Do you think we can learn from video games? Minecraft is a game that allows kids to explore building, physics, and community! Minecraft: Education Edition is an open-world game that promotes creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving in an immersive environment where the only limit is your imagination. Minecraft: Education Edition is a game-based learning platform that offers educators a digital way to engage students and ignite their passion for learning! The open learning environment gives students the freedom to experiment, encouraging creative self-expression and problem-solving. Explore how video games can be a powerful tool for teaching and student engagement.
Minecraft: Education Edition offers special features for educators such as easy tutorials, classroom management tools, secure sign-in, classroom collaboration and tons of sample lessons, plus a global network of mentors and tech support. Educators are using Minecraft as a digital teaching tool for a range of subjects, from history and chemistry to sustainability and foreign languages, and can map lessons directly to specific learning outcomes and curriculum standards. The San Juan Math, Science & Technology center in Puerto Rico is using Minecraft: Education Edition for a new level of engagement among their students. The school decided to integrate the digital platform into their curriculum, and have seen exciting results through game-based learning.
Educators visiting the Minecraft: Education Edition community site will find existing lesson plans on pixel art, grid paper to plan student work, and even a Minecraft world set up as a blank canvas for students to engage in creative expression. These materials are distributed to the students, and the crafting begins. Spatial thinking and pixel art in Minecraft create an excellent opportunity for students to work on mathematics and visual arts objectives in an engaging environment. For this pixel-art lesson, students turn in not only screenshots from their Minecraft creation but also their grid diagram from their plans. Additionally, pixel art is a medium that’s engaging to students and one that allows educators to take their first steps with the game without being the expert.
New Zealand game designer and founder of Piki Studios, Whetu Paitai, created a special Minecraft world called NGĀ MOTU – THE ISLANDS to immerse young people in Māori culture. The project shows how the digital and interdisciplinary world of Minecraft can bring to life indigenous culture and build social-emotional skills, as students work together to explore their country’s national language and history. Learn about the indigenous culture of the Māori people, from Te Reo (language) to architecture, arts, and economics. Use this comprehensive lesson plan, which includes objectives, video, and glossary, to accompany the Ngā Motu world. Teach students letters, greetings, and pronunciation, and explore the significance of place on cultural development
Immerse your classroom in Te Ao Māori with NGĀ MOTU – THE ISLANDS now available for all versions of Minecraft: Education Edition. The world resembles the New Zealand ecosystem, complete with moa and kiwi. Learn about the indigenous language, culture, and people of Aotearoa (New Zealand). Explore a traditional pā (settlement) and ride waka hourua (boats). For the full experience visit NGĀ MOTU – THE ISLANDS! Find easy teacher training tutorials, a downloadable world, and lessons across subject areas from humanities to maths, from language arts to art. Developed by Piki studios, a small whānau game design, and publishing company, based in Aotearoa. They focus on developing beautiful, meaningful content and resources immersed in the Māori world.
Millions of teachers and students use Minecraft: Education Edition in 115 countries. The digital game-based learning platform is changing the way teachers see video games and making learning more fun. A major supporter of the online community of teachers trying to bring Minecraft into schools is Stephen Elford. A teacher at Numurkah Secondary College that has spent years integrating the game into his classes to engage students in a different kind of learning. He co-authored a book with teachers from around the world titled “Minecraft in the Classroom.” From recorded lessons to standalone tutorials on his YouTube channel, he shares his journey in the following Ted Talk, explaining how student engagement has gone through the roof by incorporating Minecraft: Education Edition in his lessons.