The 21st century is truly a magical time for acquiring knowledge and learning new skills. Thanks to the rapid development of IT technologies, children have been able to safely explore virtual worlds where they can learn new things from their own actions.
One of these realities was Minecraft, a popular sandbox game with survival elements. It was invented and developed by Swedish programmer Markus Persson (Notch) and released by Mojang Studios.
Why choose Minecraft?
Basically, Minecraft is a digital world of building blocks that can be used to create anything you want. The main advantage of the game is that it can be changed as players want.
That is why Minecraft is ideal for mastering programming and project work, and also allows you to study absolutely any discipline.
If your child is interested not only in IT, but also in other school subjects, a Minecraft programming course will be a great opportunity to “upgrade” and deepen knowledge in your favorite field, as well as unleash your creative potential.
Here are examples of projects that can be created across disciplines.
Foreign language
TED speaker and Japanese teacher James York has been using Minecraft for a long time to teach children language skills. He comes up with tasks based on the game and involves children in discussions during the construction of facilities. Moreover, students often create interesting and useful projects on their own initiative.
Top ideas:
- Create a library that clearly displays grammar rules.
- Build a theater where a character can tell a horror story or a funny story in a foreign language from the stage.
- Create adventure quests where all tasks are written in a foreign language.
Literature
Stories are another way to gain important life experiences and learn safely. In the game, a child can fantasize and instantly embody any stories of interest to him in the virtual world.
Top ideas:
- To recreate the worlds of famous fairy tales and works of art.
- Invent your own stories and implement characters and locations in the game.
The story
History is a science that is designed to study the experience of previous generations in order to better understand the processes taking place in the present and understand their impact on the future. Knowledge and analysis of the historical past will help the child develop critical thinking, as well as teach him to see the connections between cause and effect.
Top ideas:
- Recreate buildings, artifacts, or entire cities from the past.
- Craft copies of famous monuments.
- Recreate important battle sites and explore combat strategies.
art
Most people perceive the world visually — we think in images that make it easier for us to learn and remember new information. Aesthetic education is also extremely important for a child. Seeing beauty and creating it in the world is a valuable skill.
Top ideas:
- Explore and recreate ornaments from different cultures.
- Study and create buildings in different architectural styles.
Chemistry
As Maxim Gorky said, “chemistry is a realm of wonders; it hides the happiness of humanity.”
By studying chemistry, we learn how the world works. Thanks to virtual reality games, children can safely conduct various experiments and create their own useful recipes based on real chemical laws.
Top idea:
- Explore different elements and create useful products from them for a wide variety of needs.
Protecting the environment
In the modern world, environmental issues and environmental protection are becoming increasingly important. It is important to teach children to take care of the planet we live on and give them access to information about possible options.
Top ideas:
- Research alternative energy sources.
- To create power plants that operate thanks to the sun, wind, waves, etc.
- To study the benefits of different climatic conditions.
- Design and build wildlife sanctuaries for endangered species.
If you want your child to improve their knowledge in any school subject and learn basic programming skills in a playful format, sign up for a free one trial lesson to Progkids online school! Experienced teachers always find an individual approach to each student and help them implement any creative ideas, as well as follow the interests of children, allowing them to do what interests them most.
