Invention: CHATURANGA Culture: ANCIENT INDIA

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1 Ancient Inventions by GameDesk Welcome to Ancient Inventions! Each module focuses on a specific invention from antiquity and a civilization that utilized it. Through a series of lessons that can last between five and ten class periods, students will assume the role of a historically accurate character and build a working model of an ancient invention that the character would have used. Students will: Immerse themselves in the historical culture through role-playing characters of the past Build a working model of an invention Test and improve their invention Learn the scientific and mathematical principles behind the invention Exercise their knowledge of both the civilization and the invention through a board game Learn about the Engineering Method Apply engineering principles to a new, personal context Each unit can be played separately or combined into a series, with legacy benefits for students who do exceptionally well in one unit. Invention: CHATURANGA Culture: ANCIENT INDIA Multiple subjects are covered in this module: math, science, engineering, history, art, and creative writing. They are intertwined into a contextual educational adventure where students are motivated by the scenario and their own empowered abilities to change it. Some parts of the game are competitive, but there are multiple openings for cooperation and peer-to-peer learning. This may appear chaotic at times, but that is a feature, not a flaw. You might be surprised by the engagement and innovation of your students, even from the ones you least expect. We hope so. Goals: Apply and understand the Engineering Method. Understand the principles behind game design. Understand the principles of conducting research. Design and create a board game based on the ancient Indian game of Chaturanga. Give examples about daily life in Ancient India by taking on the character of a person in that society.

2 1 Lessons included in this module: Lesson 1: Who Were the Ancient Indians? (1-2 hours) The class is broken into six different social groups from the ancient civilization. Each student will receive the role of a different character. Lesson 2: What Did They Invent? (1-2 hours) Students are introduced to an invention that is associated with the ancient Indian civilization. In their character groups, proceed through the engineering process and build a physical model of that invention. Lesson 3: How Did They Do It? (2-3 hours) Students learn the fundamentals of game design and research methods. Students design a game assessment around the research principles of reliability and validity. Students conduct a play-test and analyze the data to improve their games. Lesson 4: Civilization Game (1-6 hours) Students synthesize information about the ancient Indian culture through a game. Students answer questions, perform challenges, provide other groups with knowledge, and judge the quality of each other s responses. Progress (and knowledge) is tracked through a game board, which offers the additional possibility of strategic play. Lesson 5: Processing and Application (1 hour) Students reflect on their experiences during the module. They apply their engineering and historical knowledge to solve a new problem. Supplemental Materials: Engineering Method Invention Requirements Game Design Principles Conducting Research Principles Testing Procedure Civilization Game Rules

3 2 Lesson 1: Who Were the Ancient Indians? Objectives: Students will identify the roles and responsibilities of six social classes in Ancient India. Preparation: Sort students into six equal groups. Groups can be assigned by you, self-selected by the students, or done randomly. If possible, keep the groupings secret. Part of the lesson requires the students to find their fellow workers by listening to a presentation. Lesson: 1. Introduce the India module by showing its location on the world map and asking students to share what they already know about the ancient Indian civilization. This module takes place during the Gupta Empire, in approximately 450CE. At the time, the Indian subcontinent was divided into several small kingdoms. The Guptas united most of central and northern India together about a hundred years earlier. Point out the geography of the region. The Himalaya Mountains and Tibetan Plateau border India in the northeast, while the Hindu-Kush Mountains border India in the northwest. Two major rivers flow down from the Himalayas into the Bay of Bengal: The Brahmaputra River and the Ganges River. These rivers often flood, especially where they join together near the sea. The northern border of the Gupta Empire followed the contours of the Ganges River. The Indus River also has its source in the Himalayas, but it flows westward into the Arabian Sea. The very first civilization in India had its roots in the Indus River Valley in 2500BCE. The Indian subcontinent experiences seasons based on the monsoon winds. In the summer, winds from the south bring heavy rain for months. In the winter, winds blow in the other direction, and the northern region experiences more rain. The monsoons can be beneficial to crops, but they can also cause devastating floods. Explain that ancient India during the Gupta Empire was dominated by three religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. This module will focus on Hinduism, one of the oldest religions in the world. 2. Define LARP (Live Action Role Play) and engineering (designing and building machines). Give a brief overview of the India module and how the next week or two will look. 3. Pass out the Character Sheets to students. 4. Pass out the Student Journals. Direct students to fill in the first page using information from their Character Sheet. 5. Announce that there will be a presentation shortly and each student will be required to introduce themselves to the class. Give students several minutes to study their Character Sheets and take notes in their journal to determine who their character is and what s/he believes. They should plan to include: a. Their character s name b. Their character s social class, called Varna c. Their character s role or job d. Their character s specific skill, activities, or knowledge (Encourage students to embody their characters as much as possible. If time allows, they can also draw a picture of an offering or prepare a more detailed presentation ritual.)

4 3 6. Announce that you will be playing the role of Minister, a government official in the Gupta government. (The more you embody your character, the more students will be encouraged to role-play.) Lead the presentation. One by one, students present themselves to the Minister and the rest of the class. Students may take notes about their classmates in their student journals, on the page labeled, Character Matrix. 7. When the presentation is complete, challenge students to find their group based on what they heard during the presentation. Explain that there are six equal groups, each consisting of students with similar roles. In the India module, these groups are Brahmin scholars, Brahmin priests, Kshatriyas, Vaishya business, Vaishya agriculture, Shudras. 8. Present the specialized Knowledge Scroll to each group when they are correctly assembled. (The Brahmin scholars receive the Brahmin Scholar Knowledge Scroll; the Kshatriyas receive the Kshatriya Knowledge Scroll, etc.) The Knowledge Scrolls contain illustrations and information pertaining to their characters social class. Allow groups several minutes to read over their Knowledge Scrolls. 9. Announce the next challenge of making a name badge. Each student will make his/her own name badge, but must plan the badge with their group. (Badges can be reusable name-tags, table signs, headbands, or sashes it is up to the teacher s discretion.) Badges must include the following: a. A background or main color that matches the color indicated on the group s Knowledge Scroll. b. Character s name. c. A group symbol that reflects their group s social class. (This should be identical for all members in that group.) d. An individual symbol relating to their particular character. 10. If time allows, groups can present their badges to the class. 11. Award a token to students or groups who have demonstrated good teamwork, superior presentation skills, fast cleaning, or any other positive behaviors you deem worthwhile. Explain that the tokens may be used during Lesson Reflection. Students answer the reflection questions in their journals. They can share out with a partner or with the class. Assessment: Student presentations, cooperation in group challenge to make badge, finished badges, completion of reflection in journal. Materials: World map (not provided), Character Sheets, Knowledge Scrolls, materials for badges (can be made of paper and markers), game tokens, student journals.

5 4 Lesson 2: What Did They Invent? Objectives: Students will design and build their own board game by following the Engineering Method. Preparation: It may be a good idea to begin collecting materials for game pieces in advance. Possible materials are listed at the end of this lesson plan. Arrange the room so that each group has their own private working space. Lay out the building materials and tools in a place accessible to all students. Clear out a storage space where games can be stored when class is not in session. Lesson: 1. Review Lesson 1 by having students read their reflections or recall facts about their characters. They should display their badges. 2. Announce that students have been doing such a good job learning about their characters that they have earned time to play games. You found a game board from ancient India! It is called Chaturanga. You know that the game is based on the military of ancient India, which was divided into four units: infantry, archery, cavalry, and elephantry. You know that there was some kind of four-sided dice. But that s it! You could not find the rules of the game. They seem to be lost in time. How will the class play Chaturanga? 3. Introduce the Engineering Method chart. Guide the students to understand and complete the first three steps as a class. Refer to Character Sheets, Knowledge Scrolls, and experiences from Lesson 1. Students record their answers in the student journals. a. Define the Problem: How do you play the ancient India game, Chaturanga? b. Do Background Research [about the geography and materials available]: You know about the social structure of the Indians [list], the structure of the military [list], the tenets of the Hindu and Buddhist religion [list], and the geography and climate of the region [list]. c. Specify Requirements: [Refer to the Chaturanga Requirements Basic.] 4. Present the building challenge: Each group will design their own Chaturanga game. Students will have a chance to play their games later in the module. Each group that successfully designs the game (and meets the basic requirements) will be rewarded during Lesson 4. Show the materials and tools available for this challenge. 5. Groups complete Step 4: Brainstorm, Evaluate, and Choose Solution by sketching design ideas in their journals. They should label their designs with the materials they plan on using. They should note and rules or strategy related to the game in the space provided. Recommend that games should be simple enough that they can explain it two minutes. 6. Students brainstorm and plan their game. They should fill out the Game Outline document in student journals. Once you have approved a group s design, they can embellish the game board or make game pieces. (Allow 1-2 hours for game production.) Circulate amongst the groups to check their progress and teamwork. 7. Clean up. Chaturanga games should remain out.

6 5 8. One at a time, groups present their games to the teacher and the rest of the class. Again, they should be able to explain the object of the game and the rules in under two minutes. They demonstrate whether their game meets each requirement. Document which groups meet the Chaturanga requirement on the game board. 9. Award a token to students or groups who have demonstrated good teamwork, superior building skills, fast cleaning, or any other positive behaviors you deem worthwhile. Explain that the tokens may be used during Lesson Reflection. Students answer the reflection questions in their journals. They can share out with a partner or with the class. Assessment: Finished Game Outline document, cooperation with group, presentation of game to the class Materials: Engineering Method chart, Character Sheets, Knowledge Scrolls, badges from Lesson 1, game boards for each group, game tokens, student journals, suggested materials to embellish game listed below. MATERIALS FOR THE BOARD: Cardboard Construction paper Tissue paper Fabric Markers, crayons, colored pencils, etc MATERIALS FOR GAME PIECES: Cardboard Clay Dried beans or corn kernels Poker chips Bottle caps Nuts and bolts Small rocks Buttons Popsicle sticks Wine corks Soda bottle tabs Pennies Other materials that can be used include dice, plastic figurines, glass marbles, tickets, timers TOOLS: Scissors, tape, glue, glue guns, rulers, puffy paint

7 6 Lesson 3: How Did They Do It? Objectives: Students will design a play-test on their game using the principles of reliable and valid research. Students will analyze data from their play-test and use it to improve their game. Preparation: Lesson 3 should take place over the course of at least two days. You will need to make copies of surveys that students draft during the first part of this lesson. Arrange the desks as in Lesson 2. Lesson: 1. Announce that the mystery of Chaturanga has not been solved. Though many terrific games were created, they might not be fun to play. Announce that you will teach the class about game design and research methods. Students will conduct observations and administer surveys to determine if their game is fun. 2. Use drawings, graphics, or a real game to explain the fundamentals of a game. Refer to the Game Design Principles in the supplemental materials. 3. Make sure to cover the following concepts: a. Win state: There must be a clear and definitive way for a player to win the game. b. Number of players: This must be specified. Too many or too few players can negatively affect game play. c. Set-up: How do the game pieces look before you begin play? d. Materials: All materials must be listed and included in the game. e. Rules: Rules must be clear and simple. It should take less than two minutes to go over all the rules. Consider How do players move? How do players progress? Do they keep score? What is not allowed in your game? 4. Use drawings, graphics, or a real game to explain the fundamentals of conducting research. Refer to the Conducting Research Principles in the supplemental materials. 5. Make sure to cover the following concepts: a. What are you trying to measure? Each time you conduct a test, you should only measure a few things. For example, you might find out how many times players laugh, or how many minutes it takes to read the directions. (You can t measure the fun level of something.) b. How do you measure this? Principles of Conducting Research: Reliability: This means that your test can be repeated many times, with different people, and it will produce roughly the same results. You don t want a test that will produce one kind of result one day, and totally different results the next day. Validity: This means that the test measures what it says it measures. For example, let s say you are counting the amount of times that someone laughs as a measure of your game s funness. Are they really laughing because the game is fun? Or are they laughing because their classmate is tickling them?

8 7 Social Desirability Effect: If people know that their actions and responses are going to be looked at, they might act a certain way or give a certain answer that is not true to what they really think. They might instead give an answer that they think the researcher wants to hear. Once way to control for this is by staying anonymous. Chance/Randomness: No matter how good your test is, something random could happen that will skew your results. For example, a student could laugh not because they are enjoying your game, but because they just had a funny thought. You want to minimize the likelihood that your results are due to chance. One way to control for this is by using a large sample size one person s random behavior will not be important if you test 100 people. c. What is the testing procedure? Are you going to count? Ask questions? Use a timer? Refer to the Testing Procedure in the supplemental materials. Likert Scale This is a 5-point survey format that students will use for their surveys. They will be writing their own survey questions. d. How will you analyze data? Are you going to count? Take an average? Will you pay attention to every single answer, or only use a random sample? You must decide how you will analyze data before you begin testing. 6. Groups meet to design their playtest and survey. 7. Make copies of each group s survey enough for half of the class to fill out each. 8. Explain the Testing Procedure in the supplemental materials. Each group will play another group s game. One or two members of the group will stay with their own game to observe and take notes. This process should be repeated three times, with different group members staying behind and taking notes each time. 9. After three rotations, students meet to read their surveys, analyze the data, and fill out the Analyze Data form in their student journal. 10. Students fill out the Recommendations for Game Redesign form in their student journal, including any changes to game rules. 11. Clean up. 12. Award a token to a few students who demonstrated good teamwork, helpful behavior, fast cleanup, or superior engineering. 13. Reflection. Students answer the reflection questions in their journals. They can share out with a partner or with the class. Materials: Games and instructions created in Lesson 2, Game Design Principles chart, Conducting Research Principles chart, copies of students surveys, Testing Procedure chart, six manila envelopes. Assessment: Participation in discussion about game design and conducting research, creation of survey questions, participation in play-test, taking part in group data analysis, game redesign, pages in student journal completed correctly, reflection answers.

9 8 Lesson 4: Civilization Game Objectives: Students will synthesize their knowledge of ancient Indian culture by completing challenges. Students will work in a group to gather knowledge, spread knowledge, and evaluate their classmates knowledge. Preparation: Make sure that you have read the Teacher s Guide to the Chataranga Game rules. Arrange the tables of the room into a circle. Members of each group sit together. There should be room for the students and teacher to walk from group to group. A table in the middle will hold the Challenge Cards and Answer Cards. Separate each deck of cards into six piles, corresponding with their category. Place all twelve piles face down on the center table. Arrangement of tables Lesson: 1. Explain how tokens are awarded, and how they correspond to playing student games. 2. Explain turn-taking using the roles of Challenger, Helper, and Judger. 3. Identify the Challenge Cards and corresponding Answer Cards. 4. Explain how the Judgers determine a Basic or Advanced answer. 5. Explain your role as the Minister. 6. Begin play. After each group has had a chance to answer a challenge, allot minutes for students to play their own Chatarunga games. Keep track of the winners on the scoreboard. 7. The group who has had the most individual wins from student-made Chaturanga games is the winner. 8. Reflection. Students answer the reflection questions in their journals. You may select a few questions each day if you plan on continuing the game over a longer time. They can share out with a partner or with the class.

10 9 Assessment: Student participation in answering, helping, and judging challenges. Materials: Character Sheets, Character Scrolls, Challenge Cards, Answer Cards, scorecard, student game boards and instructions, tokens.

11 10 Lesson 5: Processing and Application Objectives: Students will evaluate their own test and redesign process. Students will apply their understanding of game design and research methods to design a new testing experience. Lesson: 1. Review the score from Lesson 4 and pronounce the winning group. 2. Present awards to a few students who have demonstrated exemplary performance throughout the module. (These can be certificates, stickers, or other rewards.) Encourage the class to celebrate each student who has earned this distinction. These select students can choose their character group in any subsequent module of Ancient Inventions. 3. Reflect on the entire India module using the questions below. Students may write their answers in their journal, share with a partner, discuss was the class, or all three. You can choose which reflection questions to emphasize. What problem did Chaturanga solve for the citizens of Ancient India? What problems in Ancient India did Chaturanga not solve? Do you think the game designers of Ancient India used the engineering process exactly like you did in class? How may have their process been different? What did you find interesting about life in Ancient India? Is there anything about Ancient India that you still want to know? What skills did you learn in this module? Is there any student who impressed you during the module? Explain why. What knowledge can you take from this module into other areas of your life? 4. You or the students select one Application Challenge from the options below to answer in their journals. They complete the Engineering Method and design their invention in the space provided. Design a test to determine who pays attention in class the most. Consider the principles of conducting research: reliability, validity, social desirability effects, and chance/randomness. How will you get accurate results? Design a new game using the Chaturanga board, but this time involving elements of the ancient civilization. Try, for example, to integrate Hindu beliefs or gods into the mechanics of your game. Make sure to include all the required elements of game design. 5. Share out with the class.

12 11 Assessment: Reflection answers in journal or discussion, participation in Application Challenge. Materials: Awards of certificates (not provided), student journals.

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14 13 Chaturanga Requirements (Basic) Use the Chaturanga board as your playing surface. Have playing pieces Two or more players at a time There is a single winner Takes 20 minutes or less to win the game Game Outline document is completed

15 14 Game Design Principles 1. Win state 2. Number of Players 3. Set-up 4. Materials 5. Rules

16 15 Conducting Research Principles RELIABILITY The test can be repeated many times, with different people, and it will produce roughly the same results. VALIDITY The test measures what it says it measures. SOCIAL DESIRABILITY EFFECT Test results might not be accurate if the people being tested think you might judge them. CHANCE / RANDOMNESS Test results will always be subject to chance occurrences, or random things happening.

17 16 Game Testing Procedure 1. Players sit at the table around the game; Researchers stand two paces behind them. 2. Players read the instructions. 3. Players play the game. 4. Researchers observe and take notes silently. They should not interact with Players at all. 5. At a given time, Researchers stop the game and hand out surveys. 6. Players fill out surveys; Researchers rejoin their character group. 7. Players put their surveys in a manila envelope on the game table. Envelope remains closed for the entire testing time. 8. Groups move tables and select new Researchers. 9. Repeat steps 1-8.