FAQ

Need help understanding Cranium CoRE? Our frequently asked questions section can help. Watch this short video clip at the bottom of this page and/or read the FAQ's below to get answers to your most wanted questions.

Q: Why are there some books in Cranium CoRE with just a chapter or two with games?

A: One reason is that we may have been to a location that wanted to see how Cranium CoRE works and had been given a segment of a book to cover on a particular day with a class. Another reason is that we sometimes do a 1st and/or 2nd chapter of a book to give a school a jump start so they can add more questions as they can get to it for other chapters. The goal has always been and still is for the community to contribute to the content over time.

Q: When a team answers the question correctly does it stop the game play?

A: No. All teams have a set number of seconds and three attempts to answer correctly.

Q: Can the game be paused?

A: Yes, the game can be paused by the game show host/teacher when appropriate.

Q: Are the same amount of points for the correct answer given no matter how many attempts are used to answer correctly?

A: No. The point value goes down with attempts.

Q: Does the team that answers first get more points?

A: No. The issue is not speed, but correctness.

Q: Can this be used as an assessment tool?

A: Yes, observationally. The goal of this methodology is to promote thematic discussion of the text resulting in greater comprehension.

Q: How often are titles added to Cranium CoRE?

A: The founder, Andy Larson, authors them monthly. With “community” involvement the pace will increase dramatically. Any members’ games will be published immediately.

Q: What makes this better than other reading comprehension strategies?

A: To start with there are multiple strategies at work within Cranium CoRE. The two most obvious are discussion and the high level of engagement due to educational gaming.

Q: How do your questions develop critical thinking skills?

A: There are multiple types of questions beyond literal types of questions such as: hypothetical, inferential, persuasive argument, compare/contrast, author’s purpose and sequencing.

Q: Why is team play recommended?

A: It’s as elegantly simple as real life, the collaborative effort that fosters inter-dependent thinking, i.e. conflict resolution.

Q: Will there be assistance to learn how to write higher level thinking questions?

A: Yes. There will be a template with examples provided.

 

Video FAQ