Ancient History Course in Minecraft: Explore 8 Ancient Civilizations (8-Session)
Explore the history, cultures, and values of 8 Ancient Civilizations in Minecraft and build a unique monument with your class to represent each society (Minecraft Java Edition for PC / Mac Only. NO iPad or Tablet).
Connected Camps
Average rating:
4.7
Number of reviews:(4,022)
Popular
What's included
8 live meetings
12 in-class hoursHomework
This class does not require any out-of-class work. We do offer optional challenges that students can work on as an extension of what is taught in class. We provide guidance and instructions for students who are inspired to delve deeper into the topic. The purpose of these challenges is to give students the opportunity to supplement their learning with additional material that aligns with their passions and goals. Students may then integrate their learnings into their project and showcase their accomplishments to their classmates. With this approach, students can explore the subject on their own. We give students the opportunity to share what they’ve explored independently with the class.Assessment
At Connected Camps, we assess each student’s progress by engaging them in reflection of their own work and the work of their classmates. By building in Minecraft and applying concepts taught in class, our students are able to solidify their learnings through hands-on application. Our counselors’ focus is to provide qualitative feedback to further each students’ individual goals and interests, and we do not use letter or number grades. In addition to our in-class reflections, our counselors also provide post-session recaps that offer a summary of what is accomplished each day. Through these summary reflections, students are able to review the material and share with their parents what they did in class. We find this approach allows kids of different interests and abilities to engage with our teachings in a way that is particularly relevant to them.Grading
includedClass Experience
US Grade 3 - 6
PLATFORM: (Minecraft Java Edition for PC / Mac Only! Not compatible with Ipads, Kindles, Tablets, Phones, and Game Consoles) SKILL LEVEL: This program is meant for Beginner level players. This program requires Moderate reading comprehension, Basic proficiency with computers, and no prior experience with Minecraft. PROGRAM OVERVIEW: No matter where you go, there’s a story behind everything we see and ancient history is just the beginning! In this course, you’ll revisit history through Minecraft and discover how 5 different civilizations came to shape our current world. Like all Connected Camps programs, this class offers a project-based, exploratory classroom environment that sits at the intersection of learning and playing. After all, kids learn the most when they're having fun! From the most unique philosophies to the daily life of an average citizen, you’ll dive deep into ancient history and unearth each civilization’s defining culture. To top it all off, you’ll also get to create cool historic monuments to represent each culture you explore. Over the course of 2 months, you will: — Learn the history of 8 ancient civilizations: Greece, Rome, Egypt, Scandinavia, China, Japan, Mesoamerica, and Britain. — Engage in the aesthetic of each culture and immerse yourself through Minecraft by touring historical recreations. — Learn what defines each civilization through its religions, values, practices, and mythologies. — Collaborate with others to build monuments inspired by history. At the start of each day, we’ll introduce a new civilization to discuss and explore. We’ll then embark on a tour through the settlements in Minecraft where you’ll engage and interact with a digital version of the civilization. To demonstrate your understanding, you’ll finally collaborate with others in group builds that represent what you’ve learned in class! The knowledge you’ll gain from exploring these civilizations through Minecraft will help you to better understand our world and the history that brought us to today. PARENTS: This program is designed for kids to find inspiration while they immerse themselves in the ancient history of different cultures. Unlike traditional lessons, students will have the opportunity to explore each ancient civilization in an interactive experience through the 3D world of Minecraft. During class, we balance group discussion time with plenty of hands-on experience with other students, so students can cement what they’re learning and explore the topics they're interested in. We combine Minecraft with education so your child can engage their passions as they learn in a positive interest-driven environment. Please note that we will be asking for your camper's in-game username so that we can add them to our server's safelist.
Learning Goals
— Day 1 - Set Up and Ancient Greece - Our primary goal for this day is to assist students in setting up Minecraft and to familiarize kids with our course’s objectives. Students will get to explore a model of ancient Greece and learn about its cultures, religions, mythologies, and architectures. We will all then build a Minecraft Greek Temple!
— Day 2 - Ancient Rome: Students will get to explore a model of ancient Rome and learn about its cultures, religions, mythologies, and architectures. We will all then build a colosseum!
— Day 3 - Ancient Egypt: Students will get to explore ancient Egyptian temples and discuss and learn about its cultures, religions, mythologies, and architectures. We will all then build a pyramid rigged with a booby trap!
— Day 4 - Ancient Mesoamerica: Students will get to walk through a Mayan settlement in Minecraft and learn about its cultures, religions, mythologies, and architectures. We will all then build a step-pyramid or a library.
— Day 5 - Ancient China: Students will get to walk through an ancient Chinese village in Minecraft and learn about China’s cultures, religions, mythologies, and architectures. We will then build a Chinese palace suitable for an emperor!
— Day 6 - Ancient Japan: Students will get to walk through an ancient Japanese town in Minecraft and learn about Japan’s cultures, religions, mythologies, and architectures. We will then build an ancient Japanese temple!
— Day 7 - Ancient Scandinavia: Students will get to walk through a typical Nordic settlement in Minecraft and learn about Nordic cultures, religions, mythologies, and architectures. We will then create and prepare a viking longship for Ragnarok!
— Day 8 - Ancient Britain: Students will get to walk through a castle and the village around it in Minecraft and learn about British cultures, religions, mythologies, and architectures. We will then design and fortify a British castle!
Other Details
Parental Guidance
Some of the topics we cover in this program do not fit all points of views of our learners and parents. This course incorporates science-based information in its curriculum. Students in this class will participate in discussions that may pertain to the deaths of historical figures and topics like war and religion.
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Internet safety is a top priority for us and our goal is to create a safe, connected community of learners that is moderated by our instructors. Throughout our programs we strive to educate our learners on internet safety and best practices for connecting online.
In our programs, our learners are often making friendships and connections with others in class. While we encourage positive online friendships, we think it’s important to practice these principles of internet safety:
— Do NOT ask others to connect online outside of our programs without first confirming with your parents. Our programs are a safe, moderated space for learners to engage but we can’t moderate connections outside of our classes.
— Do NOT give away personal information which includes but is not limited to: your name, address, phone number, passwords, location, email address, and parental information.
— If an individual asks for personal information, you should inform a counselor or your parent for guidance.
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Common Sense Media Resources for Parents:
https://www.commonsense.org/education/videos/keeping-games-fun-and-friendly
Keeping Games Fun and Friendly: learn how to keep your child's experiences positive and fun when communicating in online games with others.
https://www.commonsense.org/education/video/modal/4141366#
The Power of Words: help your child learn that words exchanged online are indeed powerful, and offer strategies to use when confronted with cyberbullying.
https://www.commonsense.org/education/videos/private-and-personal-information
Private and Personal Information: learn the difference between what personal things your child can safely share online and private information that should not be shared.
Supply List
A Minecraft Java Edition account must be purchased by the learner. Participants will receive access to the Connected Camps Minecraft Server where the program will be run. To access the server, each learner will need the Java edition of Minecraft and will need to set their version release to 1.12.2. Other Minecraft versions like the "Minecraft for Windows 10 version", console editions, and pocket editions for mobile devices will not work for this course. A pair of headphones and microphone are also needed for communication with the class.
External Resources
In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:
Not an official Minecraft product. Not approved or associated with Mojang.
Joined June, 2020
4.7
4022reviews
Popular
Teacher expertise and credentials
Connected Camps is a not-for-profit organization founded in 2015 with the mission to build a global online community where kids build, code, play, and learn alongside one another. Our programs are designed based on extensive research in the learning sciences. The founders and leaders of Connected Camps, Mimi Ito and Katie Salen, are professors at the University of California, Irvine, who specialize in the design of online learning experiences that are fun, social, and directly tied to academic outcomes. Learn more about the research behind Connected Camps at the Connected Learning Alliance resource site: https://clalliance.org/
One thing that makes our programs unique is our near-peer mentorship model. Our programs are led by young adults and college students, often with the help of high school volunteers. We hire counselors and coaches from top universities in computer science, game development, economics, social studies, and the arts, and train them on how to facilitate project-based learning with younger kids. Our young instructors have the same passion for technology, games, and digital making as our learners, and take on the role of instructors, as well as fellow enthusiasts and relatable role models.
The curriculum for this program was designed by a team of counselors pursuing degrees relevant to the material at hand. The learning experiences in this class are driven by these counselors’ academic expertise in the field, along with their desire to share their passion for the subject with a group of excited learners. All of Connected Camps’ curricula are vetted by the organization’s Product Manager, Matthew, who possesses a Masters in Secondary Education and a deep belief in the power of collaborative virtual learning.Reviews
Live Group Class
$155
for 8 classes1x per week, 8 weeks
90 min
Completed by 366 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 8-13
3-10 learners per class
