So,
+Alice Keeler gave a homework assignment I resisted for a long time. She said I had to download and play Minecraft. I didn't really see the value at the time, but eventually over Spring Break 2015, I downloaded the pocket version on my iPad before heading to the beach.
Hours of building later, I had discovered a whole world of creativity and possibility in edtech. So, I started the creative game, which gave me unlimited tools and building materials and I went to work. I started building the frame of a huge house. Then, as I got used to it, I thought it would be cool to model it after a Japanese style architecture. It may have been because I had been listening to an audiobook about an ancient Japanese story on audible. How great would it be for students to recreate settings and characters from the stories and histories they were learning about?
After building the house, I went on to think about other learning opportunities in this unlimited digital space. What about visualizing math concepts? I start to create golden rectangle, based on the Fibonacci sequence I had learn about in college. I ended up counting out the width and length of each side, extending it further and further.
The Golden Rectangle became so large, I had to excavate channels through hills and trees, to make way for the paths of the rectangle lines.
I discovered how to use flint and dynamite to decimate mountains, for quicker efficiency. I had to keep a list of numbers to keep track and add to sides, for an accurate perimeter. As I built the sides, I had to count EVERY single block, in order to match the pattern I had chosen. I ended up added an extra block to mark the tens and fifties for markers, creating the longest ruler in the world.
Flying above my masterpiece, I could see the Golden Rectangle expanded through the digital wisps of cloud. With this one project, I had used multiple standards, including:
- Operations and Algebraic Thinking
- Number & Operations in base ten
- Measurement & Data
- Geometry
I finished my "homework" by creating an area called "Geo-Land", where I could show different concepts in the context of a park or exhibition. I made a "square garden" (see red shapes), where I posted a sign, defining a square and modeling several examples. I did the same with a "Cube Garden" (see blue) and a "Rectangle Wall" (See Left side). What would a digital portfolio look like in Minecraft? Only the future can tell...
