Unit Inspirations

These are links to a variety of presentations and presentation materials (in reverse-chronological order) which have informed, influenced and inspired me as I've taught and interated through different versions of this "Coding Mars" / "Minecraft Mars" coding unit.

From ChatGPT (31 March 2024)

🪐 Scene: Mars Landscape in Minecraft Education Edition

• Foreground:
  A blocky red-orange Martian surface, dotted with craters and rocks made of red sandstone, terracotta, and gravel.
  Small block-built robots—crafted with stone, redstone, and iron blocks—stand at attention, some moving on patrol paths.

• Centerpiece:
  A futuristic OUTPOST, constructed from glass panes, quartz blocks, iron blocks, and glowstone for lighting.
  Inside, there are labs, bunk rooms, and command centers with redstone computers and map tables.

• Surroundings:
  Solar panels made of black wool and iron trapdoors line the outpost’s roof.
  There’s a rover garage, with robots programmed using MakeCode scripts driving in and out.
  Floating text bubbles above robots say things like:
  
  "Running sample collection program..."
  "Scanning for ice deposits..."

• Sky:
  A dusty pink Martian skybox, with a blocky Earth and moon visible in the distance.
  Occasional meteor storms in the background (particles and sound effects simulated).

• Students’ Touch:
  Custom banners with team logos hang proudly on the outpost walls.
  Each area is labeled with signs coded in-game:

  • “Green Team Robotics Lab”

  • “Habitation Dome Alpha”

  • “Code Upload Station”

More of my space education #SpaceEd resources are available on space.wesfryer.com.