How We're Using Minecraft EDU in PWSD

I was so excited to learn that Minecraft Education Edition is now available on Chromebooks since that is the primary device our students use.  I had several colleagues eager to try out Minecraft EDU with their students once it was set up for us this spring.  It's been exciting to see what's possible with Minecraft in the classroom over the last few months.  I wanted to document and share some of the ways that we've used it so far.

Minecraft Water Cycle Representations

Ms. Lee's Grade 8 class at BCI was studying the water cycle when we got access to Minecraft EDU.  Ms. Lee decided to give her students the opportunity to work in small groups to demonstrate their knowledge of the water cycle by building a model of it in Minecraft.  I was really impresssed with students' creativity as they developed their models, especially because many of the things they were representing had to be built out of alternate materials.  For example, I saw some students creating clouds out of wool and invisible processes like evaporation or transpiration were shown through the use of glass panes in Minecraft.  You can check out two tours of a Minecraft water cycle here: 

Manito Ahbee Aki Minecraft World:
Exploring Indigenous Culture and Manitoba's Past

One of the frequent requests we had before Minecraft EDU became available for our school division was to explore the Manito Ahbee Aki world.  This incredible Minecraft world was developed with Louis Riel School Division, a division right here in Manitoba.  When this awesome project was shared in the news, many teachers were excited to experience this Anishinaabe world. 

The Manito Ahbee Aki world is meant for students to explore an area called The Forks (where the Red and Assiniboine Rivers meet here in Manitoba).  This world takes us back in time to learn about traditional ways of living on the land.  Students learn from Knowledge Keepers, explore petroforms (rock formations), gather supplies and craft necessary tools, go on a bison hunt and trade for seeds to start their own garden. I've supported several classes in getting started with the experience and it's been interesting and educational for each group I've worked with.  So far, we've tried in it Grades 4-8.  

Find the world and lesson details here: https://education.minecraft.net/en-us/lessons/manito-ahbee-aki

Pixelated Portraits

Mrs. Shwaluk's Grade 8s created these cool portraits in their art class.  They created a grid over a headshot of themselves, then they chose resources in MinecraftEDU to create a pixelated image of themselves. Mrs. Shwaluk said her students really enjoyed the project and, although she thought it might take a long time to build these, many students completed their portraits in about 30 minutes.  Check out a few samples below:

Survival Tips presented with Minecraft EDU

A few Grade 5 students in Mr. Coughlan's class at HES were researching wilderness survival as part of their Genius Hour projects.  These students thought it would be exciting to present their survival tips in a Minecraft world.  Check out one example below to see how they used Minecraft EDU to share their survival tips:

2017 Microsoft Education Exchange

I was thrilled to be selected to attend the 2017 Microsoft Education Exchange (E2) as a Microsoft Expert Educator Fellow.  The conference was hosted in Canada for the first time, with the venue being the classy Fairmont Royal York in Toronto, Ontario.  240 educators representing 83 different countries were in attendance.  It was a whirlwind of learning, sharing and networking.  

One of the highlights of this event was getting to know other educators. Team Canada included many talented and passionate teachers.  I really enjoyed working with all of them.  It was especially exciting to connect with some educators I have "known virtually" through social media, webinars and the Microsoft Educator Community.  Jim Pedrech and Ian Fogarty are two Canadian teachers who do great work with their students.  I've been hearing about their work for years and I finally got to meet them at E2!  I also had the chance to meet #WHOtoYOU leader Kaylyn Dorland, who I've connected with virtually in the last two years.  It was great to meet her face-to-face and I enjoyed touring her school, Queen of Heaven Elementary School, in Milton, ON.  There are many other educators from around the world that I was excited to meet and work with, but I'll refrain from writing a long list here...

Top: with Ian Fogarty, Middle: with Jim Pedrech, Bottom: with Kaylyn Dorland & Lia DeCicco-Remu

I coached an awesome collaborative group of ladies that were recognized for their work in the educator challenge.  This group was challenged to pitch an idea that would delocalize learning.  They were awarded second runner up in their category at the awards ceremony.  

Group 1: Susana (Costa Rica), Mary Catherine (USA), Meg (Canada), Jeanne (USA, Peta (Australia)

Engaging keynote speakers shared messages about education and Expert Educator Fellows shared breakout sessions on each day of the conference.   Hearing about the awesome work going on in classrooms around the world is so incredibly inspiring.  At the same time, this experience also makes me think about how much more we can do to transform education, inspire teachers and empower students!

Team Canada arriving at the awards gala.  Photo courtesy of Microsoft in Education.