Level 3:
Those Pesky End-Credits
Embedded Files
We hope you enjoyed our workshop, and took away something to help engage students in your classroom.
Before you go, we have one last quest for you to complete.
Click on the link to the Post-Workshop Quizziz game to see "What Did You Learn?" Have a blast reminiscing through the workshop content!
Feedback will help administration and organizers plan for future workshops, potential purchases/subscriptions, and sustained professional development beyond the one-time workshop
Information for further learning and development, (resources)
Further Reading
Further Reading
This book is a field guide on how to implement game-based learning and «gamification» techniques to the everyday teaching. It is a survey of best practices aggregated from interviews with experts in the field, and a great starting resource.
Within the industry, studies on game mechanics and behavioral psychology have become proliferate. Gamification Pioneer Yu-kai Chou takes readers on a journey to learn his sixteen years of obsessive research in how to create engaging and successful experiences in their product, workplace, marketing, and personal lives.
Fieldbook provides a step-by-step approach to implementing the concepts from the Gamification book with examples, tips, tricks, and worksheets to help a learning professional or faculty member put the ideas into practice. The Online Workbook, includes quizzes, worksheets and fill-in-the-blank areas that will help a student to better understand the ideas and concepts of incorporating gamification into learning.
Videos, TED Talks, and Discussions
Videos, TED Talks, and Discussions
- Gamification to improve our world: Yu-kai Chou at TEDxLausanne
- The Power of Gamification in Education | Scott Hebert | TEDxUAlberta
- The Super Mario Effect - Tricking Your Brain into Learning More | Mark Rober | TEDxPenn
- Top 5 Gamification Examples In Education today! An Opinion Piece
- The Effective Use of Game-Based Learning in Education | Andre Thomas | TEDxTAMU
- Classroom Game Design: Paul Andersen at TEDxBozeman
Gaming Sites to Explore
Gaming Sites to Explore
Quizizz
Quizizz
This free application uses real-time checks for understanding that have built-in accessibility features, like audio responses and Microsoft Immersive Reader. Students and teachers can create flashcards, mini tests, and other study material.
Pros: Comprehensive reports and integration with learning platforms make assessing easy.
Cons: Too easy for students to mistakenly tap the wrong answer on touchscreens; no open-response questions.
Quizizz can be used or student self-paced, and it can be used to gather data for immediate usable feedback on any lesson. It will bring attention to such things as which questions are hardest for the class, for example. The competitive nature of the games will engage students to learn material for any subject matter. This can also be used by students to create study material which teachers can assign and use to assess as well.
Free and paid premium versions available (but with many things available for free)
Nearpod
Nearpod
Nearpod is used for interactive presentations and assessments. Teachers use the site to create original presentations or use the pre-made options available via Nearpod. Teachers can upload videos, images, audio clips, and PDF files as well as embed multiple-choice quizzes and polls. Draw Its (students write directly on a slide), collaboration boards, and open-ended questions provide plenty of variety to liven up presentations. Teachers launch the presentation and monitor progress either from the website or through the app.
Pros: Students actively participate in their education while teachers get valuable feedback on student learning.
Cons: Creating and modifying presentations can be time consuming and can get expensive; some features may not work on all devices.
Nearpod is great in the secondary classroom as a flow tool. It helps keep students actively engaged in simple tasks such as study guides and comprehension questions. It can also be used to engage students in virtual stories, history lessons enriched with media, and step-by-step instructions for math or science. The options for engaging use in all subject areas is limitless!
Free and paid premium versions available (but with many things available for free)
Kahoot!
Kahoot!
Kahoot! provides teachers and students with a library of Interactive games and quizzes (can be used for student learning and staff engagement). Can be played independently or in teams. Teachers and students can create or use pre-loaded games and quizzes.
Pros: A compelling and oh-so-easy way to engage kids in pre- and formative-assessment activities.
Cons: Though data collection is easy, tracking individual student progress over time is tedious at best.
Kahoot! is a compelling resource that motivates student engagement with safe and friendly knowledge competitions that can be tailored to any grade level or learning group. Kahoot! challenges can be used as a robust review resource as well as an intriguing assessment tool. Teachers can also encourage their students to use this as a resource to create their own review challenges and engage their peers in one on one and/or team challenges.
Price: FREE; access with external accounts such as Google, Apple, Microsoft; Three paid tiers: Pro ($3/month, Premium $6/month and Premium+ $9/month)
Desmos
Desmos
Desmos is a free graphing and teaching tool for math available on the web as well as on iOS and Android. In addition to plotting equations, classroom activities are available to help students learn about a variety of math concepts.
Pros: Free and easy-to-use tool that gives students a visual way to understand expressions, and teachers a powerful platform for instruction.
Cons: Without significant help, less experienced students might struggle when things get complicated.
You can use Desmos to allow students to learn by interacting with other students in class using illustrations, charts and interactive activities. Students can represent their with sketches, short answer & number responses, multiple choice solutions and more. Teachers can see progress in real time and effectively guide students through the learning process. These activities will typically pique student interest and stoke curiosity about mathematical tools needed to solve problems.
Price: FREE; access with external accounts such as Google, Apple
Gimkit
Gimkit
A free classroom game-show platform where students compete by answering questions on their electronic devices. Instead of earning points, students earn virtual currency, which they can "invest" during the game to boost their score. Games can be played live or can be assigned as independent practice
Pros: Minimal setup maximizes teacher time management.
Cons: Website security and privacy don't seem to be a priority for Gimkit, so use with caution.
Price: FREE TRIAL; Can be purchased for site license ($1000) or Department License ($650)
Gizmos
Gizmos
ExploreLearning Gizmos is a site containing an impressive array of math and science simulations arranged by curriculum, topic, or textbook. These little applications explore hundreds of concepts that students learn in elementary, middle, and high school math and science. From number sense to algebra and from biology to physics, there are enough tools here for students to try a different one each week for every school year.
Pros: Gizmos are simple to use, cover nearly every topic in math and science, and come with extra resources and assessments.
Cons: Subscription cost is high, but with a free account students can use certain Gizmos for free and any Gizmo for up to five minutes per day.
This powerful and extensive set of math and science tools puts the learning in students' hands. Teachers can use ExploreLearning Gizmos as a demo projected in front of the class, but Gizmos are best used when placed right in the hands of the students. After setting up a teacher account, educators go to their teacher home page, where they can create classes, access student login info, assign Gizmos, and view assessment results for each student. Teachers can select Gizmos aligned to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and Common Core State Standards for math. Gizmos are also organized according to popular textbooks and curricula such as FOSS Science.
Each Gizmo has support materials including Lesson Plans, Vocabulary Sheets, Teacher's Guides, and editable Student Exploration Sheets. Each activity also ends with an online assessment, the results of which are available immediately to teachers and students. The ExploreLearning community allows teachers to share worksheets and lessons that they've created using the Gizmos, and ExploreLearning also offers professional development.
Access to the full Gizmo library comes with a paid subscription, but there are some free Gizmos to teach with as well.
Socratic Smackdown
Socratic Smackdown
"Socratic Smackdown grew out of a need to support students in developing and practicing discussion skills. During the game, teams of 4-6 students discuss texts and use textual evidence to make connections and ask thought-provoking questions. Students win points whenever they make constructive contributions to the discussion and lose points if they exhibit disrespectful behaviors, such as interrupting their teammates. By the end of game play, students have learned how to work together as teams and a class and contribute meaningfully to a discussion."
Pros: An engaging game for the classroom that focuses students on meaningful discussion in a thoughtful and fun environment.
Cons: Is not a digital-based tool in its own and if teachers desire to run this digitally, they will need to create their own digital scoring platforms using other tools.
"There are a number of opportunities to assess student learning during this game, from using more formal assessment tools like rubrics to using less formal assessment tools like reflection questions." Socratic Seminar is a proven classroom instructional method that can be used in all subject areas for debate, analysis, or evaluation. This can be applied in any subject on topics such as theories, themes, insight, issues, etc.
This is not an app or site and is therefore FREE. The packet instructions and scorecards are freely available.
IXL
IXL
IXL is a comprehensive learning platform that provides, modules, practice sets and educational games covering a variety of school subjects ranging from Kindergarten up through High School. The real-time diagnostic tool allows educators and learners to tailor lessons to meet their specific learning needs. IXL's practice lessons are repetition based & allow students to earn virtual rewards that reflect their likes & interests. Practice sets are automatically scored and step-by-step explanations are provided for incorrect responses.
Pros: allows for independent practice and focuses on skills/concepts that need remediation; provides an easy to follow Diagnostic tool; "Trouble Spot" tool allows learners and educators to target specific skills that might need differentiation
Cons: Repetitive drills tend to cause fatigue; lack of a sketchpad tool for all digital learners;necessary paid subscription for full access might be a deterrent for some users
Price: Site Free to try, Paid (Core subjects subscription $19.95/month or $159/year, pre-K to 12th-grade math and language arts subscription $15.95/month or $129/year, individual math, language arts, or Spanish subscription $9.95/month or $79/year)
Classcraft
Classcraft
Classcraft is a game-based approach to teaching and learning. It was created to encourage your child's participation in class and with their lessons, promote good behavior, and develop 21st-century skills like collaboration and communication. Everything they learn stays the same, but they get to have a little fun each day!
In class, your child creates a character and works together with their team of classmates. They’re able to earn and use special “powers” to support their own academic learning, as well as help their teammates when they need it. They get some other cool perks, too, for their hard work like new equipment and pets to customize their character!
Pros: It creates a culture of role-playing within the classroom and encourage collaboration.
Cons: While there are free features, the most intriguing aspects of this program require a subscription.
The games listed in this site are not meant to be an exhaustive list of gaming resources, but instead a curated list of some of the most popular, accessible, and best practice games. This site will walk you through brief descriptions including pros and cons, links to tutorials, and recommendations for how to use them in various subjects at the secondary educational level.
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