Gamification in Counseling
The CEU/OPD/CPD course can be found at https://allceus.com/member/cart/index/product/id/962/c/ for clinicians in the US and at https://australia.allceus.com/member/cart/index/product/id/516/c/ for clinicians in Australia.
Dr. Dawn-Elise Snipes PhD, LPC-MHSP, LMHC
Executive Director: AllCEUs Counselor Education
Host: Counselor Toolbox Podcast
Objectives
~ Define gamification
~ Explore the benefits of gamification
~ Describe techniques for gamification
What is Gamification
~ Gamification is simply using games or challenges to make something more motivating or enjoyable to learn.
Gamification Motivation Enhancers
~ The student with the most stars at the end of the day gets a prize
~ The child with the most stars gets to choose the movie
~ The group that gets all their assignments in
~ Simple token economies
Why Gamification for Learning
~ Makes it fun and increases attention
~ Encourages mental manipulation
~ Encourages recall and strengthening of memory pathways
~ Usually uses multiple visual, auditory and kinesthetic
~ Enhances communication skills
~ Increases memory and focus chemicals
Hot Potato
~ Toss a ball until someone calls “time”
~ Whoever catches it has to answer a question
~ If they answer correctly they get a token/prize
ABC
~ Go around the circle and identify things that begin with alphabet letters
~ Things that make me happy
~ Things to do when I am stressed
~ Things I would like to do or see
~ Opposites: Angry and Happy
~ Mindfulness Activities
~ Gratitude
Jeopardy
~ Create 4-6 categories
~ Coping skills; distress tolerance activities; vulnerability prevention; dialectics
~ Fruits, vegetables, proteins, grains
~ Stimulants, depressants, marijuana, opioids
~ Divide the group into 3 teams
Taboo
~ Divide into 2 teams
~ Each team gets to have 1 minute
~ The goal is to have the clue giver get the guesser to identify the “taboo” word
~ If the guesser guesses correctly they get a point and the next team gets to go
~ After 1 minute if they do not get the answer, then another team has a chance to “steal” and simply identify what the correct answer is.
~ If they get it right then they get to take the next turn.
~ If they get it wrong, then the turn goes to the next pair on the other team
Jenga
~ Make 3-5 stacks of cards, each a different color
~ Paint the jenga blocks the same colors as the cards
~ When someone pulls a block, they have to answer a question from the stack of cards corresponding to the color of the block
Family Feud
~ Create a set of questions that has multiple answers and assign them a point value (can be equal)…i.e.
~ The top 8 ways to cope with distress
~ The top 6 things to do to prevent vulnerabilities
~ The top 6 cognitive distortions
~ The top 8 causes of depression
~ Divide the group into two teams (families)
~ Play just like Family Feud
Charades
~ Divide into two teams
~ Use a timer and allow the actor 1 minute to act out the concept and his or her team to guess it
~ If they don’t guess it after 1 minute, then the other team gets a chance to guess and “steal” the points
~ The active team switches after each turn.
~ Each correct guess = 5 points
~ Suggestions
~ Nonverbal communication (jealous, resentful, curious, exhausted, confident…) (synonyms may be okay as long as it is not happy, scared or angry…those are too easy)
~ Concepts such as dialectics or cognitive distortions
Self Designed Games