Taking a LEAP into online enrichment through gamification
Over the past year, the Junior School Special Educational Needs Team, known as LEAP (Learning Enhancement to Achieve Potential) has continued working to develop focused and comprehensive support for pupils with specific needs. Although support is a cornerstone of the LEAP Team vision, we have been keen to develop a program for pupils who wish to be extended in a deeper way outside of the classroom. Rather than focusing on a 'Gifted and Talented' program, we wanted to create something that all pupils could access, which appealed to various interests, and was driven by pupil voice. Thus, the LEAP Team has officially launched LEAP Pathfinders.
LEAP Pathfinders is an online enrichment program designed with the theory of gamification in mind. Gamification is the use of typical game elements such as point scoring, artefact collecting, and competition with others to encourage engagement with learning. Through LEAP Pathfinders girls will be able to choose challenges which interest them. Each challenge is uniquely connected to subjects such as Music, Humanities, Games, Maths, Art, and more! When a girl completes a challenge, she can “pledge” for a special badge linked to the challenge. Over time, girls can obtain a variety of badges showcasing their achievements, and these badges will earn girls and their respective houses points towards a LEAP Pathfinders Award at the end of each school year.
From coding with Ada Lovelace, to exploration with Hannah McKeand or creative writing with Virginia Woolf, girls can choose from a series of Pathfinder Challenges, selecting topics that reflect their natural interests and passions.
With simplicity and creativity at the heart of LEAP Pathfinders, girls will be able to navigate the online system with ease. Furthermore, the robustness of LEAP Pathfinders means new challenges will be added regularly, many of which will be developed by the girls themselves through our Pathfinders Council. Even now our current council members are developing a challenge in partnership with Eco Council.
The possibilities of challenges to extend learning in a deeper way are endless!
For more information regarding this exciting new initiative, please feel free to contact Mr Taylor, Junior School SENCo.
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