Microsoft Is Helping Teachers Use Minecraft in the Classroom

Microsoft is opening a new portal that helps teachers learn how to use the open-world mining game Minecraft in lesson plans, the company has announced.

Minecraft’s creators first noticed some teachers and students flocking to the game as a learning tool since it launched back in 2011. Since then, Minecraft has only become more popular in education — teachers have used Minecraft to help students understand Japanese-American internment camps during WWII, DNA extraction techniques and more.

Minecraft compares itself to educational toys like LEGOS, which allow children to exercise creativity and problem solving skills.

“Many of the most fun parts of Minecraft, including the collaborative nature of play, the need to experiment, the open world, the earning of achievements, and the growth of players’ in-game characters as well as their personal skill sets, are also key to excellent learning environments,” reads a Minecraft Education blog post.

Microsoft acquired the Swedish game-maker behind Minecraft, Mojang AB, in September for $2.5 billion.