Rip "Ace" McErkel's
Flying and Teaching Tips for Galilee Flyer CD

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(this document was printed from www.sundaysoftware.com/flyer-tips.htm)

The map you see is from our Galilee Flyer game. Of course, in the game you actually fly down around the hills with everything in greater detail. This birds-eye view was created for teaching purposes only. A simpler version of this map appears at take-off. Notice the outer boundary and the valley which circles the outer boundary. Keeping track of where you are North-South, East-West will greatly help you complete your missions. The verses you fly to find in the game do not always appear the same place, thus there is no map of "where the verses are."

Hot Tip: The Galilee Flyer terrain is a big square. Around the outer portion of the square is a valley which forms a complete circle. The inner area is the Sea of Galilee itself. Each VERSE is found in two locations in the terrain. But you only need to find one of them to collect that particular verse.

Special Update Note:  May 2006 we released a set of Update Files for Galilee Flyer. The "Easy.zip" file modifies your installed G. Flyer game --making the "Easy" Mode easier. It reduces the top speed in "easy" mode to just 283 mph, makes the "end" key kill the engine faster for quicker landing, and lowers the island for easier landing. If you are satisfied with the current level of difficulty in the game as installed by the CD, don't install "easy.zip". If you have the pre-May 2006 version and would like to make the Easy Mode easier, download the Easy.zip file from www.sundaysoftware.com/easy.zip and "unzip" it right into your c:\flyer directory on your harddrive. If you have an older computer which doesn't have a built-in unzip utility, download a free trial version at winzip.com.

How do you know which version you have?  Look at the Island Airfield. If you can fly underneath it, you have the pre-May 2006 version without the Easier Easy Mode installed.   If you the Island Airfield is on the water, you have the updated version with the Easier Easy Mode.

Important Game Stuff to Know

• There are four subjects in the game to select from.
• There are 7 or 8 verses to be matched for each subject. Once matched players return to the airfield to receive their ranking. Each verse is also accompanied by a short pop-up comment elaborating on the meaning of the verse. Each verse is located in two locations in Galilee. The number of verses NOT matched is displayed in the upper right corner of the game screen.
• There are nine questions about each subject which can be found and answered to receive a time-bonus (each question is found in each game for maximum likelihood they'll encounter them!) They are optional. You don't have to answer them to complete your mission, but doing so will increase your ranking.
• The complete text of the subject you are playing can be found by flying over the Bible icon located on top of Mount Hippus. Mt. Hippus is the conical shaped mountain directly in front of you as you take-off.
• Land near Jesus to hear him preach a kid-friendly version of the scriptures you have selected. His words have been purposely modernized to give a conversational spin on them.
• Each subject has three optional "discussion panels" located in the ruins with the spinning blue letter "D" in the Southeast region. These are intended for "after the game" to facilitate more learning and reflection. They encourage students to ponder and write down responses. Have them visit these areas AFTER they have received their player ranking. You can visit as a class if you like or during the game. Discussion text is found below in this document.

Prior to Teaching with Galilee Flyer:

Rip McErkel strongly recommends that your students become familiar with the keyboard controls, how to fly, and how to land prior to class time use. Third graders might require up to 15 minutes of flying time to become adept at flying and landing. Practice landing on the floating island runway. In Rip McErkel's class, students learn how to fly the week before, prior to Galilee Flyer being used as the lesson. Once they have learned the first time around, the other subjects can be 'flown' without much preparation. However, it is always a good idea to plan plenty of extra flying time so that your flyers will be ready for the challenge, and have more fun.

If you are scheduled to teach with Galilee Flyer, reserve no less than 30 minutes for your students to complete a mission. Older children will finish it faster. Younger children will need more time and help. The game is designed to cover the verses again and again, so running out of turns while collecting verses and having to start over again isn't necessarily a bad thing!

Rip also recommends you READ THE TECHNICAL TIPS BELOW. He's got some good advice on how to make the game appear on your screen.

Lesson Plan Suggestions:

1. Pick one subject to study over a several week period and collect other teaching resources for it (videos, skit ideas, art projects, etc). Read the HELP file and this document and fly the game yourself.

2. Begin class by reading the passage, commenting, and parsing the vocabulary and images in the text. For example, do not assume children know what the "Kingdom of God" means. Each of these four subjects uses vocabulary and images that your students will MOST LIKELY be unfamiliar with. Don't assume they understand the words, let alone the concepts! Work on definitions, write words where students can see them. Have examples for more difficult concepts (such as "righteousness")Pass out a little quiz to see how many definitions they can remember.

3. Introduce them to Galilee Flyer and its operation. Demonstrate the controls if they haven't used them before. Work in pairs or threes. Make sure they take turns. Let one student work the arrow keys and another work the A/Z keys (airspeed) on the other side of the keyboard. See how well they can coordinate. Have a third student keep track of where they've been, and let this other student use the mouse to answer all questions. Remind them that "player ranking/score" is not merely a function of time, but accuracy. Remind them that they won't be penalized for reading --the clock will pause.

4. Let them fly the selected subject and encourage them to read all pop-up panels and answer questions, as well as, match scrolls. It may take them up to 20 minutes to collect all the verses. It will depend on their age and flying skill. Those getting finished early can fly again and SAVE their game if they run out of time to finish. Note: the scrolls appear in different locations each time the game is played. So if you have more than one copy of the game (legally) installed and studying the same subject, the location of the scrolls will probably be different on the two computers, and one may have a harder set of locations.

5. As a class, have everyone fly to the Discussion Ruins in the SE region (they'll know where it is now). If you have more than one computer, let each computer take a turn reading the discussion panel. Then discuss possible answers. This may be a good time to let students write down some notes. Some of the discussion panels will ask them to write things down. Some of the discussion panel activities can last up to another 15 minutes. Preview the panels. Younger groups may want to visit all three but only spend time on one or two. Older groups, if you have time, can handle all three panels.

VIDEO NOTES: The Videos accessible in Lord's Prayer and Beatitudes each last about 4 minutes long. They contain some great information but younger children may get wiggly. There is NO WAY to stop the videos once they get started. So only click "YES" to view a video if you have time and really mean it! You may want to save the videos for AFTER the flying game --and go view them as part of your discussion. Video Technical Tip: The videos will open to the full size our your game screen. It is recommended that you start Sermon on the Mount and Beatitudes games in "Window Mode" so that you can resize the screen and keep the videos from de-pixelating. It's a good idea to set your screen resolution to 800x600.

Print our free PILOT BRIEFING POSTER for your younger flyers to use as a Game Tip Sheet. www.sundaysoftware.com/image/flyer-joseph/pilotpage.gif

Other favorite resources for these subjects: free lesson plans on these subjects at www.rotation.org in the Lesson Exchange. Nest's animated videotapes are great for these subjects. The Visual Bible's Matthew videotapes are great for showing Jesus in Galilee teaching these lessons. You can view descriptions of these favorite videos and order online from http://www.sundaysoftware.com/videos

*Non-Lesson Use" of Galilee Flyer:

Some churches use Galilee Flyer for game time. Create a chart near your computer where students can list their high scores for various subjects they've flown. Offer incentives, such as Dairy Queen coupons, for achieving certain scores on certain subjects. Pick a "Galilee Flyer Subject of the Month" to have the kids fly and master.

Important Flying Tips and Game Features
from Rip McErkel, Galilee Ace Pilot

Be ready to resume flying after you have clicked out of each verse/comment panels. If you have taken the wrong approach to a verse, you could be headed straight into a mountain when you resume flying. Watch your approaches! Time stops when reading content.

Arrow Keys control direction and altitude. The up/down arrows work like a stick in an airplane. Up arrow is the equivalent of pushing the stick forward to dive. You will notice that while turning the plane wants to dive lower. Tap your down arrow key to keep your nose up while turning!

Home/End Keys control the plane speed. It is possible to fly slowly (around 120) but you have to get the feel for the adjustments. A & Z keys also control the plane speed. We did this so another player could help. A joystick can be used to steer the plane. I recommend that you NOT fly at top speed when approaching difficult Verses, or when trying to land. Continually press the END key to kill your engine. The Galilee Flyer will sink like a rock, but generally not crash land if you bring it down on a flat surface somewhat slowly.

Q & V icons appearing in top left of screen will light up red, yellow, green as you fly closer to the icon floating in the terrain. Watch these closely to find hidden V icons! Once you correctly match a verse, the floating V doesn't go away. If you get it incorrect, turn the plane around and try again.

Hard/Easy Game Options... In the Hard Game Option, you must fly the plane right into the floating V's or Q's to activate them. In the EASY OPTION, you merely have to fly near them. For younger students I recommend setting the game to "easy." Click ESC and select GAME OPTIONS to access the Easy/Hard Option control. You can do this during a game if you like.

*See notes elsewhere in this document about the Easier Easy Mode version.

Climbing the Mountains and Hills, and other Flying Tips: Steep mountains are difficult to climb over. Look for more gentle slopes to fly up. Sometimes you can coax the plane up a steep hill by quickly steering left and right as you press the down arrow key to gain altitude. The ground will not cause you to crash, but trees and buildings can be crashed into. You have 3 turns then game over. Flying THROUGH some of the ruins and under bridges will give you a power boost.

Beware the Outer Boundary! Sometimes when you reach the outer-boundary of the terrain your plane slows down and you can turn back. Sometimes you crash into this boundary. The circular outer boundary is where the mountains stop and you can't see them in the distance. Look at the map during startup for more clues.

Use Your Compass! and Assign a Navigator... The Galilee Flyer is outfitted with a compass. It will help you remember which direction you need to head. If two or more flyers are at the computer, I recommend one of them be responsible for watching what sector of Galilee the plane is in, what it has already covered, and where it might need to go next. A systematic approach to scouring the landscape for verses is best. It also helps to correctly match them when found!

Scoring and Rankings: Galilee Flyer has a rather sophisticated ranking system. Fastest time isn't everything! The game calculated rankings using TIME, plus fewer turns/lives used, fewer times you take to correctly match verses, and more points for answering more questions. Answering questions also gives a time bonus. There is no time or point penalty for pauses in the game.

To Pause the Game: Press your PAUSE button on the keyboard (upper right corner of keyboard). To unpause it, press the Pause key a second time. For some reason... you can also press your Num Lock key to pause the triplane.  Because it is close to the Home|End keys on the keyboard, it's not uncommon for players to accidentally hit the NumLock key anyway --and wonder "why the plane froze."

Save/Load: Press F2 during the game or via ESC-Main Menu to access the Save/Load features. NOTE: Once you crash and lose all your turns, your saved games are gone too!! The save/load feature is only for those games you must exit before completing --and you can later pick up where you left off by laoding them.

Location of Scrolls: These change each time the game is played. In more than half of the games you'll play, you'll discover that most of the scrolls you need to find are located near the sea. In one or two scroll layouts, however, there are several scrolls scattered in the outer regions of Galilee. Which layout of scrolls you play is randomly determined.

The Videos... There are two videos in Galilee Flyer which can be activated when discovered (their icons look like old-fashioned cameras). If you select 'YES' the video will show full screen and cannot be quit from until it is over. Each video is about 3 minutes and features scenery from around Galilee.

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Top Speed in Easy Mode shown above is top speed when you download the easy.zip file.
Of course, you can always hit your "end" key to lower speed, but that's a bit tricky for young players because the speed of the Flyer changes depending on whether you're climbing or diving.

Terrain Notes:

Our Galilee terrain is based on actual maps, however, some changes have been made to accommodate game play. For example, the Sea of Galilee in the game is much smaller so it doesn't take that much time to fly across it. The hill elevations in the game are slightly exaggerated so the kids can enjoy flying around hills and through valleys. In the above graphic and game there are fewer towns than in real life during the time of Jesus. Due to programming and memory restrictions we could only simulate a few towns and local trees. There are also no whales in the Sea of Galilee, but there one in our version!

The pictures which accompany the following notes are courtesy of Dr. Terry Hulbert's Walking in Their Sandals Bible Atlas, a fine program carried in our catalog. I recommend you use it as a follow-up to Galilee Flyer.

Mount of Beatitudes --a gently sloping hillside on NW shore, site of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount.

(Pictured right: The "Mount" is the small hill in the foreground on the right. Beyond the Mount is the plain of Gennesaret. In the distance are the Arbel Cliffs.)

Tiberias --built in 26 A.D. as a Roman resort town for Romans and Gentiles.

Kursi --one of the major fishing villages at the time of Jesus. Thought to be the location for the feeding of the 4000. A stone fish pond has been found at this location. (pictured here below)

Bethsaida -- a fishing village at the time of Jesus. Jesus performed a unique healing at Bethsaida --restoring a man’s sight in stages (Mark 8:22-26).

Magdala --one of the small villages that dotted the shoreline in Jesus' day, home town of Mary Magdalene ("of Magdala").

Gamla --a fortified site above the Sea of Galilee not unlike the famous Masada fort but smaller. Attacked by the Romans in 66 A.D.

Capernaum --location of Peter's house and homebase for Jesus during his Galilean ministry. Capernaum was also a base for Jesus' followers after his ascension. The ruins of Peter's house in Capernaum have been located by archaeologists. The house was used and venerated in the First and Second Century A.D. as a "house church" and later a shrine honoring the apostle. A small church was built over it in the 4th Century. Capernaum was a fishing town and business center. Ruins of a large synagogue from the 1st Century dominate the area. (Pictured right)

Arbel Cliffs --rocky cliff-like hills sometimes called the Horns of Hittim. Here the Crusaders were finally defeated by Saladin.

Jordan River --feeds Galilee from the north and empties southward in the Dead Sea.

Gadara --a Gentile city once known as the "Athens of the East." Jesus healed a possessed man from this town. One of the ten cities of the "Decapolis" (built by Romans to guard trade routes), a largely Greek city given to Herod by Caesar Augustus.

Hippus -one of the ten cities of the Decapolis (literally "ten cities") built to protect trade routes. A largely Greek/Gentile city given to Herod by Caesar Augustus, built on a hill (pictured). Jesus undoubtedly traveled through the region encountering many Gentiles.

Jesus boat and Galilee Shoreline --In 1986 during a severe dry-spell, water levels lowered dramatically in the Sea of Galilee. Researchers found a 2000 year old boat buried in mud. The boat is 26 1/2 feet long, 7 1/2 feet wide and 4 1/2 feet high. It was probably of the Sea of Galilee's largest class of ships. Fore and aft sections were most likely decked and it probably had a mast, meaning it could be both sailed and rowed. The boats you see moving across the Sea in our game are smaller versions of "the Jesus boat." Researchers say that there is a 1 in 1000 chance that Jesus actually rode in this very boat. You can view a video of Professor Hulbert riding in a scaled up replica of the Jesus boat during the Beatitudes flying game.

Fishing was often done at night on the Galilee, but trade goods moved by day from shore to shore. Recent discoveries have located the remains of ancient stone piers or docks below the current water level at many places around the lake. The water is usually calm and the shoreline is easy enough in most places, allowing boats to come near shore. The Gospels record Jesus preaching from a boat on more than one occasion. Near Capernaum there is a place called "Sower's Cove" where tradition says Jesus preached. It is a natural amphitheater where a speaker's voice is naturally amplified as they face uphill standing on the water's edge or sitting in a boat in the cove.

Notes about Galilee:

The region of Galilee sits across major trade roads in the northern part of Israel. During some Old Testament times, parts of Galilee were not included in the Kingdom of Israel. In other Old Testament times, they were part of the "northern Kingdom" of Israel (as opposed to the southern Kingdom of Judah). The region was a gateway to travel northward into Lebanon, Syria and on to Persia. The Greeks, and later the Romans, fortified cities in the area to protect trade.

In the time of Jesus the Sea of Galilee was called "Lake Kinnereth" or in the Greek version -"Genessaret." The word means "harp" denoting the shape of the lake. The Romans renamed it "Lake Tiberias" in honor of Emperor Tiberias. In later years it took on the name of the region surrounding it, hence "Sea of Galilee." The word "Galilee" is Greek for "circuit" or "ring" in reference to the towns which were each connected to each other by a main road circling the water.

Its shores were populated by many small villages and a few small but somewhat cosmopolitan cities with bustling local economies in the time of Jesus. Since that time the region has been less populated. Galilee was often called "Galilee of the Gentiles" because it was heavily populated by non-Jews. Excavations are on-going in the region. They are changing the way we look at life in Galilee at the time of Jesus. Life in those times was more sophisticated that previously thought.

The Sea of Galilee is 150 feet deep at its deepest point and 680 feet below sea level -making it the lowest fresh water lake on earth.

Jesus spent the first years of his ministry travel this region. Most of his disciples are from the area. Having grown up far from Jerusalem among non-Jewish populations, it is often assumed that Jesus and his Galilean followers were more tolerant of non-Jews, and thus, Jesus and his disciples are put down as "Galileans" by those in Jerusalem who opposed him.

Text and map copyright 2002-2007, Neil MacQueen, Sunday Software. Pictures courtesy of Walking in Their Sandals Bible Atlas CD. Printed from www.sundaysoftware.com/flyer-tips.htm

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