Learn the core concepts of computer programming in this high-interest, advanced middle school course -- with Minecraft! Join Dr. Morrow for a fun, interactive, hands-on course where your young teen “gets ahead” with technology!
How to get the most out of Coding with Minecraft with Margaret (Peggy) Morrow, Ph.D.:
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First, read the course materials below before the first class meeting.
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Then have a notebook ready and available for class notes each live session.
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Read assignments before class meetings
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Watch that week’s recording if you need to revisit information from our live session.
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Do the assignments, quizzes, and any extra work assigned for that week.
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Once the course is completed to the parent's and professor’s satisfaction, there is a Certificate of Completion at the end to be filled in for your records.
Total class meetings: 8
Duration: 35-minute live Q&A plus 25-minute pre-recorded lecture per class meeting
Prerequisite: A love of Minecraft and a desire to learn coding. Make sure you own the required hardware (see Course Materials).
Suggested grade level: 6th to 12th grade
Suggested credit: ½ semester Computer Science
Instructor: Margaret (Peggy) Morrow, Ph.D.
Instructor Email: peggymorrow@protonmail.com
Course description: Coding with Minecraft introduces students to core computer programming concepts such as events, coordinates, variables, conditionals, functions, and iteration. It builds on the popularity of Minecraft and introduces core concepts to learn how to code. The class offers two levels of challenge: level one – block coding for beginners, and level two – Python coding for students with at least a year of block coding experience. Student projects will focus on introducing holiness and salvation into the world of Minecraft.
Course outline:
Day 1: Introduction – Setup
Day 2: Challenge One
Day 3: Challenge Two
Day 4: Challenge Three
Day 5: Challenge Four
Day 6: Challenge Five
Day 7: Challenge Five
Day 8: Project Demonstrations
Course materials:
This is PC or Mac based and will not work on a Chromebook. Please check the system requirements to ensure that you have the needed hardware. More information about system requirements can be found here.
Sign-up for a “direct purchase” of Minecraft Education edition for $12. During the registration process, Microsoft will give you a username ending in .onmicrosoft.com When you download and install Minecraft Education Edition, you will need to login with this username. For example, my Username is PeggyMorrow@peggymorrow.
Then follow these instructions for setting up the coding environment.
Homework: Students can expect to spend between 30 to 90 minutes 4 days per week working on their coding creations and submitting them for grading on the Moodle site. A daily schedule will be provided.
- Teacher: Dan Goddu
- Teacher: Peggy Morrow