The best way to think about how to link Kinect Sports to the curriculum is to approach the title in a completely different way. Instead of thinking about a ‘computer game’ consider how sport can be used as a context for cross-curricular work or how could you use data generated in the game to support the teaching of maths. The diagram below shows some of the ways you could do this:
For example take idea 1, researching the history of sport: Background Kinect Sports consists of six sports including Bowling, Boxing, Track and Field, Table Tennis, Volleyball and Football (Soccer) as well as a variety of mini-games that are associated with some of the sports. As well as being fun to play individually or collaboratively, Kinect Sports also provides an opportunity for learners to learn more about real-life sports, including how they have developed and evolved over time. Activity In this activity, we are going to challenge learners to pick their favourite aspect of Kinect Sports (Bowling, Boxing, Track and Field, Table Tennis, Volleyball and/or Football), and research how their selected sport has developed over time. Learners may wish to investigate the sport as a whole or an aspect of the sport - such as its historical development, famous sport people, early versions, rule changes, controversies and the like. Projects should be well researched and can be presented in a variety of forms, such as a written piece, blog post or podcast.
Ideally, different members of the class will pick a different sport and sub-topic. This allows opportunities for peer presentations and information sharing. Supporting Resources Learners should have experienced playing each of the sports and have developed an interest in at least one of them (virtually or in real life). Bing Web, Image and Video Search can be used to find out more information about a chosen sport or topic.
To find out more about using Xbox 360 and Kinect Sports in the classroom you can view and download our eBook below.