Get 4 & Score

Explore

What Does Child Do To Use Skill In The Game?
In Get 4 & Score, players quickly examine the Letter Cards and Dice prior to writing their answers.

How Parents Can Assist Learning
No special parent support required.

Learning Implications and Educator Support
No special educator support required.

Determine

What Does Child Do To Use Skill In The Game?
Players determine if the words start with the correct letter and fit within category on the Category Card.

How Parents Can Assist Learning
Ask follow up questions to encourage a deeper discussion and exploration of why children selected their answers and how those choices fit the category.

Learning Implications and Educator Support
Ask follow up questions to encourage a deeper discussion and exploration of why children selected their answers and how those choices fit the category. This is a good way to develop empathy, attention and active listening skills.

Compare

What Does Child Do To Use Skill In The Game?
Player compare their answers to the Letter Cards and Category Card.

How Parents Can Assist Learning
Players need to decide what fits within a category. For example, if the category is "pets", does that include alligator, ape, caterpillar or elephant? Additionally, they can discuss and agree upon a decision making strategy, such as all players other than the person who wrote the idea (ex: alligator) can vote on whether the idea fits in the category.

Learning Implications and Educator Support
Get 4 & Score involves comparing words and ideas. Educators can expand the learning by discussing what children meant by the words they chose. Also, players need to decide what fits within a category. For example, if the category is "pets", does that include alligator, ape, caterpillar or elephant?Additionally, they can discuss and agree upon a decision making strategy. For example, all players other than the person who wrote the idea (ex: alligator) can vote on whether the idea fits in the category.Letting children determine the boundaries of a category and determine the decision making strategy helps them think about fairness and equality.

Remember

What Does Child Do To Use Skill In The Game?
This game is primarily about remembering items, people, places and other information related to specific categories.

How Parents Can Assist Learning
No special parent support required. Because the categories are open-ended and familiar, Get 4 & Score is very good for children and adults to play together. If there are any category cards that the children do not know well, it will give the adults an opportunity to explain the category and discuss their answers.

Learning Implications and Educator Support
No special educator support required. However, educators may want to use Get 4 & Score to help children reinforce content they are learning in class. If so, educators can select the Category Cards they want to children to play with.

Plan

What Does Child Do To Use Skill In The Game?
If a players do not have enough time to write word for all the Letters, they may prioritize the letters with the highest point value.

How Parents Can Assist Learning
Because the goal of the game is to score the most points, children may want to write words for letters that have highest point value first. But, they may run out of time if they cannot think of a word for a specific letter. Parents can help children consider other approaches. For example, quickly look at each letter and try to write a word that relates to the category. Then, go back to the highest point value Letter Cards for which they have not yet written a word.

Learning Implications and Educator Support
Because the goal of the game is to score the most points, children may want to write words for letters that have highest point value first. But, they may run out of time if they cannot think of a word for a specific letter.Educators can help children consider other approaches. For example, quickly look at each letter and try to write a word that relates to the category. Then, go back to the highest point value Letter Cards for which they have not yet written a word.

Solve

What Does Child Do To Use Skill In The Game?
Players solve the game by accurately writing ideas that match the Letter Cards and fit within the Category Card.

How Parents Can Assist Learning
No special parent support required. However, you may need to remove cards that may not be relevant to children.

Learning Implications and Educator Support
No special educator support required. However, you may need to remove cards that may not be relevant to children.

Review

What Does Child Do To Use Skill In The Game?
Players review their answers by reading them aloud and discussing whether the answers fit the Category Card.

How Parents Can Assist Learning
Get 4 & Score can spark lots of great conversations, such as why someone listed an unusual favorite (ex: an animal no one has heard of) or why most or all players named the same item (ex: everyone naming "Ice Cream" as a dessert starting with "I"). These conversations can help build social emotional skills, and strengthen empathy and positive emotions among players.

Learning Implications and Educator Support
Get 4 & Score can spark lots of great conversations, such as why someone listed an unusual favorite (ex: an animal no one has heard of) or why most or all players named the same item (ex: everyone naming "Ice Cream" as a dessert starting with "I"). These conversations can help build social emotional skills, and strengthen empathy and positive emotions among players.

Demonstrate

What Does Child Do To Use Skill In The Game?
Players demonstrate their answers by reading them aloud for others to comment upon.

How Parents Can Assist Learning
Get 4 & Score can spark lots of great conversations, such as why someone listed an unusual favorite (ex: an animal no one has heard of) or why most or all players named the same item (ex: everyone naming "Ice Cream" as a dessert starting with "I"). These conversations can help build social emotional skills, and strengthen empathy and positive emotions among players.

Learning Implications and Educator Support
Get 4 & Score can spark lots of great conversations, such as why someone listed an unusual favorite (ex: an animal no one has heard of) or why most or all players named the same item (ex: everyone naming "Ice Cream" as a dessert starting with "I"). These conversations can help build social emotional skills, and strengthen empathy and positive emotions among players.

Cognitive

Suggestions for How to Modify Play Experience
This game many be difficult for children with cognitive challenges. Play with a partner. This may assist the child, as two people will be generating ideas. Remove cards that have categories that will be too difficult.
The timed aspect of the game puts the child who requires more time to process information at a disadvantage. To even the playing field, say stop after the timer runs down, then turn the timer again to allow more time for the child who needs more time to think. Children who have difficulty with spelling only need to write enough letters to remind them of what word they have generated. Spelling does not count in the score.
Children with cognitive challenges may need to play with just two cards instead of four. This will give them a greater opportunity for success. If this becomes easy, add a third card.

Communication

Suggestions for How to Modify Play Experience
Children only need to read their responses. So limited language is not an issue. If a child is none verbal, but can write, another player can read the response.
If speed of word retrieval is a problem, playing with a partner is recommended.

Sensorimotor

Suggestions for How to Modify Play Experience
Children with limited motor control may use a voice device to dictate responses. Write the letters on a piece of paper for the child and let the child move a little distance away, so others don't hear them as they dictate. Then turn the timer over.
Children who have difficulty writing may use a computer or tablet to type sufficient letters to indicate their response.
Children with fine motor difficulties can allow other players to turn the cards and place the dice.

Social Emotional/Behavioral

Suggestions for How to Modify Play Experience
Children with low frustration tolerance may get upset when they can't think of a response. Give them some strategies to use before starting the game. For example, tell them to try adding different vowels after a consonant (or consonants after a vowel) to see if that triggers an idea.
Players with low frustration tolerance may benefit from playing with a partner. The partner can help generate ideas as well as model calm responses when words are not found for all letters.

Vision

Suggestions for How to Modify Play Experience
Children with low vision should be allowed to type words on a tablet or computer so they can use a large font.
If the child uses Braille, state the letters turned over and let the child type them on their writer. Then turn the timer over. Children only need to type enough letters to remind them of the word when the responses are read.
Impulsive children may begin to write any words that start with the designated letters. Remind players of the category several times during a round.

Hearing

Suggestions for How to Modify Play Experience
Sign language is great, if at least one other player can interpret the signs.
Hearing is not needed to see the letters and write responses, but players need to be able to hear or see other players responses. Small white boards could be used for writing responses instead of the answer pads. These would allow players to write larger and then hold them up for others to see.

*Data compiled from CCSSI ELA Standards, WA Science Standards, and Washington Social Studies Standards

Extra Ways to Play the Game
Have contest to generate new categories for the game. The one who comes up with the most new categories is the winner. Try playing the game using these new categories.

Materials Needed
No additional materials needed.

Developmental Benefits
Generating new categories involves remembering current categories in the game, ability to understand that categories must have many potential items, and then the imagination to create a new potential game category, such as "Princesses or Fairies."

Extra Ways to Play the Game
It may be easier (and faster) for children to write on larger spaces. Use scratch paper or other larger materials to write responses. Small white boards are great because enable children to erase responses and reuse the board for each round.

Materials Needed
Small white boards, markers, pencils, pens, paper, etc.

Developmental Benefits
Adult's can see children's spelling and help them sound out or think about the spelling rules for specific rules.

Extra Ways to Play the Game
Play in rotation with each player taking the next letter on the board. Turn the timer over. If a word is generated, the player gets to roll one die to see how many points are earned.

Materials Needed
No additional materials needed.

Developmental Benefits
This modification simplifies the game somewhat, so that only one word needs to be determined at a time. The child has one minute to come up with one word, so the pressure of the timer and generating four words is removed.