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Puzzle Design through Curriculum Design

• Speaker: Gwen C. Katz, Nightwell Games

Puzzles have a lot in common with curriculum: They both present you with novel information, teach you to generalize it in new situations, and create “Aha!” moments. But while there’s little research on how the brain interacts with puzzles, there are decades of research on how brain science applies to curriculum. Using my background as a curriculum designer, I show how guided-inquiry curriculum uses this science to guide minds through the learning process and how we can use the same systems to build puzzles that are more engaging, accessible, and fun.

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