Bricksters - Math board game

Presented at TASP 2019 in Harrisonburg, VA 

The Association for the Study of Play

Media-Supported Educational-Play for Early Learners

This study suggests a framework (MSEP, Media Supported Educational Play) for using educational media as a prelude to play in early education classrooms, helping children ease into new concepts based on stories, characters and their interactions. The framework is tested with a Kindergarten class in Central Pennsylvania, using an educational TV episode from PBS Kids (Peg+Cat) followed by an original Tabletop Game (Bricksters) to help children learn addition and subtraction. Video data of students (n=22) are analyzed to suggest that children may pick up new mathematical concepts from watching educational media and strengthen their understanding of these concepts by playing follow-up games.

Original Board Game Design - Bricksters!
Halloween-themed math game using lego bricks to help Kindergartners practice addition and subtraction using 0,1,2.

PBS Kids series used for this study : Peg + Cat, Episode : The Littlest Chicken Problem

Peg and Cat follow the Littlest Chicken all through Fairytale Land, as she searches for a group that’s just the right size to be her new family.

Primary Learning Goal: Adding 1, subtracting 1
Secondary Learning Goal: The numbers 99 and 100