The Play Make Learn (PML) Conference promotes high-quality learning opportunities for educators, researchers, developers, designers, foundation leaders, policy makers, museum and library professionals, and school leaders who are dedicated to promoting making, gaming, and playful learning.
The PML 2024 Conference will be held July 18-19, at the Memorial Union (800 Langdon St.) in Madison, WI. We aimed to engage our audience in cutting-edge learning science ideas and experiences; communicate state-of-the-art design, education, and research; demonstrate new and upcoming games and technology; and network to spark new projects in the following themes:
- Playful learning
- Games for learning and positive social impact
- Making and makerspaces
- STEAM Education
- Arts integration in formal and informal spaces
- Research/practitioner partnerships
Our conference keeps growing! We continue to see the demographics of our audience expand, both in the fields they represent and how far they travel. Attendees and presenters have joined us from across the United States and five other countries, including Canada, Germany, Taiwan, Kingdom of Bahrain, and India.
Play Make Learn is hosted by the UW-Madison School of Education’s Department of Curriculum and Instruction and the office of Professional Learning and Community Education (PLACE). This partnership was made possible by the generosity of the School of Education’s Impact 2030 Initiative.
News
Play Make Learn Conference 2024 - Call for Proposals Closed; Notifications Sent Out Soon
The deadline to submit a proposal to present at Play Make Learn 2024 ended on February 18th, 2024; notifications about accepted applications will be sent out in March 2024. Stay tuned!
Have clarifying questions? Feel free to reach out to Chris Baker, Public Library Consultant with the Division for Libraries & Technology, at: Chris.Baker@dpi.wi.gov
Wisconsin Connections
Wisconsin is fortunate to be a growing hub for these topics and resources. Here is a short list of some free example resources. Find or share more in WISELearn Resources.
Field Day
This UW-Madison lab makes games and game-making platforms to enhance learning through play, technology, and creativity.
- Explore physics, earth, and life science with standards-aligned mini-games/simulations in The Yard Games.
- Make augmented reality (the Pokémon Go genre) experiences with ARIS.
- Use Atom Touch to virtually get hands on with molecules.
- Detect neutrinos at the South Pole in virtual reality with IceCube.
- Introduce students to the social studies inquiry process in Jo Wilder and the Capitol Case.
- More at fielddaylab.org
Filament Games
Filament's mission is to "create playful experiences that improve people's lives." Although most of their content has a cost, free resources include:
- Explore iCivics - a suite of games for inspiring and learning about civics.
- Experience how Marie Curie, Grace Hopper, and Jane Goodall worked in Breaking Boundaries VR.
- Read how educators in WI and beyond use games to improve learning in the ebook How to Teach with Games.
- Check out the Smithsonian Science Education Center Game Center, featuring select games from Filament.
- Find research roundups like this K12 one on their blog.