The Third Floor – the legendary location where gaming is taken to new heights – is where founder, Michael Matera, created USM’s Game Club. The Club took off right away with continued high attendance by enthusiastic students learning strategy and critical thinking while having a great time. Three years ago, Thirdfloor Gamers took The Club to a new level by creating summer camps to keep students’ skills and interests rolling during the break. The camps have been highly successful, selling out within weeks of open registration. Students enjoy the week-long fun and parents are confident in the educationally rich environment that focuses on skill building, constructive dialogue, and creative problem solving.
The dynamic Third Floor Team:
Michael Matera AKA the Gamer Guy – Michael has been a strategy guru for years, a skill that has served him well in the classroom and as the host of weekly game nights for adults and game clubs for the shorter set. He has been a classroom teacher for 8 years now and has really enjoyed his current position at University School of Milwaukee teaching 6th grade world History and an 8th grade elective called Diplomacy. Games have not always been apart of Mr. Matera’s life. He loved playing them as a kid but always found it hard to find partners to play against. He moved into playing video games due to their highly independent nature. Always longing to play people directly, look them in the eye and see what strategies could be forged out in an evening. It wasn’t long before he diciede to give gaming with his students a try. Back in 2006, Mr. Matera tried two games with his students, Settlers of Catan, and Ticket to Ride. They were both a huge hit with the students. Shortly after discovering this he moved to the USM community where he tackled this new idea of a game club head on. Coming up with new ideas like: this website, video reviews, podcasts, tournaments, Skype interviews with game designers and more.
Thirdfloorgamers summer camps have become the highlight of Mr. Matera’s year. He enjoys hosting, teaching and playing with the gamers at these camps. We have had a wonderful experience over the years and look forward to offering these camps for many years to come.
Michael Voulo AKA The Brains-
Growing through adolescence and into adulthood, Michael was able to gain exposure to more and more computer, card, board, and strategy games, in large part on account of his friendship with Mr. Matera. Many a malt and frozen pizza were consumed over countless hours spent gaming. While not always, or even often victorious, Michael relished his chances to hatch and test new (and in hindsight ill-advised) strategies.
A love of history and education drove Michael into teaching. He currently teaches history and government at Kettle Moraine High School in Wales, Wisconsin. He enjoys working each day with students to help them gain an appreciation for, and understanding of, the shared human experience that is history.
As fate would have it, circumstances would bring Michael and Michael together again.
During the summer of 2011, Michael had the opportunity to take part in a Stay Sharp summer camp and he was hooked. The opportunity to tie strategic thinking, history, and education in a dynamic setting represented what Michael could only describe as, “the best way I could spend my summer.” He looks forward to the chance to work with new and experienced gamers as they strategize and learn from the games that they play.
Heidi Vrankin Matera AKA the Backbone
A convert to the board gaming world, Heidi brings over eight years of work experience in educational programming and training. She learns best by “doing” which makes her a strong advocate for communication and skill building through board games. Heidi’s focus with Thirdfloorgamers is to create engaging marketing materials that inform students and parents about educational opportunities. She also provides logistical support during the summer game camps, which includes the secret recipe for the famous snack time rice crispy treats.
Mila Rose Matera – AKA The BOSS
While Mila has only been with the team for a bit more than a year, she has had a dramatic impact on the entire operation. Mila brings many talents to the team by clearly exerting herself and her ideas at nearly every planning session. She is particularly interested in the colorful game boards and chewable pieces. Mila is an early riser, ready to tackle to problems of today head first, especially in the days before she started walking. For fun, Mila loves to dance and enjoys imaginary cooking, especially while watching Jamie Oliver’s cooking show on Netflix. She looks forward to greater opportunities for game testing with the Team in the future once she master’s her hand-eye coordination.
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Contact us at: summercamps@thirdfloorgamers.com
