Little Alchemy 2 lends itself very well to many disciplines, but it’s not designed to teach a specific one. It can be a good alternative for students who have finished their work earlier or as an alternative homework assignment. For more traditional learning, teachers can ask their students to draw factors trees (which appear to be similar to webs) while they develop new elements. Teachers could also adduce to certain elements like the centaur, organic matter or primordial soup, and examine how they were made during the game, and expand that discussion to history, literature, or science classes.
Although the elements that are combined don’t necessarily reflect scientific accuracy but they could be an excellent basis to consider how the elements that are shown in the gameor the actual elementsare scientifically related to the game’s simplified. It is also possible to talk about symbolism in the world of literature and in language. In the beginning, the elements appear more tangible but as time goes on players begin to discover more symbolic concepts like love and time, sickness and death. Teachers may want to have students explore these concepts, discussing what Little Alchemy 2 is a synthesis of these concepts with particular elements. They can create their own combinations or even play make their own games.
Students are challenged to determine the number of elements they can discover. When they’re stuck, help them share tips with each other. Ask them to consider what items could be paired in the real world, or in a fantasy setting (such as when a horse and humans creates the centaur). Use the internet “cheats” to break up any angst and encourage students mixing again.
I believe it’s an enjoyable and addictive game. You’ll soon be immersed in the game as you make a unicorn, zombie, or just a little bit of outer space. Although I didn’t instruct my pupils on the game, I was required to distribute and introduce some students to some of the game’s features. Certain computers in my lab could keep previous students’ progress and they needed to be able to restart the game. I’m always searching for the next game to teach my students, and this was one they really enjoyed both at home and in school.
