Pick Me Ups

GAME TIME:  We're working to integrate some pleasant, positive diversions so that we here at MPA, and especially the student body, don't get too down about this whole global pandemic thing.

Yesterday, I said to Christian, "I really think our kids need to play more video games" While that might sound like the complete opposite of what most every parent would normally say, these are not normal times.

I qualified my statement by pointing out that a well-done game can be a wonderful diversion, and noted that not all games are dark and violent. What I was hoping for was for the kids to find a little escape in "shiny, happy games," I explained.

Just a bit before, I'd been talking to Kennedy about a game that was jut released, "Animal Crossing: New Horizons." It's a game that's about building and community. Kennedy described it as 'meditative' in nature. 

Sold! 

I ordered it for the kids last night, and they have just started playing it. Here are CJ's first impressions:  

Seven years after the series' last installment was released, Nintendo's iconic Animal Crossing franchise returned with its latest outing, Animal Crossing: New Horizons. All of the Animal Crossing games are recognized for being low-key, calm games - a stark contrast to the manic pace of most of Nintendo's catalogue. 

While I've only played one Animal Crossing game before (emulating the original GameCube game), I had a basic idea of what Animal Crossing gameplay is like. New Horizons confirmed my perceptions. 

The closest thing there is to an "end goal" in New Horizons is to pay Tom Nook, an anthropomorphic Tanuki, for the deed to the player character's house. To pay for the deed, the player must perform various tasks around the island. New Horizons encourages the player to interact with the other villagers on the island.

I found playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons to be a calming experience, and I look forward to playing it more.

Here's a trailer for the game. 


CLASS IS IN SESSION:  This morning, we finally got around to starting the class via Coursera. 

It's taught by Professor Laurie Santos, a professor in psychology and cognitive science at Yale University. 

As part of the class, Professor Santos recommends downloading an app called ReWi. She says it allows people to track "practices that science has told us can increase happiness in your life, things like savoring more and gratitude and sleeping and exercise." (ReWi can be found in the App Store or in the Google Play Store by searching "ReWi" and looking for ablack and white brain logo. ReWi on iOS & ReWi on Android.)

One of the topics Santos introduced today was the "GI Joe Fallacy," a phrase she and another expert coined. It's based off little vignettes at the end of the GI Joe cartoons of the '80s, where kids were taught some sort of lesson, and the catchphrase "Knowing is half the battle," was used to sum it up.

Santos contends that claim is not true. "Merely knowing isn't enough to put it into practice," she suggests. She used a couple of visual illusions as examples, including the famous Shepard's Table graphic.

Her point was that even when you know the tables are the same length, it still doesn't change how you see it.

Santos pointed to some stats as reasons she decided to teach the class. One was a headline from a 2013 ABC News story "Americans Most Unhappy People in the World." Another was the fact (no source cited) that antidepressants are prescribed at a rate 400 times higher than they were 20 years ago.

The class doesn't have a tremendous amount of work, but there are some "rewirements" (a clever play on words, I thought). Santos says, "Research suggests that if you do these rewirements as prescribed, you should get a boost in your mood and overall well-being."

Time will tell. 

A couple of things we did today involved taking some assessments as baselines. One was PERMA, an acronym for Positive emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishment. There are 23 questions. After completing them, you get scores ranging from 0-10 for each (PERMA) pillar, along with scores for overall well-being, health, and negative emotions.

Another assessment we took was The Authentic Happiness Inventory. It was 24 questions, designed to measure overall happiness levels. At the end of the survey you receive a score between 1 and 5 based on your responses. 

The third assessment was a measure of Character Strengths. That was 120 questions (but it's still relatively quick). After taking the test, you receive a ranking of your 24 strengths. (My top three were honesty, humor and perspective. I haven't asked the kids what theirs were.)

SCRUBBED: There's been tons of talk about washing hands in recent weeks, and plenty of demonstrative videos. This one is my favorite, so far.