If you ask your students what they did over the weekend, or how they spent their birthday, it’s likely that you’ll hear at least one mention going to an escape room! In recent years, escape rooms have been growing in popularity around the world. So why is everyone so excited about escape rooms? Well the answer is simple – because we love to play games and solve puzzles! Escape rooms take that to the next level, allowing us to fully immerse ourselves in a game-like world, full of intrigue and gamified challenges.
Great. Now we know why people love escape rooms, but what does that have to do with education? As an educator, you’re probably always trying to keep up-to-date with what your students’ interests are and find ways to incorporate them into your lessons. Well in the case of escape rooms, don’t worry! Milton Education has got you covered! Let’s take a look at why escape rooms are a powerful tool and how to use them in the English classroom. At the end of this post you’ll also find a free escape room experience ready to download and use in your English classroom straight away.
The power of escape rooms in the classroom
Escape rooms, in their traditional form, are physical adventure games where players solve a series of puzzles and riddles to complete objectives within a set time limit. In the context of education, these rooms become a metaphorical space where students work collaboratively to unlock language proficiency and problem-solving skills. Here are some reasons why escape rooms make excellent tools for ESL classrooms.
1. They engage students in active learning
Escape rooms encourage students to actively participate in their own learning process. They are no longer passive recipients of information but are actively engaged in deciphering clues, solving puzzles and collaborating with peers.
2. They offter natural language immersion
3. They encourage critical thinking
4. They get students collaborating
The excitement and challenge of escape rooms naturally captures the attention of students and keeps them motivated throughout the session, which translates into greater involvement and, in many cases, a deeper and more lasting understanding of the content. This combination of game, narrative and collaboration is precisely what inspires proposals such as Time Travellers, our star resource for learning English through missions full of mystery, time travel and gamified challenges. If you are interested in bringing this energy to your classroom, we encourage you to discover how Time Travellers transforms learning into an adventure in which each student becomes the protagonist.