Some students are not familiar with the style of interactive stories used in this module, so the module starts by having students play the game Brevity Quest by Chris Longhurst. This game is designed to have very little text to read, so it can be played very quickly. Instead of having each student play the game alone, it's more fun to play the game as a group. The game can be projected on a screen, and students can call out which choices they want to make. It's not necessary to play through to the end of the game if it runs on too long.
Since Brevity Quest is classified as a game, the Internet at some schools blocks access to Brevity Quest's website. If that is the case, you should request access to the http://springthing.net/2017/ website for your classroom. Alternately, you can download the game in advance and use the downloaded version in your classroom.
In the handout, chapters 1-3 teach enough material to allow students to make a basic interactive story. Chapters 4-6 delve into ways that creative writing for interactive stories is different from normal creative writing. Depending on time constraints, chapters 4-6 can be skipped, or they can be taught at a later time than chapters 1-3. The appendices contain supplementary reference material and are not intended to be taught in a classroom.
Some students have very ambitious plans for interactive stories that they would like to make. Writing interactive stories can be a lot of work. Even a short interactive story where a player needs to make 10 choices each game can potentially involve thousands of pages of writing and end up being longer than War and Peace. It is sometimes necessary to help students set more realistic expectations for what they can achieve in the time available.
Some students are also very keen on adding graphics to their stories. Although Twine is capable of displaying pictures, that topic is not covered in this module. Sometimes, students become distracted by making graphics and ignore the creative writing and interactivity aspects of the module.
