When it comes to place-based games, no application has proved more effective than ARIS (Augmented Reality Interactive Storytelling). The ways in which the creator can customize their games is only limited by their imagination. ARIS is used across the world for a number of different reasons, but most creations involve learning to some extent. In terms of language learning, several games already take advantage of the dynamic storytelling that ARIS offers, which include titles such as ‘Analy Nyuwiich, Explorez, and Ecopod.

Another game has been released on ARIS called Finders Keepers, a game which involves the player making important decisions that will have a direct impact on the way the narrative progresses. The creator Becky Lawrence – a language teacher currently at the University of Oregon – recently gave us the chance to ask her some questions about her game and how she used ARIS for language teaching.

Q: Could you give us a brief overview of Finders Keepers?

Finders Keepers is an interactive story playable on any iOs device with the ARIS app installed. The player is immediately introduced with a choice of what to do with a briefcase they find outside their door. Each decision they make throughout the story spawns different paths to take and ultimately different outcomes. There are several themes throughout Finders Keepers that may spark classroom discussions about relevant issues including ethics and morals, wealth distribution, crime, social justice, and social relationships.

Q: What ways can you use the game in a language teaching environment?

Because Finders Keepers is an interactive story in which the player must make decisions that will impact their future in the game, they must think beyond the current choice; in this way, higher order thinking skills are being activated. In addition, Finders Keepers includes a downloadable booklet with activities that have been designed for students at all three ACTFL levels. Possible ways to use Finders Keepers in a language classroom include incorporating it into an existing unit involving similar themes, or presenting the interactive story as a basis for their own creative writing assignments.

Q: How many different languages could the game be used to teach?

Finders Keepers is in English and was originally designed for use in an ESL classroom, however it may also be used as an introduction to themes and topics in other languages as well.

Q: What inspired you to create Finders Keepers?

I originally designed Finders Keepers as part of a larger terminal project for the Language Teaching Specialization MA program at the University of Oregon. My ultimate goal is to have students make their own games like Finders Keepers in a creative writing course. Research shows that creative writing does not have a strong place in language teaching curriculum despite the numerous benefits it provides for language learners. Using Finders Keepers to spark interest and engagement in creative writing allows for the opportunity for students to express themselves in ways they cannot in academic writing, while developing skills that are used in academic writing as well.

If you would like to sample some of the classroom activities that Becky used with her game, she has graciously given us permission to share some of her materials. Feel free to download her packet of six activities found here and use them for your own class!

SimCity BuildIt is mobile-based city building game available on Android and iOS that has become very popular both in the US and internationally. In its first three weeks, it was downloaded more that 15 million times (Maiberg, 2015). In an interview with GamesBeat, EA Mobile vice president and group general manager Jason Willig claimed that most players “say they love it,” and referenced the 4.5 star rating of the game in the US, France, Korea, Germany, and the UK (Newman, 2015). He also said that his team has “designed SimCity BuildIt to keep players engaged for years to come,” and pointed to forthcoming improvements that may include allowing players to communicate with each other regarding their cities (Newman, 2015). Because of this potential for sustained player engagement, the game lends itself well to being used in the world language classroom. In order to aid educators in their implementation of the game in their classrooms, this post will provide an analysis of the usefulness of SimCity BuildIt and will give examples and ideas of different types of activities that a teacher could use in the language classroom.

SimCity BuildIt is especially effective for its potential to engage learners; there is a wide variety of topics that it provides for students to interact with while using the target language. For example, this game includes themes like leadership, resource allocation, population satisfaction, trade, taxation and alternative sources of funding, city planning, services, and perception of politicians. In addition, the game itself has a very user-friendly, simple design. Players who are not accustomed to playing digital games will find it easy to use, and learners, even at novice levels, should find support in the simple layout, straightforward tasks, and clear direction. In short, they will be able to focus their efforts on the language-learning aspect of the game rather than potentially feeling disoriented by gameplay.’

Another benefit of incorporating SimCity BuildIt into the world language classroom is the autonomy, and resulting engagement, that it affords learners. For the most part, learners are free to develop their cities as they see fit (within some limiting guidelines), and at the end of their creation, they have a product to reflect upon. This autonomy makes the learner an integral and interested actor in the game, and by extension, part of the language classroom. It is not insignificant that the learners are given the role of mayor and have the associated responsibility and accountability for the wellbeing of their cities. That they get to do it all through their target language may raise their expectations of what they are able to accomplish in that language.

Because the language used in the game is relatively simple and its associated topics are complex, the game can easily serve as a springboard for activities targeted toward all levels of language learners. Some potential themes and sample expansion activities for each level are listed below.

Ideas for activity topics with SimCity BuildIt in the classroom:

• For novice: city vocabulary, locations, directions, describing happiness/reasons for it.
• For intermediate: resource allocation, leadership roles, trade, buying and selling norms, travel to other cities, what to do in a city.  
• For advanced: different parties’ obligations in a city, sources of funding, describing hypothetical scenarios, disaster response, comparing cities.

Possible learner expansions based on SimCity BuildIt:

• Learners write an article on mayor dissatisfaction from the perspective of a Sim in their city.
• Learners interview each other about being a mayor and the responsibilities it entails.
• Learners write directions to a family member for how they can get from one location in their city to another.
• Learners write an email conversation between someone comparing taxation in their Sim city and a real-world city, where their target language is spoken.
• Learners compare their own city’s leadership to that of their Sim city, and then research and write a letter to their city’s mayor, either offering praise or suggestions for improvement.
• Learners research and present on a service or resource and how it is used in their Simcity and their hometown.
• Learners propose infrastructure changes in their own cities to increase happiness.

A set of classroom activities for SimCity BuildIt, in addition to other game-enhanced activities, can be found in the Publications section of Games2Teach, found here.

Because of the ease of use, wide variety of possible activities, and the fact that the game puts learners in a leadership position, SimCity BuildIt is a wonderful addition to the language classroom. It comes in many languages (English, Chinese, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Turkish) and is available on iOS and Android devices. Find it here.

By: Kathryn Carpenter

Reference List

Maiberg, E. (2105, January 8). SimCity BuildIt downloaded 15 million times in three weeks. Gamespot.com. Retrieved from: http://www.gamespot.com/articles/simcity-buildit-downloaded-15-million-times-in-thr/1100-6424719/

Newman, H. (2015, June 6). Simcity BuildIt has become the most played Simcity ever, EA Mobile claims. Venturebeat.com. Retrived from: http://venturebeat.com/2015/06/06/simcity-buildit-has-become-the-most-played-simcity-ever/view-all/

All photos and game screenshots from gameplay of Simcity BuildIt by EA. http://www.ea.com/simcity-buildit/