Learning through Educational Games

Learning can be very boring for students if you stick to the same method every single day. As teachers we should be switching up the way we teach so that students are always engaged. A way to do that is through educational games. I created a game for a Grade 12 Advanced Functions class so that students can learn concepts involving the graphical and algebraical representations of rational expressions. I would like to share that game here so that you can include it in your class if you wish.

Purpose
Students will learn about the following features of rational expressions both graphically
and algebraically.

• Intervals (positive/negative, increasing/decreasing)
• Domain and Range
• Asymptotes (vertical/horizontal)
• Intercepts (x and y)

Students will choose a card from any category, they will read the question and answer the question
- if they get the answer right they will receive the amount of points on the card (1-7)
- if their answer is incorrect, another player will have the option to try to steal the point by
answering correctly
- if no one gets the answer, no one gets a point
The person with the most points at the end is the winner.

Another way to play the same game is as so:

Materials 

• Game Board
• Question Cards (4 Categories)
• Intervals, Domain/Range, Asymptotes, Intercepts
• 6 Playing Pieces
• Jumbo Category Die and Jumbo Movement Die

Number of Players

This game is designed for 2 - 6 players. For more than 6 players, players can create teams of 2. 

Objective of the Game 

Be the first player to reach “The End” and become the ultimate Smart Student 

Setup

1. Place each of the coloured deck of cards on the board in its designated corner
2. Each player chooses a playing piece and places it on the “Start” space

Playing the Game 

1. The player with the first birthday of the year (Player 1) is the Reader and asks the first question.
2. Player 1 rolls the Jumbo Category Die to determine the category of the first question.
1. Blue is Asymptotes, Green is Domain & Range, and Orange is Intercepts. 
3. Player 1 selects a question card from the category rolled. They read the question. Any player can yell out an answer at any time.
4. The player who answers the question correctly rolls the Jumbo Movement Die and moves their playing piece forward the number of spaces rolled.
5. If no player gets the correct answer, Player 1 wins the round, rolls the Jumbo Movement Die and moves forward the number of spaces rolled.
6. Play passes to the left and the next player becomes the Reader 
7. Spaces on the Board
1. Hard Question Space(Red Space): player must draw a card from the red pile “Intervals” and ask a question
2. Pink Space: player must move their playing piece back three spaces 
3. Yellow Space: player is silenced from answering or asking the next question
8. Tie Breakers: If two players answer the question at the same time the Reader decides which player wins.If the Reader cannot decide then they must choose a card from the red pile “Intervals”, whoever answers first out of the two will win the round. 

Winning the Game

The first player to land on “The End” is declared the winner and becomes the ultimate Smart Student.