Building Geologic Maps and Models in Minecraft for Use in Early Education

Minecraft is currently the most played video game of all time, being especially popular amongst children. In Minecraft, players enter worlds composed of cubic blocks and engage in activities such as exploring, mining, and building. The cubic geometry of Minecraft worlds is similar to that of models used in geoscience. Using the connection between Minecraft worlds and geoscience models,  we use Minecraft to create educational materials focused on geoscience directed towards younger students. The goal of creating these materials is to generate interest in geoscience by using Minecraft as a tool, and creating a connection between a game that students already know and understand to the world of geoscience.  Geologic and geographic data are used to build geologic maps of Newfoundland, Canada, and additional smaller regions in Minecraft. These maps are filled in with information regarding the geology of key sites on the maps. These Minecraft worlds can be used as simple introductions to different geologic concepts which students can freely explore. Code has also been written to generate gravitational maps from Minecraft worlds. This code is being used to design lab exercises for grade school students to teach them about density, gravity, and geophysics. These labs involve using the gravity maps to locate gravitational anomalies, and use these anomalies to find and mine ore in Minecraft. This work can easily be expanded to create Minecraft worlds of new areas, and to teach many more geologic concepts.