HOME SCHOOLING?
KEEP CALM & GAME ON!
Author: David Fonda - May 5, 2020
Today, as families learn to spend more time than ever at home together, board games are enjoying a growing resurgence. Whether old favourites plucked from your shelves, or new ones you’ve just ordered online, board games bring the whole family together. They’re fun to play. They promote family interaction and communication. And they’re an ageless source of tons of laughs. Board games are also very affordable, especially when compared to their flashy, electronic brethren. Plus, you can now order them online and have them shipped safely to your door in no time.
But board games are much, much more than a timeless source of family fun, entertainment and play. They can also be powerful tools that parents, and children can use, together or on their own, to broaden their knowledge, further their understanding and advance their education. Which is why board games may be just the tonic for parents and children who are struggling with home schooling and social distancing and…
But board games are much, much more than a timeless source of family fun, entertainment and play. They can also be powerful tools that parents, and children can use, together or on their own, to broaden their knowledge, further their understanding and advance their education. Which is why board games may be just the tonic for parents and children who are struggling with home schooling and social distancing and…
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Meet Anick PelletierIn 2003, a young educational counsellor named Anick Pelletier began teaching young children with learning difficulties. She soon realized that many of the steps and skills her students were struggling to learn in the classroom (“Stop what you’re doing.” “Control your emotions.” “Pay attention.”), came naturally while playing board games. “Why not,” she mused, “apply board games to learning?”
Today, Anick Pelletier is recognized as a pioneer in helping kids learn. She is the founder of Clinique Optineurones, a research-based learning clinic, and has written and spoken extensively on using games as therapeutic teaching tools. She has even helped design and evaluate new ones. Says Anick, “Games are very revealing. They reveal our personalities, our humour, our strengths and weaknesses.
‘That’s because games touch on all facets of our humanity and being,’ says Anick. ‘Sitting down to play a game is like embarking on an adventure of discovery. We lay down our barriers, set aside our biases and immerse ourselves in the experience.’
Removing our barriers and biases helps us absorb and integrate new information (i.e., learn) more quickly and more thoroughly. Independent studies suggest that games can yield significant gains (up to 23%) compared to conventional teaching methods. As importantly, games can also help us assess, critique and correct or modify our play (i.e. behaviour), in a playful and forgiving light. Which may explain why games and gaming have become such popular teaching tools in academic and corporate environments alike. |
What Games Can Teach Us
Today, Anick is teaching educators and gaming specialists how to use board games to help children improve a wide variety of learning skills.
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Board games, even those that aren’t labelled ‘educational,’ have been shown to improve our children’s language, logic and mathematical skills.
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Games help children develop their kinesthetic, corporal, neurological and sensory abilities. Playing hopscotch improves children’s gross motor skills, while Pick Up Sticks hones both their fine motor skills and eye/motor coordination. Simply shuffling and dealing cards or handing out game pieces improves manual dexterity.
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Board games bring families together so they can all participate in a group activity. Kids thus learn to interact, communicate and work with others seated around the table. As importantly, games teach them that it’s even more fun when we’re all having fun together. Some board games like Yum Yum Island, Picassimo, and Spot it! even help parents and children cultivate their artistic, creative, musical, emotional, and/or existential skills.
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Just setting up a board game, so everyone can sit down and play, helps children develop their organizational skills. Board games can also teach them that learning is exciting, fun and worthwhile, in both the short and long run. Educational games such as Loony Quest, Reef, or Azul can introduce children to something new and unknown. They can also inspire and encourage them to want to learn more and delve deeper into a specific subject area. Games such as chess or checkers help children understand and exercise their logic, reasoning and deductive skills. And almost all games help kids integrate the lessons they’ve learned into their daily routine.
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Board games get us out of our shells (or ourselves) to join in the fun. They motivate us by stirring our competitive spirit and fuelling our sense of discovery and adventure. Games, even the ones you make up on the spot, can also teach us patience, and help us build both self-awareness and self-confidence. Games teach us to stick to it and persevere. And, in so doing, they teach us how to be good losers and good winners. And, because it’s only a game, they teach children that defeat is almost always temporary, fleeting and easily surmounted.
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The Problem with Games
With so many different games and types of game to choose from today, one of the biggest problems families might face is choosing which one to play.