September 21, 2020
Courtesy Cave Creek Museum
When you were a kid, did you want to explore a historic mine?
October through December 2020, Cave Creek Museum will be launching an exciting new educational resource through Education & Community Services (ECS), a department of the Cave Creek Unified School District. ECS is open to all families who wish to participate (it’s not restricted to CCUSD students).
Here’s the scoop:
Virtual History Playground Screen Shot. Photo Courtesy Cave Creek Museum.
When you were a kid, did you want to explore a historic mine? Investigate a real life mystery, meet adventurers from another era, conquer epic challenges, earn rewards, and (without hurting anyone) blow up a bunch of dynamite?! Now your children can do all that and much more with the Cave Creek Museum’s Virtual History Playground, an interactive educational resource for online learners using the Roblox gaming platform. Roblox is very popular among elementary and middle school-aged children, and the Virtual History Playground will be equally popular with parents because it meets Arizona Common Core Standards and is offered on Roblox VIP restricted access servers.
“The Roblox gaming platform engages students in a safe and enriching virtual environment created by experts with backgrounds in history and education,” explained Cave Creek Museum Development Director Becca Bober. “Students explore the Cave Creek area in the 1800s by walking up to various exhibits in a virtual version of the Museum’s History Wing. These exhibits then transport the student to a challenge that assesses a student’s understanding of local history topics, aligning with the Museum’s mission of preserving and interpreting the natural resources and cultural heritage of the Northern Sonoran Desert. Rewards and additional challenges incentivize students to continue the learning process.”
“Our Virtual History Playground allows students to receive educational screen time while assuring parents that their children partake in beneficial online learning,” remarked the program’s coordinator Remington Pettus. “The really great thing is that the game design enables parents to remain hands-off and feel comfortable that their students are exploring local history.”
Virtual History Playground Screen Shot. Photo Courtesy Cave Creek Museum.
“It is an exciting concept, and I am thrilled that the Cave Creek Museum wants to launch the Virtual History Playground through Education and Community Services (ECS) at Cave Creek Unified School District (CCUSD),” said ECS Enrichment Coordinator Elaine Vallario, noting that, “The launch will take place October 1 through December 31, 2020. Our first offering will be a beta test and priced accordingly.” The Cave Creek Museum program will utilize Google Classroom to deliver the gaming link and accompanying history article to students. “The reduced price is an introductory trial to engage students as we fine-tune game development and Google Classroom management.”
The use of Google Classrooms offers students access to assignments, a streaming forum for questions and guidance, gaming links, history articles that accompany challenges, alerts of new challenges, and allows the program manager to assess program usage and student progress.
The module package is a self-paced learning subscription that provides unlimited access to completed and new challenges for the term of the subscription at no additional cost. “This program is currently the only children’s program of its kind among Arizona museums,” noted Bober. “This reduced price version is an introductory trial to engage students as we fine-tune game development and Google Classroom management. Thank you for your support in providing feedback as we work on enhancing the gaming experience for young learners.”
For those who aren’t familiar with Google Classroom, it is a widely-used platform for online education that allows the classroom owner to create individual assignments centered around specific topics. The platform accounts for the fact that most users are below age thirteen and ensures that appropriate content, access, and interaction restrictions can be enforced. Google Classroom alerts students when new assignments are available and provides a streaming forum for questions and guidance.
Unique Volunteer Opportunities
Virtual History Playground Screen Shot. Photo Courtesy Cave Creek Museum.
“If you have experience with game design and are interested in volunteering a little bit of your time to create a positive experience for students and educators, this is an opportunity with your name on it!” said Bober, inviting online volunteers to participate in development. “As a largely volunteer-run organization, we rely on the community to support our educational efforts through their donations and volunteer contributions. We are incredibly grateful for the dedication and support the community has provided us so far.”
The museum is currently offering virtual volunteer opportunities in the development and implementation of the its online game-based history learning program. Interested individuals with experience in writing, game development, project management, and education are encouraged to apply on the museum’s website. The program is designed to engage students in second through fifth grade in an immersive local history experience through Roblox gaming challenges that meet Arizona’s Common Core educational standards.
This opportunity aligns with the museum’s long history as a volunteer-based organization that preserves and interprets the natural resources and cultural heritage of the Northern Sonoran Desert. For more information about Cave Creek Museum, the Virtual History Playground, and volunteering opportunities, contact Becca Bober at development@cavecreekmuseum.org.
The initial program, a beta test, Roblox: Learning Cave Creek History through Play – Introductory 4-Module Package for grades two through five, is projected to be available through ECS during October through December 2020 for $28 ($7 per module), a reduced, limited-time introductory price. Visit ecsforall.org for education and enrichment programs and registration, including Roblox: Learning Cave Creek History through Play. Or visit cavecreekmuseum.org for program details and updates.
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