Learn the core concepts of computer programming in this high-interest, advanced middle school course -- with Minecraft! Join us 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:

• First, read the course materials below before the first class meeting.

• Then have a notebook ready and available for class notes each live session.

• Read assignments before class meetings

• Watch that week’s recording if you need to revisit information from our live session.

• Do the assignments, quizzes, and any extra work assigned for that week.

• 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.

Special Notes: Interested students are welcome from 6^th to 12^th grade.

Total Classes: 9

Class dates: Wednesdays, January 15 to March 19, 2025 (No class Mar. 5)

Starting Time: 10:00 AM Eastern (9:00 Central, 8:00 Mountain, 7:00 Pacific)

Duration Per Class: 45 minutes

Prerequisite: A love of Minecraft and a desire to learn coding. Make sure you own the required hardware (see Course Materials).

Suggested Grade Level: 6^th to 8^th grade

Suggested Credit: 3/4 semester Computer Science

Instructor: Dan Goddu

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:

Class 1: Introduction – Setup

Class 2: Events and Conditionals/Selection statements, and Boolean Expressions; Challenge One

Class 3: Loops/Iteration; Challenge Two

Class 4: Operators and Variables; Challenge Three

Class 5: Sound, Objects; Challenge Four

Class 6: Functions; Challenge Five

Class 7: Environment Commands; Challenge Six

Class 8: Final Project

Class 9: Capstone Demonstrations (selected projects for in-class demos)

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.

Download Minecraft for Education (no other Minecraft edition is allowed). 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 DanGoddu@dangoddu.onmicrosoft.com

 Click here to register

 Then follow these instructions for setting up the coding environment.

Homework:  Students can expect to spend 30 to 90 minutes 4 days per week working on their coding creations and submitting them on the course page for grading. A daily schedule will be provided.

Fee: For all 9 classes: $147 if you register on or before Novemeber 15, $167 if you register after November 15. (Registration closes one week before the first day of class. After that date, registrations are not guaranteed. There is a $20 surcharge for late enrollments after the course is closed.)