Hello!
My name is Ross Nelson, and I am a Senior at Azusa Pacific University. As part of my degree program, I will be organizing and running a Tabletop Games Drop-In Club for the students of High Point Academy during Fall 2023 as part of the Eagle Club. After completing my degree in Spring 2024, I plan to pursue a career in teaching. With over 20 years of experience in playing and teaching tabletop games, I hope to provide a valuable and fun service to the student community at High Point.
The aim of this group is to introduce students ages 8 and up to the world of tabletop gaming through board games, card games, miniatures games, and role-playing games on a biweekly meeting schedule. The group will be meeting Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:00-5:30 pm, although students may be picked up at any time. While the group meets biweekly, attendance is not mandatory.
Tabletop games of all kinds are immensely beneficial to students and youth as a whole, as they teach a wide range of skills and concepts. Both competitive and cooperative games engage a range of social skills, as well as increasing prosocial behaviors including cooperation, turn-taking, and sharing. Tabletop games also require using frontal brain functions such as planning, problem solving, and abstraction. Through games, children can easily engage with mathematics in a low-stress environment via number knowledge, arithmetic skills, and development of abstract numerical concepts. Many games can be used as a tool for continuing language development through encouraging spontaneous speech and reading/listening comprehension. Tabletop Games are also a fantastic opportunity to meet new friends and discover shared interests.
I have been working with children and young adults for the past several years, and have ample experience in teaching games across age demographics. From 2020-2022 I worked as a Substitute Teacher for the Dolores County School District in Dove Creek, Colorado. There I ran tabletop games for K-8 students at the after school program with the Dolores County Public Library. I also owned a tabletop game store in Santa Cruz, CA from 2009-2014, where I taught games to children and adults every day, along with my larger work in the industry.
I am grateful for this opportunity to provide my time and resources to bring the world of tabletop gaming to the students at High Point. Thank you, and I look forward to all the fun and games!
For monthly-billed Eagle Club members, this club is offered with no extra charge. For Occasional Use users, students will remain checked in to Eagle Club during the Tabletop Games Club and will be charged at the normal Occasional Use rate of $15/hour.