Tag: Educational Games

What do you do when you want to teach about the topic of stress in psychology class but you don’t want to actually stress people out? You make a game that’s juuust hectic enough, juuust stressful enough, to get the job done without making anyone miserable! That’s why I made 100 the Hard way, a not-very original game that creates a few moments of heart-pounding competition!

Type of Game: Dice Roller, Fast-Paced

Cost: A few bucks (mainly the cost of 1 six-sided die per player)

Recommended Age: Probably 8th Grade and above

Group Size: 2-3 players. 4 can work but it gets tough

Time: About 5 min. per game

Developed Skills:

• Counting
• Stress Coping Methods
• Focus

The Game

It’s important that players understand that they are NOT taking turns rolling! The rolling is simultaneous, hectic, and it requires assertiveness to yell “stop” to take over the writing of numbers on your paper.

Feel free to modify the numbers as you see fit! If there’s a disagreement over how the game ended, having a “lightning round where it’s “first to 25” and the players write after rolling a 4 or higher can make things even more competitive!

Making it Work for Class

The educational value of this game comes in the debriefing step. Depending on what your standard is, crafting a proper reflection.

Some Educational Uses

• In Psychology, I use this game to help students examine their body’s reaction to the stress of the game. I’ve also used this to help them identify nervous system responsibilities during the course of the game.

• In an English class, I think it would be useful to use the game as inspiration for a creative writing assignment. Having students explain the emotions and thoughts that they felt during the struggle might lead to the creation of a compelling story.

• I can see this being modified for a U.S. Government course as a way to simulate the struggle to win an election. This might be especially enlightening if different elements made it easier or harder for one side to win (since my side spent more money, I can write numbers after rolling a 6 OR a 5!)