Identify and analyze patterns in the design of common card, board, and video games to reveal how their components and structures create variety to engage players and are event driven.
Identify how event driven game variety and engagement is largely dependent upon conditional events, or "IF-THEN" events.
Patterns and Structure/Function are two Cross-Cutting Concepts identified in the new Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). According the to NGSS authors and framers, these Cross-Cutting Concepts (X-Cuts) serve as a bridge and bond between a variety of STEM domains, including computer science. This section is a continuation of the on-going discussion of pattern-structure-function in the curriculum.
Most games have a particular feature in common that make games engaging. They are able to employ chance to move students toward victory or away from victory. And, the variety and type of these "chance events" further enhances engagement. For example, in the game of Monopoly, a roll of the dice can give a player the opportunities to buy property... OR make them pay rent to another player. Players land on the Chance space, where a random draw from the deck can earn them a windfall... OR send them directly to jail without collecting $200 as the pass "GO". Games are largely built on these moments, and the designers craft these moments through the rules of the game.
The rules often not only set the stage for the action (in UNO: deal 7 cards to each player), but they also describe how specific events in a game mandate that players must carry out an action in response to that event (in UNO: when a player lays a Draw +2 or Draw +4 on the discard pile, then the next player must draw 2 or 4 cards into their hand and lose their turn). Games have many of these "WHEN-THEN" rules to make the game interesting and alter the odds of victory during the course of play.
When discard pile matches symbol, then player discards a matching symbol card.
When discard pile shows Wild Draw +4, then the next player must draw four cards without discarding any cards.
When player has a single card remaining in their hand, then player must declare “UNO” before the turn.
In this section, students are introduced to this WHEN-THEN phrasing. They play and review game rules to identify and organize patterns of WHEN-THEN statements. The WHEN-THEN statements are structures that perform certain functions in the game. This WHEN-THEN construct, in later sections, transitions to actual programming structures when students build their own games in App Inventor. They eventually program with "When-Do" and "If-Then" coding blocks, i.e. - events with conditionals. These events with conditionals are structure-function mechanisms within their code and games, similar to the WHEN-THEN statements they analyze here in simple analog games.
In this section, students will play two simple games, Rock-Paper-Scissors and UNO. As we have done in two previous units, students will identify patterns from that phenomenological experience. This analysis reveals various WHEN-THEN structures and functions for each game. This exploration provides additional conceptual understanding of pattern, structure and function when eventually students program a with objects, events, and conditionals to create an engaging digital game experience.
**As discussed in previous units, here is a brief explanation of Patterns and Structure/Function, in NGSS terms, to prepare you for this section.
Patterns exist everywhere—in regularly occurring shapes or structures and in repeating events and relationships. For example, patterns are discernible in the symmetry of flowers and snowflakes, the cycling of the seasons, and the repeated base pairs of DNA.” In some cases, order seems to emerge from chaos, as when a plant sprouts, or a tornado appears amidst scattered storm clouds. Noticing patterns is often a first step to organizing phenomena and asking scientific questions about why and how the patterns occur. Once patterns and variations have been noted, they lead to questions; scientists seek explanations for observed patterns and for the similarity and diversity within them. Engineers often look for and analyze patterns, too. For example, through testing engineers may diagnose patterns of failure of a system in order to improve its design, or they may analyze patterns of daily and seasonal use of power to design a power generation system that can meet the fluctuating power needs of humans.
Structure and Function are complementary properties. The shape and stability of structures, in nature or designed by humans, are related to their function. Structures are made-up of components, or pieces. Components have properties that influence the shape and scale of the structures, and thus the function and behavior of those structures. Thus, structure and function can be thought of as a special case of cause and effect. Whether the structures in question are living tissue, molecules in the atmosphere, or a bicycle, understanding the components and properties of these structures is essential to understanding how those structures will function and behave and for making causal inferences about their cause and effect properties. Engineers make such inferences when examining structures in nature as inspirations for designs to meet people’s needs. For example, close examination of natural bundle of vine (structure) used by primates to climb safely into rainforest trees (function) reveals information about the geometry of the individual vines (structure) to design and craft mountain climbing rope (function).
Activity 4.6a (Budget 15 minutes)
Students identify WHEN-THEN statements in a game of UNO.
i. Select two students to come to the front of the room to play the classic game, Rock-Paper-Scissors (RPS). As a refresher...
Students engage in a battle of hand-signs to determine the first-to-three winner. Standing back-to-back, both students call out, "rock, paper, scissors... shoot", then each simultaneously throws one of the three hand-signs: the rock, the paper, or the scissors. Each student reveals their hand-sign by turning toward each other. The winner of the battle is determined by the following rules:
Rock throw beats a Scissor throw
Scissor throw beats a Paper throw
Paper throw beats a Rock throw
If both players throw the same hand-sign, the battle is a push (no winner). The first player to accumulate three battle wins is declared the winner of the match.
You may choose to only have one pair play in front of the class, have 2-3 pairs battle, or give the entire class a chance to play - this is teacher choice. The goal is to simply play a quick game, following the rules above.
ii. Back at their seats, students see the following statements, either on the board (or in a document if you wish to create one). Ask them to reflect on the game they just played. In a Think-Pair-Share, have students fill in the blanks as best they can: first on their own, then with a partner, then as a class with your facilitation. As a result of their answers, no statement can be a repeat of another in the list.
When and are thrown, then wins the battle.
When and are thrown, then wins the battle.
When and are thrown, then wins the battle.
When , then neither player wins the battle.
When a player , then that player wins the match.
iii. Display or distribute these written rules for RPS. Have the class review the rules. As a class, identify and underline/highlight portions of the written rules that are reflected by the WHEN-THEN statements they just completed.
Rock, Paper, Scissors is a game for two players typically played using the players' hands. The two players stand back to back so there is no chance of visibly cheating. Each player makes a fist with one hand and holds the other open, palm upward. Together, they tap their fists in their open palms, simultaneously calling out, "Rock, Paper, Scissors, SHOOT!". On "SHOOT", each player forms the hand-sign for one of the three items: a rock (by keeping the hand in a fist), a sheet of paper (by holding the hand flat, palm down), or a pair of scissors (by extending the first two fingers and holding them apart). The winner of that battle depends on the items formed. If the same item is formed, it's a tie. If a rock and scissors are formed, the rock wins, because a rock can smash scissors. If scissors and paper are formed, the scissors win, because scissors can cut paper. If paper and a rock are formed, the paper wins, because a sheet of paper can cover a rock. After one battle is completed, another is begun. Play continues until one player wins three total battles, thus ending the match.
Discuss how most games are filled with these WHEN-THEN moments. See if students can quickly cite a couple for other simple games. If they cannot, don't worry - they will get it better after the next activity.
Activity 4.6b (Budget 30 minutes)
Students identify the WHEN-THENs in a game of UNO game and patterns in their structure-function.
Students get into teams of four to play a hand or two of UNO. Do not allow this to go on for more than 15 minutes. The basic rules of UNO are available for download. The student teams may need the rules to play, but know that each students will eventually need to have a copy after they play.
Once students play, convene the class and distribute the UNO rules document. Once again engage students in a Think-Pair-Share. They review the rules and underline/highlight the sentences and/or phrases that could be the basis of a WHEN-THEN statements similar to those in Activity 4.6.a . This may challenge students because they are looking specifically for the WHEN-THEN statements in the rules. They do not appear in this format. students have to read and interpret the rules text into imagined WHEN-THEN statements. This is an answer key for this exercise that you can share after the Think-Pair-Share concludes. We are trying to identify a WHEN-THENThe goal is not to make sure that the students got them all correct, but to start viewing the rules of games as potential for WHEN-THEN statements - to see the pattern of these statements in the game rules and the action of the game. We do this because this is seeding the idea for how students will eventually need to think more programmatically about games and their code, using events and conditionals.
Activity 4.6c (Budget 30 minutes)
Students create WHEN-THENs statements from the UNO game and rules, identifying structures that complete functions in the UNO game.
A. Students using their UNO rules sheets and this WHEN-THEN Advanced Organizer attempt to complete and create a list of WHEN-THEN statements. Some of them have been partially crafted, and others will require students to come up with the entire WHEN-THEN statement. To assist students, we've provided a key check their statements against. And this is your teacher answer key for the organizer. We are only looking to craft 12 statements, even though students might come up with more than what is listed in the answer key. You may use this to gauge individual students knowledge (though we guess that they may not be able to do this easily, still) or they can work in a team. That is completely up to the teacher's discretion.
B. Once the class reviews the answer key and discusses the WHEN-THEN statements, conduct a class discussion with the organizer displayed. Identify which of these statements (through their structure and function) either a) moves a player closer to victory, or b) doe not move a player closer to victory. Mark those that do on the displayed version, with students doing the same on their paper copy.
C. These structures define the course of play with very specific functions. When employed through the course of play, each structure either moves a player toward victory (matching a card by color) or they do not (Draw Two). Discuss this concept explicitly. The WHEN-THEN statements the class has discussed in this section will be revisited in a later section to see how they could, in fact, be turned into actual code. But for now, we simply want to building this structure-function idea conceptually. Again, we are not trying to teach coding skills with this, rather we are seeding the coding skills they will develop in a later section. This exercise will help create a mindset that a game's variety, and thus engagement, is built from these WHEN-THEN structures.
4.6b Rules of UNO (Student Handout)
4.6b Rules of UNO Answer Key (Teacher Resource)
4.6c WHEN-THEN Advanced Organizer (Student Handout)
4.6c WHEN-THEN Advanced Organizer Key (Teacher Resource)