‘Happy Maths’ is a research project on serious games, driven by ADAPT researchers at TU Dublin. Happy Maths develops games which aim to help students overcome anxiety related to Maths learning. The project team has developed two educational games, which it piloted through workshops in primary schools during 2019.
’Seven Spells’ is an award-winning digital card game designed to stimulate mathematical skills and strategic thinking. The game can cover more than 50 learning outcomes from the Irish Maths curriculum.
‘Once Upon a Maths’ is an exciting adventure video game with a narrative based on the History of Mathematics. Through the game, the player interacts with characters who contributed to the development of Mathematics and is challenged to use this knowledge to solve real-life problems.
In response to the pandemic in 2020, the Happy Maths team developed the ‘Secret of Kells – Codes and Ciphers’ workshop which could be delivered to primary school classes remotely via Zoom. During the workshop, the players have to crack a number of codes to find out who has stolen the Book of Kells from Trinity College Dublin. The workshop was designed to demonstrate the links between codes, ciphers and data encryption which is used to protect users personal data.
The learning process involved in the Happy Maths games helps to give meaning to Mathematics and leads the player to reflect on the importance and beauty of Maths.
Contact Mariana at [email protected] if you have an interest in the Happy Maths project.
