Back to Canterbury

WHAT: A role-playing game that requires students to step into the shoes of various characters from The Canterbury Tales and successfully complete a series of "quests."
BY: Jenny Cloud, Dov Nelkin, and Noam Pianko.
FOR: Jeff Wescott at the Wheeler School, Spring 1994.
SIZE: 1M (download); 1.4M (expanded).

INTENDED AUDIENCE

"Back to Canterbury" was designed for Jeff Wescott's eighth grade class at the Wheeler School in Providence, Rhode Island. This program was designed for students who are familiar with Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales and have been studying the relevant historical period. The game is organized into a series of "quests," and users perform a variety of tasks related to the game, some of which require library research skills. The game includes lots of text, images, and some sounds.

EDUCATIONAL GOALS

This game is designed to increase students' personal involvement and interest in Chaucer's text. It allows them to explore their interests in a self-motivated setting.

NOTES

This program definitely takes liberties with the literary text and is meant to be humorous and fun. Students should already be familiar with The Canterbury Tales and able to understand how it is being manipulated to create a game.