Game Design: Where Language, Art, and Science Collide

What does it take to design a video game? Our Grade 7s are beginning to examine the skills and strategies that game designers use, including character creation, instructional writing/walkthroughs, mapping and level design, and more!

We began today by viewing this interview with one of the creators of the Mario series! We learned that video games have been around since the 1970s, and have continued to grow and change as technology, culture, and trends shift and change! Feel free to check out the video below:

Some questions to discuss at home:

Have you ever played any video games (including PC, mobile, etc.)? What was your experience like?
What skills do you think a game designer should have and/or develop? Why?
Try playing the ‘original’ version(s) of Mario. What did you notice?

Super Mario Game:

https://supermario-game.com/

Information about the history of Mario:

https://mario.nintendo.com/history/

Muhammad Ali: Setting Goals + Achieving Greatness

Muhammad Ali: A Champion Is Born | Cavalier House Books

Image description: a hand holding a copy of the picture book Muhammad Ali: A Champion is Born by Gene Barretta

This week, we discussed the importance of considering what goals we might want to achieve in our lives. We read about how Muhammad Ali was inspired to begin his boxing career from an experience he had as a 12 year old child. Despite the mockery, prejudice, and injustice that he faced, Muhammad Ali trained and persevered and achieved so much in his lifetime! He was crowned the heavyweight champion of the world an astonishing 3 times, medaled in the Olympics, and, perhaps most importantly, was known as the “People’s Champion” because of his commitment to speaking out against injustice.

Take a look at the short memorial video, below, commemorating Muhammad Ali’s lifetime:

History Mystery: Death in the Ice… Exploring the Franklin Expedition

Have you ever heard of the mysterious disappearance of the Franklin Expedition? This History Mystery involves two ships, sailing from Britain to the Artic of Canada on a search for the Northwest Passage. Despite being well-equipped with food, water, and technology, the ships (and crew) disappeared, and even over 150 years later people still cannot agree on what happened to them!

Check out the trailer, above, for an introduction to this History Mystery, and click the link below for our evidence (so far):

Death in the Ice_ History Mystery Pt. 1

Representation in Media: Books as Windows, Books as Mirrors

Have you ever read a book and felt like a character was SO similar to you, it was like looking in a mirror? Have you ever felt like a book provided you with a window into someone else’s life and experiences? These are both examples of how representation in media (especially books) is important!

We have been exploring how books can be mirrors and windows, and examining what books in our class library are examples of one or the other (or even both)!

Teaching Students How Books Are Mirrors, Windows, and Doors : vr2ltch

We learned that many people may not see themselves in books and movies. There may not be many characters that share aspects of their identities, such as: culture, ethnicity, life experiences, religion, background, family dynamic, etc. We surveyed our class library to look for ‘gaps’ in our books. We talked about how reading books about people who are different from us can build understanding and empathy.

Today, we read The Proudest Blue by Ibtihaj Muhammad:

The Proudest Blue: A Story of Hijab and Family: Muhammad, Ibtihaj, Aly, Hatem, Ali, S. K.: 9780316519007: Books - Amazon.ca

In the story, a younger sister tells us all about her older sister’s first day wearing hijab. We talked about how many people from different cultures and religions may wear clothing, regalia, jewelry, or other items as testaments to their beliefs and backgrounds. To learn more about Ibtihaj Muhammad’s life, including her time as an Olympic-medalist in fencing, check out the video below:

Some questions to discuss at home:

Have you ever seen a character that is similar to you (culture, race, religion, personality, background, etc.) in a book, movie, or TV show?
What are some characters you feel connected to? Who are your favourite characters, and why do you like them?
Do you have any clothing, regalia, jewelry, that you wear that represents your culture/faith/identity? Are there certain items that you wear on special days?

Self-Editing Checklist: Making Our Writing More Powerful

Our class has been working on using self-editing strategies in order to make our writing more powerful, formal, and clear! Ms. Lee helped us learn about the difference between formal and informal writing. We might use formal writing when submitting an essay, sending an e-mail to an employer, or writing a letter to a government official. Informal writing is what we use when we text a friend, when we write in a journal, or if we are writing a quick write.

Based on these conversations, we created a checklist that will help us with our editing! Find our checklist below:

Self-Editing Checklist:

Using the checklist below, read through your paper fully. You can make any corrections using a pen. Check off the list as you go.

Formatting:

Is there a title? Is it bolded? Centered?
Is your name underneath (By: Your Name)?
Is your paragraph indented using the TAB?
Is the font easy to read (ex: Arial, Times New Roman)?
Did you use size 12-14 font?
Is your work double-spaced?

Content:

Did you use a catchy or interesting opening sentence?
Did you clearly introduce your topic/thesis?
Did you use at least 3 reasons or pieces of evidence?
Did you use a conclusion sentence and have a strong ending?
Were you persuasive?

Grammar and Formality:

Is the beginning of each sentence capitalized?
Are names of people and places capitalized (ex: Wirt, Pottsfield)?
Is there a period, question mark, or exclamation mark at the end of each sentence?
Did you check for slang (ex: cool, yeah) and remove it?
Did you remove contractions (ex: don’t, won’t)?
Did you remove short forms (ex, ur, irl)?
Did you rephrase your sentences to remove “I” and “we”?

Our First Read-Aloud: The Nest by Kenneth Oppel

Be careful what you wish for! Our class completed our first read-aloud, the horror novel The Nest by Kenneth Oppel. In this story, a boy named Steven makes a wish to heal his baby brother’s illness. However, his wish costs him much more than he anticipated when he realizes the ‘angels’ he has been talking to are really a hive of supernatural wasps!

We thought this novel had many twists, turns, and suspenseful moments. The dark, creepy illustrations added to the experience. While some of us weren’t entirely satisfied with the ending, this was a great first read-aloud to kick off our school year!

In 2020, the authour Kenneth Oppel shared that The Nest could potentially be made into a film one day! Here is a sketch of the concept art:

Some questions to discuss at home:

Would you watch a film adaptation of this novel? Why or why not?
Who might you cast in the role of Steven, the Queen, and Mr. Nobody? Why?
What songs/soundtrack would you want to include in this movie?

Over the Garden Wall: Creating Our Theories

Our analysis of Cartoon Network’s mini-series Over the Garden Wall has come to an end! Throughout this month, we have been exploring: important characters, clues and symbols, changes in settings, and key plot events. We also began analyzing the musical soundtrack for different tones, themes, and lyrics. Now, our classes are crafting our own theories about some unanswered questions within the show!

Storybooks Around the World: South Korea

The Ocean Calls: A Haenyeo Mermaid Story: Cho, Tina, Snow, Jess X.: 9781984814869: Books - Amazon.ca

This week we visited Jeju Island in South Korea! The Haenyeo are a group of female divers who have been harvesting from the coast of Jeju Island for generations. They harvest a variety of seafoods and treasures to make a living and to provide for their families. Dayeon, the main character in The Ocean Calls, really wants to dive like her grandmother. However, she must first overcome her fear of the water and the ocean.

We spent time in the classroom thinking and writing about a time when we found the courage to overcome something that scared us.

For more information on freediving, check out the video below.

Picturebooks Around the World: Nepal (and Mount Everest)

Have you ever thought about climbing Mount Everest? This perilous, treacherous climb draws many tourists every year. We learned that Mount Everest is located between Nepal and China. We learned that this mountain has cultural and religious significance to many people in Nepal.

We also learned that there are some possible environmental impacts caused by all of these people climbing the mountain. Many climbing expeditions leave behind lots of garbage, which is causing this pristine mountain to look more and more like a garbage dump.

Everest: Top Sherpas slam Nepal's plan to clean rubbish from mountain - BBC News

Above: many people hike along Mount Everest, accompanied by experienced guides (Sherpas).

Below: many people from both Nepal and China are working hard to try to clean up the garbage on Mount Everest.

Tidying up the top of the world

Some questions to consider:

-Why do you think it might be challenging to clean the garbage off Mount Everest?

-Would you ever climb Mount Everest?

-Why should we care about the garbage on Mount Everest? How might it impact the environment?

Exploring Asia Through Picturebooks: Food, Family, and Story

Watercress: Wang, Andrea, Chin, Jason: 9780823446247: Books - Amazon.ca

Recently, we visited China through Andrea Wang’s Watercress. The children in the story learn to find a balance between their family’s traditions and the pressures of North American culture. While on a road trip, her family stops to harvest watercress from the roadside. She feels embarrassed as she wades through the ditch, collecting watercress with her parents and siblings. At dinner that night, her mother shares stories from her own childhood, exposing her children to new aspects of their family’s story, their heritage, and their Chinese culture.

Many people find connection to their family and culture through the food that they eat. Are there foods that you enjoy with your family?

Check out the video below to hear about Cecilia Chiang’s connection to family and food through story.