Analysis of puzzle, sports, and quiz games

In the kindergarten classroom, many of the students fall into the accomodator learning style. They love active learning and they are much more easily engaged in learning if it is hands on. Research shows that students that fall into this category benefit from technology in the classroom, so computer games would be an excellent method to use when teaching them valuable skills. Prensky also provides a scale on which student behaviors are ordered. Because modern students are so often exposed to technology at younger and younger ages, this can influence their learning behavior. Students are rated in 10 dimensions on a scale of 1-5. Scores of mostly ones more accurately describe most of my recent students. They often act before thinking about consequences, jump around to different steps while working, and are drawn to using several forms of technology in their everyday lives. For example, after a few weeks, I wanted to introduce computers as a literacy work station in my classroom. I spent quite awhile showing them how to navigate the website I had chosen for them to play on because I was worried they would not know what to do. All of them sat down and played like pros. It was the work station with the fewest behavior problems because they were actively engaged the entire time. They also like the lessons we do to flow smoothly and quickly. Activities cannot last too long before they lose attention. I have to work at a fast pace to keep them interested.
The two games I chose for analysis are the Sheppard Software geography games and the Zeeks bowling game. The geography game was developed for teachers to use to "make learning more fun and memorable (Sheppard website)." It is another tool teachers can use to get kids actively learning both US and world geography. There are several levels for each activity, which includes naming countries, states, capitols, and landscapes on various maps. Depending on the level, students can have as much or as little help as necessary identifying the correct element chosen by the game. Kaboose developed the bowling game for enjoyment. It is played by using the mouse to navigate a bowling bowl to the right position to get it to knock down the most pins.
In the bowling game, there is competition and amusement but it is not social. The idea of an end goal is strong and there are set rules. The game is organized and has a clear winner and loser. As far as the geography game, there are organized, set rules, and amusement. The only competition is against yourself so there isn't a clear winner or loser. The end goal might be to improve one's percentage of correct answers, but that would be up the player. If I was judging the games by which one most closely matched my personal definition of a game, then the bowling game would be better.
Teachers need to be flexible with their definitions when they find something that will meet the needs of the students, so the best fit game would be the geography game. Not only does the game offer more educational value, it also provides fast responses to keep the students engaged. It gives students the opportunity to play against themselves which helps them develop more intrinsic motivation verses external competition. The bowling game would help students develop more fine motor skills and hand eye coordination, but not much else. I think students would enjoy playing the geography game and would benefit academically.