Village

What is the Game of Village?

Village has it's own set of terminology: homesteaders, peeps, and commissioners who all work together to create a town complete with it's own government in which to live. Every Friday, Little River is transformed into a mid 1800's workshop. The students become homesteaders, the teachers become commissioners and they all play the game with three inch tall, clay faced, pipe cleaner bodied, Peeps. The Peeps, as are everything else in the game, are in a 1:24 scale.

At the beginning of the year, the students held a town meeting to create their government and elect village officials including: a mayor, town clerk, trustee of agenda, trustee of planning and a trustee of commerce. They also named their town: The Turnpike. The commissioners gave them ½ acre of land to build their village. The homesteaders scouted out where that ½ acre would be. The homesteaders were also given $520.00 to use to build their homes and develop their land.

The Game of Village is meant to replicate real world situations. The students used math skills to survey their mini acre, create an improvement plan for their land, plan their houses, build the houses and balance their bank accounts. The commissioners hired homesteaders to manage and clerk at the Village Trading Post and bank. Each of the homesteaders have designed and built their own homes. They have decorated the interiors as well. They are all deciding what jobs they will have in the village. Some are planning on being farmers others are school teachers and librarians. The Turnpike even has a train station and station master. One student designed a wood stove and is peddling it to residents.

Village is the perfect project for Little River students because student (homesteader) self-direction is the main concept behind the Game of Village. The Adults (commissioners) provide support and materials; everything else is completely student run. It mirrors what we try to create everyday in our classrooms: self motivation and learner centered activities. The teachers at Little River are facilitators; we do not tell the students what they need to learn. We trust they will discover it through experimentation and hands-on learning all on their own.