Google has a number of fun little games that you can play with your students and we can add one more Google’s Smarty Pins. This is a trivia game that works with Google Maps. You can select a specific category to work from or just start and get a mix of them all.
Here is how the game works. You start off with a set number of kilometers. Google will ask you a geography question that is realted to the cateogry you chose. Instead of time, kilometers tick down. If you get the question correct you don’t lose any more kilometers. If you answer the question quickly enough, you get bonus kilometers. When you answer a certain number of questions correctly you receive bronze, silver or gold badges.
So here is a quick look at what you can expect. When you start they will ask you a question and then place the pin in the “vicinity” of the correct answer. I think it is within 1000km.
If you get the question correct you get the question correct – nice work! You get to continue on without any losing any additional kilometers. If you answer correctly within a certain amount of time you get some bonus kilometers.
If you answer the question incorrectly. It calculates how many kilometers you are off and subtracts that from your total.
When you have no more kilometers left, then the game is over.
If you work in a one-to-one laptop school or a a BYOD school then this could be a good way to help focus your students when they walk in the door, or use it as a reward for some students if they finish their work early.
Smarty Pins
http://smartypins.withgoogle.com/
Technology in the Classroom 