GeoQuest: Taking Steps Toward Gamification

I did a lot of prep work this summer around making my curriculum more gamified by looking at the work of John Meehan (@meehanedu) and Michael Matera (@mrmatera).  I was reluctant, however, to jump right in. (see Gamification in the Classroom: Big "G" or little "g"?)

Perhaps I wanted to get a sense of my students to see how they might roll with it.  Maybe I needed to gauge whether or not I could handle it.

Yesterday, I took the plunge.

After we tied up a few loose ends from last week, I turned the students’ attention to the screen at one end of the room.  I played this trailer to introduce the class game we would be participating in for the rest of the year:

After viewing, an unexpected thing happened: applause. To my astonishment, in each class, students spontaneously gave positive feedback. Comments I heard:

“That was awesome.”
“That got me pumped up.”
“I’d love to see that movie.”

And I hadn’t even explained the game yet.

I then shared that it was the game that they would play for the rest of the year. “In fact,” I said. “You’ve already been playing it.”  There were a few knowing looks amongst the faces as I could tell they were picking up on some of the things I had said which subtly referenced the game.

The students read a brief game guide document I put together. And they asked questions.  We talked about XP, competing as individuals, competing as a class against the others, competing as a variety of teams, earning advantages, and sidequests.

When some students asked very specific questions about levels and advantages and I responded that the game was a work in progress and would evolve throughout the year, one student piped up, “Cool! We’re beta testers!”

Clearly, the students bought in.  They were excited, intrigued, and eager.  They proceeded into the next activity which they knew was related to the game with great exuberance.

And I am excited, too, as I think this can help enhance their engagement, provide opportunities for collaboration, and increase their learning.

My first big step into gamification was a success.  Now, I just need to maintain the momentum and craft learning challenges that will keep that tenor of enthusiasm lingering in the air.


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If you gamify your classroom or, if this post has generated some thoughts of your own, please share in the comments. I would appreciate hearing from you.

Can I Use the Bathroom?

“Can I use the bathroom?”

This is a question often heard during a middle school class. The constant interruptions wore on me. So, I stopped them last spring.

Instead of having students ask me to use the bathroom or to go get water, I would allow students to dismiss themselves for those purposes. 

I told them that I was trusting them to choose times to leave during class that were more appropriate than others.  They were also told that they would still need to sign out of the classroom appropriately.  Lastly, so I could know where they were at a glance, students would need to prop a red (for the bathroom) or blue (for water) placard at their seats.

As their eyes lit up, students revealed they were skeptical. This year I received the same response. In both cases, it took the students a little time to get used to dictating when they use the bathroom. After the first week, I respond to the bathroom / water request with, “I can’t answer that question.”

There has been no noticeable change in the frequency of students leaving the room, but I think the students appreciate the trust and autonomy I’ve developed with them.

This approach has taken the burden of making a decision off of my shoulders, lessened interruptions in class, and allowed me to treat the students more like the people they are.

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If you no longer require students to ask permission to use the bathroom or, if this post has generated some thoughts of your own, please share in the comments. I would appreciate hearing from you.

Students Set the Tone With Expectations

Starting the school year and getting to know new students is both interesting and exciting. These early days are also when expectations are established.

Last year and this, I started began establishing expectations in a different way. I put that responsibility into the hands of the students.

As a small group activity, students work together to think about what makes a good student and what makes a good teacher.  I have them use a Frayer Model to think about what a good student is, says, does, and does not. They repeat the process for a teacher.

I pull together the students' thoughts, create one Frayer for students and one for teachers.  I will print each as a poster to hang in the classroom.

They will then serve as a reference throughout the year: posted as a reminder as to what the students should be doing, as a reminder as to what I should be doing, and as an opportunity to reflect on how well they are being good students and I a good teacher.

I will also set aside time during the course of the year for all of us to review the expectations and write reflections as to how well we are being good students and a good teacher.

The expectations are not perfect, but the gist of them is strong and clear. And most importantly, they come from the students.


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If you have students help create expectations for class or, if this post has generated some thoughts of your own, please share in the comments. I would appreciate hearing from you.

Laughing at Myself With the Students

I’m not very good with names. I try, however, very hard with my students’ names because it is a simple way to connect with them and their identities.

At the end of a period’s second class with me, I was trying to stretch my brain and recall students’ names. I approached this one student and felt like the name was on the tip of my tongue….elusive….just out of reach.

The students give me a hint. It starts with “J.”

My mind is racing through all the “J” names it could recall from the various rosters: Justin, Jason, James, Jack, John….  I try one of them that doesn’t feel quite right.  It isn’t.

I pause, shaking my head, narrowing my eyes in concentration.

The students give me another hint.  It ends with “E.”

More racing. Well, stalling is more like it. “Jake” comes to mind, but I know that’s not right. Then “James.” No, no, no. No “E” at the end.  I’m stuck again.

Now my face shows confusion, so the students give me a THIRD hint (how embarrassing).

There’s an “O” in the middle.

My mind is starting to force versions of “Justin” and “Jason” that just don’t exist. I’ve got nothing.

The students are all watching me.  Quite a few are starting to giggle.  Some, I can tell are stifling full-on laughter.

I’m a bit frustrated with myself and irritated that I let this student down.

“You’re going to have to tell me. What is it,” I say.

A collective exhale of laughter: It’s “Joe.”

Another pause, as my brain calculates their hints.

I roll my eyes and start laughing with the students.

In the back of my head, I’m realizing my folly was a good moment for the class. We got to bond over something simple which can strengthen our relationships as we go through the year. We laughed. Having the classroom be a place students enjoy is important. They saw me as a person, making a mistake, laughing (and hopefully learning from said mistake).

Though unplanned, this moment we shared is like many that can happen throughout the school year which draws the members of the class together and helps to build a strong classroom culture.