MinecraftEdu at Allison Union

Today the Grade 4s at Alliston Union had their first go with MinecraftEdu. It took some time to get the program loaded on all the computers but once the students were in you could hear the excitement as they explored together.

One of the best activities for getting started is to have the students try the tutorial world (which can be found in the MinecraftEdu launcher). The students can play independently or you can start the server and load the tutorial world.

This tutorial will walk you through how to start the server with the tutorial world:

MinecraftEdu Pilot Inquiry Begins!

Today a group of passionate students and teachers came together to share their learning. The goal of our day was to understand more about how the engaging game of Minecraft can be used in the classroom. The students were showing teachers and administrators how to play the game as they worked on a challenge to build their dream learning environment. Soon they were not only showing all the adults how to play but they were guiding them through the game! The students were the Minecraft experts and the educators were asking lots of questions. Knowing how Minecraft works helps to understand what is possible in the game and how it can be used for creation and making thinking visible.

By the end of the day, educators were inspired to use Minecraft for learning. Lots of resources were shared that have been created by other educators to be used in the classroom. We also started talking about and designing our own engaging learning experiences that explored mathematics, social studies, character, collaboration, critical thinking and digital citizenship.

The students and the educators all took risks today and that made all the difference in the world. We were co-learners and together our learning was much deeper. Teachers were experiencing being a learner alongside their students and how this can transform the learning culture in the classroom.

Thank you to all of the students - you made a big impact today!

The educators who participated today were given the opportunity to use the MinecraftEdu program in their classrooms. We will be working closely with the IT department to set MinecraftEdu up in their schools and test how the server will work. We will update you as we learn more!

Minecraft and Explain Everything at Andrew Hunter

How can you build the perfect community in Minecraft? This was the question that the Grade 3s at Andrew Hunter were challenged with as they started their new social studies inquiry. Working in partners or small groups, the students could be heard asking each other questions and discussing what they would include in their build. At times they didn’t always agree but we saw this as an opportunity to pause and talk about digital citizenship. Our conversations about what makes a good digital citizen and the connects to what makes a good citizen in the real world fit naturally into our discussion about communities. 

As students were creating we often paused to remind them to take a screenshot. This was important because we had purposefully built time into the activity to have the students reflect on what they were doing and describe what they were learning about. At the end of the build time we had students import their photos into Explain Everything and describe what they were doing. Here is an example created by one of the students:

After the students created their screencast in the Explain Everything app we had them share their video with a classmate. Our aim was to give feedback to each other but looking back I would skip this step as we had not given them enough instruction on how to give descriptive peer to peer feedback. We were much more successful when we invited all the students to the carpet and shared a few of the videos as a group. We discussed the elements that would make a great community and added them to our anchor chart. The resulting discussion had students making the comments we wanted to hear as many wanted to go back and add to their Minecraft creation.  

Minecraft Readings

A couple books I picked up to read over the summer...

Teachercraft: How Teachers Learn to Use Minecraft in Their Classrooms by Sean Dikkers.

Teacher Craft is about how teachers learn to use new digital media. Teacher learning is central to reform and change across subject areas and age levels, but how much do we really know about how teachers learn to try new lessons in classrooms? Minecraft is currently the game of choice for millions of youth and also for these seventeen teachers who claim it has transformed their classrooms. Its rapid adoption also provides a unique window of opportunity to look inside the recent memory of innovative teachers and unpack how they learned. Why did they pick Minecraft? More importantly, how did they pick Minecraft? Where did they hear about it? Who do they trust for ideas? How do they test new ideas? Can we begin to identify the trajectories of truly innovative teachers? It turns out, we can - and it may not be what you'd expect.  (From the back of the book)

An Educator's Guide to Using Minecraft® in the Classroom: Ideas, inspiration, and student projects for teachers > Ideas, inspiration, and student projects for teachers.

Inquiry into Early Societies

For the last few weeks the grade 4s have been learning about early societies. Kris and I used the following two questions to frame our inquiry:

• Why are early societies important to learn about?
• How similar and different was the life in early societies from the way we live today?

Through discussion with the students we decided to create a comparison of early societies and the way we live today in Minecraft. The students researched into Medieval Times, Ancient Greece and Ancient Egypt. As they began building their communities in Minecraft many questions came up around materials that were used to build houses and create tools. I heard kids talking back and forth about design and if that was historically accurate. I overheard two students talking about whether they would build a library. Asking each other if they had libraries back then, if they had books, what they were made out of and who would own them. They decided to do a bit more research and then started talking about who would know how to read, what they would read and how that impacted their lives.

At the end of the three days the students had to work on their builds, they took me on guided tours explaining their constructed society and comparing it to the community they live in. In the end they came to the conclusion that kids from back then were not that different than them in what they needed: to have a home and be happy. They were particularly concerned that many of the kids from ancient societies didn’t have the opportunity to go to school.

MinecraftEdu: Tech, Engagement, Purpose.

The next step in our Minecraft pilot is to set up MinecraftEdu. To do this we have been working closely with our IT department, who have downloaded the game and set it up to work on the school network. A very helpful Mike has helped troubleshoot too!

With the technology in place we focused our attention on the learning. This all begins with student engagement and using their excitement for the game as an advantage. The activities we plan need to be fun and linked to an academic purpose at the same time. We do this by designing lessons that have clear learning goals but are also open for kids to do what they do best: play the game, imagine, problem solve and create!

Our First Challenge: Minecraft + Fractions

Today in Grade 4 at West Bayfield we started off by reviewing our expectations for playing MinecraftPE on the iPads. Then we used Google Hangouts to connect with Scott McKenzie’s Grade 3/4 at New Dundee Public School.

Google Hangout with New Dundee PS

Scott and his students shared examples of ways they use Minecraft in their learning and

answered our questions. His students then challenged the grade 4s with their first creation task in Minecraft. 

They asked us: How many ways can you show fractions in your world?

Scott and I had discussed this idea pervious to our classroom Hangout. His advice was to give students a clear goal and task as this helps to keep the play focused on learning.

We said goodbye to our new friends and the Grade 4s got right to work building with a partner. We decided that after each example was finished the paired students would switch who was holding the iPad and building. As they finished an example, the students took a screenshot of their work (by pressing the home button and power button at the same time) and added the pictures to their Google Drive.

Screenshot of student work

 It was interesting listening to the students use math vocabulary as they were building. One pair was discussing how they were going to figure out the fraction and so they added the stone blocks on the side to help. Another pair was talking about how they knew the orange was 1/4 because the pieces were the same size. I even heard two students discussing how they could show fractions in the new house they had just built (complete with a fenced yard and pool!).

As students were sharing with each other at the end of the lesson, it was very clear from their energy that they were proud of their creations. One student told me: “Minecraft makes learning math fun!” This was awesome to hear as it linked back to one of our goals to promote positive math mindsets.

Screenshot of student work

Before our First Lesson

http://services.minecraftedu.com/worlds/

When you are getting started with MinecraftEdu, it’s important to learn about the basics of playing so you understand what is possible. Once you have access to the game on your computer you can play the in-game tutorial or just go exploring.

If you bought the MinecraftPE app the controls are different but my best advice is to ask a player to show you or jump in and give it a go.

Your first lesson with students may include using the in-game tutorial world or one of the recommended getting started lessons from the Minecraft Wiki. You will have to tweak the lesson depending on if you are using MinecraftEdu or MinecraftPE. Take a look at the variety of resources other educators have created in the examples section. Check out the World Library for a variety of worlds made by educators that can be used in MinecraftEdu.

Additional Resources:

Educade - Getting Started with MinecraftEdu

Edutopia - Ideas for Using Minecraft in the Classroom

GamingEdus

How to Plan Instruction Using the Video Game Model

The Many Benefits for Kids of Playing Video Games (Great article for Parents)

My collection of blogs and articles on Flipboard.

How students describe Minecraft...

Now that we’ve had a few learning experiences with Minecraft PE, I thought it would be interesting to ask the Grade 4 students to explain what Minecraft is in their own words.

Here is what they said: Minecraft is...

• a computer game made out of blocks

• cool and awesome because I can build lots of stuff
• a game of creativity
• like building with lego on the computer
• a way to tell stories
• a great way to use my imagination to build things
• my favourite way to learn math
• awesome because I can do challenges with my friends

If you ask students a question like this be prepared for a variety of answers. Some of the responses from the students included comments about killing mobs like creepers, skeletons and zombies but it is important to note that they bringing their experiences from playing at home into their answers. This then presents the opportunity to talk about how we will play in class.

What was clear from their responses is that Minecraft is a at its core a social game of creation, making it a great tool for students to express their ideas, communicate, collaborate, be creative, and solve problems.  

A Conversation about Expectations

Our Expectations for Minecraft Play

There was an energetic buzz in Grade 4 at West Bayfield today when Kris and I shared with the students that we were starting a Minecraft inquiry!

We started by asking the students to tell us a little about what Minecraft is and how it might help us learn. We used a padlet to gather their ideas. This resulted in some interesting conversations about digital citizenship and creating YouTube videos. One student brought up the idea that we need to remember to limit our screen time and be active too. Sparking a variety of conversations about healthy and responsible gaming at home and school. We also made a list of vocabulary words specific to Minecraft that students were using. This helped us to create and clarify some of the expectations for playing in the classroom.

What is Minecraft? Does it help us learn? (Check out our Padlet!)

Created with Padlet

MinecraftEdu and MinecraftPE in SCDSB

http://services.minecraftedu.com/wiki/Main_Page

MinecraftEdu is a modified version of the original Minecraft game (regular Minecraft is usually called vanilla Minecraft). MinecraftEdu is an educational version, that was designed for use in the classroom. It provides additional supports to make it easier to use Minecraft for learning. This includes an easy to use teacher interface for classroom management while playing, offline functionality and access to a library of lesson idea for a variety of subject areas, from STEAM to language, history, art and mathematics. Currently MincraftEdu is not accessible on our network in SCDSB but we are looking into how to make it work!

MinecraftPE on iTunes

MinecraftPE or Minecraft Pocket Edition is the iPad version of the game. It does not have the same functionality as the MinecraftEdu version but is easy to set up as it requires only the downloading of the iOS app. At this time, MinecraftPE can be downloaded onto school based iPads for $7.99 per app with the permission of your administrator. This requires using your school created Apple ID to download the game. Students can play in single player but at this time multiplayer is not support on our network.

On the MinecraftEdu wiki you can read more about what makes MinecraftEdu different from the original vanilla version and view a chart showing a comparison of the features between Minecraft, MinecraftEdu and MinecraftPE.

Over the next few months we are going to pilot the use of MinecraftEdu and MinecraftPE at West Bayfield ES. This will include working closely with ITS to determine the best way to bring Minecraft into our classrooms.

Why Minecraft in the Classroom?

Using MinecraftEdu or MinecraftPE in the classroom is about more than playing a game, it is about learning, creativity and communication. It is about using the magic of Minecraft to engage learners, foster essential 21st Century skills and to create a bridge between the physical and virtual classrooms.

A screenshot by Marci (with MF!)

At it’s heart Minecraft is a tool for creation, that supports teaching and learning. The game can be used to teach curriculum, from language, to media literacy, STEAM concepts, social studies, art and mathematics. Learners can use Minecraft to communicate their ideas and show their understanding of a concept, while at the same time applying new skills, problem solving and communicate with others. It’s an opportunity to learn about digital citizenship in an authentic way and challenge students to explore global issues.

With the popularity of Minecraft, we know that many students are already experts and we can use this to partner with students as co-learners. Through conversations we can build stronger relationships with students, that support risk taking in their learning. Empowering our learners by asking what they think we can learn or teach with Minecraft. Students will feel that what they are learning about is important and that they are connected to it because it matters to them. We see the results of this as students spend time outside of class continuing their learning.

Engaging in deep learning experiences with Minecraft opens up the possibility for real-world connections, building essential skills, cross-curricular connections and connection to the local and global community. Empower your students with Minecraft and see how the journey inspires a culture of thinking and learning!  

What is Minecraft?

“Minecraft is a block-building sandbox game with no set rules, where you can build anything you can possible imagine.” (MInecraft Beginner’s Handbook)

Minecraft Basics:

• Many people describe Minecraft as a game for building with digital lego.
• Minecraft is available on a number of platforms and has multiple versions. This blog will focus on how we can use MinecraftEdu (the computer based educational version) and MinecraftPE (the iPad version) in SCDSB.
• You can play alone in single player or with others in multiplayer.
• Different modes of play:
• Creative Mode - you have a full inventory to build, no monsters will attack you.
• Survival Mode - you have health and hunger. You can die in this mode. You need to craft and mine to survive. This is the mode that most kids play at home because it is challenging and adventurous.
• Hardcore Mode - like survival mode but when you die you lose everything in your inventory and the game is over.
• The Overworld is a dimension where you might explore different environments (or biomes) like swamps, extreme hills, desert forest, plains, jungle, ice plains, or even the ocean biome. This opens up a lot of possibility for inquiry in the classroom.

Minecraft and Minds on to Media

Minecraft in the Classroom by Jen Apgar

At the ECOO 2014 Minds on to Media event I sat down at the session Minecraft in the Classroom and learned more about why and how to play from facilitator Jen Apgar. She introduced the GamingEdus website, which Jen describes as “a network of Ontario Educators with the goal of introducing educators to the learning potential of video games with a focus on equity, diversity, inclusion and student-led, inquiry-based learning.” Jen’s presentation and the GamingEdus website helped to answer questions and sparked many new ones. I learned even more from Jen a couple weeks later when I participate in her OTF Webinar Making Curriculum Connections with Minecraft. 

Sitting to my left at the Minds on the Media was Scott McKenzie, an amazing educator who blogs about integrating technology. Scott believes that Minecraft gives students an opportunity to be creative and critical thinkers while removing the barrier of language. We talked about his experience with Minecraft and he shared some tips that you can read about here.

Sitting to my right was Dean and throughout the presentation our exciting grew. We decided to take action and bring minecraft to West Bayfield ES!

Minecraft: Passion, Voice and a Love of Learning

Looking back, my journey into the world of Minecraft began with a student making a simple request to create and share in his own way. He simply said “I wish I could show you in Minecraft!” This was the spark I needed, so I sat down beside the student and asked him to tell me more.

Screenshot by Marci

We talked about the various worlds he had created, some on his own and others with friends. He used a variety of words like spawn point, mod, creeper, skin and crafting. The Minecraft vocab may have had little meaning to me at the time but while I listened, what I did hear was a passion for learning! I heard examples of creativity, collaboration, critical  thinking, problem solving and perseverance. Skills that we hope to develop in our students. By the time he finished telling his story I was hooked and I knew I needed to learn more.

As I began to explore by reading articles on Minecraft, searching hashtags, searching out sessions at conferences and connecting with educators who were using Minecraft in classrooms, it became very apparent that there is a lot of interest around using Minecraft in education. I decided to create this Minecraft blog to share my Minecraft learning journey with SCDSB educators, students and parents, as well as anyone that wants to learn.

So here we go...as I share my journey I hope it will inspire you to begin one of your own! If you have any questions, please contact me on Twitter or by email (mduncan@scdsb.on.ca).