If you are a teacher who has never used Minecraft before and are considering using Minecraft in your classroom, here is my advice.

1. Read the information on the Minecraft TENZ page. TENZ is the 'Technology Education New Zealand' organisation responsible for promoting and supporting technology education. The TENZ page features information from the 2012 and 2019 Minecraft Education keynote presentations I gave to those teachers, educators and industry partners in attendance at the annual conferences.

2. There are two versions of Minecraft, the Java Edition and Bedrock Edition. Minecraft Education is played on the Java Edition.  

Java Edition is exclusive to PC and Mac's, it offers extensive modding support, customizable servers and a more traditional experience, while Bedrock Edition is designed for cross-platform play (PC, consoles, and mobile), provides smoother performance and includes marketplace content but has more limited modding and server customization options than the Java education version. 

I recommend you download the non educational Java Edition version of Minecraft from minecraft.net onto your personal computer and learn how to play it from the comfort of your own environment. Your students probably have this version at home, they will be experts. 

Install the Minecraft Education version on your school laptop.

Download Minecraft Education for: Windows. Mac. iPhone/iPad. Chromebook/Android.

3. Sign up for the Minecraft Education Teacher Academy and do the Minecraft 101, 201, 301, 401 learning courses.

4. Read Minecraft world community wiki pages like Minecraft Wiki, Planet Minecraft, Fandom Minecraft, Fandom Minecraft Education 

5. Read Minecraft blog and fan sites like education.minecraft.net/blog, reddit.com/r/Minecraft, instructables.com/minecraft, The Gamer and playable worlds fan sites like Origin Realms and The Hive. 

6. Learn how to use the inventory and crafting table. THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT!!! 

The Minecraft Inventory and Crafting Tables are essential tools for gathering resources, creating items, and surviving in the game. 

• The Inventory helps you store and organize your items for survival and building.

• The Crafting Table allows you to create powerful tools and useful items, which are necessary for mining, fighting enemies, farming, and building structures.

INVENTORY

Your inventory is where you store and manage all the items you collect in the game, such as blocks, tools, weapons, food, and materials. Every player has an inventory that can be accessed by pressing the E key (on PC) or the appropriate button on consoles and mobile devices.

• It consists of slots that can hold different items.

• The hotbar (the bottom row) allows quick access to selected items.

• There's a crafting grid (2×2) built into the inventory for basic crafting.

CRAFTING TABLE

The Crafting Table is a block you can place in the world to expand your crafting options. Unlike the basic 2×2 crafting grid in your inventory, the Crafting Table gives you a 3×3 crafting grid, allowing you to make more advanced items like tools, armor, weapons, and building materials.

• To create a Crafting Table, you craft it from 4 wooden planks (which you get by turning logs into planks).

• It is essential for crafting most of the important items in the game.

7. Learn how to use the Recipe Book. Its is a built-in guide in Minecraft that helps players craft items without needing to remember all the crafting recipes. It's a helpful tool for beginners and experienced players alike, it makes crafting easier and helps players focus on exploring, building, and surviving rather than memorizing recipes. minecraft.fandom.com/Recipebook & minecraft.wiki/RecipeBook.

HOW IT WORKS

• You can open the Recipe Book inside your inventory or on a Crafting Table.

• It automatically unlocks recipes as you collect materials.

• Clicking on a recipe shows the required ingredients and, if you have them, allows you to craft the item instantly.

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT

• Beginner-Friendly – Helps new players learn how to craft items without looking up recipes.

• Convenient – Saves time by showing only the items you can craft with what you currently have.

• Progress Tracking – Unlocks recipes as you gather resources, guiding you through the game.

education.minecraft.net/class-resources/lessons 

9. As a teacher in Minecraft Education you can set passwords to whole class worlds you create or students can set their own passwords to their own worlds to only let others in they approve. This solves the issues of students Griefing other students worlds.