How Can History Lessons Use Minecraft: Education Edition?
Hello Everyone,
As a teacher, I want to use Minecraft: Education Edition in my history classes, especially for kids in middle school (ages 11–14). Numerous success stories about how Minecraft may help students learn a variety of disciplines have caught my attention, but I'm especially curious about how it might be utilized to bring history to life.
Does anyone know of any particular exercises or lesson plans that connect historical events or eras to Minecraft gaming, or have recommendations for them? If you know of any projects or assignments that have been successful for other educators, please share them with me.
For instance, I was considering letting students design historical landmarks or even recreate old civilizations like Egypt or Rome.
However, I'm not sure how to structure these exercises such that kids don't just play but remain focused on the learning goals. How do you strike a balance between educational goals and creativity?
Furthermore, have you discovered any particular mods, downloadable worlds, or lesson templates in Minecraft: Education Edition that are especially useful for studying history? Although I've seen the "Build Challenges," I'm wondering if there are any further resources that are unique to history that I might have overlooked.
Finally, I would welcome any guidance on how to evaluate students' work in this digital format. What method do you think works best for assessing their projects' creative elements as well as historical accuracy?
Thank you in advance for your help and support.
Regards
Daisycognos [link removed]
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Hello! I love history, though I have never taught it. I do support other classes at the elementary level in our technology classes in Minecraft on occasion.
You may find this link interesting: https://education.minecraft.net/en-us/resources/history-and-culture-subject-kit
I have used a Roman World that I like. https://education.minecraft.net/en-us/lessons/roman-baths-bath-uk
You can look for specific topics like I did at this link: https://education.minecraft.net/en-us/resources/SearchResources?search=Roman
We used this world to look for buildings which reminded us of famous Roman architecture. Students simple walked around, found a building and wrote about the actual building. For example, a student might choose Circus Maximus from a list of Roman Monuments with images that I created. They would find the answers to a few questions I provided, and post their answers on a chalkboard they added to the world. They take a picture of the building and added pictures of their board, and various features in the building they found that seem similar to the original Circus Maximus. This was for 4th- 5th grade.
You could use this lesson as a beginning, to simply explore how to build in Minecraft to create a reproduction build. Then the students could create their own world with their version of a build, while adding boards to explain why they built as they did, with information you require.
Another nice world is the Museum. https://education.minecraft.net/en-us/lessons/create-your-own-museumSmall groups can plan what "exhibits" to add. More experienced students could add NPCs (people) who can talk about the data you want students to include. Others can use boards and signs to report their research results.
The balance is important, and clear goals and structure help a lot. Let me know how we can help!
The Teachers' Lounge in Facebook is a great place to ask for help, as well!0
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