Description
Book SynopsisUnofficial Minecraft Lab for Kids is a collection of creative, collaborative projects that connect in-game challenges with hands-on activities that are both fun and educational.
An Amazon Best Kids’ Books of 2016 pick!
Minecraft offers players an environment focused on exploration, imagination, and creation, but its nonlinear game structure can mean spending a lot of time in the game. With these labs, you can balance your child's screen time with real-life learning and interaction.
You will start the book by brushing up on some common Minecraft language and examining each of the four game modes: survival, creative, adventure, and spectator. Then, you’ll use this knowledge to venture off onto the six different quests that encourage child and adult participation. For each Lab, complete the hands-on activity in art, craft, or design, then build a related in-game project. Have fun with these creative projects and more:
- Make a Chinese finger trap from construction paper, followed by a zombie trap in Minecraft.
- Build a castle from sugar cubes, then learn to build one in Minecraft.
- Create shadow puppets to perform a scene from your favorite story, then animate the scene using Minecraft.
- Make a bow and arrow from popsicle sticks, dental floss, and a cotton swab, then do some archery practice in Minecraft.
Sticker badges at the back of the book reward your child as they complete each quest. You'll even learn how to screencast and narrate your own videos to share with family and friends. Unofficial Minecraft Lab for Kids provides fun, educational gaming goals that you and your child can reach together!
The popular Lab for Kids series features a growing list of books that share hands-on activities and projects on a wide host of topics, including art, astronomy, clay, geology, math, and even how to create your own circus—all authored by established experts in their fields. Each lab contains a complete materials list, clear step-by-step photographs of the process, as well as finished samples. The labs can be used as singular projects or as part of a yearlong curriculum of experiential learning. The activities are open-ended, designed to be explored over and over, often with different results. Geared toward being taught or guided by adults, they are enriching for a range of ages and skill levels. Gain firsthand knowledge on your favorite topic with Lab for Kids.
Trade Review"The greatest strength of this volume is that Miller and Scott have found a way to combine skills in Minecraft with real-life experiences." -
Booklist OnlineTable of ContentsIntroduction
What Can Minecraft Teach?
Minecraft in Schools
Gamification
How to Use This Book
Minecraft Basics
Sharing Labs and Quests
Quest 1: Using Your Inventory
Lab 1 Do You Mine?
Lab 2 It’s Electric!
Lab 3 Setting a Trap
Lab 4 Fire When Ready!
Quest 2: Textures, Patterns, and Landscapes
Lab 5 Please Be Seated
Lab 6 Banner Play
Lab 7 Cookies!
Lab 8 Garden
Quest 3: Timeless Architecture
Lab 9 When in Rome
Lab 10 Flying Machine
Lab 11 The Architect
Lab 12 Scale
Quest 4: The Arts
Lab 13 Michelangelo
Lab 14 Beethoven
Lab 15 Shakespeare
Lab 16 Picasso
Quest 5: Game Design
Lab 17 Fire Away
Lab 18 Be Careful Where You Step
Lab 19 Abandon Ship!
Lab 20 Across the Finish Line
Quest 6: Future Thinking
Lab 21 City Planning
Lab 22 Culture
Lab 23 Fun and Games
Lab 24 Mushroom Stew
Resources
Acknowledgments
About the Authors
Index
Bonus: Sticker Badges
