Teach with Portals

The Portal franchise was developed as an entertainment product, but the games have the potential to be used as experiential learning tools.

In the Portal world, students interact with physically simulated objects (cubes, catapults, lasers, etc.). The interaction tends to be free-form and experimental and as students encounter new tools and challenges they may develop an intuitive understanding of physical principles such as mass and weight, acceleration, momentum, gravity, and energy. The games also put a premium on critical thinking, spatial reasoning, problem solving, iteration and collaboration skills, and encourage overall inquiry into STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) learning.

The website Teach with Portals offers free resources for teachers and provides a community where educators can share curricula, lessons and classroom experiences by registering as part of a forum solely for educators.