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App review by Jenny Tsai, Common Sense Education | Updated October 2013
Plan It Green: The Big Switch

Plan It Green: The Big Switch

Building sim integrates eco-friendly concepts into urban design

Learning rating
Editorial review by Common Sense Education
Community rating
Based on 2 reviews
Privacy rating
Not yet rated Expert evaluation by Common Sense
Grades
3–6 This grade range is based on learning appropriateness and doesn't take into account privacy. It's determined by Common Sense Education, not the product's publisher.
Subjects & Skills
Science
Platforms:  Mac, Windows
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Take a look inside

5 images
Example of the game in real time.
Alerts and messages that guide game play.
Eco news of the day.
Rewards and tracking center in the mayor's office.
The place to learn more information and gather more points is the arcade.

Pros: Promotes latest innovation in energy efficiency and interweaves educational content into play.

Cons: The pace is slow and can be challenging for students with literacy difficulties.

Bottom Line: Game pace is slow, but it packs in a lot of relevant and rich learning content.

How Can I Teach with This Tool?

Teachers can use it to enhance a unit on the environment or urban planning. This is a great bring-alive activity for students if teachers are looking for a computer lab activity to complement the lesson on the topic. It can also be used as an extension activity for students who are interested in learning more about the topic. Students can play the game for homework and turn in a written reflection on their experience of building the city and what they learned as part of the game.  An assignment related to playing the game can also be used as an extra credit or make up assignment in the classroom since the learning modules are comprehensive and self-contained. 

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Standards:

Plan It Green: The Big Switch is an online simulation game that integrates environmentally friendly concepts with urban design. The game is designed to increase nonfiction reading, planning ahead, and strategy. The game is reading-intensive, with eco-friendly facts popping up upon advancement of play. Outside of building the city, players can engage in quests and arcade games for more points.Kids can connect to the game via Facebook, but the social component of the game does not activate until level 5. 

Plan It Green: The Big Switch is full of useful information about the environment, featuring in-game pop-out facts, videos on landfills and mushroom extinction, and relevant current events related to the environment. The game also includes practical advice on recyclying and minimizing trash. Teachers will appreciate the depth of information built into the game. Overall, the game feels like an interactive version of the environmental/urban planning section of an encyclopedia. 

Overall Rating
Engagement Would it motivate students and hold their interest? Is it visually appealing? Would it inspire teachers to try something new or change their instruction?

The pace of the game is somewhat slow. The currency recharge also is slow, and it takes a long time to accumulate coins to create new buildings. Furthermore, it's hard to understand your progress. 

Pedagogy Does the tool help teachers promote a more student-centered experience? Will students gain conceptual understanding or think critically? Does it deepen teachers’ pedagogical thinking?

There's a lot of ecology information built into the game. Kids will learn how to maximize limited resources to build the ideal sustainable city.

Support Can students and teachers get assistance when they need it? Is it created with people of different abilities and backgrounds in mind? Is learning reinforced and extended beyond the digital experience?

The game is reading-intensive and may be difficult for kids with lower reading comprehension. At times, it's difficult to understand how you're doing in the game.

Common Sense reviewer
Jenny Tsai Reviewer
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Key Standards Supported

Earth and Human Activity

  • 4-ESS3-1

    Obtain and combine information to describe that energy and fuels are derived from natural resources and their uses affect the environment.

  • 4-ESS3-2

    Generate and compare multiple solutions to reduce the impacts of natural Earth processes on humans.

  • 5-ESS3-1

    Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.

  • MS-ESS3-3

    Apply scientific principles to design a method for monitoring and minimizing a human impact on the environment.

  • MS-ESS3-5

    Ask questions to clarify evidence of the factors that have caused the rise in global temperatures over the past century.

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Community Rating

(See all 2 reviews) (2 reviews)
Featured review by
Jessica L. , Classroom teacher
Classroom teacher
Great Concept but Confusing Game
I really wanted to like this product. I like to use sims in my classroom with my students and was excited to come across a game that taught my students about eco-design and how to create a "greener" city. I was hoping that my students would be encouraged to watch the videos on different types of energy and other optional activities included in the game, but most just became frustrated with the game. In addition, it was confusing as a game and so the educational benefit was lost.
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