Team Proposal 2

For my Humanitarian Free and Open Source Software course, my group and I came up with some cool ideas for a project to develop for use on an XO laptop.  The project will hopefully be used for educational purposes.

My Group:

• Nicholas Gallagher (MrNex) - npg3253@rit.edu
• Josh Davis (dtendr) - jad2828@rit.edu

Idea 1

2 liner: Science game where players learn about states of matter through solving various puzzles.  Players change the state of a substance by moving the mouse.

The first idea we came up with is a little different as it is based on the New York Elementary Core Science Curriculum, as opposed to the Mathematics side.  Players will control a piece of matter and solve puzzles that require them to make the matter change states.  For example, one obstacle may be a wall that would require the matter to be a solid to smash through.  Alternatively, the obstacle might be a funnel that only a liquid could flow through.  Players will be able to change the state of their matter by moving the mouse at different speeds.  This would teach a basic understanding of how the movement of molecules determines what state any given substance is in.

This game implements several specific standards from the New York Elementary Core Science Curriculum:

• Standard 1: Analysis, Inquiry, and Design
• Standard 3: Key Idea "Matter is made up of particles whose properties determine the observable characteristics of matter and it's reactivity"
• Standard 3: Key Idea "Energy exists in many forms, and when these forms change, energy is conserved"

Idea 2

2 liner: Math game where players learn/practice math problems and use the answers to play the game.  Players take the answers to the math problems and pile on defense to stop aliens from attacking Earth.

The second idea we came up with is based on the Mathematical Curriculum.  This simple game would look a lot like a Space Invaders, Planetary Defense game.  Players are required to defend earth from attacking aliens.  The aliens fall/attack earth in we'll say 5 lanes.  At the base of each lane is a simple arithmetic problem for the player to solve.  The answers to each lane problem will add up to how many aliens will attack during that round.  The player must correctly pile on defensive stacks equal to each lane problems answer.  Once the player is confident, they will allow the aliens to attack and if they correctly solved each math problem, no aliens will manage to hit the earth.  The game will get more difficult as the player goes on.

As previously stated, this game is meant to teach several basic mathematical principles outlined in the New York and Massachusetts Math Curricula.  For example, this game will help students practice arithmetic operations as outlined in Number and Operations in Base 10.  Students will get practice leading all the way to multiplication and division up to 15 x 15.

Upstream Mentors

We are making a game from scratch so most discussion will be done among ourselves, but some helpful GitHub Projects and mentors we could contact are:

• Luke Benstead (Kazade) - kirberich@potatolondon.com - KazMath math library

We will communicate with him via Email if we need him.

Team Roles

It is likely that each member will have a hand in multiple parts of this project as we are making it from scratch.  Specific roles will be determined during development.

Easy Parts

• We already have a very clear idea of what we want the project to be
• The game mechanics are simple and based off of curriculum standards
• The XO is very limiting so the game should be fairly basic

Hard Parts

• Starting from scratch
• We have to try our best to adhere to the curriculum and maximize the learning experience
• Although we have a good amount of time, the project will require dedication

Overcoming Obstacles

Although this project will definitely have it's up's and down's we will try and make everything as simple and straight forward as possible.  We will have to be consistent with managing the project on GitHub.  We will also have to be very communicative and understanding with each other.  To really be on top of the project, we should probably adhere to milestones such as:

1. Ensure everyone understands the idea and agrees on it
2. Plan who will start with what
3. Start programming, release first prototype within about a week (TEST ON XO)
4. Continue releasing early and often
5. Get feedback
6. Fix everything/continue prototyping
7. Finalize
8. Reflect
9. Profit :)