Jayson Go-Neil Robinson, Westmount Charter School...

With the roll of a dice, Grade 7 students at Calgary’s Westmount Charter School are travelling back in time to the 15th century where they’re navigating treacherous seas and discovering the dawn of European exploration. This is an innovative lesson in “new school” going “old school”. History teacher, Neil Robinson has transformed the popular board games Settlers of Catan and Risk to create his very own board game that transports his students from the beginnings of European exploration to the battle at the Plains of Abraham. From September to May, about 25 students in Robinson’s class will gather for half an hour every day to explore the new world, trade with First Nations, hunt for riches, draft trade deals and establish land treaties. With a wall-sized board and hundreds of iconic hexagons that depict the geography of the western hemisphere, Robinson’s students are challenged to think critically about Canadian history while passionately experiencing history for themselves.