Teaching with Minecraft -- Who is Herobrine? An Answer and a challenge.

At some point in your Minecraft journey, you will hear your children referring, in hushed (or shouted) voices to a character named 'Herobrine' -- they may be chasing him (They often are) or debating his existence but you will find that every child has a strong opinion on this particular topic.

The problem arises though as to WHO or WHAT Herobrine really is -- and that short answer is: A Joke that went viral -- a joke that grew into a myth. Look HERE for a fuller explanation. Another, more graceful and story-like version can be found HERE.  

What interests me about Herobrine as an educator is the way in which the story evolved -- from joke into story to legend, from legend to myth.  And the myth continues to grow as children and teens tell other children/teens their stories about Herobrine. Chilren (mine, at least) play games involving Herobrine. (There is even a Herobrine plugin called Herobrine Unleashed that one can install if one REALLY wants to have Herobrine on one's game.) and the stories grow. So how, then, to turn this mushrooming tale into a tool for education?

So here is a thought -- Herobrine was a creepy pasta story started as joke. Notch, in an attempt to redirect the stories, has said, " there's never been any such thing as Herobrine, and that I don't have any dead brothers, and that letting too many animals die in lava is a fool proof way to summon him but that you don't need to be afraid of him. He only means well, he's looking out for you, trying to warn you of the dangers you can't see."

Herobrine, a ghost/demon, wears the Steve skin but has white glowing eyes.  So what if children were asked to create an answer to Herobrine? A hero to match Herobrine? Herobrine titillates. He frightens. He takes away control from players by sneaking in and leaving messages and signs. He is a myth because he vanishes as quickly as he appears. When children create a hero, they take back a measure of control. Herobrine might still exist but so does the Hero. Children already have their own character -- using character sheets, they can draw out the specifics of their Hero, listing their tools, their weapons, their armor. And they can write stories about the adventures that their Minecraft character has in whatever world he/she inhabits.

Create your own myths and legends

Myth Machine

Collection of Myth and Legend links

And if, at some later point, the myth and legends that your child writes grow sufficiently large and lengthy enough, your child can publish his/her book at: http://www.scribblitt.com/

I think we will work on that -- and in a later post, I will share some of what we create. Wish us luck.