Slate

What is a Slate?

A Slate is a decorative and interactive block exclusive to Minecraft Education Edition and Bedrock Edition with Education features enabled. It is used as a writing surface, similar to a Sign or Board, allowing players to display text-based messages or instructions. Slates provide a structured way to present information, making them useful for classroom learning, adventure maps, and interactive builds.

Slates come in three different sizes, offering flexibility in how much information they can display:

• Small Slate – Compact, similar in size to a Sign.
• Medium Slate – Larger than a Sign, providing more space for text.
• Large Slate – The biggest, allowing the most text to be displayed.

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Where Can Slates Be Found?

Slates do not generate naturally and must be obtained through commands or found in the Creative Mode inventory when Education features are enabled. To get one, players can use the command:

/give @p slate  

Players can also access Slates from the Education Edition tools section in Creative Mode.

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What Can Players Do with a Slate?

Slates are primarily used for displaying written text, making them useful for:

• Classroom environments, where teachers can post lesson instructions and educational content.
• Adventure maps, providing lore, quest objectives, or in-game clues.
• Custom mini-games, where players can set up rules, instructions, or hints for puzzles.
• Roleplay and storytelling, helping guide players through custom narratives.

Unlike Posters and Boards, which serve similar purposes, Slates provide a distinct classroom aesthetic, resembling chalkboards used in real-life schools.

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The History of Slates in Minecraft

Slates were introduced as part of Minecraft Education Edition, designed to enhance learning experiences by providing a clear way to display information in classrooms and structured builds. While Signs have been in Minecraft since early versions, Slates were created specifically for educational purposes.

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Interesting Fact or Real-Life Connection

Slates function similarly to chalkboards used in real-world schools, where teachers write lessons, instructions, and notes for students to read. Before digital learning tools, slates were common in classrooms, and Minecraft’s Slates serve as a virtual representation of this classic teaching method.

For more details on Minecraft Education Edition, text-based tools, and interactive educational features, visit the Rusty Ingot knowledge base.