Teachers’ Guide

Background & Prep Materials

These materials may be helpful to teachers preparing to use Pursuit! in the classroom. We also recommend visiting the Terms & Theory section of the Adventure web site's "Especially for Teachers" page, for more reference sources on economic growth and standard of living.

Detailed Game Description

While taking in a bit of New England history, players learn to identify the major factors that contribute to economic growth and develop an understanding of how growth affects living standards. With a general theme of going on a quest or "pursuit," players travel the Timeline of Key Economic Events in New England in search of the answers to questions that illustrate how growth occurs. Players scroll through the timeline and read the full-text entries, as needed, to find the answers. Also, players are accompanied through the game by an animated character guide of their choosing. These amusing guides—Inventor, Scientist, Teacher, Entrepreneur, Banker, and Uncle Sam—embody 6 major factors of economic growth, and they respond to players' answers, congratulating or encouraging them as appropriate and providing detail about their own role in promoting economic growth.
 
The game begins when a player launches the first of 8 multiple-choice questions designed to highlight the ingredients of economic growth. There are 24 questions in all, divided into 3 "trails" of 8 questions each. The trails may be played independently if time is limited.  Each trail explores a different time period in New England history, and each is scored individually as a single game.  Players may select the trails in any order and play as many times as they wish. As each of the guides represents a major factor of growth, it is recommended that players explore all 3 trails more than once and let themselves be guided by all 6 characters.
 
After an answer to a question is submitted, the player's chosen guide offers congratulations for a correct answer or encouragement for an incorrect answer. The correct answer is then displayed, along with a tidbit of relevant information (answer text), for reinforcement.  If the player answers incorrectly, this answer text also contains a hyperlink to the timeline entry(ies) from which the question was drawn. As players proceed through the questions, their score is displayed on screen and updated each time an answer is submitted.

Once during the course of each trail—automatically after a player gets 3 correct answers—players are shown a "supplemental dialogue" animation, in which their guide speaks in more detail about the factor he or she represents and the role of this factor in creating economic growth. These supplemental dialogues are designed to get players thinking about how growth occurs and to help them realize that all individuals contribute to the growth process with their daily decision-making. Each guide has a different supplemental dialogue for each of the game's 3 trails.

When all questions in a trail have been answered, the guide comments on the player's achievement, based on the final score. As incentive for good performance, players who achieve the game's highest possible score—7 or 8 correct answers—get to see a "special trick" animation, in which their guide celebrates their victory in a fun, festive way. All players then have the option to print a personalized "certificate of completion" as a souvenir of their timeline search adventure.

Game Guides

There are 6 different animated character guides to choose from with diverse personalities and ethnicities. Each guide represents 1 of the major factors of economic growth:

	Spencer the Inventor represents innovations and technological advances			Brooke the Banker represents financial resources
	Selma the Scientist represents scientific discoveries and advances in health			Trevor the Entrepreneur/ Venture Capitalist represents a willingness to take risks on new ideas and businesses
	Ms. Thomas the Teacher represents an educated workforce			Uncle Sam represents government's role in maintaining financial stability and promoting economic growth

During each game, the guides perform certain tasks:

• introduce themselves and talk briefly about how the factors they represent contribute to a growing economy.  Example: The inventor says, "Hello, I'm Spencer the Inventor, and the ideas I develop into new products and technologies help make you more productive at work, make your life easier at home, and free up more of your time for leisure!"
  
  
• thank player when selected as the game guide. Each guide says thanks for being picked in a unique way. Example: The Inventor says, "Hey, you picked me—great idea!" The Entrepreneur says, "Thanks for taking a risk on me!"
  
  
• congratulate or encourage player after each question is answered.
  
  
• comment on player's final score at the end of each trail.  Each guide has 4 possible score comments, ranging in tone from encouraging to exuberant. Also, as an extra reward ONLY for players who answer at least 7 out of 8 questions correctly, the guides perform a "special trick" at the end to celebrate. This helps motivate players to pay attention and do their best, in order to view their guide's special trick.
  
  
• appear on the reward certificate. Following the guide's final comments, players may print a personalized certificate of completion that includes their name (as they entered it), the date, trail played, final score, and a picture of their chosen guide. This certificate is a souvenir, but it may also be used to document completion of a trail and final score if the game is assigned as a homework or independent study activity.