Lesson 15: Looking Ahead with Minecraft
50 minutes
Overview
This skill-building lesson gives students the chance to practice concepts that they have learned up to this point and get their first experience with conditionals!
Purpose
This set of puzzles will work to solidify and build on the knowledge of loops, and introduce conditionals. By pairing these two concepts together, students will be able to explore the potential for creating fun and innovative programs in a new and exciting environment.
Standards
AP - Algorithms & Programming
- 1B-AP-10 - Create programs that include sequences, events, loops, and conditionals.
Agenda
Objectives
Students will be able to:
- Define circumstances when certain parts of a program should run and when they shouldn't.
- Determine when to use loops in a program to simplify a sequence.
- Determine whether a conditional is met based on criteria.
Preparation
- Play through the puzzles associated with this lesson to find any potential problem areas for your class.
Links
Heads Up! Please make a copy of any documents you plan to share with students.
For the teachers
- CSF - Express - Slides 2024-2025 - Slides (Download)
Vocabulary
- Condition - Something a program checks to see if it is true before allowing an action.
- Conditionals - Statements that only run under certain conditions.
- Loop - The action of doing something over and over again.
Teaching Guide
Warm Up (15 minutes)
Introduction
Display: Show “Reflect” slide
Reflect: When do you use conditionals in your daily life? For example: If it is cold outside, then I will bring my jacket.
Gather the class together and ask two volunteers to walk straight in some direction in the classroom. If they encounter a chair out of place, they must step over it. If they reach a wall, they must sit down.
Display: Show “Warm Up Activity” slide
Once all of the students are sitting down, ask how you would program a robot to respond to a wall or a chair. Remind students that you cannot simply say "Step over chair" unless you know there is a chair, and you will not always know there is a chair. It might be helpful to translate the task into instructions like:
- while there is a path ahead
- walk forward
- if there is a chair, step over it
- sit down
Vocabulary
Display: Show “Vocabulary” slide
Tell students they will be using conditionals during this lesson.
- Condition: A statement that a program checks to see if it is true or false. If true, an action is taken. Otherwise, the action is ignored.
- Conditionals: Statements that only run under certain conditions.
Discuss: When might you use a conditional in your code?
Main Activity (30 minutes)
Looking Ahead with Minecraft
Online Puzzles
Students are in for a real treat with this lesson. It's likely most of your students have heard of Minecraft, but give a brief introduction for those that may not know.
Minecraft is a game of cubes. You can play as Alex or Steve as you work through mazes. You'll need to avoid lava, pick up items, and explore in a world made up of cubes of things.
Demonstrate one of the puzzles to the class (we recommend puzzle 11.) Once all questions have been addressed, transition students to computers and let them start pair programming.
Display: Show “Learn the Basics of Computer Science” video
Display: Show “Level 1-4 - Skill Building” slide
Display: Show “Build a House” video
Display: Show “Level 5-10 - Skill Building” slide
Display: Show “Use IF Statements” video
Display: Show “Level 11-13 - Challenge” slide
Display: Show “Congratulations” video
Lesson Extras
Display: Show “Lesson Extras slide
Wrap Up (5 minutes)
Reflection
Display: Show “Reflect” slide
Reflect: Draw a scene where someone is using a conditional. How does this scene demonstrate a conditional?
Extended Learning
Use these activities to enhance student learning. They can be used as outside of class activities or other enrichment.
More Minecraft
If you find that your class really enjoys the Minecraft environment, here are some links to other Minecraft games they can play online. These games will also teach basic coding skills.
This work is available under a Creative Commons License (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
If you are interested in licensing Code.org materials for commercial purposes contact us.
