PBS – History Detectives Lab

Project: Flash educational game for teens, with the purpose of training them how to better make sensible inquiries. The game is free for middle school students.

History Detectives Laboratory (HD Lab) is an online educational game inspired by the PBS television show History Detectives.
It has two main components: Game Modules and an Open Investigation. In the Game Modules the student plays the role of ‘detective,’ and investigates a mystery surrounding an object. The Modules also help prepare students for their own more free-form ’Open Investigation’ of an object they are curious about, and which may have a connection to U.S. history. The Open Investigation can also be used independently of the Modules. The HD Lab website’s educational resources support the Modules and the Open Investigation. Many of the lesson plans and resources can also be used independently of the Modules and Open Investigation.

The two modules to play are: The Case of the Curious Clock, and The Case of the Hooked Hawaiian Knife. They are aligned with Historical Thinking and Common Core State Standards and support curriculum in two historical eras: The New Immigrants (1880 – 1920) and the Emergence of Modern America (1890 – 1930s).

Process: Wireframing > User interface design > Visual Design
Watch short video of gameplay:

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newspaper_@640w

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gathering result_@640w

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theories interface_@640w

theories-wrong_@640w

knife_@640w

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interview result_@640w

See the game on cpb.org.