Students in Ellie Chandler’s Game Art Design class at North Buncombe High School (NBHS) created some games for a special group of kids this past Halloween - the preschool on North Buncombe’s Campus! These pre-K kids got to be the very first play-testers of the students’ inaugural major game project for the class. “We have been studying about the elements of game design,” said Ms. Chandler. “There’s rules and procedures, genres, different types of fun. In order to put together and build these board games, the students had to incorporate all of that and create something for the preschoolers.”
The age group lends itself to a particular challenge when designing games. Students in Ms. Chandler’s class had to take into account their ability to count and do math, what skills they have or lack at their age, and what things interest them.
“An elementary level game like this is a great foundation for what we’re working towards in this class,” said Ms. Chandler. Students have to create a final project of a “market-ready” board game complete with packaging, rules, and all the parts and pieces. “First of all, it connects our pre-K with our high school students, and both groups love it. Secondly, it helps my students test, learn, and rewrite rules or procedures and to play-test their games.”
NBHS’ Career and Technical Education program delivers many classes like Game Art Design that take an interdisciplinary approach to teaching career-ready skills and subjects. They also offer unique opportunities like working with other students outside their normal classrooms, such as our pre-K program, elementary and primary students, and beyond.
See more photos on our facebook page, here!