Minecraft: The Island – A Novel Study and Minecraft Build-Along (FLEX / 6-weeks)

** This course is currently not scheduled and is undergoing a revision of curriculum materials to meet the updated policies for "Flex" format courses. Please be sure to "favorite" STEM Qwest on Outschool to receive notifications when new course sessions are added! If you have any questions feel free to send a message to the course teacher. We hope to have your learner in this course or another STEM Qwest course soon! ** 

First and foremost, this is a NOVEL STUDY course. As such, emphasis should be placed on reading the book, completing the discussions, vocabulary assignments, and comprehension quizzes. The Minecraft build-along is a "bonus" and should NOT consume your life! You can ALWAYS build-along according to the story after the book is done :) 

During the course, students will work to further develop their reading comprehension, vocabulary, and written expression skills while building in Minecraft as they read the novel “Minecraft: The Island” by Max Brooks. Depending on the personal preference and learning style of each participant, options are available to consider when reading the novel.  Each student is responsible for purchasing the novel (audio, online, or print version).
1)	Begin reading when the course starts (a pacing calendar will be provided, allowing for completion within the 6-week course)
2)	Begin reading the novel prior to the course start date
3)	Families can read along with their students at any reading level
4)	Audio versions are also available for purchase online

During each week of this 6-week course, each student will be responsible for reading 3-4 assigned chapters (or have previously read) from the book, complete a weekly comprehension quiz over the assigned chapters, and participate in written discussion posts.  

Each enrolled learner also needs access to Minecraft to participate in this class. Minecraft accounts are not included with the course fee. Each week, students will recreate scenes from the book by building and playing in "survival mode" in Minecraft. Without giving too much of the story away, the book has one main protagonist. As such, replicating the events of the novel are best completed on a student's own personal version of Minecraft in “single-player survival mode”. 

The course will conclude with each student writing their own version of what the next book in the series could be, and/or writing an alternative ending. As part of the final assignment, students will also build at least one scene from their story in Minecraft. 

Course logistics:

This course will follow a “flexible schedule” and does not have scheduled online meetings. This flexible schedule allows students to work at any time, 24/7 for the duration of the course. Thus, keeping all students working at a similar pace but not requiring them to attend online class meetings in Zoom at a set time. This "flex" course works great for families with varied schedules and allows students from any time zone to participate! 

Each Monday morning (Pacific time zone) the tasks for the week will be unlocked and available to enrolled learners. The weekly tasks include reading assigned chapters, taking quizzes, writing online discussion posts, creating Minecraft builds, and posting those builds so your classmates and teacher can see them. The teacher will provide feedback on your weekly tasks and can always be reached via the Outschool message/email system with any questions. To stay on track, students should follow the suggested pacing guide each week of which tasks and which chapters should be completed by the end of each week. Students should be sure to complete the weekly tasks before the next week of tasks are unlocked to stay on track. 

*The book follows a "single-player" story for playing Minecraft in survival mode. In that way, playing the game as an individual on their own device is the best way to recreate the actions of the story. The purchase of Minecraft account(s) must be made separately and prior to the start of class. Instructions on how to build with Minecraft are not part of this course. Students with a few weeks or months of Minecraft experience through play or otherwise will have the skills needed to complete the builds in Minecraft. 

As a "Flex" course offering, this class does not include live class meetings in Zoom but teacher-to-learner and learner-to-learner interaction are expected from course participants in the online classroom. These interactions will take place using the Outschool message delivery system so learners and the teacher can interact on a one-on-one basis for questions and feedback. Group discussions will be visible to all learners in the course and students are expected to post, share, and comment on the Minecraft creations of their classmates.  

This course will follow Outschool’s “Flexible” refund policy. For more information on the Outschool refund policy, you can view the website here:   
https://support.outschool.com/about-outschool/refund-policies-and-happiness-guarantee