ElementCards are a card collecting and gaming system. When players get the cards, they have information about naturally occurring and manmade elements found on planet earth. By collecting the cards, players are also collecting information found in the periodic table of elements. There are several different game playing possiblities made possible when players join to compare and compete with their cards. Children and students often like to play games. This technique of learning is much less teacher centered, and can satisfy the desire to play games like Magic, dungeons and dragons, rock paper scissors, pokemon and others.
The card has information about the element, common uses, historical perspectives and images of the element.
back of the card image of the element, atomic structure, molecular structures
front of the card data about the element, square from the periodic table
Special cards These cards don't fit exactly into the idea of elements, but they represent different ways that elements can be affected by processes and charges. Maybe they could be used as wild cards. magnetism, electricity, isotopes, ionization, deionization, alloys, mixtures, molecules, cold fusion, significant people, important dates,
Goals Play games with the cards to create a greater understanding of the world around us. collect all of the elements of the periodic table, create molecules by gathering all the correct cards and quantity. Collect all of a group of elements, gases, metals,
Age Group Elementary school students would be a logical age group to recieve the first issues of the cards. They could be used to augment science instruction. In later age groups, their experience with the cards should help students to grasp concepts and issues. By keeping up with the card system, students in high school and later would have several years of in depth experience with the information and ideas.
Distribution Packets of the cards could be distributed to students as a part of the science instruction. The cards could be in sets of 10 to 20, or maybe larger quantities. If the cards were distributed in proportion to their natural occurance, then each pack would have to have multiples of certain elements.
Funding Grant funding could be used to pay for printing cards on quality substrate. Card systems could be marketed towards schools, educational scientific supply vendors and toy shops.
