A New Digital Game Engaging K-6 Students with American History through American Art

FAIN: MD-277081-21

Thomas Cole Historic House (Catskill, NY 12414-1027)
Elizabeth Bond Jacks (Project Director: June 2020 to October 2022)

Development of a 3D digital game based on paintings by Thomas Cole (1801–48) exploring early American history.

The Thomas Cole National Historic Site (TCNHS) will address an urgent need in our society to support K-6 schoolchildren in developing an understanding of the history of the United States from multiple viewpoints so they may better understand current events and the choices that impact our future. The proposed project is the Discovery Phase in the creation of a new digital learning experience that uses American art to teach American history and support curriculum standards. The TCNHS digital game will focus on the period in American History between the Revolutionary War and the Civil War when the artist and writer Thomas Cole was active and the nation was experiencing rapid cultural change not unlike today. This project addresses the “A More Perfect Union” initiative by using artwork as an entry point to consider how the first generation of American citizens grappled with the effects of the United States constitution and related humanities themes.

Associated Products

Thomas Cole National Historic Site Digital Game - Use Mock Up (Computer Program)
Title: Thomas Cole National Historic Site Digital Game - Use Mock Up
Author: Thomas Cole National Historic Site
Abstract: The project created a user mock up of the digital experience module exploring Thomas Cole’s “A River in the Catskills” painting. The mock up allows users to click and “enter” a painting using parallax technology, converse with historic figures, and select different conversation responses that bring users to different outcomes. The historic figures and conversations are based in primary source research and present diverse views on the local experience of industrialization, shedding light on the national debate of preservation vs. development that this country continues to grapple with today.
Year: 2022
Primary URL: https://play.unity.com/mg/other/builds-vp-1
Primary URL Description: The user mock up of the digital game
Secondary URL: https://www.dropbox.com/s/txy7hmn8ib7f6l9/ColeWalkthru2022-04-29.mov?dl=0
Secondary URL Description: Video screen share of the developer going through the mock up of the digital game
Access Model: Open access
Programming Language/Platform: Unity
Source Available?: Yes

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