Design Learning Games with 114 students, 18 teachers & me!


Starting with the number 1 question we get most often

Although most participants are classroom teachers you do NOT have to be a teacher to participate. We welcome museum staff, culture teachers, paraprofessionals, students, community educators. If you teach or are wanting to teach, you do not have to be in the typical K12 classroom

Our story so far …

For the past three months, we have been working with educators to develop new games to teach Indigenous and rural history. Our first game, Warrior Vets, is available online now.

At the National Indian Education Association , we were able to present to over 100 students. Our first two workshops were attended by 18 teachers.

We just finished our last game on Native American veterans. https://sandbox.7generationgames.com/warrior_vets/

We received suggestions from them about what they would most like to see in the next games developed – and the most common requests were – drum roll please …

What did those teachers and students want to see next?

1. Number one  from students – a game where they use traditional knowledge to survive. There were MANY variations on this topic, as the students came from many different Native nations. 

2. Number one from middle school teachers was a game that teaches about developing an identity / resolving your identity as a Lakota/ Navajo/ Ojibwe and as an American.

3. Number one from elementary teachers was a game that taught about many different tribes. Maybe a “Make your own museum” game where students can select from many different people and stories they learn and then make their own exhibit.

Two more games coming up – one elementary and one for middle school – and our next cohort will help design those

We’re starting the next game design cohort December 13 and those who participate in all three workshops will earn graduate credit. You can attend all three workshops on Zoom or attend the last one in person at the MSU powwow in April, and we can pay for lodging for those who do attend in person. All of this is fully funded by a grant from the Library of Congress.

You can learn more about the workshops and sign up here – https://www.growingmath.org/cohort-2/

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