gaming tools kids want to use

Gaming Tools Kids

Want To Use

#SXGameTools

2

Amd Changing the game: program architecture

2

AMD Changing The GameEncouraging STEM Education & Careers

Through Game Design With Social Content

Skills for STEM Careers

Collaboration & Creativity For All 21st Century Jobs

Alignment with AMD & Partner Capabilities

AdvocacyCurriculaGame Design Competitions

Educator Engagement

Marketing Communications

Partner Participation

Online Tools and curricula

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TOOLS FOR Educators

“programming is hard and boring”cog

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Conversational Programming2D game design

AgentSheets 3

Conversational Programming2D game design

AgentSheets 3

drag & drop2D game designAgentSheets 1,2, Scratch

drag & drop2D game designAgentSheets 1,2, Scratch

compute prime numbers

C++, Emacs

compute prime numbers

C++, Emacs

Holy GrailHoly Grail

Story Telling

Alice

Story Telling

Alice

make iPhone game

Objective-C, Xcode

make iPhone game

Objective-C, Xcode

3D Game Design with 3D modeling

AgentCubes

3D Game Design with 3D modeling

AgentCubes

yummydangerous

cutegross

funky

http://www.9news.com/rss/story.aspx?storyid=202987

Alexander Repenningralex@cs.colorado.edu

http://scalablegamedesign.cs.colorado.edu

Girlstart

• Founded in Austin in 1997; year-round STEM education programs for girls K-12

• Girlstart After School: largest STEM after school program for girls in the US.

• Thematic, week-long Summer Camp programs, now in their 14th year, in Austin, and ‘Girlstart to Go’ (CA, CO, MN, NE,WA, TX). 45% scholarship.

• Through our two core programs 48% Latina, 33% Caucasian, 10% African-American, 5% Pacific Islander, 70% at-risk.

• Through all its direct service STEM education programs in 2011, Girlstart reached nearly 14,500 girls, teachers, and parents.

Girlstart and Video Game Development

• Girlstart’s programs are technology rich at the same time they teach STEM creatively

• Video game development a cornerstone of our work since 2006: Project IT Girl. Game dev now fully integrated within Girlstart After School / Summer Camp.

• Game development toolbox: so far, there is no one solution. Key features that foster interest and stickiness: personalization, start-to-finish engagement, connections to real-world experiences and problems.

• Key takeaways if you are interested in gaining/sustaining girls’ interest: STOP WITH THE PINK. Bridge the analog with technology. Value your users as creators and authors that can teach you new things about the tools you’ve developed. Promote collaboration over competition. Embrace the unique voices of girls. Make it accessible.

3/12/2012 Virginia E. McArthur

Rock. Paper. Scissors: Make it that easy!

3/12/2012 Virginia E. McArthur Girlstart/Zynga Inc.

Keep it Simple!•Easy•Fun •Addictive

Once you have a CORE Mechanic•Add new art•Add new levels•Add new mechanics

VS.

3/12/2012 Virginia E. McArthur3/12/2012 Virginia E. McArthur Girlstart/Zynga Inc.

Deconstruct. Build. PlayStart Analog!

How should you start?•Pick your Mechanic•Deconstruct it – Draw out the core loop•Map out the outcomes•Build it out of Paper (or user your hands!)•Play, Play, and PLAY AGAIN!

•THEN, and ONLY then should you ask students to get on the computer and code

Some additional toolkits in addition to AgentSheets (which I am going to use with my kids when I get home).

• Sculptris (www.sculptris.com)• Squeak (www.squeakland.org)• Scratch (scratch.mit.edu)• Microsoft Robotics Kit – Kinect

Cool(www.microsoft.com/robotics• Kodu (on XBox Indy marketplace)

So, you want to make a game.

What they want is to make a copy of a game.

Our challenge is to:

• Figure out what they want to play.

• Help them discover the play of making games.

• Then help them invert their creative impulse towards the service of “others”.

Figure out what they want to play.

• They’re going to be derivative. Shake that up by helping them reflect on what they really care about – reconnect them to themselves.

• “This I Believe” Exercisewww.ThisIBelieve.org

Help them discover the play of making games.

• Doesn’t have to be a digital anything.• Prototype in paper. They already know the

tools (paper, scissors, “yummy” paste)

#SXGameTools