Thieves' Purse- a game for building spatial visualization and Chinese reading skills.

thingiverse

The Human Game: Without looking, players have to pick the correct "coins" out of a bag by feeling for the shape of the characters. Play begins with two coins and more coins are added each round. The coins represent eighteen of the highest frequency characters in Chinese. Background: When I started using simple CAD software, I found working in 3D space very difficult. Research revealed that gender may play a role in spatial skills, although it's unclear whether this is true. What we do know is that these skills can be trained and improved upon. Since some little girls may not enjoy traditional building toys, I explored ways to incorporate a spatial element into their existing activities. As a child, puzzles and memory games were my favorites, so that's where I began. This game is my first attempt at combining storytelling with spatial visualization. It requires players to have a strong mental image and be able to rotate it in their mind. This game is more of an idea than a finished project, but I hope others can build upon and improve it. Both boys and girls of all ages can play, but I think the lack of games incorporating spatial visualization makes it particularly helpful for girls. All children love a good story, and a well-told story makes a game even more engaging. The origin of Thieves' Purse is an exciting tale that's worth reading: http://sexycyborg.net/Ban_Ji_and_the_Thieves_Purse.html Print Settings: I tried using bronzefill for the coins, but Chinese bronzefill (eSun) lacks actual bronze content, making it impossible to polish. The other bronzefill I've found is imported and a bit out of my budget. If you're able to print with this material, please let me know - it would look great. How I Designed This: OpenSCAD files are included so you can add additional characters as needed.