How Can Video Games and Key Lime Pie Support Fractions Learning?
CIDDL Cizzles with Chef Matt Marino
Author: Samantha Goldman
What might come to your mind when you’re eating a Key Lime Pie? CIDDL’s Christine Parsons and Dr. Ling Zhang bring contestant #1, Dr. Mattew Marino, Professor of Exception Student Education at the University of Central Florida, to the Cizzle Ctadium to bake Key Lime Pies and discuss Dream2B, a video game that he has been developing, with Dr. Jessica Hunt, to help students in third to sixth grade to learn conceptual understanding of fractions and prepare them for STEM and ICT careers.
Dr. Marino says that it is important to provide fun and engaging curriculum materials for all students, especially students with disabilities. This is due to the fact that students with disabilities are unemployed and underemployed in STEM careers when compared to those without disabilities. He shares that the field needs interventions that are highly engaging to students and teachers that know how to implement them.
So why is Dr. Marino baking pie? His technology involves conceptual understanding of fractions, which is an essential skill when baking. Dr. Marino, assisted by his son Eli, baked two pies using the techniques from the game: iteration and partition. Did Eli enjoy the pies? Did he apply what he learned about fractions while baking? Be sure to watch the complete CIDDL Cizzle: Cooking and Learning with Dr. Matt Marino to find out which pie was preferred!
The competition isn’t over yet! After you finish watching, you are invited to be a judge of the Cizzle by rating the chef in the areas of connection, preparation, and aesthetics using the CIDDL Cizzle Rating System at the bottom of the page. More CIDDL Cizzles can be found on the CIDDL Events webpage. Please visit our website for more resources about innovative use of technology in special education and related services personnel preparation programs.