Like many, I worried about the Class of 2020 seniors who were starting college this fall in the midst of a pandemic. Online orientation. Hi flex learning when possible and remote learning when not. How were these first-year students going to connect with each other and campus?

Fun AND informational. That has always been the focus of Success Prints Crash Course®, the college transition game. Board games are a great way to connect and build community. But how do you gather around a table to play a board game during a pandemic? COVID required us to pivot to keep playing. It’s why we came up with socially-distanced (or stated better, physically-distanced) game play. All the fun but at a safe distance.

We recently played as part of a de-stress event held by the Norm Asbjornson College of Engineering at Montana State University. In reflecting on the event, Jennifer Clark, NACOE Student Success Coordinator shared:

Using Crash Course: Re-Designed, for a physically distanced style of play, provides a way to continue fostering social connecting versus social distancing and model student engagement during these challenging times. New freshman students were looking for friends, ways to de-stress, and responding to encouragement from advisors to engage in college or department events. Current students were looking for ways to keep their clubs going and connecting with their members. The take-away was Crash Course transcends the Freshman year and is just fun to play . . . together!”

Watch the video below to see game play in action.

Socially-distanced game play proceeds as if you were gathered around a table. The main difference is the game master projects the game board on to a screen or wall and players make their move on their personal game board at their desk, six feet from their peers. At the end of the week (round of play), players score their choices just as they would regularly. If they spent time in class, they give themselves study points on their tally sheet. If they went to work, they earn cash toward tuition and note it on their tally sheet. If they took advantage of campus services, they gain study, earn cash, or relieve stress — all recoded on their tally sheet.

The main difference is with the Assignment and Life Happens cards. Rather than handing a card to each player around the table, the game master assigns the players to one of four teams and the card turned is assigned to the entire team. For example, Team 1 may be assigned the ‘Card from Grandma’ Life Happens card which gives each player 2 cash, which they would note gleefully on their tally sheet. On the other hand, Team 2 may be assigned the ‘Concussion’ Life Happens card, which depending on the amount of stress the player has recorded on their tally sheet may result in a varying amount of study lost.

The advantage of this approach to game play is that only one game master (a teacher, counselor, peer leader) is needed in order to play with an entire class (of 10 or 40) at once. Personal game materials (game board, tally sheet, friend circle) are available at no cost to anyone who has purchased a copy of the game.

Socially-distanced game play of Success Prints Crash Course® is perfect for high school teachers or counselors looking to enhance their college readiness curriculum. It’s awesome for first-year experience programs in colleges and universities. It’s a great way for students to reflect on what strategy/strategies worked well during their first college semester and what they may need to modify to do better this coming semester.

At a time when students are looking to connect, playing a game together—even at a bit of distance—can be a a great way to restore a sense of normalcy in a most abnormal time.