In 10 in-person sessions and 40 online meetings (hybrid)
have 22 children between 5 and 12 years old
with professional guidance and support for their parents
They built a shared Minecraft world.
Resolve conflicts independently and together
There was already stress after the second session!
A handful of children thought it was perfectly fine to kill each other and others in their games. This triggered an avalanche of premeditated killings motivated by revenge.
With the support of the GNGB team's specialists and the parents, the children adopted a Fair Play rulebook in several sessions.
Based on self-determined rules and democratic principles, the group learned to resolve emerging conflicts independently and together.
Planning and implementing projects
The battle arena
Organized in teams, the up-and-coming project managers planned and implemented many joint construction projects.
The combat arena in survival mode was particularly popular and elaborate. Simulated battles were (mostly) conducted fairly and respectfully there.
All the children were involved in developing, regularly testing, and continuously improving arena features and detailed tactics. .
The specialists were able to technically secure the arena, for example by setting a spawn point or demarcating the area.
Self-efficacy and teamwork skills
The work was duly celebrated.
Through screen presentations, the children were able to share successfully completed projects with the group and their parents. They learned to give and receive feedback.
The children solved many conflicts together, both in the group chat room and during the face-to-face meetings.
The diverse team consistently motivated the children to face challenges, discuss them, and utilize them. Options for dealing with discrimination were also developed and tested.
All the children were able to forge and maintain new friendships during the project. Joint trips to the playground or to the cinema to see the Minecraft movie have led to many of these friendships lasting beyond the project's end.
To understand the importance of virtual space for their children's development, parents were invited to the celebratory project conclusion to get to know and celebrate the worlds their children had created.
