Playing for a Cause

This is far from being a new and hip site, but my students LOVE to play on it. Freerice.comallows students to quiz their knowledge on vocabulary and other various subjects of their choosing. Instead of points, students earn grains of rice that are given to the UN's World Food Programme.

I thought it was entertaining that the first word that appeared on the vocabulary trivia was "fail" for a motivational blog post. Regardless of the irony, this game plays into the ARCS model fairly well.

Attention: It has an easy to use interface, bright colors, and pictures. The homepage takes you straight into a vocabulary quiz. It just begs to be answered!

Relevance: The site automatically directs you to the vocabulary page, but it can easily change to any subject the student or teacher is interested in playing. It is a test of your knowledge in a variety of academic subjects.

Confidence: The first question that appears is set at a low level (i.e. - "fail"). The vocabulary or questions are intended to increase in difficulty as you answer correctly. For incorrect answers, you continue on the same level and the incorrect word will repeat until a higher level is gained. The game is designed to build your confidence by achieving higher and higher skill levels.

Satisfaction: Along with achieving higher skill levels, you get to see the amount of rice you are earning to donate to third world countries. If you sign into an account, you can also save and track your scores to compare with other players.

I think the key to the success of this site is the simplicity of it. Students feel challenged just enough to continue playing and not feeling discouraged. They are reinforced by earning more rice and a higher level. They can chose a subject that meets their interest. What is there not to like about the educational aspects and the satisfaction in that students are spending their time solving the problems of the world a few grains of rice at a time?