Last week, I had the pleasure of talking to a group of teachers that Shelly Terrell was training in Brazil. I answered questions about using computer games in the classroom and introduced them to the Digital Play blog and book.

Hope you enjoy the video!

Location: Computer room

Skills Focus: Speaking

Language focus: Prepositions of place, vocabulary in a house, imperatives (look, go, pick up etc)

Game: Escape Pear Room

The premise is that you get a little bit too drunk each Christmas and the family have decided they’ve had enough and locked you in the house.  It’s up to you to figure out how to escape.

Preparation

You can watch the Escape Pear Room video walkthroughs to familiarise yourself with the game.  This will help you while you are monitoring the activity to predict ahead, input language and guide learners if they get stuck.

Preplay

1. Tell learners they are going to see 4rooms and they will have 25 seconds each to write down any words associated with Christmas that they can see.
2. Open the game and move through the four rooms allowing 25 seconds on each for learners to write down the words.
3. Feedback in open class making sure all learners know the meaning of the words they have written down.
4. Go through the 4 rooms again and ask learners to describe where any of the difficult words are or any objects that they don’t know the name of in English.
5. Explain a little about the game and say here’s the start and show some of the video walkthrough.  Show enough so that learners see a few of the puzzles being solved.
6. Elicit how you play the game and what you do at the start.

Play

1. In a computer room gather learners round a single central computer and open the video walkthrough.  It may be a good idea to open one of the videos on one internet explorer and the other video walkthrough on another.
2. Tell learners that they can play the game in pairs and if they get stuck they can come to the video, watch a little bit and go back to their partner and tell them how to play a bit of it.
3. Put learners in pairs and get them on the game. Tell one of the pair that for 5 minutes they are the gamer.  The other is the watcher and they go back and forth to the video walkthrough.
4. Start the activity.  Monitor to ensure learners are using English and encourage them to use the words from the preplay activity.
5. Swap gamer and watcher roles after 5 minutes.

Post Play

1.  Learners write directions to  the end of the video.
2. Learners record vocabulary items from the game and make a Escape Pear Room dictionary.
3. Learners write a Dear santa note explaining the story and wishing to escape.

“We’re bringing gameplay into more aspects of our lives, spending countless hours — and real money — exploring virtual worlds for imaginary treasures. Why? As Tom Chatfield shows, games are perfectly tuned to dole out rewards that engage the brain and keep us questing for more.”

Topic:  Murder Mystery

Language skill: Reading & listening

Game: Bow Street Runner

“This game is set in London’s Covent Gardens in the 1750s, and depicts a time when crime and vice in the city had hit such levels that the local magistrates began to introduce the first instances of physical policing of law and order.  BOW STREET RUNNER is designed to be historically accurate, and therefore the game’s content and its settings may not be suitable for younger players.”

This games video scene clips recorded using actors makes this series of interactive murder mystery adventures incredibly engaging, authentic and life like.  You actually feel you are seeing what London was like at the time.  The sound effects can be a little disturbing but add to the dark and sinister atmosphere of the gaming experience.  To pique your interest here’s a little trailer for the game:

While you explore the game looking for clues much in the way you play a standard point and click game there are plenty of opportunities for your learners to get some reading practice in as each clue is annotated with information on how the clue may be relevant to both the case and to how London was in the 1750s.  As you journey through the games playscape you come across various characters from the time who each have something to say regarding the case you are following.  You choose the direction of your enquiries and hear and read (there are subtitles) what each character has to say.  Finally you have to present your evidence to the magistrate by listening to his questions and putting forward the evidence you have built up over the course of your investigation.

How to use it with learners

I think this is very much an autonomous standalone game.  Either treat it as a reading activity in the computer room, where learners may use an online dictionary or you the teacher for language support, or seek to expose your learners to more English outside the classroom by suggesting it for homework.  If you choose the later then it may be a good  idea to introduce them to the game in the computer room.  Whichever option you choose you may also like to think about encouraging your learners to make a note of some of the more interesting / useful language that they come across.

Extra game support

There are 5 episodes in total and you may like to have access to the Bow Street Runners walkthrough for use with your learners in contact time or even give your learners the opportunity to have access to it from outside class time.

Location: Connected classroom

Skills Focus: Reading/ Watching/ Speaking

Video: 8-Bit Twilight Eclipse Interactive

If you teach teen girls and you haven’t heard of Twilight, no scratch that, if you have been living on planet Earth and you haven’t heard of Twilight then get with it.  This teen phenomenon that has swept the world is due to release its third film installment ‘Eclipse’.  To mark this momentous occasion in many a fans diary Digital Blog brings you a couple of fun video activities with a fun ‘game’ look and feel.

Preparation

1. Write on the board “Are you team Edward or team Jacob?” on the board.
2. Elicit an answer and brainstorm the titles of the books/ characters/ any of the plot details/ relationship with Bella Jacob & Edward.
3. Decide which of the two videos you’ll watch below (or which order if you are going to do both.
4. Tell the class they are going to watch some videos of a new ‘Eclipse’ game and they have to predict what the characters say.
5. Connect to this page and use the videos and letterscript below (double clicking on the videos will take you directly to the youtube site).

Play

1. Play the video.
2. Learners copy and expand on the letterscript.
3. Repeat as necessary.

Team Edward video

After your learners have watched the video ask them to expand on the ‘letter script’ below.  Each letter represents the first letter of a word and the symbols and numbers also represent a word.  Punctuation is punctuation.

e.g.  IW♥2BAV  = I would love to be a vampire.

Letterscript

Team Jacob video

After your learners have watched the video ask them to expand on the ‘letter script’ below.  Each letter represents the first letter of a word and the symbols and numbers also represent a word. Punctuation is punctuation.

e.g.  IW♥2BAW  = I would love to be a werewolf.

Letterscript

During both of the videos above there are moments when you are asked to make a choice between two decisions.  It’s a nice activity to pause the video at these points and ask the class which option they would choose and why.  You can then continue playing the video.

NOTE

You could always judge what your learners choose to expand their letters to on individual merit.  There’s no reason why they shouldn’t be allowed to stray from the script if what they produce contains interesting language.

Location: Computer room

Language focus: Gaming dictation

Skills Focus: Speaking/ listening

Game: World Cup Rescue

The World Cup has been stolen and you (Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo) have been chosen to go and get it back.

Preparation

Depending on how your computer room is set up you need to get at least two learners out of the class and to play the game using the written walkthrough (at the bottom of the page).  I have access to a computer room where there’s a row of computers against one wall and another row against the opposite wall.  I got two learners (The commentators) to go and play the game so they could dictate the game to the two rows.  They play the game and make notes of any language they may need to explain how to play the game to the rest of the class. Tell them that they will be the walkthrough.  They will also be able to use the video below to help them.

Preplay

At the beginning of the game there is a comic book introduction which introduces the storyline and the characters.  You could show this to the class (in a connected classroom) as a preliminary to playing the game.  The game characters take it in turns to speak (speech bubbles) with each turn being taken as you click on the screen.  This means you can look at any language with the class and discuss anything that crops up.

Play

Learners sit at a computer.  If you have the luxury of being able to have one learner to a computer then this is best.  Pairs at a computer is also ok.  Tell them they are going to play a game.  They will have to describe where they are in the game to the two commentators.  The commentators listen, may ask any questions to clarify any aspects of the learners’ game progress and then tell them what to do.  The Commentators may watch the video walkthrough (on two seperate computers) and use any notes to help them, though no-one else should be able to see their screens.

Video walkthrough.

NOTE

The activity has been known to start with the gamers listening to one of the commentators only.  However, as the game progresses different pairs progress at different speeds.  At points it can be quite hectic for the commentator for they may be answering questions on one game while having to ask questions themselves on another.  At these points your role is to ensure that there is a little order.  Prioritise games where progress is slower for the commentators to deal with and encourage faster players to explore a bit.  You can also slow a team down by asking one of them to swap with the commentator (to use their notes and the video).  Also think about letting gamers read the written walkthrough (NOT the video) the link is the author’s name (Edgar) at the bottom of this post.

Post Activity

• Write the game story in the style of a tv news report.
• Write the news story for a newspaper.
• Interview the characters (Messi & Ronaldo).
• Write press statements (one reporting the theft another reporting the return of the cup).

The Walkthrough

Medusa’s Hideout
First a warning: before going inside, take the stone from behind the pillar on the right and (important!) wear the tinted lenses to avoid Medusa turning you into a stone statue.
Inside, Medusa asks you what brings you there – tell her you are a Personal Items Salesman).

She will ask you now what items you have for her to buy; answer Mirrors (3rd option).

Medusa will  look at herself in the mirror and will  turn herself into a stone statue and all of the other stone statues around will go back to life.

Take Medusa’s collar (necklace).
Talk to the Centaur to find out he has been practicing archery since he can no longer participate in running competitions because he lost one of his horseshoes.  Coincidentally you have one in your inventory so give the horseshoe to the Centaur and he will give you the magic bow in exchange.
In your inventory, combine the arrow with the bow.
Oh, and take off the tinted lenses.
─────────────────────────────────────────────
Troy
Outside the city’s walls, you won’t be able to open the Horse door without the key, so use it and get inside.
Before closing the door, take the stone and throw it to the city gates.  Then close the horse’s door now (do this quickly!!).
A Trojan soldier will come out to take the horse (and you) inside the city; open the horse’s door to come out.
Pick up the spear and move to the right.
Now you’re facing a palm tree with a golden leaf which is what you came here for. Use the bow and arrow on the The golden palm of Troy to get it.
─────────────────────────────────────────────
Underworld
Talk to Charon to learn how  bad the job conditions down there are.  Give him the two gold coins to get to the other side of the river and keep going to the right. 
Cerberus is stopping you from getting into Hades so use the magic lyre to put him to sleep. Go right.
Hades is looking after Poseidon’s trident while he goes to sleep.  If you take it from him, he’ll wake up so replace the spear with Poseidon’s trident.
─────────────────────────────────────────────
Colchis Island
Now, you need to be pretty fast here… or the dragon will kill you!!
As soon as you get in here, use Poseidon’s trident on the well to get a huge amount of water into the dragon’s mouth.  When he’s down, climb on top of him (click on the highest part of his stomach) and take the Golden Fleece.
Don’t leave the island without taking the red cape from behind the well.
─────────────────────────────────────────────
Crete Island
You’re in the minotaur’s labyrinth again.   Go into the central chamber (Through the door to the East )
Take the anvil and put it in front of you (still behind the red line).
Take the red cape, click on the Minotaur and do a little bullfighting with him to make him run into the anvil.
You can cross the red line now and collect the Minotaur’s horn from behind his foot.
─────────────────────────────────────────────
Mount Olympus
When you have completed Zeus’s 5 tasks, he gives the World Cup back to us mortals

Original Walkthrough: Edgar

Level: Upper intermediate /advanced

Location: Connected classroom

Skills Work: Listening

Video:  Alan Wake Video Review

Preparation

Download the Alan Wake Worksheet and make sure the video plays in your classroom.

Pre-watch

Your learners look at the worksheet and discuss the ‘Before you watch’ video.

• an alternative/ extra activity is to get them to predict ten words that they think will be mentioned in the video.

Learners then work their way through the ‘Can you predict . . ‘ questions writing notes on what they think the answers might be’

Watch activity

Tell your learners that as they watch they should correct their answers and make notes.

Post watch activity

Learners compare their answers and expand on their notes where possible before feedback in open class.

Extra Activity

• Learners find a trailer to a video game and write their own review using their notes to help them.
• Discuss with learners what makes a game too violent or have a game rating.

I’ve just signed up for an account, so I haven’t had much time to explore, but I couldn’t wait to share the opportunity for you to sign up and use the site now. It seems to feature a points system, which will appeal to the gamer in any of our students and hopes to provide “the kind of “digital entertainment immersion” most likely to appeal to this audience, and in so doing greatly increase learners’ exposure to a wide range of authentic spoken English.”

Can’t wait to spend more time on the site!

I first came across English Attack when I saw a presentation listed at TESOL France last year by one of the founders, Paul Maglione.

The presentation is excellent, and full of the same kinds of ideas that appealed to us when we decided to set up Digital Play, so I’m sure you’ll find it of great interest.

You can see the slides to his presentation below: