Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Education Note: Hobbies

With the new deal, the responsibility seems to have fallen upon me to expose the hood's youngest residents to the world of hobbies and leisure time. Students can become exposed to cuisine through family activities of dining out. Also, students will be exposed to various lesiure time activites when they study for thier skill tests.



Here are some ways in which students will be exposed to leisure activities. I will post another note detailing changes in curriculm and class schedules.



Arts and Crafts

Art Class: Students will take pictures and paint to expose them to art.



Film and Literature

Classroom reading assignments and field trips to art gallery.



Fitness

Physical Education class students will practice tai chi and yoga.



Games

Recess: Students will have access to darts and chess.



Music + Dance

Physical Education class students will pratice ballet. Music class: students will practice violins (take up less space).



Nature

Science class: students will maintain a class aquariam and participate in bird watching and bug collecting.



Science

Science class: students will maintain a class ant farm.


Sports

Physical Education class-students will practice soccer and boxing. Recess, students have access to various balls for playing catch and basketball.



Tinkering

Science class: students will learn to repair objects.

Friday, March 14, 2008

Website Changes

I think the online paper could use a little more "jazz". Especially the annoucement pages. Perhaps we should ask residents for photos with thier annoucements (Engagement Photos, Birth Annoucements, etc)

Also, Blueberry Bluff allows other hoods to display thier news. I think that Apple Valley should participate in the endeavour, also we should aire local news broadcast on SBN. I would be the natural choice for news anchor.

Another thing, I think we should have id photos of the residents with thier resident profile. Perhaps similar to Simmerville's listing of households.

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Education Note: Trades School

Based on my earlier reports, I indicated that the hood would benefit from a trades school on the isle. This trade school would allow students to study closer to home without taking the long ferry ride to the BAP campus, allow students to study the skills and trades that are necessary to life in Apple Valley and still have the benefits of university life (dorm living, advanced classes and more). Talks with deans at Bryant A Pierce have resulted in a large educational grant for the new campus to be named: Pierce Apprenticeship Guild.


Campus

The campus will not only house rooms for six students and the full time Master Scholar, but the classrooms where students learn thier trades. Students will reside in either single or double rooms. The single rooms are reserved for the student voted Guild Hall Assistant by the other students. Guild Hall Assistants are responsible for ensuring that students are in thier rooms by curfew, the hall bathrooms are presentable for daily inspection and conduct is acceptable on campus at all times. The classrooms will house the best equipment for instruction where the Master Scholar and community partners teach the students necessary skills and training. There is a small yard, dining room and relaxation room, however students may desire to visit community lots for thier recreation needs. Also, parents are not allowed on campus except during designated visiting hours. No visitors are to be allowed in the dorm rooms


Admission
Teens with four simdays remaining until adulthood will be eligible for entrance into the school.



Entrance will be determined by the following rubic:


Interview with the Master Scholar (50%)
Entrance Score Exam (50%)



The entrance score exam details will be listed on the guild's website, however it consists of thier marks in secondary school, number of skills and extracurricular activities/jobs.


The interview with the Master Scholar will be scored on a scale of -100 to 100 points. Interviews are 3 hours long and the beginning interview score and the end interview score are subtracted so that each applicant is on equal footing with the Master Scholar.


Master Scholar
The grant covers the salary of a Master Scholar to manage the school's day-to-day operations. The Master Scholar must be a FENSA society member with a fair number of badges and dedicated to the art of knowledge.


Apprenticeship Opportunities
Students will be given opportunities to work with community partners in thier business for hands-on experience in thier chosen guild. Not all guilds have this opportunity and students must check with the Master Scholar first. If an opportunity exists, the student must have completed two simdays of study and be on track for thier graduation requirements before they are able to accept the opportunity. They will recieve a small stipend for thier work and many students may even recieve a full-time offer once they graduate.


Community Partners
Community partners are asked to open thier businesses for the students to receive hands-on training. Community partners pay a small stipend of §1000 for each student in addition to thier wages. Students can work a maximum of four hours simdaily for the two simdays. Upon thier graduation, the student is free to accept a full-time offer.


Community Partners are also asked to teach some classes to allow students to gain appreciation for how thier skills and badges will be used after graduation.


Guilds
Seven guilds were created as a result of the campus. Community Partners were inducted as founding members and guild members will be in charge of leading the guild (after graduation). Each guild must submit a proper name and insignia. This insignia will grace the guild diplomas. Each guild is free to have thier own induction ceremony for graduates, in addition to the school wide graduation.