Many people have heard of Rube Goldberg and the extraordinarily complicated devices he would create to perform what would ordinarily be a simple task.

Now there’s a neat online game from PBS called Goldburger To Go that lets players create their own online Rube Goldberg device.

I’ve had students design their creations on paper as part of learning about Science, and developing a virtual one only adds to the educational value. I’ve posted a link to the game on my website under Word and Video Games, along with a “Walkthrough.” However, there’s a lot of language development that can happen even without English Language Learners using that walkthrough. It’s accessible to Early Intermediate English Language Learners.

I also have a link to the game, along with links to other Rube Goldberg sites, on my mainstream Science page under “Rube Goldberg.”