This October I made my yearly creativity pilgrimage. This year’s stops included a visit to my lifelong friend, Dan, in Silicon Valley and a stop at Disneyland & California Adventure. I loved it.
After a full day at Disneyland, I was waiting ever so patiently for the World of Color show to start. In order to help manage the crowds, they Disney cast members herd you into roped off sections 30 mins before the show starts. While waiting, I noticed something just spectacular. The giant ferris wheel sitting in front of us was turned into a giant game of Simon for guests to compete with others in the park.
The Fun Wheel Challenge is an interactive matching game played on your personal Wi-Fi enabled device that allows you to compete against each other for the chance to control the lights on Mickey’s Fun Wheel for the next 30 seconds while you wait for World of Color to begin.
Disney came up with something that I think is pretty remarkable. Super easy to play. Facilitates lots of players. And fills time that wouldn’t be occupied by anything else but wait time. I mean quite honestly, most people were playing on their phones while they waited anyway. Why not take advantage of that and facilitate something that wouldn’t ever happen in real life?
Disney nails it. The meeting point of a problem to solve (boredom while waiting), technology and fun. What are problems do you need to solve? Would there be a way to interact with students while they are patiently waiting for something to start? Would there be a way to let them use their phones, but also encourage them to interact relationally?
I’ve now started working on how we can bring a miniature version of this experience to our camp. Once I’ve gotten the details ironed out, I’ll write a post.
