Making Simple Circuits in Minecraft

Minecraft has introduced a system in the game that allows players to place dust on the ground that can carry an electrical charge, as well a few basic mechanisms that interact with this. The Minecraft system is actually so well made, that these mechanisms can actually be used to imitate how real electrical mechanisms are designed in the real world. Students will use these systems each week to learn about basic electrical signals, binary code, and eventually logic gates (which are the foundation of building computer chips). Students will be shown examples in class and given resources which they can use each week to build a working replica in Minecraft themselves. The class will cover these topics, and include students creating simple binary counting machines, and some logic gate circuitry that responds appropriately to their inputs. Students may choose to work alone, or if they have friends that are able to play with them, they can work together to build their projects. Students will come away from this class with a foundational understanding of computing technology, which is the backbone of so much of our modern world. They will also learn to creatively solve problems with machines and design and execute a computing structure. And they get to do it all while playing videogames!