Imagination Gaming Games of the Year 2020 Announced!

Submitted by Chris on

 The 2020 Imagination Gaming Award Winners have been announced and we have had so much fun discovering and playing the vast quantity of new titles. It seems year on year we have more and more entries, making the Gold Award and our coveted seal of approval even more prestigious.

Read on to discover some featured winners, discover the full list of winners in each category, and of course this years BIGGY!

Wellbeing within schools, how can WE help?

Submitted by Chris on

So right now there is an urgent demand and pressure on schools and families to take into account the wellbeing of not only their children but of themselves. (*edit - we can now offer Imagination Gaming sessions remotely... see here!)

With lockdown and the associated isolation the regular daily interaction we take for granted became a thing of the past. Families and children have spent even more time on screens and less time interacting with peers and friends.

Another Year and Still Learning!

Submitted by Nigel on

A little later than usual we take a moment to look back at the year and reflect… 

Working in Mainstream and Special Schools, within Libraries, Youth Clubs, Women’s Institutes, with Fostering Groups at Game Conventions, the list is endless. We have had the joy of working with all ages from preschool children to adults. The appeal, growth and benefits to games becomes more and more evident not just in education but in life.  

Another year and still learning blog

Sheffield, We'll C U Zoom!

Submitted by Chris on

Book your Imagination Gaming, Sheffield C.U. Zoom Session HERE!... from the 10th of July...

Before we get going, the below is strictly for members of Sheffield Children's University, don't say we didn't tell you!!! You may still want to read on even if you're not though, it is interesting!

Airecon 2020 Inter School Tournament

Submitted by Chris on

On the 13th March Imagination Gaming returned to Harrogate to take part in this year’s Airecon Games Convention, a friendly open gaming event.

Like previous years we were joined on day 1 by a selection of schools. We had Primary Schools attend all eager to take part in our Inter-School Games Tournament and for the first time ever some Secondary School pupils who took part in our Games Workshop.

Barnsley Town Centre Collaboration Inter-School Tournament

Submitted by Chris on

Barely into the new school year and yet another Inter-School Tournament to shout about, this time with primary schools from the Barnsley Town Centre Collaboration!

This time we were in a very familiar area, with lots of the schools involved with Imagination Gaming on a regular basis, with teams from Shawlands, Joseph Locke, Burton Road, Summer Lane, Holy Rood and our wonderful hosts for the day Keresforth Primary.

Excellent day, good tutors, enjoyable games, a must have for all schools!

Holy Rood Catholic Primary School

Dungeons & Dragons: A path back to reality

Submitted by Chris on

Wizards of the coast & DND: Escaping the real world to find a path back to reality

As a child, the real world was a pretty frightening place to me. With little confidence and admittedly a ‘late developer’ in academic terms, I struggled to fit in. My progression was slow, i had few friends and didn’t have the drive to become more. This picture is neither unique or even uncommon and so it is for many young people today. There are many younger children and young adults that are filled with fear and their way of dealing with the world and others is to lash out.

Klask: Simple games solving complex problems…

Submitted by Chris on

The reputation of games nowadays is that of the coolest of hobbies. With stunning artwork, clever mechanics and infinity more players than ever before, it’s a great time to be a gamer in this hobby.

However, sometimes games aren’t as accessible as we might imagine for some. There are many within society for whom artwork can be off putting, maybe not wanting to ‘like it’ for a fear of what others might think.

SMAT Primary Inter-School Tournament

Submitted by Chris on

 

2019 continues to start with a bang at Imagination Gaming with yet more Inter-School Tournaments!

Following first time competitions with schools in Worksop and North of the border in Scotland, this October we have returned for our regular competition with the SMAT family of schools in Barnsley for yet another fantastic day of games.

A fantastic day that really allowed children to shine!

Mr. Silverwood, Headteacher, Elsecar Primary School

 

Cedarbank, A Special, Special School

Submitted by Nigel on

 

Imagination Gaming were recently asked to go to Scotland as part of their national maths week.

The schools there had been invited to consider new options and initiatives available to them to help with their maths learning, funded through the Scottish Government, and as part of their search they discovered us.

They were one of a tiny handful of schools to have been successful in their bid.

Kirk Balk Academy Inter-school Tournament 2019

Submitted by Chris on

So another great tournament and another great day.

Today our tournament took place at a Secondary School, Kirk Balk Academy with 6 of their feeder schools in attendance. We had Greenfield who arranged the competition, Tankersley St Peter’s, West Meadows, Birdwell, Hoyland Springwood and Jump Primary. 

Some familiar faces... staff and children appeared along with many new ones.

Another Year In The Game!

Submitted by Chris on

 

Our end of year report card is in... and it's A*'s all round for Imagination Gaming!

 

It’s been another record-breaking year here at Imagination Gaming.  This year we have challenged, engaged and most definitely had lots of board game fun with over 70,000 Shining Stars …. WOW..

St. Theresa's Inter-School Tournaments - SCSP Diocese

Submitted by Chris on

Following the success of the previous weeks excitement, on Friday the 14th June, St.Theresa's Catholic Primary hosted the second of 2 separate Imagination Gaming Inter-school Tournaments in a week! This time it was the turn of the schools linked together in the SCSP Diocese.

As a school that uses Imagination Gaming's team to deliver activities in the classroom every single week, they were keen to show the schools in their local communities what it was all about. What better way than inviting them for a bit of co-operative and competitive fun with a games tournament!

St. Theresa's Inter-School Tournaments - Locality C

Submitted by Chris on

On Friday the 7th June, St.Theresa's Catholic Primary hosted the first of 2 separate Imagination Gaming Inter-school Tournaments in a week!

As a school that uses Imagination Gaming's team to deliver activities in the classroom every single week, they were keen to show the schools in their local communities what it was all about. What better way than inviting them for a bit of co-operative and competitive fun with a games tournament!

Rossett Acre Primary win a Bright Sparks Day!

Submitted by Chris on

Airecon 2019 was another successful event for the Imagination Gaming Team. Our Family Zone was kept busy with lots of families attending and taking time to learn and play some incredible games.

Following on from 2018 we decided to run another School Tournament and this year we had the pleasure of meeting and working with 47 local school children, who along with their teachers took part in our competition and had lots of fun!

Summer Reading Challenge 2019 Announced!

Submitted by Chris on

The countdown has started... 5,4,3,2,1, BLAST OFF!!!

The annual Summer Reading Challenge has been launched into orbit,  and we've got some fantastic ideas lined up for libraries ... and schools too!

Previous years have seen a galaxy of themes that have been stellar for games, such as 'the Olympics', 'Animal Antics' and 'Mischief Makers'... but this year's theme has us flying to the moon and reaching for the stars!

Airecon 2019 Inter School Tournament

Submitted by Chris on

So, we have just spent a weekend away in Harrogate as part of the terrific Airecon Games Convention, a friendly open gaming event that's rapidly growing in popularity.

Accompanying us on our first day were 47 local school children, who along with their teachers, came to compete in our Inter-School Games Tournament.

A competition with something for everyone! We ensured we had a range of games that would appeal, irrespective of the sort of games you enjoy.

Kirklees Inter-school Tournament at Dewsbury Library

Submitted by Chris on

So, one week on from our event at Rawthorpe Library, it was Dewsbury Library's turn to play host, in the latest of our Inter-School Tournaments in Kirklees Libraries. This time we had a whopping 7 new schools come to try their hand at Imagination Gaming!

An open plan library, we set up in the children's area for the day, and rather than interrupt regular proceedings, library visitors and staff remarked on what a wonderful atmosphere it created, plenty of energy, laughter and plain old good fun!

Kirklees Inter-school Tournament at Rawthorpe Library

Submitted by Chris on

Yep, 2019 has only just begun and its time for more Inter-School Tournaments, with today's being the first of 3 in 10 days!!!

Today's games marathon wasn't held in a school, but at Rawthorpe Library in Kirklees. All part of our efforts not only to bring games to more communities and schools, but also to promote the libraries to schools, and demonstrate another good use for these centres of the community.

50,490

Submitted by Chris on

So 2017-18... another year has passed but what’s changed? Well, if we’re honest, quite a lot....

 

Where are we going?

The 2018 Imagination Gaming Awards - A Dream Year!

Submitted by Jacqueline on

“Winning is only half of it, having fun is the other half” once said the famous sports coach Andrew Phillips, and here at Imagination Gaming we couldn’t agree more.  The 2018 Imagination Gaming award winners have been announced and we have had so much fun finding out which games would get a bronze, silver or gold award and our coveted seal of approval.

Emmanuel Junior Academy Inter-School Tournament

Submitted by Chris on

 

Our latest IST, inter-school tournament was held last week at Emmanuel Junior Academy in Sheffield. The 3rd tournament in just 3 weeks, this was a chance for Year 6 students and a few Year 7 students to shine, after the success of the infant tournament held for schools in the same area just a week before.

We were ready for 8 teams of four students representing 4 different school, but this time, rather than competing for their own little team, everyones points went towards a school total for a little added spice... which team would be victorious today?!

Greenfield Primary 7th Inter-School Tournament Needs BIGGER Venue!

Submitted by Chris on

Greenfield Primary’s 7th Inter-School Games Tournament found a new location!

With so many Barnsley Schools wanting to take part we found ourselves in need of a bigger venue. An obvious choice was Kirkbalk Academy who very kindly agreed to act as host for the day. Not only did they provide a fantastic venue, we were also supported by 6 of their students and they made amazing mentors, so special thanks goes to: Dylan Atkinson, Lewis Graham, Emily Davey, Lewis Burrell, Cassie Wilson and Georgie-Leigh Marsden.

It was a fantastic day...

Imagination Gaming Expands Into The Wilds Of South-East England

Submitted by admin on

Imagination Gaming 'south-east' kicks-off at Freemantles School

 

As a new member of the IG team, I have been looking forward to my first day running games – and on Wednesday 7th February, Freemantles School in Woking couldn’t have been a better place to start!

 

Freemantles is a school for students with complex social communication needs, may of whom also have autism. I spent the day working with pupils aged between 10-18 running a games day with groups with between 5 and at one stage 20 people plus adults in the same classroom.

The Imagination Gaming Game Awards 2017 Have Arrived!

Submitted by Chris on

This week, Imagination Gaming announce our 5th annual, global, hobby-game awards competition… and the introduction of a new, overall award... THE BIGGY!

 

The ‘IG Game Awards’ seek out the finest in family and educational games. Created by Nigel Scarfe and Chris Standley at Imagination Gaming, the awards are taking place for the fifth consecutive year with the final date for entries being Friday 28th of April 2017.

Local Recognition for Imagination Gaming

Submitted by Nigel on

No matter how far we travel, or how more well-known Imagination Gaming becomes, it's always nice to get some local recognition! 

Got a mention in the local paper recently. Its always nice when you get a little recognition but it is certainly not a one man band. We have been in to an awful lot of schools over the last decade and worked with some amazing teachers and children alike.

Ecclesfield Library Dates Extended!

Submitted by Chris on

Great news... yet more games sessions confirmed for Ecclesfield Library!

Yes that's right, turn out has been steadily growing over the recent monthly games days we have been hosting at Ecclesfield Library in Sheffield, and we can confirm more dates have been added. This means we will be running these free, drop-in workshops for all the family until at least June 2017.

For more details on times and dates, you will find it all here... Ecclesfield Library Blog

New Trophies!

Submitted by Chris on

Thought you might like to have a peek at these beauties!

Every time we do an inter-school tournament, which is pretty often these days, at least one of each of these trophies is handed out. And that's on top of all the certificates and any other prizes that may be up for grabs!

The shiny, reflective one goes to the student with the highest individual score on the day. We present it, the school and their mates can be impressed by it, and they can take it home to wow their family and friends permanently.

Ecclesfield Library Dates Confirmed

Submitted by Chris on

Like to plan ahead?!

After the success of August's monthly games session at Ecclesfield Library in Sheffield, we can happily confirm the next 7 dates... diaries at the ready.

Each of the following is a Saturday and sessions are planned to run from 10am - 3pm. Each one is drop-in, so come along when you can, bring a friend and join in. Dates and event poster below...

*NEW UPDATE!!!* More monthly dates have been confirmed below... we will now be running these sessions until June at least. Great stuff!

Monthly Games Day at Ecclesfield Library

Submitted by Chris on

Great news if you're in the Sheffield area (or even if you're not but you don't mind travelling!)...

We are happy to announce some regular games sessions, one Saturday each month for the next 8 months, and free to attend!

Thanks to some great work and support from Ecclesfield Library, and some Big Lotttery funding, we'll be there for the first session next Saturday, the 20th August, from 10am to 3pm. We have pencilled in the third Saturday of each following month for now and these dates will be absolutely confirmed soon.

Breeze Leeds Events Summer 2016

Submitted by Chris on

Great News!

Hot of the press, we can finally confirm the dates for this Summer's upcoming Breeze events... and this year we will be appearing at all but one of them (sorry Yeadon!)... WOW!

All these events take place at parks large and small across the city of leeds, starting in the last week of July. They come thick and fast after that until the end of August, so there's plenty to choose from, but of course we expect to see you coming to as many as you can!

Summer Reading Challenge 2016

Submitted by Chris on

Each summer in association with the Reading Agency, libraries and schools nationwide take part in the Summer Reading Challenge.

The SRC is an annual event dedicated to encouraging children, particularly 4 - 11 yr olds, to continue reading throughout the summer holidays. This can be a period where their interest and thus their reading development can take a significant turn, one which is not necessarily easily reversed when they go back to school in September.

Children's University Tournaments Arrive!

Submitted by Chris on

As I type we have just completed the first of three games tournament's as part of our on-going Games compendium project with Sheffield Children's University... and it was brilliant!

Today's event concentrated on Key Stage 2 pupils (7 - 11yr olds) from 10 schools across Sheffield, and in the coming weeks we have events for Key Stage 1 (5 - 7 yr olds) and Key Stage 3 (11 - 14 yr olds) pupils too!

IG Game Awards Launched

Submitted by Chris on

This week we have officially launched our 2015 Imagination Gaming Family & Education awards!

These awards are open to games from companies and individuals worldwide as we look to find the best of this years new games for families and education, as well as celebrate some of the 'classics' that we have been using to great effect in schools and events throughout the years.

Essen Spiel 2014 - Launching our 2015 Game Awards

Submitted by Chris on

This weekend Imagination Gaming is in Germany for Essen Spiel 2014. This is one of, if not 'the', largest  annual gaming convention in the world. Every year we spend four very hectic days looking for the newest and most excting games to add to our collection for use in our game events, and where possible, to make some very hard to get games available to you through our store!

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