Country-Wide Minecraft Server Being Used By Polish Government To Help With Social Distancing

While governments normally have to put together elaborate campaigns to get kids off their computers and outside to exercise, the Polish government is now doing the exact opposite. With the COVID-19 (coronavirus) threat spreading through Europe, Poland has created a public Minecraft server to encourage kids to do their socializing online.

The Polish government has launched Grarantanna, a learning hub that contains the Minecraft server and other fun (but still educational) activities. It includes a game jam, the Minecraft server, online TTRPG sessions, and webinars and quizzes on Polish history and geography made a little more enticing with prizes for the best quizzers.

Poland has been proactive in its response to coronavirus, shutting all schools, museums, and cinemas on March 11 and introducing comprehensive border checks. Now, it’s looking to provide all those bored kids with something productive to do--"it’s neither a vacation or a holiday,” the Grarantanna warns.

The Minecraft server isn’t just for the younger kids, either. Students from elementary schools, high schools, and colleges are encouraged to log in to build the digital world together. Each player in the server gets a 60x60 plot to let their imagination run wild, and the best creations will be showcased and rewarded on March 30.

The server is organized by the Neverlight Association, a Polish organization involved with esports, game tournaments and board game publishing in Poland.

For all the exhausted parents who still may be working from home or in essential industries, the website is a great idea to keep kids engaged with minimum effort. Even parents outside of Poland may get some useful ideas from the translated site on how to keep housebound kids occupied. Microsoft has also offered free limited-time educational tools in Minecraft to help keep entertained and engaged at home.

If you're wondering how to stay occupied with social distancing and shelter-in-place orders in effect in many parts of the world, we have a guide to the best TV, movies, and games to check out right now.