During the first stage of implementing simulations into a classroom lesson, the teacher needs to give an overview of the broad topic and/or concepts that the unit or activity covers (Joyce et al., 2009). By doing this, the students will have a better understanding of why they are engaged in the simulation, and they will start to develop an expectation of the types of learning that will come from the activity.
After understanding how and why they will be working within a simulation, students move onto the third stage of implementation, which is actually engaging with the simulation itself. During this stage, the students are working within the simulation, and the teacher assumes his/her different roles as an explainer, referee, coach, and discusser (Joyce et al., 2009).
The second step to implementing simulations into the curriculum is for the teacher to set up the scenario. During this step, the teacher explains how the simulation works, including any rules, roles, or procedures the students need to know before the activty begins (Joyce, et al., 2009). Essentially, during this stage, the teacher's job is to make sure the students understand how the simulation will work.
When the simulation is finished, the students and teacher engage in the final, and possibly most important, step of implementation: Debriefing. During this stage, the teacher engages the students in a reflective discussion where the students share their thoughts and perceptions on the simulation, relate it to course content, and compare it to real-world events and concepts (Joyce et al., 2009). During this stage, the student contextualizes the events of the simulation, and start to analyze new knowledge that came from it.