Before I get to the explanation of how this game works, I want to make it clear that the intent of this blog is to record the results of my experiment. This is the first day of what I hope will be a long term homeschool learning game, but because I’m creating this as I go, things will change, or the entire process may fail and I might end the experiment early. As it stands I am going to take it week by week and see what the results are before I change anything or give up entirely.
The Learning Game: Core Mechanics
The central mechanic in this game is the gold coin. This is the same sort of currency my child is familiar with in video games and ABC Mouse, and is one of the practical materials I currently have on hand thanks to my other job as an author (we do strange things to promote our books sometimes). I got my gold coins at the local Party City, but I’m sure the more craft-oriented parent could feasibly make their own.
For the initial levels of the game, one gold coin is equivalent to one experience point. Every successful task earns one coin (one experience point), and in order to level the player must gain a certain number of coins. The initial levels are laid out as follows:
Level 1 = 10 coins
Level 2 = 20 coins
Level 3 = 30 coins
Level 4 = 40 coins
Level 5 = 50 coins
The chart I’ve created and printed out on our fridge doesn’t go any higher than level five. I don’t anticipate reaching this level for a few weeks, and I don’t want to overwhelm my son with goals so high he won’t be able to visualize reaching them.
I’ve also created a chart of tasks that he can perform that will earn a coin upon completion. His current tasks are:
Make Bed
Go Potty
Empty Dishwasher
School lesson
Pick Up Toys
Quiet at Meeting
Bible Reading
Each of these tasks are worth one experience point. Some of them will be repeated throughout the day (we are currently on an hour potty training timer to encourage repetition), and I am fine with that. The goal is not to hoard coins and only give them out sparingly. Instead the goal is to encourage repeated learning and good behavior through constant, small win conditions. For instance, I gave out a coin this morning for my son voluntarily putting up his iPad and plugging it in to charge. While this isn’t on the task list, it is a behavior I want to encourage.
I am building small school lessons for him to complete (he did a math tracing exercise this morning), and have printed out charts from Pinterest to post in the bathroom and help him with progress in his toilet training. Because I don’t have any budget for buying materials, I am working with a printer, my computer, and what toys and items I have around the house. Luckily I had a packet of stickers purchased months ago that I am able to use as progress markers for going potty.
I expect him to reach Level 1 by the end of the day. We are halfway to our ten coins right now, and it’s just before eleven AM. I am trying to see if there is a quick reward I can give him that will motivate him to get to level 2, but that’s tricky. I don’t have any new toys to give out, and I have a conflicted relationship with food as rewards (plus I’m already using candy as potty treats). Maybe at each level he’ll get to play an hour of the video game of his choice. That would definitely be a motivator for my game-loving son.
Win Condition
There is no ultimate Win Condition as this is mostly based on MMORPG mechanics. The player will level up, and at each level gain a reward. Eventually when he is older leveling will also give him access to new skills and abilities. I’m thinking that he might gain a bonus to a lesson he doesn’t like so much if he completes all the others first. That is something I will look into later on, perhaps as he turns four. For now, winning will come at the leveling stage.
Loss Condition
There is only two ways to lose this game: Stop playing or cheat. Cheating would involve taking coins from the stash without performing the tasks that earn them, or lying about performing tasks in order to gain coins. Cheating in both forms is always possible with an in person game like this, but it is my hope that through vigilance and rewarding good behavior the player — in this case my son — will be motivated by the positive feeling garnered through honest win moments to not consider cheating as an option. I will be making sure he does not have access to the stash of coins however, so as not to lead to temptation.
Homeschool RPG 