Submitted by Rene Carroll
Students in Andrew Schlauch’s fifth grade class at Hathaway Elementary are being challenged to think outside the box to get into the box!
That is the point of Breakout EDU, an immersive learning games platform. Using the Breakout kit, Schlauch can turn his classroom into an academically-focused escape room and facilitate games where teams of students work together using critical thinking to solve a series of challenging puzzles. The end goal is to open the locked boxes in a 40-minute time limit.
Heather Christofferson, Hathaway Librarian, researched this learning tool and received a grant for its purchase from the Washougal Schools Foundation. “These kits, and the corresponding CORE teaching materials, put learning directly into the students’ hands,” Christofferson said. “Like a treasure hunt, students have to search, problem solve and use critical thinking to decipher clues and open a series of five, programmable, unique locks.”
Schlauch’s classroom worked on their third breakout this school year on May 23 and he said he has seen his students’ ability to persevere increase. “The first time, many gave up before the time elapsed,” he said. “Now, the teams are working the whole 40 minutes to try to solve the problem. I see them gaining the ability to look at a challenge and consider different points of view and grapple with their team over various approaches to problems.”
The most recent challenge included a component in which students first had to notice five small sheets of paper taped around the room. Each contained several letters, and each were written in a different color. The group first needed to recognize the sheets were clues and then figure out they had to put them in order to spell a phrase. Once they spelled the correct phrase, they had to realize that the order of colors is the combination to a color lock.
In the background, a timer is projected on the classroom screen and music is playing. The timer shows the 40-minutes count down. The music begins to speed up and rise in intensity as the time grows shorter. “Yeah the music is intense,” said student, Nevaeh McCallister. Mikayla Harrison agrees, “In the last minutes it makes your heart pump really fast.”
Students had a lot to say about the experience with the Breakout kits. According to Evan Elliott, learning to work together is the hardest part. “Sometimes other people want to take over. We are getting much better working in teams and respecting others,” he said. Kate Kesler added, “Figuring out clues is hard too. I like that we are all different, some of us are better at one thing and we can work together to solve the problems.”
“The Break out kits make you learn more about different student strengths,” pointed out Gavin McCallister. “One person might be better at math and another sees the color combinations. It’s more real-life problems.”
Semu Taulalo feels it would be good to get more of these kits for all the schools. “Because they help you learn not just about the school stuff but about each other too,” he explained. “I think even in high school they would be challenged.”
According to Christofferson, other than schools in Seattle, Hathaway is leading the way in use of Breakout kits in Washington State. There is only one school in Oregon using these kits currently. “I contacted friends who teach and who are administrators in California, New York and Arizona. They said, not only did the kits help motivate students to better problem solving, but they were effective at all age levels.”
Schlauch received training for this program by participating in a workshop called Escape Classroom, a mini version of escape room. He hopes other Hathaway teachers will join him and bring these challenges to more classrooms. Game plans are available for all grade levels, starting with kindergarten. “I know teachers may be apprehensive about this,” he admits. “It is a lot of work. It is loud, it is messy, it is engaging, and it is exciting.”
Kasey Morales, WSF member was at the class to observe the kits in use. “It is exciting to see such critical thinking being practiced in class,” she said. “This is a skill that students will need to have throughout their education and life.”
“I chose to apply to the foundations grant because I heard from staff they needed motivational tools that supported creativity and critical thinking,” Christofferson said. “After researching, I believed these kits were the perfect additional tool for pushing our students toward thinking beyond their classroom curriculum. These kits can be used, over and over, with many grade levels within our building and possibly other schools. They have proven their worth to motivate and challenge students by requiring them to use skills in math, science, and reading to break out!”
