Cave Writings

Cave Writings is a location and an activity in JumpStart 2nd Grade. It is accessed by clicking on the 'Cave Writings' button on the elevator. It is designed to teach visual discrimination and language arts skills for second grade.

Characters

 * CJ
 * Edison
 * Arvin

Premise
CJ and Edison descend into the JumpStart Caves to decode cryptic messages.

Description
Before the player can reach the caves where the writings are located, they must solve a riddle from the cave keeper, Arvin the caterpillar. Arvin will ask a multiple-choice question related to biology. The player must select the correct answer to cross Arvin's bridge to the caves.

Once inside the caves, the player must decode a word on the rock wall. Words are written in either Braille, American Sign Language, or Larvaic (language of the larvae). The arrow near the bottom right of the rock wall changes the key on the wall. There are three keys for deciphering the three languages. The player should find the key that correlates to the writings on the wall.

Once the player has the right key, they must translate the word by matching each of the symbols to a letter of the English alphabet. The player must click and drag the letters, and drop them beneath the symbols to spell out a word.

Riddles
Answers are in bold.


 * You are an insect and you want to dance--how many legs in this circumstance?
 * three, six, twenty, eight


 * A spider can have quite a speedy run--how many legs crawl the web she spun?
 * nine, eight, two, none


 * Which one of these would you congratulate--on its fine ability to hibernate?
 * orangutan, worm, bear, dog


 * I'm not talking mammal or reptilian, the one I'm looking for is amphibian!
 * frog, boa constrictor, alligator, bald eagle


 * Three lay eggs, not all make a nest--which one of these is different than the rest?
 * snake, toad, monkey, dinosaur


 * Though all creatures are strong in their way, one of these could toss you like a bundle of hay.
 * ant, chipmunk, gazelle, elephant


 * He doesn't say meow, he doesn't pitter pat--which one of these is not a big cat?
 * jaguar, tiger, wolf, panther
 * Error: The panther doesn't really look like a panther at all, since it seems to have spots like a leopard. The panther is a spotless cat that is one and same with the mountain lion.


 * One of these might not smell the best--but our concern is much taller than the rest?
 * giraffe, skunk, raccoon, rattlesnake
 * Error: Rattlesnake is misspelled as "rattle snake" and raccoon is misspelled as "racoon."


 * These are all big cats it's quite plain--but which is known for its hairy mane?
 * house cat, bobcat, lion, puma


 * If we were racing these four at top speed-- who would be the winner--guaranteed?
 * cheetah, rabbit, fox, turtle
 * Error: The shelled reptile is called a turtle, but it should be "terrapin"; true turtles are sea turtles.


 * He sleeps upside down when he doesn't fly--what blind creature is in the night sky?
 * cougar, bat, king cobra, zebra
 * Error: Bats are not blind at all since their eyes are just very small and have sensitive vision. Plus, the term "blind as a bat" is just a figure of speech.


 * Birds are feathered and fly all around--but this odd sort lives only on the ground.
 * hummingbird, pigeon, kiwi, duck


 * Some peck, some gobble, and some may coo, this one swims, and very well too.
 * penguin, chicken, turkey, dove


 * The world is full of odd creatures if you bother to look--but one of these you'll find only in a book.
 * manatee, hippopotamus, toucan, unicorn


 * Each of these animals is quite distinct--but which one of them is long extinct?
 * cricket, crocodile, baboon, Stegosaurus
 * Error: Stegosaurus should be italicized and capitalized.


 * Upon closer look (we call that inspect) one of these jokers is not an insect.
 * praying mantis, beetle, termite, octopus


 * Show me the part where you'd find the heart.
 * feet, legs, head, chest


 * In order to function in their proper capacity the lungs have to be in this exact cavity.
 * legs, head, chest, ankle


 * I'm told there's a joint between the foot and the leg please tell me what it is--or I must beg?
 * ankle, tennis shoes, knees, head


 * To feel hot or cold requires no decision--how to measure temperature with any precision?
 * bucket, thermometer, clock, ruler


 * All these came from a tree--but which one weighs the most heavily?
 * piece of paper, pencil, axe, log


 * This one's tough--I must tell--but which one of these hatched from an eggshell?
 * boar, alligator, killer whale, koala bear


 * There's more than one that has a tail that goes swish, but tell me my dear--which one is a fish?
 * squid, pelican, sperm whale, swordfish


 * When you hear a baby scream you might say "ouch!"--which one of these carries a baby in a pouch?
 * kangaroo, chimpanzee, queen bee, deer


 * If a bear were hungry and ready to eat--which animal here would be the likely treat?
 * gorilla, salmon, wasp, horse


 * The water he carries isn't canned, but in his hump in case it's drier than he planned.
 * squirrel, buffalo, mouse, camel
 * Error: The camel's hump doesn't store water, but fat. The water it drank is located in the camel's bloodstream.


 * Which one has many legs and rarely sings? He'll end his life with six legs and two wings.
 * swan, butterfly, centipede, scorpion


 * She spends a while buzzing from hive to flower--do you know about her honey-making power?
 * bee, grizzly bear, panda bear, jellyfish
 * Error: Jellyfish is misspelled as "jelly fish."


 * He's a tall bird you know and Africa's where he's found and when he's scared, he pokes his head in the ground.
 * swallow, ostrich, cockatoo, parrot
 * Error: Ostriches don't poke their heads in the ground because they wouldn't be able to breathe. It's likely that the myth came is when an ostrich lower its neck to the ground to feed, its head seems to disappear from sight.


 * This bird wasn't pretty nor too bright, and on top of this it lacked the power of flight.
 * sparrow, peacock, dodo, cardinal
 * Error: Peacock isn't the right term for both genders of colorful bird, since it's "peafowl." "Peacock" only refers to the males and "peahen" refers to the females.


 * A reptile is cool and slithers at will--which one of these doesn't fit the bill?
 * chameleon, iguana, hamster, gecko


 * It's true warm-blooded creatures can be found in the sea--but one of these things doesn't look like a mammal to me.
 * dog, porpoise, lobster, antelope


 * A reptile's got cold blood, and a leathery skin, can you see which one here might fit in?
 * llama, ox, moose, tortoise


 * You might think he's a prickly thug--but there's really no way you could call him a bug.
 * fly, porcupine, flea, cockroach


 * Some birds you could imagine eating a steak or maybe a mouse but one of these birds seem to belong right in the house.
 * parakeet, owl, falcon, condor


 * You'll meet fish in the sea, sometimes on the sand--but one of these really belongs on dry land.
 * piranha, sheep, hammerhead shark, catfish


 * As a clue to where this mammal's at it's the only thing here you could ever call fat.
 * walrus, dragonfly, centipede, barracuda


 * Some of these are found in black, brown or cream but only one gets to choose her color scheme.
 * goat, chameleon, donkey, mule


 * You might like the sound (but I find it no good) when this rascally fellow knocks on wood.
 * otter, canary, carp, woodpecker


 * Three of these are reptiles known for bulk and size--the other's known for milk (which we homogenize).
 * Allosaurus, Iguanodon, pterodactyl, cow
 * Error: Allosaurus and Iguanodon should be italicized and capitalized, while the latter is misspelled as "iguanadon." "Pterodactyl" is not correct to refer all flying reptiles since that's a specific pterosaur family; "pterosaur" is the right term for all flying reptiles. While it's true only cows produce milk, the general name for both cows and bulls is "cattle."


 * Dryness is what you would gain if you brought this along when it looked like rain.
 * pocket knife, ball of string, umbrella, tricycle


 * To locate the liquid out of these four remember a liquid's something you pour.
 * orange juice, iceberg, diamond, tree


 * Which of these isn't living--who knows? Remember a living thing usually grows
 * oak tree, poison ivy, gold, clam


 * If you took a magnet on a little trip--which one of these would it certainly grip?
 * tire, paper, paper clip, rubber ball


 * After winter things start to grow--what is the season that has the melting snow?
 * summer, fall, spring, winter


 * After summer the season is mellow--leaves change color from green to yellow.
 * summer, fall, spring, winter


 * Before spring things can be slow during this season that's covered in snow.
 * summer, fall, spring, winter


 * Before fall the season is sunny and hot--there's vacation and picnics and you're outdoors a lot.
 * summer, fall, spring, winter

Difficulty level differences

 * Level 1 (Scout): The player must spell words up to six letters long.
 * Level 2 (Explorer): The player must spell words up to ten letters long.
 * Level 3 (Trailblazer): The player must spell words up to twelve letters long.

Digital manual description
Step into the underground world of the JumpStart Caves and decode the secret messages. First, you must cross the bridge guarded by the Cave Keeper, a real cool caterpillar named Arvin. Arvin asks multiple choice word problems about animals. You must answer correctly to pass.

At the bridge, solve Arvin's riddle by clicking on the correct answer.

Click on alphabet sign to follow CJ and Edison into the cave!

Playing The Decoder

CJ helps us to identify the clues Edison hides using magical fairy dust. Rotate the decoder so that the symbols match those in the coded message. Then match the letters and signs to reveal the word!


 * Click on the Arrow near the bottom right of the decoder panel to change the language to match the secret message. You can choose from American Sign Language, Larvaic or Braille.
 * Click on the letter below the symbol on the panel to pick it up. Then, drag the letter to the empty space below the matching character in the decoder.
 * Click again to place it in the space.
 * When you complete a word, Edison will create a new message for you to decode.
 * Click the Green Arrow to return to the elevator.

Levels

1. Scout: up to six-letter words such as:

bud

muddy

jaw

nail

spell

bounce

cold

bowl

short

2. Explorer: up to ten-letter words such as:

friendly

morning

divided

sandal

weather

surprise

talking

screamed

yesterday

3. Trailblazer: up to twelve-letter words such as:

alphabetize

consonant

environment

camera

geometry

prediction

seventh

violin

measurement

Educational and Developmental Benefits

The decoder emphasizes visual discrimination and reinforces reading and spelling skills. Specific skills involved are sentence structure, word problems, deducing, basic logic and recognizing patterns.