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<blockquote data-quote="uzirath" data-source="post: 8124483" data-attributes="member: 8495">I came to teaching in my thirties as a second career. As a lifelong tabletop RPG fan, I was surprised at how similar gaming and teaching were. I got stage fright for both, often feeling like I wasn't prepared enough. (Usually, however, that wasn't the case.) Moreover, no matter how prepared I was, I had to be ready to improvise and adjust on the fly. Stubbornly sticking to the lesson plan (or the plot railroad) was never a good strategy.Another common element that struck me, particularly with English and history classes, was the importance of good framing. middle schoolers don't inherently find a new poem or historical incident interesting. They've got other things on their minds. Spending some time thinking about how to present the content to connect with them and get them engaged almost always pays off. It's similar in RPGs. Sometimes the difference between a compelling encounter and a dud doesn't have as much to do with the mechanics as it does with the framing. Why should the PCs (and the players) care about this scene? How does it connect to their goals and aspirations? What's at stake? If I can't answer those questions, it's not likely to be a memorable episode.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="uzirath, post: 8124483, member: 8495"] I came to teaching in my thirties as a second career. As a lifelong tabletop RPG fan, I was surprised at how similar gaming and teaching were. I got stage fright for both, often feeling like I wasn't prepared enough. (Usually, however, that wasn't the case.) Moreover, no matter how prepared I was, I had to be ready to improvise and adjust on the fly. Stubbornly sticking to the lesson plan (or the plot railroad) was never a good strategy. Another common element that struck me, particularly with English and history classes, was the importance of good framing. middle schoolers don't inherently find a new poem or historical incident interesting. They've got other things on their minds. Spending some time thinking about how to present the content to connect with them and get them engaged almost always pays off. It's similar in RPGs. Sometimes the difference between a compelling encounter and a dud doesn't have as much to do with the mechanics as it does with the framing. Why should the PCs (and the players) care about this scene? How does it connect to their goals and aspirations? What's at stake? If I can't answer those questions, it's not likely to be a memorable episode. [/QUOTE]

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