Month: February 2020

After playing Poptropica for a couple weeks, I have come to the conclusion that using this game in the classroom would not be as beneficial to a child using this game at home as a supplement to information they have already been taught in school. This game in particular gives parents comfort knowing their child is playing in a safe and secure environment.

After reading Squire, I realize that as students are playing this game, they truly can become their character and feel as though they are personally traveling through the islands of different school subjects. The students are able to learn by doing.

I classify Poptropica as a sandbox game. The game provides an environment for the students to experience a low risk and safe game-play while using creative and exploratory elements. There are tutorials where the student is unable to fail, but rather learn the skills to participate in activities on other islands and then move to the next area when they feel competent within the game and their skills.

If I were a teacher, I would recommend this game to parents who are looking for safe ways to supplement classroom activities at home. It is a great source for parents and students to bond over academic materials at home.

I have continued to explore, learn and improve my skills within Poptropica. There are multiple islands that all have different themes. Today, I am going to focus on the mythology island.

This game allows it’s players to work in an sandbox environment where it is safe and controlled. They are able to explore without worry of failure. As you walk through the level, you can interact with different characters and get more background information about what is going on in the game.

Poptropica definitely assumes that the students who are playing this game have context to the story of Zeus and Hercules. If they do not have any of the information before playing, they would just be moving through the worlds without learning anything. This game allows students to make their own decisions on where to go and what to explore all while getting factual information about history in a more entertaining way.

What this game is missing is the ability to play with other students online and interact with peers. This game could also be confusing to students as the navigation is difficult to use and there are no prompts in the game to explain where to go or what to do next if they get stuck.

This is a great game for students who have context and are interested in exploring the world of history in a fun and safe environment.

Poptropica is a game that includes quests, stories and mini games that students can engage in individually or in groups in the classroom.

I had never heard of Poptropica, but when I searched the game, it definitely is very colorful and looks like it could be engaging for students.

When you first enter the game, you get to create your own character down to their clothing, eye shape, hair style and a unique name. I chose Lazy Bear.

Personally, I find the game a little difficult to navigate, being that you couldn’t see everything on one screen. There are a series of shops, where you can actively play in different settings. The first place that I visited was the pet store, where I adopted a puppy.

There is a tutorial for new players, which is the next place I decided to go. The goal was to collect gold coins and learn the basic mechanics. As you move through the level (reminded me of the original Mario) you can interact with animals and other people in the game.

After completing the tutorial, I missed four of the 10 coins because I was unfamiliar with the navigation. This is definitely a game that would require some time and familiarity by the teacher in advance. I am not sure at this point, what academic advantages this program offers, but as I continue to explore the game through this unit, I am confident that I will get more from the program.