After a quick registration, I was ready to play! And I was impressed. Mission 1 of Mission US, “For Crown or Colony,” is a 5-part multimedia game with a solid flash introduction to the setting of the Revolution. The “game” “puts the player in the shoes of Nat Wheeler, a 14-year-old printer’s apprentice in 1770 Boston. As Nat navigates the city and completes tasks, he encounters a spectrum of people living and working there when
tensions mount before the Boston Massacre. Ultimately, the player determines Nat’s fate by deciding where his loyalties lie.” I really wish I taught US History again.
Including historical background on the time period as well as game characters for teachers, a primary source collection focusing on pertinent documents from the Revolutionary period and more, this is a great activity for learners, especially grades 7-10. There is also a version of the game available for download which would help with bandwidth issues. Impressive financial backing from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
I look forward to the near future as it looks like any day now there should be a rollout of a second mission, focusing on resistance to slavery.
No Time to Sleep 