Teaching with the Nintendo Ds - mobile technology in the classroom - chatrooms

The DS is a great little gaming machine. It has a camera, two screens, Wi-fi and some clever built in tools. However, it is a gaming machine and without specialist software it's pretty hard to squeeze any education use out of it. I've been lucky enough to get to try out this hardware as part of a MOLENET project in the UK which exploits mobile technlogy for education. I had 16 new DSi Nintendo machines to use with my English language and Maths students. In this blog I'll talk about just one function of the DS - its ability to instantly connect with other machines around it.

Instant Chatrooms

A great feature of the DS is that it can connect and chat with other DS machines - see the picture on the right. This is a lovely piece of built in software, you can type or draw something and then 'send' it to up to 15 DS machines that are logged into the same chatroom. This doesn't require connection to the internet and has great potential to be exploited in the classroom.

Set Up

I gave my students a DSi each and asked them to go to the 'sytem settings' > page 2 > profile > username'. Here, they had to change the name of the device to their own name so everyone could see who wrote each entry. I didn't allow nicknames unless this was a name that everyone used for this student. I then asked students to click on the box with a smiling face on the main menu 'Chat' and then choose 'Chatroom A'. Everyone had to write 'hello' to show they were there. I also had my own DSi logged into the chatroom so I could follow what was happening, give feedback and also contribute if necessary.

Spelling

The first obvious use is spelling, ask a student to spell a word and they can instantly spell it and send it so you and the rest of the class. I tried this in my intermediate English class and asked them to spell twenty of the most commonly misspelt words in English - click here for this list. I've done lots of spelling tests but this was much more fun and students could get feedback on their answers straight away. There was also and element of pressure, everyone was able to see if you had spelt the word wrong and so, some weaker students waited till stronger ones had written the answers and the sent it to the group - they could then copy the answer as their own. This backfired on a couple of my students as one of the cleverest decided to write an incorrect spelling on purpose which they copied.

Short Answer Questions

I've used short answer questions in internet chatrooms as a computer lesson before - click here for the blog, so I used the same lesson here and asked students to write down answers to quick, kind of pithy questions like 'When did you last cry? Why?' 'Who do  you most admire?' and 'Tell me a lie about yourself.' (which isn't a question - but it asks for a response). I also asked some stupid questions like 'What did you have for your breakfast?' and 'What animal would you be?'. These were designed to generate fun for the class but they also had a more serious side. I noticed that most students were desperate to answer quickly and with good answers that were correct and/or funny proably because the whole class could see their individual response. As well as generating written English the quiz also generated a great deal of talking, asking for clarification and also follow up comments on individual answers.

Conversations

Getting students to have conversations with each other on the DSi chatrooms seemed the logical next step.  This time, I asked students to go to the  'sytem settings' > page 2 > profile > username' and change the name of their machine to something that noone else would be able to guess - this could be 'Student 1' or 'student 2' or something more strange and memorable like 'flower' or 'blue'. Importantly, they were not allowed to tell anyone their name. I then secretly put students into one of the four chatrooms on the DS by passing them pieces of paper with the letter of the chatroom they had to go. I have twelve people in my class and so there were three people in each chatroom. I gave students five minutes to  chat to each other and guess who the other people were in the chatroom. Iasked them not to shout out their answer, but write the names of the people in the chatroom and their real life names on the paper I'd given them.

This was a fun lesson as students asked each other questions, gave each other false answers and pretended to be someone else. Whilst there wasn't any specific focus of the lesson, dexterity in English reading and writing (and speaking) was tested to its full capacity in a meaningful way. Everyone enjoyed the task and not everyone guess correctly the other people they were talking to.  I aim to try this on a group of teachers and find out how they get on.

One to One

I decided to spend a bit of time using this function with a very low level ESOL learners to practise not only reading and writing but also speaking.  Both the student and I found this to be a very useful and rewarding way of teaching writing on many different levels. So much so that I feel this issue needs it's own blog - click here to read this. I also decided to try using the DS to help my five year old son with his reading and writing - this deserves its own blog - click here to read it.

Positives

The chatroom is a real joy to use, as you write onto the DSi screen you can hear the soft sound of chalk onto board, the layout is clean and easy to use and although there aren't any other colours to use apart from black and multi-coloured it's got a real doodly feel to it. More able and younger students instantly fell into using it by trying out all the functions without asking questions, very much in the mold of Prensky's digital natives and older as well as less able students tended to be slower. All of the groups I worked with enjoyed using the technology and it did help to make the classroom more dynamic and motivational.

Negatives

- As I said with the PSP, charging up 15 DSi machines is a pain. Also, the battery life is too short!

- The classroom activities were very definitely a 'once a month' task. Students would quickly get bored of the chatroom function if it was used in the same way every lesson, however it does have a place in one to one or low level ESOL teaching where the benefits would be massive.

- In group activities the strongest and most able are the studenst who have the most to say. Anyone who is slow might not be able to keep up and runs the risk of not being able to participate, however with the correct classroom management this could easily be avoided.

- There doesn't seem to be a way of keeping the comments made. It would be great to keep a word doc. of the things said and who said them. This would be particularly useful for the conversations lesson that I did.

- There are only four chatrooms. I wanted to split my students into pairs and send one half of each pair into different rooms, they would have to use written English to communicate with each other. I have 15 students and there are only four chatrooms avaliable on the DS machine.

Links

Robin Hood Primary School in Wakefield are also using the DS to teach. Click here for their blog.

Japanese schools using the Nintendo DS. Click here for the blog.

Using a PSP to teach English - Flash Games

Putting Flash Games onto the PSP

To get flash games onto a PSP you need to somehow rip the .swf files from the websites that host the games. I used firefox to download the games and capture the them. More gifted and tecnically minded wizards explain this better than I can here http://www.lancelhoff.com/how-to-download-embedded-swf-files-using-firefox/

Using Flash Games on the PSP

Although playing flash games is a lot of fun (depending on the game of course); exploiting them for language learning is more difficult. I've blogged about using them before, but for really creative ways of using flash games in the classroom look no further than Digital Play http://digitalplay.info/blog/ where there are ideas on using individual games and wider links to education through video games. Digital Play has had  a real influence on my ideas and teaching.

The Lesson

I used this lesson with a group of intermediate students from various parts of the world.  Students were given one PSP between two and each PSP had a flash game pre-loaded onto the memory card 'Who killed Angela Spelling?' from the fantastic www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise. 

Students had to play the flash game together and fill in the worksheet which I also downloaded and printed off one between two - you can download it here

So, why not use a normal computer or laptop to do this activity?

- With a bunch of PSPs you can do these activities without an expensive IT suite.  Just pass out the PSPs and you can start.

- Students really focused in on their PSP and becaue they had to work together to see the tiny screen, it helped them work together on completing the tasks.

Problems and pains in the neck.

- Putting the same file onto twelve PSP memory cards is a hassle. Charging them up is even worse. This lesson took too long to think about for  simple  flash game.

Blocks with Letters - Simple Flash game for IELTS / ESOL / ESL

Here's a great game written by Martin Sears that really gets your brain working.

It's a simple game that hinges on moving blocks around the screen and making sure that words are spelled correctly.  I'm not sure I'd use this game with a class , but I might set it for homework and ask students how the got on in the next session. Although the words are quite simple to start with, they get tougher so I'd suggest using this with at least a pre-intermediate / Entry 3 / B1 class.

You might like to pre teach your students some of the vocab needed

Replay

Reset (very important - you can put things back to the way they were at the start if things go wrong)

Clue

Gimme a hint ( it should of course be 'give me')



Play the game by clicking here or the picture above.

Let me know how you get on.

Low Level English - Flash Games for ESOL

...just discovered a wonderful site for low level ESOL and ESL learners, you need an Interactive Whiteboard or a projector.



http://englishflashgames.blogspot.com/

Loads of different vocabulary games and presentations aimed at low level learners.

Flash Games for ESOL / ESL / IELTS part 2 - The Gorillaz Website

Cartoon Band The Gorillaz were a breath of fresh air when they landed on the music scene a few years ago. With Blur front man Damon Albarn handling the music and legendary 2000AD artist and writer Jamie Hewlett , they created four distinct members of the band, Murdoc, 2D, Noodle and Russell.   Their first album, Clint Eastwood was released as an enhanced CD featuring a short flash movie and access to Murdoc's Winnebago which fans can explore, you can visit this today by visiting Kong Studios. Not afraid to use the internet to promote themselves, flash technology provided Hewlett with the perfect place to let fans explore the fictional lives of the band and the studio they worked in, Kong Studios is entertaining, informative and well designed and therefore perfect for students learning English.

The Lesson Plan.

I've never used this lesson as I felt that my students and institution might not be ready

Download the lesson here Gorillaz Reading Lesson

Flash Games for ESOl / EFL / IELTS - Just a bit of fun

You can find some really good games at

www.superduperflashgames.com

Desktop Defence

Click here to play Desktop Defence. Defence games involve you building towers to defeat hordes of enemies. This one is quick, easy to learn and difficult to master. Desktop Defence is easily the best out there. Say goodbye to break time.

Fancy Pants 1 and 2

Click here to play Fancy Pants 2 This is a well animated and very simple platform game with added depth for more serious gamers. It's got a great feel to it and the humour is nice. Try Fancy Pants 1 as well...

Flash Tennis

Click here to play Flash Tennis. Simple and yet demanding, this is a quality tennis game. With after hit control on the ball and a tight serving regime needed this quickly become maddeningly addictive.

Dino Run

Click here to play Dino Run Stylish retro gaming, guide your dinosaur at top speed in front of the crashing boulder of extintion. Fast and engaging, the multi-player option lets you race other gamers from around the globe. Simple and fantastic.

Dolphin Olymipcs 2

Click here to play Dolphin Olympics 2 Swimming around as a dolphin and performing tricks to earn points seems fairly amusing, but if you get really good at this game then you can get much further. Pointless, engaging fun.

Could you use these games in your ESOL/ESL or EFL classroom. I've got a few ideas... would love to hear how you would use them.

for more great games get on down to www.superduperflashgames.com

Educational games- are they any good? Case #1 - 1066

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="360" caption="1066 by Preloaded and Channel 4 "][/caption]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Click here to play the game

The term 'educational game' is a bit of an oxymoron - like a fat thin man riding a big small motorbike.  Games that promote learning can sometimes be more boring that actually just learning. Hopefully though, things are changing.

Here's a great example of what simple flash games can do on the most basic browser. 1066 is made by Preloaded and developed with the help of Channel 4 in line with the show The Battle for Middle Earth that aired in May 2009.  2 million people watched the show and there are rumoured to be 3 and a half million people who have played the game.

What strikes you first is just how well made this is with wonderful voice acting and smooth animation. You play by re-enacting the brutal battles of 1066 as either The English, The Normans or the Vikings. There's a kind of movie to introduce you to the actual history of the what happened but it quickly cuts to the game. You take charge of one army and move blocks of troops around in turn based action, firing arrows and moving into position before getting stuck into the actual fighting.  It's terribly bloody with a great feel to it, there are also touches of humour - taunting the enemy sees you screaming 'pig filth' or 'fox beard' at the enemy.

So, is it educational? That's a difficult question. It's a really nice game to play, that's for sure, a bit like a simpler version of Total War. The bloodsplats on the screen, the noise of sword against sword and the stratergy needed adds up to an entertaining experience. But did I learn about 1066 and history? I took Bruce London's 15 question 1066 history quiz to find out.

Well, I learned that 3 English kings died that year and that the Viking leader was Harald Haadrada and got these questions correct but that was pretty much as far as I got. Wouldn't I have learned these things had I just read a book or sat in a history class?

The Battle of Hastings and 1066 is a pretty easy educational topic for a game to cover - it's got fighting in it, and vikings and people shouting at each other, but how would a game for say, explaining healthy eating or quadratic equations work? Would it be as easy to make these into games?

1066 is a great game, but more than that it's a great start to the way games should be able to capture people's imagination and engage them with the subject. It would probably be pretty easy to make an engaging healthy eating game, you could follow the fortunes of a football player or an athlete and decide what they eat, or a doctor examining the damage done to different parts of the body from eating the wrong stuff. Quadratics - I'm still thinking.

As the prospect of 'cloud or streaming  gaming' draws closer, more and more powerful games are going to be avaliable to more and more people, games will play a bigger part in our lives and education. How we use them in the classroom will need to be thought about more clearly, but this is a great start.

 

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="400" caption="Fire at will"][/caption]

Flash Games for EFL/ESOL/ IELTS students #1 - Hapland - Reading Instructions

Hapland - Reading Instructions

This is a very frustrating flash game.  I used it with my Level 1+/B1+ students to help them read for meaning.

Basically the idea of the game is to get the little man to safety byclicking on different parts of the picture in the right order.

hapland.swf

 How I ran the lesson.

1. All students had a computer. I directed them to the 'Hapland' website. Click here http://homepage.ntlworld.com/rallen/hapland.swf I asked the students to play it for two minutes. Then I elicited their opinions, did they think it was a good game? Would they play it?

2. Now I handed out the instructions (below) . They had to read carefully following these to complete the game. I encouraged them to help each other.

Instructions

a)    Open all the windows and turn the red arrow around.

b)    Open the hatch on the right, click the yellow arrow to get a man out.

c)     Click on the man to fire one round in the low position to drop the bridge down.

d)    Click the cannon to move it up. Fire the second round up at the bell and click the spear thing so it goes the other way JUST after the round hits the bell

e)    Fire the next two rounds at the bridge, but click the bridge to as they hit it to knock them in the air and explode without causing damage.

f)      Click the light bulb a few times next to the man at the bottom to get him to smash it.

g)    Fire the last round in the low position, and the bottom man will pick it up and open the door with it.

h)    Now click the man by the machine so he gets in it, and click the yellow arrow to get another guy out, get him to fire the other man up at the bell.

i)      The man by the bell will move the tower over if you click him. Then click the spear thing. Now keep clicking the bell till it falls. No more land mine.

j)        Click the door in the bottom left so the man comes out and JUST as he goes in the door on the right, click the man at the bottom. A dog tries to chase him, but the falling concrete stops it.

k)      You did it!

How was it successful?

- students generated a lot of natural language when trying to help each other. 'What do I do?' 'You don't do it like that' 'How do you do that again? etc. This kind of helping language is really useful, asking for clarification or explaining is also vital in speaking English is a real context. Maybe I should have made that more the focus of this lesson.

- They really had to read the instructions to be able to complete the game. It was a good test of their comprehension skills. 

What went wrong?

- some people don't like video games and without my help and explanation might have confused this task with- 'having a bit of a laugh'.

- it was just too hard for some of the students although they were encouraged to ask for help from other students.