Used a penny arcade game concept constructed by preschoolers as a learning tool. Found that the interests of children were clearly visible through their use of peer teaching, collaboration, problem solving, divergent thinking, and use of multiple strategies. Found children were tuned in to learning due to a sense of ownership and empowerment. (SD)

This paper, develops the concept of "epistemic frames" as a mechanism through which students can use experiences in video games, computer games, and other interactive learning environments to help them deal more effectively with situations outside of the original context of learning. Building on ideas of "islands of expertise" [Crowley, K., &…

Recent research demonstrates that videogames enhance literacy, attention, reaction time, and higher-level thinking. Several scholars have suggested that massively multiplayer online games (MMOs) such as "Everquest" and "Second Life" have educational potential, but we have little data about what happens when such tools are introduced in the…

A hidden-words puzzle involves the names of 22 mathematicians. (SD)

This article is a first-hand account of how providing five groups of children with a puzzle helped break down the first-week barriers of school, teach cooperation, and foster discovery. (Editors/JA)

During the two stages of the investigation (1964-66), observations of children in freely formed playgroups were conducted in 27 Israeli schools, Jewish and Arab. The cumulative record of play participants throughout the complete period amounted to over 120,000 units. Among the variables recoreded with reference to each play group were its size,…

Educational games have received increasing attention as one teaching technique for individualizing instruction. The use of games for education was borrowed from the business community, which in turn had borrowed the idea from the military. Educational games include several distinct types--simulations, role playing, games and simulation games. Two…

How games were used in colonial America for both learning and amusement. (HB)

The article discusses optimal strategies in tie point options in badminton and international squash. (MB)

A rationale for involving gifted children in the game of chess is presented (e.g., inexpensive equipment, ease of using introductory games to teach the moves, the aesthetic and mathematical satisfactions to be derived, scope for creativity, and development of thinking processes). (DB)

Before buying a commercially produced reading kit, it is necessary to explore the following questions: What is good? What is Bad? and Is any commercial kit a total program? (JH)

Platform tennis, a smaller, more convenient, faster-paced version of tennis, is now a major recreational activity in the midwest and northern parts of the country. (Author)

The various types of games are defined and characterized, and a discussion of the advantages and disadvantages provides a valuable guide to using games successfully. A comprehensive listing of science-related games follows the review. (Author)