Geo-Construction: A Worldbuilding Class (World Building 101)

What do the following places have in common: Middle-earth, Narnia, and the Land of Oz? They are all imaginary worlds but worlds we have all heard of. These fantasy worlds are important for literature, entertainment, and gaming. Students will create their own fictional world from scratch using Astronomy, Earth Science, Geography, and Applied Creativity. 

In this class, students will learn about wondrous worlds from literature and understand the various geological and atmospheric processes that have shaped our planet from its formation to the present day.  Students will then utilize fundamental astronomy and Earth science concepts to create their own planet with plausibly realistic organisms and terrain. Students will use critical thinking to design their planet that incorporates numerous biomes. Students will then choose one ecosystem to highlight with a sample food chain (or food web) of organisms with unique niches. Students will present their creations using Google Slides. Google Slides skills will be taught in class if needed.

Learn about astronomy and earth science topics such as the Goldilocks Zone, the formation of a solar system, planet composition, the basic structure of Earth, plate tectonics, weather, erosion, rocks, various landforms, and biomes.  While this class incorporates some writing in the form of descriptive sentences, this is not a writing class.  The goal is to create a primary world or setting “field guide” in Google Slides that students can then expand on through short stories, gaming, or just for fun!

***Note: this class will not cover cultures, people, or characters.
***Note: students will need to be able to upload pictures or scans of their work to insert in their field guides in Google Slide and/or do digital art to include in their field guides.