Maybe you’re not so sure about having your child play Minecraft. You picture your little one as an adult, unable to get off the couch or communicate with others because they are so transfixed with the screen and gaming. You don’t want your child to turn into that adult. While it’s always a good idea to monitor your child’s screen time, Minecraft, unlike most computer games, is truly game-based learning. MinecraftEDU was specifically designed as a teaching tool, for educators to use in classroom or workshop settings, and that’s why we use Minecraft at Zaniac!
In Game-Based Learning with Minecraft, Zaniac’s instructors guide students through Minecraft challenges designed to teach math and science concepts. Kids can learn about life sciences, biomes, physics, mechanics, and more, all while playing a game they love.
Let’s take a look at more ways Minecraft is a learning tool! While playing Minecraft at Zaniac, children enjoy Game-Based Learning like never before. They can …
Develop and improve their visuospatial reasoning skills—their visual perception of objects. Your child will use abstract thinking and problem-solving skills to answer science and math equations to play the game.
Explore. Learn Cartesian coordinates and use them to navigate. Explore real science and engineering concepts like biomes and gravity.
Learn teamwork. Work together with friends to accomplish missions. Minecraft fosters teamwork.
Discover and create. Children’s imagination directs what they create. Choose to build an elaborate home, a tree house or a castle.
Set and achieve goals. Minecraft provides rewards when children achieve a certain task, helping to boost self-regulation skills.
Learn the basics of urban planning and building design. Explore architecture of cities around the world using Google Maps and Street View.
Get introduced to the world of physics and explore Newton’s Laws, mechanics and thermodynamics.
Practice math. The use of shapes and space in Minecraft can be an illustrative way for children to understand geometry. That’s a more inspiring way to learn than a chalkboard.
Understand the Galaxy. Explore the depths of the ocean and undersea life with the Oceancraft mod and go up in space with the Galacticraft mod. Design and build rockets that travel to the moon, the International Space Station and even Mars.
The next time your child pleads with you to play Minecraft, remember, at Zaniac, it’s a gateway for your children to explore and learn more about the world. You can say Yes to Minecraft.
