JAY D'AMBROSIO

6-8 | Social Studies | Digital games/simulations

My Classroom Innovation

The goal of this learning exercise is to draw students into a mystery, through what the alternate reality gaming community calls a “rabbit-hole.” Just as Alice tumbled down the rabbit’s hole into Wonderland, so too students find themselves immersed in an experience that requires them to work together, think creatively, and locate important information using real-world resources. They will continually wonder “is this a game…or is this real?” This immersive learning experience is designed stimulate student creativity, innovation, and collaborative partnerships, skills and characteristics essential to success in the new economy.

How Students were Engaged

After learning about a mysterious artifact that should NEVER be opened (known as the Hexagon), students will make contact with a fictitious archaeologist (Dr. Tahi Hawass) via email. He will reply (auto responder email) to inform them that a secret society is attempting to gain control of the Hexagon and unleash the hidden secret that lies within. The only way to stop them (and save the world) is for the students to infiltrate the secret society by undergoing their initiation process. This will require them to answer questions about world history, art history, mathematics, geography, science, and politics. They will have to solve riddles, uncover hidden clues, and discover passwords to login to fictitious Swiss bank accounts. Students will chat, text, examine artifacts, and even call fictitious characters to gain more information along the way. All the while the drive to find out the truth about the mysterious Hexagon will provide the momentum behind this learning quest. Is this a game or is it real?

PBS Program/Content Used

http://www.pbs.org/empires/egypt/special/hieroglyphs/alphabet.html