Product Review of Royelles: Gaming for Girls

Educators can use Royelles: Gaming for Girls as a springboard for discussion and investigation. Since you have to get through all 12 segments of the narrated story before the game, consider listening to them together and discussing before moving on, perhaps even the next day. Also, since the narrator is a woman from NASA, the class can research her experiences. Build on the chats about self-reflection and empowerment to help learners build confidence to aim high, overcome obstacles, and achieve goals. An ELL unit can focus on the art of storytelling and new vocabulary words. Or learners can play the STEAM-related games and then go research to learn more. Investigate the phases of the moon or why your age is different on different planets. After watching the video interviews, learners can find out more about the featured woman and report back to the class. Educators could also talk about representation and discuss what the benefits are of seeing diversity in the media we use.
Website: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id1524674005?uo=4&at=10laCG&ct=website
Overall User Consensus About the App
Learner Engagement
With lots of different ways to interact, learners can find and focus on what interests them most. Chats feature open-ended questions to get kids thinking.
Curriculum and Instruction
Chats, affirmations, and positive messaging focus on self-empowerment. Lots of examples of accomplished women provide inspiration. Awkward pacing and mechanics detract from learning.
Customer Support
A how-to section provides guidance on the different parts of the app. Text-to-speech options and a glossary help support learning.