My son likes playing with Lego. Lego has been around so long that I believe on a recent archeological dig in China they found a prototype of the Great Wall of China built in Lego...
Lego has evolved to a point where you buy a computer game, let's say Lego Star Wars and as you proceed through the game, or rather you child proceeds through the game, requests to purchase the Lego spaceships and characters in the game increase.
Some may argue that we buy these games, paying money to a company advertise their wares through gameplay on our computers. That is not a discussion for this eLearning place however effective the strategy might be.
I really only wanted to comment on two observations.
Reward Systems
Reward systems in these games are generally based around earning points by finding or doing something and you use those points to buy tools that will help you advance through the levels in the game. Joe's teachers over the years have used a similar strategy in the classroom. Paying attention, doing work well, working as a team member, being well behaved earn points, marbles, jellybeans and once enough "micro-credits" are accumulated, the marbles convert to a silver ball which means that with the extra strength of the silver ball, minor transgressions will still be pointed out and the threat of losing the silver ball and being relgated to collecting jellybeans and marbles is enough to keep kids in check.
When does that strategy cease to be effective? I think at about the same time that interest in the Lego Star Wars games wanes and collecting baubles and credits loses importance and is replaced with the collecting other things of importance to us. By the way this is not about materialism although it can manifest itself in the earn and trade nature of games.
Given that many kids in class do play computer games, our classroom teaching can't compete with the 3D wizardry of the multimillion dollar game companies, but we can learn from the reward systems used (which are based on reward systems in life) and as art imitates life... take the good, leave out the bad and use what you can to keep them interested and making it easy to pick up points for good behaviour or attention so they can get to level one, but not too easy that they don't care about going back to zero again.
Those of you who are teachers and have taught for a while will go "I've been doing that all my career" and that is right... Joe's teachers are great examples of teachers putting good classroom strategies in place to improve performance at both an academic and behavioural level.
This is mainly for us first time parents who realise that whatever you do to do your best for your child, you are always trying to understand the best way to provide the best path... the "do I let him" or "don't I let him" or "Would it help if we..."
So if a reward system in a computer game can keep a child engrossed for hours, I want to map the secret of that onto other activities - like getting him to eat vegetables.
Virtual World (on the computer) and Virtual World (Lego spaceships attached to child being flown around the house)
The playing of the game on the computer leads to similar play with the Lego objects in the house. I was thinking that using my iPod nano to film Joe and putting that on YouTube (or just on the computer) maybe with the right storyline we can add to the way play activities become learning activities. Making a short movie with kids waving light sabres around is one thing and it is fun for all involved, but it wasn't until I suggested that we make a "Masterchef" movie with Joe and his cousins that a real interest in cooking was sparked.
So by using a Lego Star Wars spaceship we could make a movie about a visitor from another planet travelling to places affected by climate change and reporting back to the grand council on Naboo on each of the findings. With Joe combining the two worlds of a computer game and a real world he researches, prepares and then shoots a story that presents a serious topic using a visual treatment that I know his mates would love to watch.
These observations are written as a parent and not as a teacher (which I am not - although I know some very good ones) and this is not a shameless endorsement of Lego (although you have to agree they are pretty cool).
May the force be with you!
