never enough time

I've decided my lack of interest in games has to do with time. I never seem to have enough time to complete the everyday tasks required of me. When you throw game playing time into the mix, I literally feel like everything begins spinning out of control. All summer long I have thoroughly enjoyed playing Farmtown on Facebook. When my family went to bed, I immediately headed to the computer to check the state of things on "my farm." Now, playing Farmtown has become a chore. I was all set to shut the computer down for the night in utter exhaustion, when I remembered I had crops to harvest. I wouldn't want my crops to go to waste because they cost me a lot of points/coins to plant. I had to wait for what seemed like forever for my crops to be harvested and then for my fields to be planted. My initial thought was,"I'm not re-planting, it takes too long. I'm just going to have to quit Farmtown. I can't keep up anymore." I feel like games just suck the very life out of me as they eat away all of my time. Maybe this is why I sometimes hesitate to introduce new games, even board games and center games, into the classroom - I worry about the time they will take. So much of my instructional time gets 'eaten' in transition that I don't think there's time for one extra thing no matter how big or how small. My biggest obstacle to conquer in bringing more games into my classroom is time . . . . I struggle with the idea that taking time to introduce new games will make significant improvements in instruction and learning. So maybe for a final project, I need to do a mini research project to determine if an increase in game time results in an increase in learning???

the sims

I've spent the last several days playing "The Sims." I am still not a big fan of games and am frustrated with the amount of time it takes to play Sims, but I am determined to be successful at it. As of right now, my characters are out of money, too depressed to find jobs, and living in too small of a space. Somehow, I have to fix their situation. Once I get that far, I'll be able to quit wasting my time with it.

not a gamer

I realized today why I am not a proficient gamer . . . . I don't like to play computer/videos games! I spent all of yesterday evening trying to figure out and play "The Sims." I've spent all morning "working" at Farmtown. I found myself getting bored and frustrated. When it comes to children, I have mountains of patience, when it comes to computers, programs, and equipment, I have no patience. I realized that I find hours of "tedious" computer time exhausting and painful. After a while, the on-screen movement of games makes me nauseous. I don't like sitting still for so long when I have mounds of house work piled aroune me and a child that is demanding my attention. I am not discrediting the educational value of games and simulations. I am certain of their contextual, educational value for those who enjoy them. There are many discussions and debates on instilling a love of reading in children. The bottom line is that no matter what we do, some people will NEVER love books. We must still teach those children to read, but we cannot expect them to embrace a love of reading and books. While I believe children need to be exposed to games and simulations for the experience and educational value, I also recognize that just like with reading, we cannot expect all children to find such activities enjoyable and beneficial. It boils down to what quality educators have known for years . . . .you have to know your students, you must know how they learn and what makes them tick, and then we must use that knowledge to give our students the quality education they deserve.

After taking an entire day to play "catch up" with my classes, I am still behind (although the gap is closing!). To relax this evening, I worked my farm in "farmtown." I had left my fields empty when school started so that I wouldn't lose any crops. All of my fruit trees were ready to harvest. This is probably the closest thing to a video game addiction that I have. Farmtown is seemingly the only place I can keep things neat and accomplished. I realized as I was working my farm tonight, that this particular simulation could be very educational in the right setting. To own a farmtown farm, you must create an avatar and begin building your farm. Through the course of the game, you plant, harvest, and sell your crops. You can also choose to purchase buildings, fence, animals, etc. You select "neighbors" and visit their farms to help them work and earn points. You really have to think about what crops you plant, when you harvest, etc. There is also an option to work at other farms for money. You can be hired to plow and harvest at others' farms. The competetiveness of this game depends on the player. For some people, they have to beat their neighbors level on farmtown. For me, I love pushing myself to the next level so I can have more choices of crops and plant and buildings to purchase. I can see this being used in an economics class to reinforce learning about money managment, spending, and developing economic communities.

resource

Tonight, I discovered a new gaming resource - my sister-in-law! Apparently she is an avid gamer. When I asked her if she coul tell me anything about Sims, she produced several versions of the game that she owned. She was also able to give me quite a bit of background about the game as well as offer suggestions for several other games I could try. I am feeling so incredibly overwhelmed with this class, and it was slightly reassuring knowing I had someone to ask for help. I feel overwhelmed with the idea of gaming. It has been such a mental block for me that I am REALLY, REALLY struggling to find and play games. Even the universal gaming computer has been a challenge for me to navigate and understand. Evidently I'll be learning far more in this class than I bargained for!

class chat

Yesterday the following question was posed toward the end of class:

"Do your classes reflect these ideas? fast paced, interactive, more tech, more digital lessons, use games, engage, less paper and books, more hands-on, make classes look like internet cafes, varied instruction, demonstration of content through tech"

While my classroom does reflect those ideas at time, I do not consistenly demonstrate those elements in teaching. At the first grade level, it is easy to incorporate more hands-on activities, use more technology, and use a variety of instruction. It is difficult to create a fast paced learning environment when there are so many other needs among my population of students. We are busy dealing with major behavior issues, students who cannot write more than the first letter of their name. While my students are "digital natives" with a lot of game experience, I am finding that 30% of my class has little to no computer experience, so we spend a lot of time learning how to turn on a computer, log in to programs, and navigate through the choice of games. After reading Prensky's articles, I am developing the belief that I need to differentiate my computer instruction and adapt technology use in lessons to reach those that are strong digital natives and those are a form of digital immigrant.