Games and Gaming #35

I am a hands-on person; I often find myself thinking let’s do it not just talk about doing it (but that’s just my little secret, so don’t tell anybody). That’s what makes gaming so perfect for me. It lets me delve right in.

I think gaming helps to develop a person’s reasoning abilities and to increase their ability toward logical thought. Having analytical abilities is a positive attribute that is expected in many professions.

That being said, why does learning have to be boring; why can’t it be fun. If the old flashcard technique worked well, why can’t the new gaming techniques work equally as well to teach us facts and data.

I like what Marc Prensky says (http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/games/): There is no reason that a generation that can memorize over 100 Pokémon characters with all their characteristics, history and evolution can't learn the names, populations, capitals and relationships of all the 101 nations in the world.

So let's do it through gaming. There's nothing wrong with the idea.

As to our own assignment, I tried FreeRice and WordSplay. Either of these is very non-violent. FreeRice is a great vocabulary builder and quite a challenge even to someone who considers themselves to be good at guessing word meanings. I thought the rules were very simple.

WordSplay helps a person to become more mentally alert. It is a great way to compete in a positive and unpressured environment. The rules were easy to follow. However, I found WordSplay to be so addictive. It was not easy for me to walk away after 15 to 20 minutes. I WANT MORE!!!!!