Here are the highlights of my notes, which were "GeekList" on BoardGameGeek.
https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/158812/teaching-modern-boardgames-teens-nine-easy-lessons
I teach at a summer day camp. The camp allows campers to choose a set of one hour classes on MWF and another set on T-Th.
This year, one of my T-Th classes is "Intermediate Strategy Games" for students entering the 6th through 9th grades. I have nine sessions with my campers, since we have the 4th of July off. I am using this Geeklist to document the process, both for my own future reference, and in order to help others who may do something similar.
My plan is to introduce a new game to all or part of the group each day - all of the group for the first two days, and then part of the group once there are a few games the others can play while I am teaching a new game to a smaller group. This means that some of my campers will finish camp having learned nine games, while others may only learn two or three, but have more experience playing those two or three games.
I was able to pick up a nice selection of games, representing a variety of mechanics and themes, at the past few "Ding and Dent" sales at my FLGS (Black Diamond Games, in Concord, CA) in order to prepare to run this class this summer.
I will teach some games to everyone, and some games to small groups from within the class. Other games will simply be available for campers who want to read the rules and try them out on their own.
My guidelines:
Games that play in 60 minutes or less.
Games that play 4+ players.
Games that are different from other games I am bringing to the class.
Games that are reasonably available.
Games that I personally enjoy playing - since my personal attitude will be reflected in my enthusiasm for the games I am teaching.
My summer camp game box includes:
3x Carcassonne
3x Bohnanza
2x Forbidden Island
2x Saboteur
2x Maori
2x Hey That's My Fish
2x Quirkle
2x Hive
2x Mille Bornes
1x Survive! w/6 player expansion
1x Pit
1x Settlers of Catan
The camp also has several sets of chess and checkers.
I will add games to the list as each day goes by, along with any observations. Feel free to add your comments or observations about teaching these games to others - especially young people.
After the camp is over, I may open the GL to allow other BGG members to add games that they suggest for next year, or for others doing something similar.
I also wanted to include, but couldn't fit into my budget, games from the "10 Days" series.Day One: Carcassonne
Tile Laying
Worker Placement
I started the group out with Carcassonne, since I was able to pick up three slightly smooshed copies at a good price from my FLGS.
The hardest rule to teach was that you couldn't add a meeple to a scoring feature that already has a meeple on it. I was also taken aback by the number of mismatched edge tile placements that my campers made.
We had to restart two of the three games, but they all finished before the end of the hour, and we had time to clean up.Also Day One: Hive
Abstract
Tile Laying/Moving
Two Player
Hive is the only two player game I purchased for my campers to play. It is easy to teach - two players can share a rulebook to look up legal moves - and is good for situations where there are two campers left over from other games. Since I had two campers not playing Carc, I pulled out a copy of Hive for them and got them started. They needed me to come and remind them of a few movement rules (Only one hive!) in the first game, but needed no help for the next two.
It can also be played on the gym floor, if all the other tables are crowded.Day Two: Bohnanza
Set Collecting
Trading
On the first day, I told the campers that since our class is at the beginning of the day, they can come in early to help me set up, and I will teach the current game to the early group. This worked out well for day two, as I taught one group the basic rules and played through two open hands before restarting them, then repeated the process with the rest of the class (three games in total).
Teaching technique: Cheat sheet/reminder about hand order, having to plant at least one card, and that any traded cards had to be planted immediately.
Had each group play at least once around the table with face up hands, then allowed them to either continue or re-start.
Modifications for first game: No 3rd field, short game/only shuffled the discard pile once.
This went smoothly, but after the learning round, all the games didn't finish early enough to get our clean up (put all tables and chairs away, because my next class is an active games class with younger campers) done before our class time ended.Day Three: Forbidden Island
Cooperative
Set Collecting
I got the early group started playing one game of Forbidden Island, and then walked another group through their first few turns.
Other campers played Bohnanza. The two who had played Hive last week played again, and then I asked them to teach the game to two campers who arrived late.
Even after I warned them of all the ways that the game could beat the team of players, both groups were surprised when they lost, and how hard the game is.
Not sure if I want to introduce a new game on Thursday (Day Four), since over half the class is still looking forward to trying Forbidden Island. Perhaps I'll sit down to a game of Carcassonne with one group on Thursday, since they seem to have taken to the other games much more readily.
Campers being able to teach others how to play games is a great sign.
I'm very happy with my decision to pick up the two copies of Hive, even though they broke my "4+ players" guideline. Not only do they work well for the extra campers, but it plays well on the gym floor, which is important since I only have three tables.Day Four: Hey That's My Fish!
Area Enclosure
Grid Movement
Today we had a "free choice" day.
The campers grouped up on their own and played Bohnanza, Forbidden Island (two groups managed to get off the island alive today), and Hive. One keeps asking the others if they want to play chess with him - I suggested Hive, but he wanted to wait and ask the late arrivals about Chess.
I ended up teaching Hey That's My Fish! to several of the campers who were looking for a new game to try (no love for Carcassonne?).
Once again, I was happy to see the campers teaching games to each other.
The class seems to be going as planned.
Day Five: Saboteur
Traitors
"Screwage"
Split the class into two groups and introduced them to Saboteur.
Some of them picked up on the game quite quickly, while others blundered terribly, making ridiculously bad card plays that marked them as saboteurs, even though they were not.
Quote:
Note to self: Remember, sometimes toasters pretend that they are just poor players in order to hide their toasterhood, but sometimes people on your own team are just terrible players.
One group finished with five minutes left in our class time, and I announced that we had five minutes, and should finish up and clean up, Is it good or bad that several of them were pulling games that we've played earlier this summer out, and hoping to play them in that five minutes?
The other great thing that I'm hearing more and more from this class is "Where can I get a copy of this game?"
Day Six: Survive
Throwing People Under the Bus
Sound Effects
Taught Survive to one group today, while the others got to choose from the games they've already learned.
"Is this going to be another coop game?" one camper asked, while trying to decide whether to learn Survive or play another game.
"No" I replied, "It's just about the opposite. IN this game you not only get to compete, but you get to throw your opponents under the bus - figuratively speaking. What you really do is feed them to the sharks and sea serpents."
"Cool! I am playing this one!"
The campers failed to buy-in to my suggestion that they make screaming noises whenever one of their meeples was devoured - but thought it was funny when I did it.
They did join me in chanting "shark, shark, shark!" or "Sea monster, sea monster!" when someone was rolling the die, and made Jaws theme music whenever a shark was being moved.
The group also learned the term "AP" (Analysis Paralysis), since one camper kept having trouble deciding whose juicy meeples he wanted to feed to the sharks.
Day Seven: Multiple Games
Table Talk
Sportsmanship/Spirit of the Game
Taught Survive to another group. We went into the concept of "table talk" - pointing out moves that could destroy other people and divert from your own, "trash talking", using diversion, etc.
We also talked a bit about how it is okay to be absolutely ruthless in a game - even against your best friends - as long as you can go back to your regular self after the game.
Other campers played games they'd previously learned - including Carcassonne.It's nice that I've reached the point in the class that I can sit down and play a game with a group of campers, and talk about these "teachable moments" as they come up naturally in the games.
The first few days I had to keep rotating around and showing/telling/explaining rules - now I can talk to them about gaming concepts and strategies.
Day Eight: Maori
Handicaps
Rulebooks
Taught one group to play Maori, which they really enjoyed. Although everyone used the same side of the board, and the same rules, I explained how the game allows you to handicap some players (individual boards and optional restrictions on tile placement).
Some of the campers don't believe that I can remember most of the rules for a game unless I've played it in the last few weeks. Others are surprised when I look up rules, and correct myself. Took the opportunity to show them how to look for things in a rulebook - common organization like "setup information" at the front, and "Game end/scoring information" at the back.
Day Nine: Multiple Games
Having Fun
Next Steps
I taught Maori to another group today, and then started moving from table to table, and checking in with the different groups. One group wanted to try some of the optional, advanced rules for Maori, so I helped them with that. They then started coming up with ideas for variant house rules.
Survive had a full table, and Carcassonne, Forbidden Island, and Bohnanza also saw more play today.
Most of my campers asked if they will be able to take the class again next summer.
I hope this list helps other educators to plan successful gaming clubs or classes of their own.
One of my greatest disappointments with the way I ran this class was that I was unable to include any games by Friedemann Friese, who is one of my favorite designers (I know that this entry makes me guilty of blatant/shameful fanboyism).
A lot of his games are out of print, Power Grid takes longer than an hour, Friday is a solitaire game...
Felix The Cat in the Sack almost made it, and was in my initial plan, but I couldn't get the extra copies I needed (I have given all my extras away as gifts).
Still, I dedicate this list to Mr. Friese, because he is the one who inspired me to teach a boardgaming class. In a "bull" session at my FLGS, I once commented that, since each of his designs focuses on a different mechanic, and since he has so many varied games, that teaching a modern boardgaming class, or a game design class, could probably be done using just FF games. From that idle conversation came the thought of actually teaching a boardgaming class - which I have now done.
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