Perspective & Tips on Teaching with our 3d-style games
 in Sunday School
by Neil MacQueen, www.sundaysoftware.com

WHY 3d style games are great to teach with

When I was a kid, I could play Asteroids on my Atari 2600 for hours.  My daughters have grown up with Nintendo 64 and now XBox, and I have to admit, I've played right alongside them. Asteroids was "2D," ie, up/down, left/right.  Nintendo and XBox feature "3D" style games, ie, up/down, left/right, forward and back. It was inevitable. Our brains want interaction and control. And when they get it, the brain pays attention and wants more.

This is why we're striving to teach with computer games... because they are ENGAGING and ENGROSSING to the learner both on a superficial level (kids love them), and on an educational level (brains love them).

Oh I know, some teachers don't like "games" ...where have we heard THAT before!  They're suspicious of anything that looks like too much fun. They feel like a fifth wheel because the kids aren't looking at them, -they're engrossed at the screen. Get over it, and get on with it. The kids can multi-task just like everyone else. They can interact with YOU, each other AND the game all at the same time. And because they're ENGROSSED, they are more open, and have fewer "issues." >> But if you're going to try and "teach" standing 5 feet away, you might as well go out for coffee and let the kids run around. No, you gotta get IN there, right next to them. See this picture above? Notice where the teacher's hand is. The teacher is not only right by the student's side, he's helping him play. 

This picture on the right is astounding:  The lab is being visited by someone dressed up as Moses -mask and wig, and yet the kids are glued to the screens.

Some teachers don't like "3D" style games because they're not GOOD at them. They're all thumbs. I hear this quite frequently from some customers. Gonna have to get over THAT too. We're not making the games for adults. The secret is to find teachers who like computer games, or at least, can play them well enough to show the kids. I also recommend you have a teenager preview the program WITH you, and then help you in class.

Most of these 3D games all work the same, and that's why the older kids pick them up easier than most adults: familiarity with the genre. For example, they know that to make something happen in a 3D environment, sometimes you have to approach the 'trigger point' (door, gate, device) more than once. Our Sunday School 3D games are not multi-level 10 hour game-fests. So there's really not THAT much to learn how to do in them. But if you're not good at these games, or don't understand them, get a teen to help you.

Things about our 3D "Designs" you should know...

In many ways, our 3d games are like SCAVENGER HUNTS. You control the game and what to look for, --but the kids play to discover the content. During AND After the Scavenger Hunt, you talk about what they've found.

But they're not in complete control. Our 3d games are not random. We've designed our software to unfold content in the way a TEACHER wants it unfolded, ...i.e. to follow a Bible story and have lesson style content (background, questions, facts, reflection questions, etc). But the kids feel like THEY are in control. That's the secret.

In most 3D games, the player's POINT OF VIEW is that of the main character. YOU move through the landscape, can turn around, jump, and look down and up. YOU pick up things, fly things, thrown things, shoot things. In 3D style games, the character is often seen in front of you. Galilee Flyer, Exodus Adventures, Attack of the Sunday School Zombies, and others in our catalog are designed this way. It's intentional: we are designing-in the focal state, and reducing outside distractions. And it's up to you the teacher to take advantage of it.

But this type of learning requires a degree of manual dexterity.  3D games are more than "point and click."  That means the kids need TIME, and they often need HELP. When teaching with a 3D game, make sure you have plenty of time. Bring in extra helpers. And make sure you have the teaching guide with all the "tips" and "shortcuts" marked so you can move your students along if you need to.

Scavenger Hunt examples...
in Galilee Flyer, for example, they must fly to find content. In Exodus Adventures, they must find the Marah branch or Burning Bush, or the correct room, or go find Dabney to find out what to do next. In Attack of the Sunday School Zombies, they must find and stop the zombies. From the teacher's standpoint, what the kids are doing is moving through content in an orderly fashion.

We design some of our software as 3D games because kids are very GOAL ORIENTED at the computer. They know the objective is to "beat the game" and don't want to lose. This makes 3d style software really sneaky from a teacher's standpoint. The only way you can "beat" Exodus Adventures is to listen to the story and know what to do next in the story,  -maybe even read a Bible verse to figure it out.  Or take Bongo Loves the Bible CD for example... the only way you can "win" and get more bananas to fling at the plants and mummies --is to answer the questions correctly. And when they're done playing through the content, they want to play it AGAIN.  So ideally, you don't just use Joseph's Story once and put it away. You schedule OTHER times for the kids to come in and play it again. And guess what...they learn the story better the second time too.

We design some of our software as 3D games because the "game engines" can be really good at rewarding kids for reading and paying attention. Take Galilee Flyer for example. The only way to "beat" Galilee Flyer is to correctly match all the verses in the game you've selected. And we award "time bonuses" for answering questions correctly  Pretty sneaky of us. Kids don't want to lose. And even when they win, they can fly the game again to get a better score. These 3D quiz games, such as Flyer or Bongo Loves the Bible are designed with the idea that repetition is the cornerstone of all learning.

We design some of our software as 3D games because the "game engines" are good at telling a broad story. The 3D game tools are primarily designed to "get from Point A, to Point B, to Point C" --and to do things at each point in order to advance to the next point.

So while to the first-timer, Exodus Adventures may look randomly laid out, it's not.
It's very linear...
a) go here and do this,
b) then look here and find this thing related to the story,
c) then go here and figure out this other thing using this Bible verse, then.... 

So for Example: in Exodus CD you can't get to the burning bush without first learning about how and why Moses escaped Egypt.

For a GIANT story like Joseph, you can't possibly teach all that the story means in one lesson, or even two. And if all you want to teach is Joseph's, then while you'll find his dreams in the game, the software isn't going to focus on them. That's INTENTIONALLY not how it's designed. It's designed to teach the broad story -which is one of my mantras. (Those of you who know me from my work in the Rotation Model for Sunday School will recognize that emphasis: "First, teach the story!")

• 3D Games are essentially Scavenger Hunts
   
• Because of the way 3D games are built, they're really good at walking kids through a storyline, or presenting quiz questions.
   
• But because of the way they're built, kids can bypass content, unless you're holding them accountable for it.
   
• We put Extra Content in the game  for the teachers to grab hold of (the kids will try to bypass it). So you need to play WITH them.
   
• 3d games can 'beat' you. Therefore you need to leave plenty of time in your lesson to try again. And sometimes the teacher needs to be "The Expert Gamer." (which is why you want to print our game guides.
   
• Play along with them. Observing is not teaching.
   
• Yes, kids can play TOGETHER. They do it all the time when they're with friends. Manage their working together with some sharing rules.

Read more articles about teaching with software

Understanding WHY, isn't the same as "doing it right" however.
So here are my teacher-to-teacher tips about teaching with our 3d games:

1. Preview the game with our outline in hand. Take notes. btw...our free guides are at www.sundaysoftware.com/tips

2. Understand how things work. The guide will tell you, but basically, all 3d games work by your character "triggering" events. Find this, then... Walk into that, and...
IF you try to do things out of order, the game won't let you advance. For example, in Exodus Adventures, you can't leave the Burning Bush level until you've found all the places where God wants to talk to you.  If you're all thumbs with these games, get a teen to help you.

3.  Decided what to key on, where to pause, what to skip, and what you may want them to come back to after they've finished.

4. Note those "secrets" about certain parts of the game which you can dole out to your students to push them along. For example, in Miriam's Library, read the guide about bypassing Mirriam's Song Game if you're short on time. Or in the Land of Goshen, TELL them where to find Dabney's video recording (in the Hebrew home) rather than having the kids wander around looking for it.

5.  Play along with them. If you're not going WITH your students, you're not using the software the way it was designed. Sit with them the computers. I have specifically put in questions, comments, and misc content that I KNOW the kids will bypass. Kids will be kids. But they are there for YOU the teacher to grab hold of and comment about during or after the lesson.

6.  If you can't be right there, give them a worksheet which has questions about the content they are going to be playing through. This will slow them down and get them to READ.

7. Have them SAVE their locations as they play. Many of our 3d games have a "Save/Load" feature. These "saved spots" can be a way for you and the kids to GET BACK TO certain locations for further discussion.

8. Teach using the software with your OLDER KIDS first. Their level of gaming proficiency will help YOU become better acquainted with the software. Then use it with the younger children.

9. YES, you CAN use 3D game software with NON-readers. They will love it, but need a lot of help. So make sure you invite some of those older kids to help you -who've already learned the software with you in a previous class.

10. With more complicated games, have some High Schoolers help you, and make sure you leave PLENTY of TIME to play the software during class time.

• Have a teenager help you play the game. They are very familiar with this type of software and can show you the ropes.
• Avoid previewing or playing the games in darkened rooms. Play in a well-lit room.
• Sit directly in front of the screen, not off to the side and not too close.
• Move in one direction at a time: forward, left, back, right, --rather than pressing the forward and side arrows at the same time. This will reduce eye strain.
• Don't preview the games when your eyes are tired or with bifocals on.
• Take breaks. Look away from the computer screen every 5 to 10 minutes.
• Walk, don't run through 3d environments. Moving at slower speeds reduces eye strain.

I have put  BUNCH of additional gaming tips and lesson tips in EACH of our online guides. View and print them at www.sundaysoftware.com/tips

Need help? That's what I do. Email me at neil@sundaysoftware.com