How to Play Spades

Instructor led training

Project Date: September 2018

Project Goal: Set up a 7-10 minute instructor led training session, teaching a group of 3-4 adults any subject matter. Focus on teaching technique more than what is actually being taught, while considering the following:

• The order in which the information is presented

• Learning Objectives

• Learner Engagement

• Relatability of information and teaching technique

• Visuals

• Adjusting what is being taught to meet the needs of learners

• How to glide between the different roles an instructor in ILT must play

Project Summary: I chose to teach a group of adults with varying ages and slightly different backgrounds, how to play spades. Before meeting and introducing myself to my learners, I created a Job Aid to help in the learning process while participating. Fortunately, all of my learners had pre-existing experience playing this game, but the Job Aid provided clarity to some aspects of the game; it also functioned as a resource for them to refer to in the future.

Yank Me

gamification project

Project Date: October 2017

Project Goal: Design a non-digital game that encourages learning, and consider player feedback to refine and improve the play experience; implement player feedback and other points of improvement in a second iteration of the game.

Project Summary: I asked my friends to engage in a game of Yank Me.  I designed my own version of this classic game. My version of Yank Me is played by swiftly yanking index cards from underneath a stack of five cups, with the intent of allowing the above cup to fall atop the one beneath it (that was originally obstructed from doing so because of the index card that was upholding the above cup). This must be performed within a minute until all five cups are stacked on top of each other.

This game was designed to teach how to concentrate and efficiently perform under pressure, as well as engage motor skills and encourage patience and resilience. It is here that the game has learning value. In this way, this exercise can be used to introduce elements of competition and fun in various educational and training settings, while still providing a brief window of opportunity for the aforementioned skills and attitudes to be developed. The following video links depict two iterations of the game, with minor adjustments between them, as well as constructive feedback that would make the game more challenging and more fun: