I first became a fan of games for academic purposes when my son was very young. I heard about a website called StarFall that would help teach basic phonics, letter naming, and emerging reader skills. I looked into the website, did some research on it, then allowed my son to play it. He loved it right away. He was able to learn letter naming, basic blends, and letter sounds much earlier than I had anticipated. I believe this was because he learned through playing a computer game and not through rote memorization. After this, I became a fan of compter games to increase learning.
I use computer games in my classroom many times a week. I only have 2 student computers, but all students get time on them throughout the week as well as in the computer lab. What I like most about the games is how interactive and fun it can be for the student. Instead of working on a worksheet they are feeling a competivite edge in trying to get the most points, or beat the timer, whatever the case may be for each individual game, but they can only do that if they get the answer or problem correct. I find that students ask to play the games because it intrests them. Students never ask to complete a worksheet.
I use computer games in math and social studies. This past year, after talking about how the early American settlers had to build forts, I found a game that would allow the children to "build" a fort on the computer. This engaged the students in the lesson. They would try and "build" the fort in as little days as possible. None of them could do it as fast as the early American settlers could and this made them have a new appreciation and understanding about the hard work that was put into fort building.
I will continue to use computer games to help my students learn, and I think that all teachers should try and incorporate them into their daily routine. We are teaching a generation that is very technology savvy, so it only makes sense to build on what they know by meeting them where they are.
I am a computer game fan also. When my daughter was three we let her start playing games on our computer. Back then the internet was just starting so most of our games came from CD rom games. I didn't have to teach her much about using the mouse either. In no time she was flying around on that little animated farm graphic and having a blast! I teach kindergarten and I have found that little instruction is needed on many games because the students are so eager to play that they figure things out before I can show them!
ReplyDeleteGames definately have a place in schools. However, a problem I am seeing is that some of the children in my room are playing games at home instead of playing outside. As a result, they are hyperactive as they seem to have no outlet for their energy. A good balance of physical activity and games would be a nice thing. Too many parents sometimes use games and t.v. as sitters and don't realize that their children are in need of some fresh air.
BTW, may kindergarteners LOVE Starfall.com too!
I wish I know more about educational computer games as you two. Teaching middle school - eighth grade language arts - I am not sure how and when to incorporate these games into my lessons. I want them to be engaged during the lesson but I am not sure computer games are what I need to do during class in order to get them ready for high school English.
ReplyDeleteI need to be more educated about world of educational computer games and see if they are something I can suggest to some to complete/play for homework. I probably could just ask the kids.:)