Geography of India: Minecraft Build Battle
The Indian subcontinent boasts the world's tallest mountains and remnants of an ancient civilization! Learn about the history and culture and show off your learning in a 20 minute Minecraft build battle. (This class has weekly homework).
Xuân Stanek. B.Ed
Average rating:
5.0
Number of reviews:(185)
What's included
7 live meetings
8 hrs 45 mins in-class hoursClass Experience
THIS COURSE HAS WEEKLY HOMEWORK!! BEFORE CLASS...links to 5 safe, informative websites and/or youtube videos will be posted in the classroom. Each link is to a very small chunk of information which should not take more than 5 minutes for each to view. Learners will write or post two short vidoe comments on TWO of these locations. Subjects for the build battle will be chosen by learner vote from these resource links. In class....we will meet in the Zoom classroom. --Teacher will provide a brief overview of the region we are studying. --Learners will be encouraged to share and discuss details of the resource links they pursued. --We will compile a list of interesting facts we learned about the sites in the region. --We will discuss how culture, climate, history, and beliefs affect what and how people build. --We will as a group construct our own rubric of details to include and look for in a build. --Based on a learner vote, each learner has 25 minutes to complete a Minecraft build. Learners build on their own on ANY version of Minecraft, and send up to 1-2 photos in a private message to the teacher, using the teacher tab in Outschool. After class... The photos of each learner’s build will be anonymously compiled in a Google slide file and a link will be posted later that day. Learners should view each other’s builds and, in a PRIVATE message to the teacher select the top three builds. We will go over the scoring system in our first class. AS HOMEWORK: Remember to view the five locations for next class, comment on TWO of them, and send your private vote to the teacher for the next class build. The three learners who received the overall highest rankings will be announced in the classroom. NO other discussion of scores or rankings will be permitted. The point of this class is to learn about other places in the world and to have fun building in Minecraft. I don’t want learners to be discouraged or frustrated by a game which is being included to make learning fun. Students who demonstrate poor sportsmanship or who engage in poor conduct towards each other may not be included in the next build battle. Locations:. I’ve tried to include a rich diversity of sites that represent unique history, culture, flora and fauna, or architecture of the region. Week One: Introduction to the Region Flat World Build announced in class Week Two: India: Forts and Cities Amer Fort / Mumbai Gateway of India / Jaisalmer / Aga Khan Palace / Lodha The Park / The Taj Mahol Week Three: India: Religion and Relaxation Beaches of Goa / Ellora Caves / Kashi Vishwanath Temple / Harmandir Sahib / Leela Gate Palace / Lotus Temple Week Four: Sri Lanka Golden Temple of Dambulla / Train to Nurwara Eliya / Sigiriya / Polonnaruwa / Vesak Poya Festival Week Five: Pakistan Makli Necropolis / Shalamar Gardens / Mohenjo-daro / Lahore Fort Elephant Path / Faisal Masjid Week Six: Nepal and Tibet Kathmandu Durbar Square / Bodhanath Stupa / Everest Base Camp / Potala Palace / Jokhang Temple Week Seven: Double Build Challenge! Winners of week six and seven will be announced. Then we will have two quick, just for fun build battles on surprise topics :)
Learning Goals
--to identify important characteristics of the geography, ecosystems, and culture of Southeast Asia
--to gather information and facts about sample locations in Southeast Asia
--to discuss the culture of including way of life, beliefs, and history and to examine how these factors influence what people built
--to compile lists of unique attributes of specific sites
--to create a structure in Minecraft while remembering and applying knowledge of specific details
--to participate in evaluating the builds of others according to an agreed on rubric
Other Details
Parental Guidance
This class does utilize links to other many other sites on the internet...some travel sites, some blogs, some museum websites, some wiki articles, and some youtube videos. Please be aware that while I carefully screen and select each site I link to, I cannot control ad content on some of these sites.
Supply List
Teacher provided-- Links each week to travel pages, zoo and museums webpages, or educational sites such as National Geographic, BBC Bitesize, etc Link to google slide file with photos of each week's builds Students need to have-- The ability to play Minecraft on ANY system. The ability to take and send photos or screenshots of their builds IMMEDIATELY at the end of 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
5.0
185reviews
Teacher expertise and credentials
I’ve been teaching for about 25 years now. During that time I’ve been blessed to have been able to teach a wide range of classes and a wide range of grade levels. Hands down, two of the most popular and enjoyable classes that I’ve ever taught have been Minecraft: Construction and Architecture AND The Amazing Race (World Geography) both of which I’ve taught live through one of our local co-ops. These classes are always some of the first to fill up during our registration period, and often run with a wait list.
I’ve been offering a series of Minecraft Architecture on Outschool for several months now, and have so enjoyed the experience! I appreciate the number of returning learners I have throughout many of these classes and love the community and relationship with these groups of learners. Many of them have been asking that we step outside of Western Civ history to learn about architecture in other regions of the world. After doing a lot of reflection, research, and work on the topic, I’m happy to be able to answer the learners’ requests with Minecraft Geography.
My Minecraft classes not only teach about history and culture, but they teach respect of other people groups as well as respect of classmates. They teach cooperation and communication skills.. They teach critical thinking, problem solving, and perseverance. I am really proud to be able to offer them. I hope you will find them as valuable as I do.Reviews
Live Group Class
$84
for 7 classes1x per week, 7 weeks
75 min
Completed by 22 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 10-14
3-12 learners per class
