Version 2.3.0 — Classroom-Ready Educational Strategy Game
A browser-based educational strategy game for 8th-grade U.S. History classrooms. Players command American, British, or Native Coalition forces across historically accurate theaters of the War of 1812, learning through gameplay and integrated knowledge checks.
🎮 Play Now: https://1812.mrbsocialstudies.org
- 68 Knowledge Check Questions covering causes, battles, leaders, and consequences
- ~31 Required Questions ensuring diverse perspectives (women, African Americans, Native peoples)
- African American History: Questions on Naval service, Colonial Marines, Battle of New Orleans, enslaved people seeking freedom
- Women's History: Questions on home front, manufacturing, Native women, flagmaking, Dolley Madison's political role
- Native Perspectives: Questions on Tecumseh's confederacy, Creek War, broken treaty promises, post-war displacement
- Event Cards with historical context, quiz questions, and game effects
- 20 Biographical Profiles with primary source quotes and "Did You Know?" facts
- 13 Game Leaders enriched with full biographies (Jackson, Perry, Tecumseh, Brock, de Salaberry, Black Hawk, etc.)
- 7 Additional Voices: Dolley Madison, Mary Pickersgill, Charles Ball, Laura Secord, Jean Lafitte, John Norton, Creek Women (composite)
- People Gallery — Full-page browsable gallery with faction filters
- People Panel — In-game sidebar panel with expandable bios and quotes
- Pre-Game Learning Mode — 10-section interactive timeline with cause/effect analysis, primary source excerpts, geographic context, and sequencing/matching activities
- "What Came Next" — Post-game section connecting the war to the Era of Good Feelings, Indian Removal, Manifest Destiny
- Intro Screen with faction-specific historical context for 8th graders
- Round-based timeline (12 rounds = 1812-1815)
- Knowledge rewards for correct answers (+troops or +nationalism)
- Turn Journal documenting major events
- Battle Statistics tracking student performance
- Geographic Map using Leaflet.js with real lat/lng coordinates
- Four Theaters: Great Lakes, Chesapeake, Southern, Maritime
- Faction-Specific Mechanics:
- U.S.: Nationalism meter boosts score
- British: Naval superiority on coastal territories
- Native Coalition: Early-war guerrilla bonus
- Leader Cards with unique abilities (Perry, Jackson, Tecumseh, Brock, etc.)
- Victory Conditions: Domination (75%+ territories), elimination, or treaty (12 rounds)
- Event — Historical event card with knowledge check
- Allocate — Deploy reinforcement troops
- Battle — Attack adjacent territories (Risk-style dice combat)
- Maneuver — Reposition forces
- Score — Calculate victory points
- Combat bonus cap (+2 max) prevents stacking exploits
- First strike deals fixed 1 damage (not auto-win)
- 50-point victory provides alternate win condition
- Faction multipliers reward strategic play
- AI difficulty uses force concentration and risk assessment
- ✅ Delete Classes — Teachers can delete classes (student data preserved as unassigned)
- ✅ Version Display — Version number visible on landing page, teacher dashboard, and teacher guide
- ✅ Hide Scores — Teachers can hide inappropriate or test scores from the public leaderboard
- ✅ Rename Students — Inline rename with display_name override (original name preserved)
- ✅ Move Students — Reassign students between classes or mark as unassigned
- ✅ Merge Duplicates — Auto-detect and merge duplicate student entries, consolidating all game data
- ✅ Manage Students Section — New dashboard section with student table, rename, move, and merge controls
- ✅ Google Sign-In — One-click teacher authentication (no more magic links or passwords)
- ✅ Firebase Backend — Migrated from Supabase to Firebase for always-on reliability (no more pausing after inactivity)
- ✅ Firestore — All data stored in Cloud Firestore (scores, quiz results, classes, teacher profiles)
- ✅ Teacher Dashboard Link — Direct link on landing page for easy teacher access
- ✅ Teacher Accounts — Google Sign-In authentication
- ✅ Class Management — Teachers create classes with shareable 6-character codes
- ✅ Student Linking — Students enter class code during onboarding or via direct link (
?class=CODE) - ✅ Isolated Dashboards — Each teacher sees only their own students' data
- ✅ Late Join — Students who forgot a code can enter it at score submission (retroactively links all data)
- ✅ Scoped Analytics — Quiz gate data and game scores filtered by class for teacher analytics
- ✅ Global Leaderboard — Unchanged; all students still appear regardless of class
- ✅ Pre-Game Quiz Tracking — Retry attempts per question tracked in Firestore
- ✅ Teacher Dashboard Analytics — Per-question breakdown with expandable student detail
- ✅ Quiz Gate CSV Export — Export quiz gate data for offline analysis
- ✅ 25 New Knowledge Checks — Canadian defense, frontier warfare, economic impacts, Colonial Marines, and diverse perspectives
- ✅ 12 New Event Cards — Chateauguay, Crysler's Farm, River Raisin, Beaver Dams, Colonial Marines, Fort Meigs, and more
- ✅ 2 New Leaders — Charles de Salaberry (British, +1 defense in Great Lakes) and Black Hawk (Native, +1 attack in Great Lakes)
- ✅ New Profile — De Salaberry biographical profile with primary sources and "Did You Know?"
- ✅ Expanded Coverage — Better content for mid-war (rounds 4-8) and late-war (rounds 8-12) periods
- ✅ Leader Balance — Now 4 US / 5 British / 4 Native leaders (was 4/4/3)
- ✅ Guided Onboarding Flow — 5-step guided experience: Name → Difficulty → Learning → Quiz → Faction
- ✅ AI Difficulty Levels — Learning (Easy), Balanced (Medium), Commander (Hard) with distinct AI behavior
- ✅ Pre-Game Quiz Gate — 8 comprehension questions with retry-until-correct and Explorer Mode variants
- ✅ Dedicated Name Entry — Commander name + class period on focused first screen with saved game access
- ✅ Difficulty Selection — AI difficulty cards + Explorer/Historian reading level toggle
- ✅ Teacher Skip Control —
?skip=learningURL parameter bypasses Learning Mode + Quiz Gate - ✅ Difficulty Tracking — Displayed on Teacher Dashboard with CSV export
- ✅ Bold Text Rendering — Markdown
**bold**now renders as proper bold text instead of showing asterisks - ✅ Explorer Mode Sizing — Larger text, more paragraph spacing, and max-width for readability on Chromebooks
- ✅ Inline Vocabulary — Tap vocab terms in Explorer Mode to see definitions in a tooltip
- ✅ Key Idea Callouts — Single-sentence takeaway at top of each Learning Mode section (Explorer only)
- ✅ Improved Content Flow — Did You Know moved above Key Terms in Explorer Mode
- ✅ Section 9 Sub-sections — Diverse Experiences split into African Americans, Women, Native Americans, Privateers
- ✅ IntroScreen Explorer Mode — Simplified campaign briefing text for Explorer Mode students
- ✅ Tutorial Explorer Mode — Simplified tutorial descriptions for Explorer Mode students
- ✅ Explorer Mode — Simplified 3rd-grade reading level for IEP and multilingual learner students
- ✅ Same Gameplay — All 5 phases, 12 rounds, same AI — only text changes in Explorer Mode
- ✅ Simplified Content — All knowledge checks, event cards, and 10 learning sections rewritten at 3rd-grade level
- ✅ OpenDyslexic Font Toggle — Dyslexic-friendly font available on faction select and in-game header
- ✅ Persistent Preferences — Font choice saved in localStorage, independent of game saves
- ✅ People of 1812 — 19 biographical profiles with primary sources, diverse perspectives
- ✅ People Gallery — Full-page browsable gallery accessible from main menu
- ✅ People Panel — In-game sidebar panel with expandable bios and quotes
- ✅ "What Came Next" — Post-game section linking the war to later American history
- ✅ Enhanced Learning Mode — Cause/effect analysis, primary source excerpts, geographic context, interactive activities
- ✅ 2 New Learning Sections — "Diverse Experiences" and "Geography of the War"
- ✅ Diverse Knowledge Checks — 7 questions promoted to required, 3 new questions added
- ✅ Teacher Guide — Full page at
#guidewith C3 standards alignment, facilitation tips, assessment ideas - ✅ Teacher Dashboard — Expanded with "Game Guide" summary section
- ✅ Versioning — In-app changelog with "What's New" UI
- ✅ Complete visual overhaul — Playfair Display, Crimson Text, war-ink/war-navy/war-gold palette
- ✅ Historian's Analysis — Dynamic endscreen commentary based on game outcome
- ✅ Leaderboard system — Landing page preview, full modal, victory badges, dedup
- ✅ Three victory types — Domination (75%+ territories), elimination, treaty
- ✅ AI Turn Replay — Bottom panel with pulsing territory highlights
- ✅ Victory Progress Bar — Always visible, color-coded progress
- ✅ Confirm Dialogs — Preview troop placements before committing
- ✅ Undo Button — Revert last action within same phase
- ✅ Auto-Save + Export/Import — Game state saved every phase change
- ✅ Error Recovery — Crashes show "Restore Last Save"
- ✅ Pre-Game Learning Mode — Interactive timeline teaching War of 1812 history
- ✅ AI Force Concentration + Risk Assessment — Smarter opponents
- 45-minute sessions: Students typically complete 8-12 rounds per class period
- Learning objectives: Aligned with 8th-grade U.S. History standards (C3 Framework)
- Assessment ready: Knowledge check scores track student comprehension
- Discussion prompts: Journal entries and "What Came Next" provide basis for class conversations
- Diverse perspectives: Required questions ensure exposure to women's, African American, and Native perspectives
- Modern web browser (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge)
- Internet connection for initial load (runs offline after caching)
- Devices: Desktop, laptop, tablet, or Chromebook
- No installation required (runs entirely in browser)
- Teacher Guide (
#guide) — C3 standards alignment, facilitation tips, assessment ideas, discussion questions, FAQ - Teacher Dashboard (
#teacher) — Sign in with Google, create classes with shareable codes, class-scoped analytics, score export, quiz gate analytics
📄 Teacher Quick Start Guide: See /docs/TEACHER_QUICK_START.md
- Frontend: React 19.2.4
- Maps: Leaflet.js 1.9.4 + react-leaflet 5.0.0
- Styling: Tailwind CSS 3.4.19
- Backend: Firebase (Google Auth, Firestore for leaderboard, class management, quiz gate analytics)
- Deployment: GitHub Pages + GitHub Actions CI/CD
- Build Tool: Create React App 5.0.1
- Node.js 18+ (Download)
- npm (comes with Node.js)
# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/shiebenaderet/warof1812.git
cd warof1812
# Install dependencies
npm install
# Start development server
npm startOpens at http://localhost:3000
# Create optimized build
npm run build
# Deploy to GitHub Pages
npm run deploy- Teacher Quick Start Guide — Setup, class codes, and facilitation guide
| Version | Date | Changes |
|---|---|---|
| 2.2.1 | Mar 2026 | Delete Classes & Version Display: Delete classes with data preservation, version number on all pages. |
| 2.2.0 | Mar 2026 | Student Management & Leaderboard Moderation: Hide scores from leaderboard, inline student rename, move between classes, merge duplicate entries, new Manage Students dashboard section. |
| 2.1.0 | Mar 2026 | Firebase Migration: Google Sign-In for teachers, migrated from Supabase to Firebase (always-on free tier), Firestore for all data, teacher dashboard link on landing page. |
| 2.0.0 | Feb 2026 | Class Code System: Teacher accounts, class management with shareable codes, student linking via code or direct URL, isolated teacher dashboards, late-join support, scoped analytics. |
| 1.7.0 | Feb 2026 | Quiz Gate Analytics: Pre-game quiz retry tracking, Teacher Dashboard analytics section with per-question breakdown and expandable student detail, Quiz Gate CSV export, session ID linking for future cross-analysis. |
| 1.6.0 | Feb 2026 | Content Expansion: 25 new knowledge checks, 12 new event cards, 2 new leaders (de Salaberry, Black Hawk), expanded mid-war and late-war content coverage, new biographical profile. |
| 1.5.0 | Feb 2026 | Onboarding Redesign & AI Difficulty: 5-step guided onboarding flow, AI difficulty levels (Easy/Medium/Hard), pre-game quiz gate with 8 questions, teacher-controlled learning skip, difficulty tracking. |
| 1.4.1 | Feb 2026 | Reading Improvements: Bold text rendering, larger Explorer Mode text, inline vocabulary tooltips, Key Idea callouts, IntroScreen/Tutorial Explorer variants, Section 9 sub-sections. |
| 1.4.0 | Feb 2026 | Accessibility & Inclusion: Explorer Mode (3rd-grade reading level for IEP/ML students), OpenDyslexic font toggle, simplified text for all 43 knowledge checks, 29 event cards, 10 learning sections. |
| 1.3.0 | Feb 2026 | Pedagogical Improvements: People of 1812 profiles (19 bios with primary sources), What Came Next post-game section, enhanced Learning Mode (cause/effect, geography, activities), Teacher Guide page, expanded knowledge checks for diverse perspectives, versioning system. |
| 1.2.0 | Feb 2026 | War Room Cartography: Complete design overhaul, victory conditions (domination/elimination/treaty), historian's analysis, leaderboard preview + full modal, AI turn replay bottom panel with map highlighting, 10 bug fixes. |
| 1.1.0 | Feb 2026 | Learning Mode: Pre-game interactive timeline, guided notes, critical reinforcement bug fix. |
| 1.0.0 | Feb 2026 | Phase 2C: Victory progress, confirm dialogs, error recovery, required knowledge checks, women's history. |
| 0.3.0 | Feb 2026 | Phase 2B: Zoom-based font scaling, brighter colors, AI improvements, African American history. |
| 0.2.0 | Jan 2026 | Leaflet geographic map, auto-fit zoom, brighter faction colors. |
| 0.1.0 | Jan 2026 | Initial release — hexagonal map, event card quizzes, tutorial, leaderboard. |
This is an educational project for 8th-grade classrooms. Contributions welcome for:
- Historical accuracy improvements
- Accessibility enhancements
- Bug fixes
- Additional knowledge check questions
- Lesson plan materials
Please open an issue before submitting major pull requests.
Educational use only. Not for commercial distribution.
- Historical Consultants: War of 1812 content reviewed by history educators
- Playtesting: 8th-grade students at [school name pending]
- Technology: Built with React, Leaflet, Tailwind CSS, and Firebase
- Claude Code: AI pair programming assistant
For classroom implementation questions or bug reports:
- Issues: GitHub Issues
- Email: [Add contact email]
Current Status: ✅ v2.2.1 Complete — Ready for Classroom Pilot
Next Milestone: Classroom Pilot (Target: March 2026)