Minecraft Construction: Settlement and City Center

After lesson one, students were so excited to dive deeper into our module and work with Minecraft again.  During week 2 of our module, our students focused on the transition from hunters/gatherers to settlement and developing farming settlements.  As a group, students worked through an article, discussed a background story for their group, and made decisions within Minecraft that would allow them to choose a settlement point.  During individual time, the writer, manager, presenter, and liaison all worked on varying tasks associated with settlement.

Digital Maker:

Our study of ancient river valley civilizations led each group to decide to settle near a body of water.  After students found a suitable location, they began the tasks for the week.  The Digital Makers were charged with the task of documenting the raw biome.  By adding a camera and portfolio, students were able to take photos of the raw settlement land before making any changes.  The photographs and documentation will hopefully help them visualize the progression of their civilizations as we move through time. They were instructed to take aerial photos, pictures of important land formations/features, pictures of possible settlement locations, and photos of waterways.   

Minecraft Tip:

Add a Camera

1. Press 't'
2. Type: /give @yourname camera

 Add a Portfolio

1. Press 't'
2. Type: /give @yourname portfolio

 Taking Pictures

1. Put camera in right hand from the hot bar.
2. Aim the +
3. Right click to take a picture
4. Pictures are automatically deposited into your portfolio.

 

Accessing Pictures in the Portfolio

1. Put portfolio in right hand from the hot bar
2. Right click to access the portfolio
3. Add captions

 Exporting Pictures

1. Press the 'export portfolio' option
2. Choose a location to save your pictures and give your folder a name
3. Select 'save'

Next, students began creating farming communities.  With Creative Mode 'on' and other group members able to assist, Digital Makers chose locations and began building their settlements.  Settlement requirements:

1. Canals
2. Crops
3. Small living quarters
4. More than one settlement (along a river)

Stay tuned for lesson 3!