Technology Tool #2: Man vs. Wild Game

This tool is http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/manvswild/game/game.html. This interactive game comes directly from the Discovery Channel's program "Man vs. Wild" hosted by Bear Grylls. The game starts out saying that Bear Grylls needs you (the game player) to cover for him and go into Kenya. You need to make certain choices to get through Kenya, survive, and find civilization. Through the interactive game, clips of "Man vs. Wild" are shown to guide you. This game is great because Bear actually teaches the students about the wildlife in Africa and its harsh environment.
Pros about this game would be that it is educational and it has actual pictures and videos of Africa and its wildlife. Also, it introduces the students to a very educational and exciting TV show. So, instead of going home and turning on Power Rangers, they can go to the Discovery Channel and watch Bear Grylls explore the world in the wild. A con about this game would be that, if the students guess all the correct ways to go about the game, they won't be sent to a different route and the game could be over quickly. However, there are many different ways to play out this game that they can just start over. Also, if the student picks all the wrong ways to go about the exploration, the game could end very quickly. This tool would impact the curriculum because it allows the students to see Africa in its most natural state. They are exploring it, making their own choices as to where they are going, and can learn on their own. Along with this tool, I can have a worksheet that they fill out for them to tell about their journey, or they can take notes on what they learned while they were exploring Africa and turn the notes into something more. I would tell the parents that I chose this tool because it was educational and a great way for the students to interact with the continent of Africa. From using this tool, I have learned that, if there are vultures in the sky, it is very likely that there is some kind of animal (i.e. food) on the ground below them, so it would be smart to follow them if I needed food. Also, I got special instructions from Bear himself when I was in need of help.