Confession time. I love Minecraft. I don't play it and I don't enjoy it personally, but I love the social magic it has brought to my son's life and the educational value behind it! I'm here to convince you that if you're not using Minecraft in your homeschooling, you're really missing out on a huge educational opportunity!
10 Reasons Why You Need Minecraft
1) Spatial processing
First of all, there is the logic, spatial processing and hand-eye coordination that is required to simply play Minecraft. If you think of Minecraft as virtual Lego blocks, you can start to imagine the possibilities. Now add in realistic gravity in some settings, design elements and patterning and the infinite ways you can assemble blocks and you can start to see attraction.
2) No fear or criticism
Have a perfectionist? Minecraft is perfect for building because if it doesn't work out you just take it down and put it right back up again. Many kids we know have attempted grandiose replica builds that they'd never attempt with Lego due to fear of failure, time and the pure cost of bricks. One 4th grader we know personally, is currently working on replicating the entire California mission trail, including building the missions that are accurate from aerial views. He would never attempt such a long endeavor outside of his computer, for fear that others might critique it or that he wouldn't finish. My own son is currently working on the 7 wonders of the ancient world.
3) Logic and computer code disguised as fun
I listened to an adorable 3rd grader tell me all about how to build a watermelon slicer the other day. He had spent several hours working on his redstone repeaters to get them lined up properly and in the right order. As he was explaining it to me, his mom was visually irritated that he had "wasted" so much time. I congratulated him on figuring out the code to make the slicer work. I explained to him that what he had really been doing was working on logic processing- the steps required, in the exact order, to make the computer do what he wanted. I gave him a high five for being a computer coder. Mom was stunned- she had never thought about it from that perspective.
4) Determination and perseverance
Kids that tend to be quitters need to find a passion. If that passion to "get it right" is fed by building something in Minecraft, or setting up a server etc, it provides a valuable lesson in perseverance that can transfer into other areas with gentle parenting.
5) Research and internet skills
What's a wiki? What's the Minecraft wiki? How do you figure out how to build something that seems too confusing? Where can you find appropriate YouTube videos? What's the server op command to turn off rainfall? These are all questions that we've covered at home as part of our Minecraft lessons. Don't ask me, I don't know but I'll teach you how to find it!
6) Internet safety
As our world becomes increasingly internet based, our kids need instruction in how to survive and thrive in a world where your friends may be people you met online and have never even seen in real life. How much information is too much? What is "personal" and what isn't? We've spent countless hours talking about internet safety and internet etiquette so that my son can play multiplayer servers with players around the world. These skills are as important as learning how to type and will be the base of his future interactions for decades.
7) Social interaction
As homeschoolers, this is hugely important to us. It's simply not possible for my son to spend as much time with other kids as he may like, because we don't have 30 kids in our house every day. But with Minecraft, we DO. He can play and chat online with friends in our area or far away, stay in touch with camp friends and more. He has Minecraft parties at our house where we will invite five or six people over to play a specific Minecraft game, like Capture the Flag. A room full of boys and girls, all laughing and talking up a storm, while running through a virtual world is a perfect way to spend a hot summer afternoon! Minecraft extends beyond the game as well, and has given him social capital and a way to enter conversations of complete strangers, just based on their discussion or a comment on his t-shirt.
7) What's a LAN?
Beyond basic computer logic within the game, Minecraft is the perfect foray into how computers work, how the internet works and what all these crazy acronyms mean. When my son wanted his own server, rather than just getting it for him, we told him to figure it out. He now has cloud space in Texas that he manages, runs the upgrades of both Minecraft and Java, notifies his players of upcoming changes and rules and has learned numerous operator commands to make his server do what he wants.
8) High interest, high quality school projects
"Hey kid, today we're writing a report on setting in the book you just read," is sure to elicit grumping, whining and complaining. "Hey kid, today you're recreating the setting from the book you just read, doing a screencast walk-thru and explaining the importance of several locations, all in Minecraft!" Suddenly, your entire school day just changed from lame and boring to you being the coolest mom ever! At the same time, you will likely get higher level analysis, better understanding of the topic and more commitment to the project. We use Minecraft whenever, however possible. With "mods", you can experiment with physics, gravity, black holes, farming and agriculture supply and so much more. If you have no idea how, ask your kid "How would you like to do this in Minecraft? Tell me what you'd do!" Watch the eyes sparkle!
9) Inspiration
It's amazing to me to see what so many kids have dreamed up in Minecraft. From a girl I know who built a disco club complete with music and strobe lights, to another that built an entire amusement park with roller coasters, water slides and shops to buy snacks, the ideas are endless. I've seen my son, who never draws for fun, sketch out something when he's away from the computer, so he can put it into action when he gets back to his desk. Experimentation and design is easy in Minecraft and it's low-risk and low cost. I've met several kids that have gone on to study topics outside of the game because they saw something built in Minecraft and wanted to know more. One teen we know has built a working nuclear power plant in his Tekkit Minecraft mod. He spent hours researching nuclear cooling strategies outside of the game, so he could get his plant as realistic and as safe as possible, because it will blow up if it's wrong!
10) Because you can
Why not? Isn't this the best part of homeschooling? You can do it because you simply can! No school internet access policies, rules for use of bandwidth or judgement. Just because you can! I've yet to find a topic that my son couldn't incorporate into Minecraft in some way!
Ok, now I know I've convinced you! So go grab your own license and start imagining the possibilities- https://minecraft.net/
Thanks so much for this information. I think I am going to have to check this out.
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