Guided Gameplay of Serious Games Questions

Talk with learners during gameplay

This sheet is to be used by educators to provide examples of questions to ask learners as they play games.

Give learners a variety of digital games to play. Consider games that vary in gameplay experiences and topics. Additional factors to consider are: use of games on different devices, grade level of learners, accessibility, presentation of content, and character diversity. When locating games for tablets, computers, or laptops, some resources to check out are:

• Learning Games Lab
• BrainPop GameUp
• Common Sense Education
• Games for Change

During gameplay, engage learners in dialogue by asking them questions. Suggested questions include:

• “What is happening in this game?”
• “What do you think is the goal of the game?”
• “What is your character doing?”
• “Have you tried…?” “I think [another learner’s name] has gotten past this part. [Learners name], can you tell us how you got there?”
• “What do you think the game is?”
• “What is the game about?”
• “What games have you played so far?”