Underwater Mine Rescue

Greedy miners were working an underwater mine when the inevitable happened. Reaching for that elusive block of ore, they punched a hole in the roof of a shaft on the top level of the mine and flooded the area. Forced to flee quickly, leaving a lot of their best tools behind, they quickly retreated to a shelter below as water poured in around the mine. They did not make it out. But their situation remains a favorite puzzle past time of skilled miners who believe, if they had been there, they could have made it out alive.

The Challenge

Use the designated Commons teleport to jump with your team to a location somewhere in the abandoned mine, which is now partially flooded with water from above and around it. Salvage what you can from the abandoned mine operation to create a rail-based escape route that can carry a disaster survivor to safety. Continue reading →

“We have to be responsible for what we do.” This was written by a student in response to some griefing going on in our world of the Pepperdine server.

Another student: “I Think that Respect is the most important core value for Minecraft. I think Minecraft is a way to show your feelings and talent. It is a lot like an art show. Some people like some designs or types of creations, others may not. If everybody just respects and accepts the buildings made by each other, we can have fun and be a caring community on Minecraft.” Continue reading →

Bob Kahn
Brentwood School
www.middleschoolminecraft.com		Follow me on Twitter

Framing: This is a discussion amongst peers. I will share some of my experiences and where my thinking is grounded. We can then discuss and develop ideas about the potential of Minecraft in ED.

Introduction

• What is it?
  • Virtual sandbox world- two modes: survival/creative- both modes can be played as an single player or with other players on a server.
  • Potential for building/collaboration picqued my interest in the game- unique…
  • Use textured 8-bit blocks to build in a 3-d world- deceptively complicated
  • Swede-2009, beta in 2010, full game Nov. 2011 @ Minecon in Las Vegas
  • Company Mojang
  • The best way is to just show you…

Continue reading →

Mechanics and Mysteries of Minecraft in the Middle Division

Playing in the local sandbox as a boy provided a great source of fun for me. Before my mom could even stop the car, the door would fling open, and I’d be running towards the sand. My shoes would fly off and the sand would instantly fill the spaces between my toes. And the building! With molds, buckets and shovels strewn all over the place, my friends and I created whole cities with lakes and rivers. Little plastic characters inhabited our worlds. One day a friend’s little sister decided to hurl a handful of sand into my face. Imagine hundreds of grainy sand particles underneath your eyelids. I spent what seemed like hours in the doctor’s office having the sand removed, grain by grain.

The sand in many of today’s sandboxes cannot get thrown into your face or fill the spaces between your toes. These sandboxes exist in the digital world of your computer or cyberspace. One such digital sandbox is called Minecraft, a game in which players use textured blocks of different materials to build or create anything they can imagine. Anything! Continue reading →

“James, stop playing video games. Go read a book or do something productive.”

That was then. This is now.

“James, how did you build that? That’s so cool? What are those dudes with the funky green heads? Let’s start a server together!”

So what happened?

Continue reading →