In computer “sandbox game” style, four Surrey bridges were built by students during the latest Minecraft Challenge organized by Surrey Schools.
Teams of kids were tasked to build the Golden Ears, Port Mann, Pattullo and Alex Fraser bridges on the popular game platform.
Last year’s contest saw students build their own schools.
“We heard from teachers that this year’s build was definitely more of a challenge than last year’s,” said Gareth Poon, technology helping teacher and Minecraft Challenge founder.
“I think it’s good to keep pushing students to think outside the box and it was cool to see how creative they could be with their builds and replicating the various aspects of our bridges.”
By age division, the 2023 winning entries are Guildford Park’s The Grass Community team in the Secondary category, Katzie Elementary’s Division 6 Builders in Intermediate, and the KB Bridge Builder Buds of K.B. Woodward Elementary in Primary.
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Judges scored the entries for bridge and river design, lane markings, vehicles and signage.
Dozens of teams from 27 schools entered this year’s Challenge, and the long list of finalists and honourable mentions is posted on surreyschoolsone.ca/minecraftchallenge2023.
Poon said the challenge this year was to ensure the bridges came together as a cohesive structure, something more difficult when building a structure that stands in the air as opposed to a school on the ground.
“Communication and collaboration between team members was definitely more important for this year,” Poon said in a news release posted to Surrey Schools’ website.
“When building a bridge, you have to make sure all the parts are even, that the bridge deck stays level and that the girders or cables are all lined up with each other, so that definitely upped the challenge for this year.”
The theme isn’t yet decided for the school district’s 2024 Minecraft Challenge .
“It’s been really fun to see our students continually impress with these builds,” Poon added. “As long as the student interest is there, we’ll keep doing it.”
tom.zillich@surreynowleader.com
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