Educator's Guide

Terminal Two is a collection of games that guides students systematically through the invaluable first steps of learning to code. Our games start simple and unfold into more and more advanced concepts, each teaching a specific programming concept.

Our games focus on a child’s desire for play and video games, connecting each game’s mechanics to a programming concept. For example, our grid-like gardening game, Crowded Sprouts, is the perfect place to teach arrays. The Bunker, a strategic tower defense game, can teach instances and classes.

While exploring Terminal Two, students will have fun first, while solving problems and tinkering with ideas central to computer science and computational thinking. Students will want more, and teachers will be able to use video game time as educational.

To access any game, you will have to sign up for an account. Each game has an accompanying Educator Guide.

Playing the games requires a keyboard, and either a mouse or trackpad.

Terminal Two games advance in difficulty! Later games may be better suited for older students (12+), or as extra credit.

If you do not have enough devices or computers for every student, have students partner up and practice “pair programming”, a method of coding used by professional programmers. Enforce that each player gets their turn “driving” and “navigating”.

To empower a broad range of students, our games include a wide variety of genres, such as racing, role-playing, and strategy games. The games use many different “core mechanics”, sometimes presenting players puzzles, other times skill-based challenges, and yet other times big sandboxes filled with opportunities to explore. Terminal Two is built for universal appeal and we have a purposefully broad platform.

Find them at: www.terminaltwo.com/ourgames

Research tells us time and again that relevance, meaning, and context are critical for learning. Play can enable those three things. When a student is having fun and 1 focused on the task in front of them, learning is natural, as they push and pull at the rules and boundaries of the game in their efforts to win.

Students take something from every video game they play, and we fill ours with beakers and basketballs. The more hours someone spends in an activity, the better they will tend to be at it. We are creating learning environments in which youth want to spend endless hours.

Terminal Two takes its cues from video game professionals rather than the school-like software that dominates the sector. While the vast majority of education games out there haven’t risen to the level of delight and joy that are in consumer games, Terminal Two bucks the trend and starts with fun. Real game studios build our games.

There are numerous topics in programming, from functions and variables to computer hardware, and a variety of ways to determine knowledge and proficiency.

We’ve organized our understanding of programming into ten overarching topics.

● General programming concepts

● Variables (Basic data storage)

● Conditionals (If, then, else)

● Loops (The power of computing)

● Functions (Writing computer commands)

● Arrays (Storing many items)

● Syntax (How a computer reads code)

● Classes (Creating templates and copies)

● Interactivity (And other quick topics)

● Hardware (How the physical computer works)

Each of our games teach only one or two topics. Key to Terminal Two is the idea that players learn best when they focus, and the games reinforce this by tightly linking a particular programming concept to the game’s systems. When students are done having fun, they can voice specific new knowledge. (Some of our large games do explore several topics.)

We introduce players to each programming topic with basic explanations and as they get comfortable, they will discover games further on that not only reinforce, but show players other angles and information about the topic.

Topics are divided and presented in a manner independent of each other topic. Students excited by any of these topics can then see how they fit together in The Endless Mission!

Terminal Two waits until later levels to let students see real code syntax, and waits again to let them type their own code. There is a transition in the platform to help connect players from concepts to code.

Every game in Terminal Two teaches a coding concept. Early games start without formal coding, instead focusing on computational thinking, teaching players such ideas as how to use abstraction to focus and solve problems. Games advance to more challenging concepts, and eventually include proper “syntax”; having players see, modify, and then write actual code.

Each game is designed to reinforce earlier ideas. Research has shown the importance of repeating concepts in multiple environments of increasing complexity to reinforce foundational skills and deepen learning.

Games and play may have been the critical foundations of culture. Our games teach many CSTA Computer Science standards because a game by its nature provides many lessons.

A Terminal Two game:

● Requires interaction and player investment.

● Provides an engaging space for testing theories.

● Asks players to make comparisons and interesting decisions.

● Has players engage in challenging and thoughtful activities repeatedly.

● Responds to the player’s behaviour.

● Teaches players to evolve their thinking and behaviour.

Playing (“hacking”!) our games aligns with key standards of computer science below!

Each game has an overview of its premise, controls, programming concepts, and some helpful information. The most value comes from experiencing the games oneself, as they are intended to take a player through the learning process.

It may take 1-3 minutes to access the web games, as some of them are high-end 3d games. We suggest letting the kids play for 10-15 minutes, and then either have a class discussion, or pausing and recontextualizing some of the game, helping them question why it works as it does.

The following may be useful frameworks for 45 and 25 minute plans, trying to give at least 15 minute periods of play.

We’re always interested in instructor feedback! We have the data, but you see that data in action. Our platform is built to empower your students and get them excited about learning. Here is a link to the online form for feedback:

● Is it working? Tell us your stories!

● Are you having trouble with any particular aspect? Let us know.

● Have ideas for features? The Endless roadmap is informed by our customers.