Just last summer, Constitution Quest was only an idea in the minds of Temecula couple Pam and David Barret, local career educators.
Over the fall and winter, the Barrets studied, brainstormed, sketched and researched, turning their Harveston home into ground zero for a board game that aims to make learning about the U.S. Constitution downright fun.
Murrieta resident Joel Barret, the couple's son, also helped create the game. The 31-year-old Murrieta Valley High alumnus and reserve officer in the Army National Guard received a master's degree in theology from Fuller Theological Seminary and works at Abbott Laboratories in Irvine.
In April, Pam and David Barret took a leap of faith and manufactured 2,500 copies of Constitution Quest ---- even paying extra to produce and package the order in Riverside County as opposed to overseas, where it would have been cheaper to make.
"We couldn't have the Constitution of the United States made in China," David Barret said.
If early sales are any indication, their investment may pay off. In a three-month span, they've sold 600 games at regional home-school conventions and online, they said.
What's more, customers report that they love playing it, the Barrets said.
"We are just thrilled," Pam Barret said. "I would love to get it in as many hands as possible. Our goal is constitutional literacy."
David Barret said their efforts aren't just about fun and games.
"The more people who know the Constitution, the better our country will be," he said. "It was the blueprint to our greatness, and I think sometimes we take it for granted and have let it get dusty. Now is the time to wipe it clean and shine the light on it."
The Barrets, who have been married for 33 years and have five children, said they have a passion for educating children and promoting literacy.
Pam Barret, 56, was named the National Right to Read Foundation Teacher of the Year in 1998. She taught at Tovashal Elementary in Murrieta for nearly a decade and has worked as an education consultant, instructing teachers on how best to impart lessons.
David Barret, 55, has taught for three decades, including as a special education teacher at Chaparral High in Temecula since 1997. As the school's longtime varsity baseball coach, he connected athletes with his special education students for peer tutoring and role-model opportunities.
The couple said that as they neared retirement, they wanted to find a way to keep their hands in education. They tossed around ideas for a board game on geography or the presidents, but in the end settled on the Constitution for many reasons.
Since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, there has been a renewed passion among Americans to learn about and promote the ideals of the Founding Fathers, they said.
Also, knowledge about the document is sorely lacking, they said.
The Barrets cited a study released in January by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute that found that among thousands surveyed ---- including many elected officials ---- "fewer than half could correctly answer such basic questions as 'Who can declare war?' and 'What are the three branches of government?'"
The Barrets said they took care to ensure that the game was unbiased and straightforward. The only source documents used to create the game's questions are the Constitution and Bill of Rights, copies of which are included in each game.
"It's not a right or left game," David Barret said.
Constitution Quest teaches about the document so people can truly understand the U.S. government and how it should operate, based on how the Founding Fathers saw fit, he said.
The game costs $49.95, and Pam Barret said the price is right.
"I've seen Monopoly sell for that, and our game ---- it's content, it's curriculum," she said.
It's also fun to play, the Barrets said, noting that it's not simply a bunch of multiple-choice and true-false questions. There are detours, go-back spaces, double-points opportunities and other aspects to draw out players' competitive nature.
At least one local student who can vouch for that is Bethany Bilton, 18, who took the game to her Advanced Placement government class at Murrieta Valley High last spring. Bilton said she and her peers used it to study for their AP exam.
"It's exciting, it's fun," she said. "Most students don't want to learn just out of books."
For more information, visit www.constitutionquest.com.