Minecraft Education Edition: FocusCraft Club: Grades 3-7

About this course

This class is designed to focus on students interests and skills. Each session, students will join together in a shared Minecraft world. Just like the world-famous HermitCraft crew, the FocusCrafters will begin by constructing their own home bases. Then, independently or with a partner, they’ll create shops, farms, games, or other experiences to engage their fellow Crafters.

Each “season” of FocusLearningCraft will feature a brand-new world with a new theme, decided by the students in the previous term, making this club ideal for returning students. Students will set personal learning goals for each term, and be supported in achieving those goals throughout the 8 weeks. For students who need more focus or more challenge, special weekly challenges and mini-lessons will provide that extra engagement.  

This session continues “Season One,” and will return to the world in progress, where experienced students can act as mentors to incoming students as we continue to work toward our personal goals. This season will also introduce elements of teamwork and scholastic e-sports on alternating weeks.

Each 1.5-hour class will be broken down into 2 main sections:  

1. 15 Minute meeting to discuss progress and set personal goals in areas including:

• Redstone
• Detailing tricks
• Coding
• Command blocks
• Build battles
• Minigames
• And More!

1. World Builds on our shared FocusCraft world

• Individual
• Pairs
• Small Groups
  

What you’ll learn

By the end of this course, students will....

• plan, research, engineer and build a variety of structures to meet specific individual and community needs;
• demonstrate key 21st century learning skills including problem-solving, critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and communication;
• set goals and reflect on progress, challenges, and successes;
• identify their own areas of expertise and act as mentors to other students in an exchange of skills and knowledge.
  

Materials

Students will be provided with all course material during each lesson, as well as their own personal section in our Class Notebook, which they are strongly encouraged to use for planning and reflection.  Students are expected to have a high-speed internet connection in order to conduct effective online classes.  

Each student should come prepared with a notepad and pen, as well as a growth mindset!  

Students are encouraged to have their own testing worlds to test their designs in between sessions on the group server, and to watch and learn from experts to enhance their own skills in many different aspects of design and engineering.  

Students will also be expected to exercise personal responsibility and accountability to pursue independent learning goals on the Classcraft system.