Start the New Year by Breaking Out!

Brutally cold temperatures, hazardous weather conditions, and upsets to the daily schedule can make winter a difficult time of year for both students and teachers. A breakout game may be just the thing to engage your students and build community and teamwork. What is a breakout game? Here is an example of a recent game completed by a group of fourth graders: The students were asked to work in teams and locate clues around the classroom in order to unlock a variety of locks and “break out” a surprise that was locked inside a box. They had just 45 minutes to do this.

This group is working together to unlock this 3-digit lock in order to get the next clue.

These learning activities come from a website called Breakout EDU and they are based on the “escape room” concept.  Breakout EDU describes itself as an “immersive learning games platform”.  During one of these games, students work together using the four Cs- collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and creativity in order to solve puzzles and challenges of varying levels of difficulty. On the Breakout EDU website, you can find lots of games for grades K-12 on a variety of subjects. Most of the games are free; however, some require a paid subscription. Each ITRT has access to a breakout kit so if you are interested, talk with your ITRT.

A student uses an ultraviolet flashlight to find a clue written in invisible ink.

To find out more about Breakout EDU and check out the games available, go to https://www.breakoutedu.com/.