These activities are designed to help prepare you for each unit’s final project. My hope is this: that you’ll find that the more focus you commit to the assignments, the more you’ll get out of lecture and discussion.
If you feel these activities aren’t preparing you, or if you find yourself devoting more than a few hours to each activity, please, reach out, and let’s talk. If you’re having a problem, quite likely so are your peers.
There will be 10 activities, which collectively count for 16% of your grade. Not turning in an activity results in a zero for that activity. Not submitting 3 or more generally results in an F for the Assignments portion of your grade, which can pull your overall grade down by a full letter grade.
Submitting them on time keeps you (and the whole class) on track, so make sure to mark the deadlines in your calendar.
See the Grading page for more details.
Throughout the semester, activities will be posted below in reverse chronological order…
Due ➡ by 3:59 PM, Tuesday, September 27
Click the above link to see the assignment PDF. Read, research and respond. Visit the Games for Change website, select a game that works for you. Do some research on it – what is it, what social issue is it addressing, what values does it express, what game mechanics does it use? Write a brief response and post it to #activity04 on the Slack channel.
Due ➡ by 3:59 PM, September 18
Click on the link above to see the PDF. Read and respond to the two articles linked in the assignment sheet, according to the prompts provided. If you have difficulty accessing the articles, consult the library’s instructions on how to register for a free academic pass to the New York Times.
Activity 2
Due ➡ by 3:59 PM, Tuesday, September 3
Before watching the videos specified below, write a summary (around 100 words) of how you usually come up with an idea for a project.
Break this process into discrete steps. As an example of what I mean by ‘discrete steps’: if I were describing how I make a sandwich, I’d say: 1) I get a loaf of bread, 2) I get the fillings for the sandwich, 3) I assemble the fillings on a slice of bread, 4) I put another slice of bread on top.
Watch and respond: Watch two videos (embedded below and included in the assignment PDF) and respond to the prompts in the assignment PDF.
Read and respond: Read Speculative design: 3 examples of design fiction by Tony Ho Tran and respond to the prompts in the assignment PDF.
Follow the instructions in the assignment link for response & how to submit.
The 4 Steps to Getting an Idea, Kirby Fergusson (https://youtu.be/JPJ3oy-rWUk)
Build your creative confidence, David Kelly (https://youtu.be/16p9YRF0l-g)
Activity 1
Due ➡ by 3:59 PM, Tuesday, September 6
Click on the link above to see the PDF, which contains the link to the video to watch and review (or see below — navigate to 36:51 and begin watching from there). Follow the instructions in the assignment link for response & how to submit.
