Kids Asking For Homework? August 30, 2004 - It may not be hard to capture the attention of middle or high school-aged kids when you break out the PlayStation 2 and queue up Grand Theft Auto or Madden NFL 2005, but try to get them to engage in something educational and you may have a challenge on your hands. Not so with the education simulation, Building Homes of Our Own, which uses the familiar concept of home building to teach math, science, civics, technology and personal financial responsibility, and uses SIM City-like technology to create an interactive learning experience right in the classroom. Launched in September 2002, Building Homes of Our Own has reached more than 2.2 million students, teachers and parents nationwide. Free to educators, word-of-mouth among teachers has catapulted the program into classrooms teaching both core subjects and career and life skills disciplines. “Educators tell us that the Building Homes of Our Own is exciting for their students, introducing them to diverse industry professions and the concept of homeownership, and forcing them to sharpen their critical thinking skills in key subject areas,” said Bobby Rayburn, president of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home and apartment builder from Jackson, Miss. “It’s so popular that teachers, students and their parents are contacting us for extra copies for their kids to use at home—for extra credit assignments or just for fun.” The program challenges students to work within a budget and schedule to design and build a home, starting with the site selection and ending with the sale of the home to a qualified buyer. In the process, they will rely on lessons and skills they’ve learned in school as they work to solve problems and make decisions. When their home is completed, players review credit applications and sell their “virtual dream house,” hoping not to go bust. Building Homes of Our Own features three levels of play within each of the four building sites found in urban, suburban, rivers and lakes, and coastline settings. Throughout the game, players encounter a variety of real-life obstacles and issues that test their skill, patience and resourcefulness. Students can elect to perform lab testing, conduct research, or call upon special consultants to help them arrive at sound decisions that satisfy environmental concerns or nervous neighbors. Attending a virtual town meeting or working within community planning and zoning laws are just a few of the many challenges students will encounter. The program, including the comprehensive lesson plan guide, is available on CD-ROM and is compatible with the Microsoft Windows operating system. It is free to classroom educators and members of home builder associations affiliated with NAHB www.NAHB.org through the web site www.HomesofOurOwn.org. Building Homes of Our Own is part of NAHB’s ongoing education outreach effort and was created with support from the National Housing Endowment and Freddie Mac. | 
