redesigning the board game Pandemic, which represent an emergent global issue Participants : Grade 7 students Pandemic board game: The cooperative game Pandemic (Z-MAN Games, 2007) models disease spread across the world. This game was used it as a model of an emergent global issue. In this game, players take different roles and work together to treat infected populations to buy enough time to complete the ultimate objective which is the discovery of the cures.  Pandemic board game, Z-MAN Games,  Retrieved from  https://www.zmangames.com/en/games/pandemic/ Project stages: Project stage Description Playing Pandemic in groups and mastering the rules Initial sessions were allocated to the groups’ playing the original game together. Brainstorming on possible changes and their game theme I...

In this project, we are considering the cultural-historical significance of tabletop games. According to Crist et al. (2016), tabletop games were:  (1) historically used as “social lubricants” across cultures (e.g., for newlyweds to get to know each other on their first night and for traders to develop amity); and  (2) adopted into varying societies by being decorated and reimagined (i.e., re designed) appropriately to their cultures.  The tabletop game re design activities will involve the families in carefully choosing a game that matters to their family members and considering their interests and could enrich the strengths of linguistic and cultural diversity.  Crist, W., de Voogt, A., & Dunn-Vaturi, A. E. (2016). Facilitating interaction: Board games as social lubricants in the ancient near east. Oxford Journal of Archaeology, 35 (2), 179–196.  Team Members  Beaumie Kim, Principal Investigator (Professor)  Jerremie Clyde, Co-PI (Game Studi...

  There are three main components of a game that influence and affect each other.   The first two mechanics and aesthetics seem like separate components, but when both interact, dynamics is the result. Mechanics – The rules of a game and how the game works. a.      Example: In Monopoly, you roll the dice and then move your game piece that number of spaces. b.      Example: In Guess Who, the rules are that you ask a question, and then eliminate certain tiles based on the answer the other player gives. The win condition is guessing the right tile. Rolling the dice to move and collecting and using money are both mechanics in Monopoly. Aesthetics – How the game feels. This can be related to the art, the theme, and the emotions that arise from the game. a.      Example: In Monopoly, the theme is real estate and it tends to evoke competitive feelings. b.      Example: Guess Wh...