Lego Universe

I'm breaking just about every one of my rules in regards to what resources I choose to share on this blog by writing about Lego Universe. First of all, it isn't free (or at least it won't be once it is out of Beta testing). They are planning on providing it on a subscription basis. It is billed as a game rather than an educational tool. They are classifying it as a MMOG (Massively Multiplayer Online Game). And the icing on the cake is that it will run on PCs only and I'm a Mac man. Why then, you may be asking yourself, am I sharing this with all of you? Because I am a Lego maniac and have been ever since I was 5 years old and received my first Lego set from my grandparents for Christmas. I have gotten a set of Legos for Christmas every year since then, I'm 38 now, and I still enjoy playing, building and creating. My daughters are particularly happy when I share with them. Keep an eye on the Lego Universe. It may just be one of those tools that you can utilize that allows you to take advantage of your students' motivation and engagement to achieve some curricular goals.

NASA to Create Educational Games

NASA recently announced that it is moving into the realm of educational gaming by developing a massively multiplayer online gaming environment that will focus on teaching kids STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) skills. You can read more about the initiative on their site but it certainly sounds promising. They are seeking to harness the power and engaging aspects of virtual worlds and combine it with their vast array of high quality content to create and educational gaming environment. Unfortunately, I don't have anything concrete to share in the way of the actual game but stay tuned and I'll try to keep you posted of any developments.