Learning Game Coding

Learning the basics of computer programming can be a useful skill. There are many apps and software designed to be user friendly for students of varying ages, to learn how to code using visual interpretation with drag and drop functionality. There are also games which involve giving instructions and using commands. These processes can help develop skills in sequencing, literacy and numeracy, problem-solving, creativity, and communication.

 

Apps:

Cargo-bot - a fun game where students learn about sequencing and instructions, also good for developing memory skills.

Hopscotch - provides a visual drag and drop platform with colour coding.

Daisy the dinosaur -  This free app offers an easy drag and drop platform to move Daisy the Dinosaur.

Kodable - a game to learn programming concepts and problem solving.

Move the Turtle. Programming for kids - a fun way for younger students to learn the basics computer programming and using commands.

Bee-Bot  - provides a tool for younger students to learn directional language and programming through sequences.

Bee-Bot Pyramid - provides challenges for students to solve.


Software:
Scratch

Stencyl

App Inventor

Alice

Kodu

Game Salad

 

Web Based:

 

Gamestar Mechanic - a game which allows students to learn about game design and make their own games.

Add fun to learning with Trading Cards

Trading Card Creator

This site allows you to create Trading Cards which gives students an alternative way to demonstrate their knowledge of a concept. This interactive activity allows students to create their own trading card about a real or fictional person, place, object, event or concept. The site also provides ideas and lesson plans.

Problem Solving Games

It is no secret that I am an advocate for using games as a tool for learning. Games have the power to engage students and many offer great learning potential. They allow students to explore, be creative, learn content, develop literacy and numeracy skills, improve memory retention, develop problem solving and decision making skills and all while having fun. Lately, I have noticed a range of problem solving games which are becoming popular. These games offer great learning potential.

Often they relate to physics theories and require problem solving and decision making skills. They also teach students to persevere and to learn by trial and error. The game itself can be the class activity or it can be used as a stimulus for other activities by engaging the students into the subject or topic. Students can even document their journey through a game by creating a blog or journal by writing, video, pod cast and images.

The first game I have found interesting is World of Goo created by 2DBoy. In this game you are given a number of blobs of goo which connect to each other the aim is to construct a structure which reaches the pipe to carry the goo. As you play the game you work through levels of difficulty. This is not a free game, you can download a trial from or purchase it from a games store.

Fo more information go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_of_Goo

Along similar lines to the World of Goo is Huje Tower. This is a free online game and is also available as an apple app as both lite and paid version. In this game you construct a structure which needs to reach a given point. It also offers a range of levels to work through and provides hints.

Fantastic Contraption is another problem solving game which is available online and as an apple app. You are given challenges to construct contraptions using wheels and rods.

Another construction game which is available is Soup Toys, this game has been mentioned previously in this blog.

Tiki Towers

Tiki Towers is a problem solving game which offers fun for students. This is avalible as an apple app.  You need to build a structure out of bamboo to help the monkeys collect the bananas and get to the other side.  You are only given a number of bamboo to work with each time.  As you play you unlock more islands and levels.

A site which has many more problem solving games is http://www.physicsgames.net/

There are also a range of games available which provide challenge which you solve by drawing in the solution. An example of this is Crayon Physics. Another game which is very similar is Magic Pen.

A game available on http://www.friv.com/ is Roller Coaster Creator. The challenge is to draw a roller coaster line from one point to another and to collect the coins on the way. It offers different levels of difficulty and you add different items to the construction.

There are also many drawing games available in http://www.linerider.com/

In these games you draw a line which becomes a track for a vehicle. You then press play when you have completed the track. It is also availabe as an app.

World of Zoo

http://www.worldofzoo.com/

I came across this game while wandering a computer games store, it is called World of Zoo.  I love Zoo Tycoon and this game seemed to have a few similarities. World of Zoo is much easier to play, making it great for younger students. The graphics are more cartoon looking rather than the realistic approach of Zoo Tycoon 2. This also makes the game suitable for younger students.  This is a PC game you can purchase, it also comes in Nintendo DS and Wii formats.

As you play the game you can unlock items and more animals. You can customise the animals and change their patterns and colours. Students also earn coins as they look after the animals and participate in challenges.  They can then buy items with their money. The appropriate environment and food are provided so students don’t need to decide what is suitable for the animal. The game provides information about the animals. Students can also write stories about their animals.

The feature which I find interesting is the built in camera. You can take photos in the game and they can be exported to your computer. So students can interact with the animals and then take photos. It is fun trying to get that perfect photo as the animals move around.  These photos could be used for a project, art activity, research task or used to create a comic.

This game is great to use with primary school aged students. It could be integrated into activities about animals, habitats, using money, numeracy, literacy and writing stories. The game can inspire many art activities such as painting or drawing from a photo students have taken in the game, create an animal mask, look at the colours and patterns on the animals and create a design, create puppets of animals or totem poles.

I have created a comic example, I used the giraffe images I took from the game and created the comic using Comic Life.

Prezi: Playing to Learn Math

I came across this Prezi by Maria Andersen.  I love using games to stimulate learning, this presentation explains it well.

Playing to Learn Math? on Prezi

More Fun Interactive Sites for Kids

Here are a few more sites which are sure to keep students busy and happy!

http://www.funbrain.com/brain/SweepsBrain/sweepsbrain.html

This is a great interactive site where students can explore and engage in learning by clicking on the characters.

Little Einsteins

http://tv.disney.go.com/playhouse/littleeinsteins/index.html

This site is based on the TV show of the same name.  The site offers a range of activities involving art and music.

Painting Game

http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/games/#/lb/somethingspecial/paintinggame

This is a fun game where you add to a story by drawing characters and story settings.

Number Jacks

http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/numberjacks/games/

This is a site based on the TV show about numbers.  It provides games which help the development of numeracy skills.

Sid the Science Kid

http://pbskids.org/sid/

This site provides many opportunities to explore. 

Students can visit different rooms and engage in different science oriented activities.

A Prezi on Shidonni

Shidonni on Prezi

NeoK12

http://www.neok12.com/

This site offers a free collection of educational videos, lessons, quizzes and puzzles for students from K - 12. They are divided into categories such as Science, Social Studies, Math, English and offer a section called Fun videos on topics such as time lapse, slow motion, arts and crafts, music and sport.

You could spend hours browsing this site.

Game Classroom

Still on the topic of educational games. Here is a site which is a collection of games for education.

http://www.gameclassroom.com/

The games have been divided into appropriate Grade levels for students from K - 6.

The games also categorise into topics.

There are maths games which develop skills in

• Time and Measurement
• Shapes
• Numbers
• Problem Solving
• Comparisons
• Shapes and Geometry
• Statistics
• Fractions
• Time and Money
• Measurement and Geometry
• Equations
• Fractions and Probability
• Reasoning
• Algebra
• Graphs
• Decimals

And Language Arts games which will develop skills in:

• Letter and Word Sounds
• Vocabulary
• Listening and Speaking
• Stories and Literature
• Words
• Grammar
• Writing
• Reading and Comprehension
• Oral Presentations
• Research and Technology

Brain Training Games

There are many games labelled as Braining Training games, I like to think of them as Learning Training. When you look at the skills the Brain Training games focus on they are all important skills needed to learn.


Such as:

• Memory

• Concentration & Attention

• Language Skills

• Visual & Spatial

• Executive Functions (Logic & Reasoning)

The games available also assist in the development of skills in literacy, numeracy and ICT. Most are also accompanied with extra content students can learn about such as capital cities, countries, types of food and ways to cook, the list is endless. (These games are fun for adults too!)

There are several Brain Training sites, most offer a few free games and the opportunity to upgrade to unlock the other games.

http://www.fitbrains.com/

Fit Brains is a site which offers a range of games to help develop thinking skills. here is a list of free games.

A Cross-training brain game designed to develop all skills.

Memory Brain Games improve short and long-term recall abilities.

Make words out of letters you are given

Make words by adding letters or words

Put words into categories

Break the code by adding letters and learn about different cultures.

Add arrows to direct the fruit

Identify the correct shapes

Give the robot directions to move on a map

Buy food and keep to a budget

Add combinations of numbers to remove the blocks

Memorise ingredients and instructions

Identify and select shapes

Other Brain Training sites

http://www.lumosity.com/

http://www.mind360.com/

There are also Brain training games available for Nintendo DS,

here are a few:

There are also Brain training apps available for ipods.

Lumosity

Brain Challenge

Brain Challenge 2: Think Again!

Speed Brain

Brain Exercise

Boost your brain

Brain Training

Brain Tuner

Braineous

Brain Quest