Black Entrepreneur and Game Developer On Creating Educational Joy For All

WITS = What Is The Sentence?

As a Black entrepreneur, I remembered that as a teen in high school that I had seen many of my Black classmates struggle with language arts. Because of this, I decided to create a word game that is challenging yet simple to play and fun for all literacy levels.

As an experienced Black game developer and small business owner, I also wanted a game that could enhance many areas of brain function.

Why a game? Science has shown that playing relevant games can dramatically enhance and speed up learning. I wanted my game to improve literacy skills for Black youth and compensate for some of the educational shortcomings in inner city school systems.

The game I developed, WITS (What Is The Sentence?), removes the barriers most commonly associated with word games (spelling and language proficiency) and enables players to construct sentences based on their own unique vocabulary and language understandings.

As an oral language activity, WITS challenges students to use what they know about the workings of English to construct grammatically correct sentences.

Literacy Card Game for the Whole Family

WITS is a card game that can be adapted for ages 5-Adult. Basically, a player is dealt from three to seven “Letter Cards” along with an “Action Card” that gives a category that must be included in the sentence.

For instance, if your cards are A, G, R, T, P and the Action Card says, “Your sentence must include an animal,” your sentence might be “Anteaters Race Grumpy Pink Tigers” or “Purple Giraffes Are Really Tall” or “Raccoons Trap Plump Great Apes.”

There is a timer and the other players may challenge you with their own sentences if you fail to say a sentence before the timer runs out. Thus, all players are continually engaged.

Having Fun with Literacy

Playing WITS will help participants create grammatically correct, and often hilarious, sentences while having fun together. It develops creativity, quick thinking, vocabulary and grammar skills that are much needed in inner city school systems.

The “Action Cards” include various parts of speech such as adjectives, prepositions, proper nouns, etc. or a category, such as an animal, plant, fruit, etc.

To earn points, a player must create a legitimate sentence that includes a word described by the action card. Since success does not depend on a particular reading level, players with widely diverse abilities can enjoy the game together while learning more about sentence construction.

Parents and Teachers Unite

As a Black small business owner, I wanted to expand the reach of my game. To do this, I created a school curriculum for grades one through five designed specifically for inner city students.

It includes a Parent Guide to go along with the classroom lessons in the Teacher Guide. I have seen how positively children react to the game and hope that it will provide a way for teachers to engage their students more easily in writing and grammar.

WITS is also an ideal family game, as all ages can easily play and laugh together. Playing a game is a great way for busy families to bond and make powerful and lasting positive memories.

Parents today are burdened with stress and so are many children, especially those in inner city schools. Laughter relieves stress and creates a much-needed positive mood.

WITS can fit into nearly any time frame since each round takes only a few minutes. It can be used to start the day on a happy note or as a stress reliever in the evening.

Here is a full list of educational games offered by SFM Intl. that both kids, teachers, and parents all love: 

What is the Sentence (WITS)

What Is the Sentence? (WITS) has been developed around the notion that fun and education go hand in hand. When people are actively engaged in game play, they experience better skill mastery and retention as they have fun discovering relationships in their learning.

Our game features dynamic, interactive game play among players of all ages, keeping them engaged and helping them make connections between grammar skills and everyday spoken language.

Players gain new language skills, practice skills they’ve learned, and enhance their skills through listening to the language of other players.

Through the fun of game play, learning becomes active in their lives. Take a look at the example above on how to play the game.

What is the Scripture

What is the Scripture is the quick thinking game that inspires Bible reading and tests your Bible knowledge and English skills.

Players accumulate points when they successfully use letter cards to develop sentences about a Biblical topic or person. After they have completed their sentence they then earn additional points if the can say where the scripture is located that pertains to their sentence.

Each player gets 45 seconds to complete the action card and say the Bible scripture.

2 Ways

2-Ways challenges players move their capture pieces into an opponent’s Capture zone while blocking their opponent’s advance by moving their block pieces into their Capture zone.

This simple yet challenging game promotes spatial reasoning and advance planning.

What is the Sentence Dice

What is the Sentence Dice is the travel version of What Is The Sentence. It is perfect to play at home or on the road. Players create a sentence out of letters shown on the dice rolled.

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For more information on each game and the creator, Sherry Martin, go to .