Materials If you have trouble collecting any of the materials, you can just use whatever you have around the house instead. Don't worry about using exactly what the instructions ask for (for example, just draw the board on a piece of paper, or make a list of questions and answers instead of using notecards).
Alternatively, you can also create your game in a digital format by using any graphic design software you would like. Just be sure you make the board and the notecard questions.
Instructions from activity:
Journey to Saturn: The Boardgame For this activity, you will be creating a board game. The object of the game is to make it from Earth to Saturn in order to complete your study of the gas giant. However, on your journey to Saturn, there are comets, asteroids, and meteoroids that could knock your spacecraft off your planned path, making it much more difficult to complete your journey. Don’t worry though! Mars and Jupiter are checkpoints, so once you make it to one of those, you can always return there for repairs to your spacecraft. In order to avoid the comets, asteroids, and meteoroids, you must correctly answer questions about comets, meteors, asteroids, meteoroids, and meteorites.
Materials Needed:
25 Notecards
Poster board
Colorful markers
3 Small balls of different-colored play dough that will act as your game pieces
15 Toothpicks
Game Rules:
Object of the game: Complete your journey from Earth to Saturn before your opponent, and without your spacecraft getting destroyed!
Correct answers: If you answer correctly, you avoid being hit and are able to move forward one space.
Incorrect answers: If you answer incorrectly, your spacecraft is hit, and you will be forced to move back one space. Keep track of incorrect answers and hits by putting one toothpick in your game piece each time you answer a question incorrectly; collect five and you lose the game!
Checkpoints: Mars and Jupiter are checkpoints. If you make it to these planets, you may not be forced to move back beyond that planet. (ex.: If you are on Mars and answer incorrectly, you stay on Mars. You do not move back one space.)
Winning the game: You win if you are the first person to make it to Saturn. You can lose, though, automatically if your spacecraft is hit five times by an object (when you answer five questions incorrectly). If this happens, sit out and watch the rest of the game until someone wins.
Step 1: Creating the Starting Point In order to create this game, you must have a board and spaces to play on. Use poster board and colorful markers for this step. Start by designing your Earth, which will be your starting point. Don’t make it too big because you will need room to draw your spaces along with Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. You can make it as detailed as you want, or you can make it as minimalistic and simple as drawing a circle. Please label the planet with its name and label that it is the starting point by writing the word “start” on it or nearby. Your starting point can be anywhere on the board, and your spaces can follow any trajectory, as long as the objects are placed in correct sequence.
Step 2: Map it Out For this step, you will be mapping out the rest of the board game. After your starting point, Earth, create three spaces. Be creative! They can be any design you want; just make sure that they’re similar in size and shape. After three spaces, design and label your first checkpoint which will be Mars. Make sure that Mars is just a little bit smaller than your Earth because it’s a smaller planet. After Mars, create five spaces this time leading to your second checkpoint, Jupiter. Your Jupiter should be considerably larger than Earth and Mars and labeled correctly. After Jupiter, create four spaces that lead to Saturn, your destination. Label your Saturn with the word “destination” along with the name of the planet. Saturn should be just about the same size as Jupiter. Come up with a title for your game and write it on your poster board large enough to be seen.
Step 3: Create the Notecards You should use 25 notecards for this game. On one side of each notecard, write one fact about either a comet, meteor, asteroid, meteoroid, or meteorite, and at the bottom of the notecard, write the correct answer. Each object should have four notecards for a total of 20 notecards with facts on them. On the remaining five notecards, come up with creative situations that would either help you or hurt you in the game. For example: “Your crew member found a hidden tank of fuel on board and decided to boost your spacecraft. Move forward one space!” or “Your GPS system is malfunctioning. Move backward two spaces for recalibration,” or “A kind alien has offered to help repair your ship. Remove a toothpick from your game piece.”
Step 4: Playing the Game Ask one or two other people to test out your game with you. Begin by placing your game pieces (the balls of play dough) on Earth. Your notecards should be shuffled and placed neatly in a pile with the facts facing down. On your turn, another player will grab a notecard and read the fact aloud to you. If you give the correct answer, move your piece forward one space. If you are incorrect, move your piece backward one space. Once a notecard has been used, create a discard pile. If you run out of notecards, shuffle the discard pile and continue to play. Remember, the game ends the moment a player reaches Saturn or if only one player is left after other players have given five incorrect answers.
To complete this activity, please upload three pictures:
One of your board game with the game pieces and toothpicks visible
One of each set of notecards with facts about comets, asteroids, meteoroids, meteors, and meteorites (make sure the facts and answers can be seen clearly)
One of your set of situation cards (make sure the text can be seen clearly)