Looking ahead to our first YPL event

[alt_sinistra]

First YPL event
As you all know, our first YPL event of the year will be on October 22nd, and we will welcome both our foreign guests with an orienteering scavenger hunt of the Hogwarts buildings and grounds that will test your navigation skills, charms, puzzle solving abilities, and more. There will be small prizes for the winning team on each path (there are four), and small tokens for everyone who makes a sincere attempt to complete the course.

I want to first thank Mr Ronald Weasley and Miss Katrina Bundy for a proposal that has been most helpful in planning this event - well done, and good initiative!

Everyone else is welcome to sign up to participate, and should expect to form groups of 3-5 students, including our foreign guests in your groups. You might want to think now about how to arrange that.

For those who participate, all the puzzles and challenges of the course can be solved with magic no more complicated than our students learn at the end of 3rd year. However, in many cases, multiple solutions are possible, and any method that does not damage other students, property, or beings is permitted. CCF and YPL counsellors will be available if you have any concerns.

CCF members and YPL counsellors
You will be needed to help staff the various positions, and of course set up elements of the hunt in advance.

Please sign up on my office door for a prep shift (either Friday night, the 21st, or Saturday, the 22nd), and plan to be available from 2pm to 5pm for the actual event. (A special tea will follow for participants). I may also be adding one more addition to your Saturday morning (a pleasant one, if the scheduling works out) so plan your study time accordingly.

Other notes
Tuesday evening class: I will be in New London for last minute planning with the YPL committee on Tuesday afternoon, and it is likely the meeting will stretch into the evening. Therefore, I am cancelling Tuesday observing classes, but have asked a couple of my NEWT students to be available from full dark until curfew if you need to get caught up on any assignments.

I will also not be available for questions during that time, obviously, so if you have questions for assignments due Wednesday, ask them by Monday.

Poppy: I'd love a chance to consult with you about a few specific considerations. Are you free tomorrow afternoon, or perhaps Monday afternoon? If not, can we chat in private message here?

Comments

Private message to Raz

[alt_sinistra]

I expect the meeting's going to be quite tedious - we've apparently got a new committee member I know nothing about, replacing the St. Mungo's representative.

I'm hoping everyone will cooperate in getting things done, but if not, I suspect I'm going to be in a foul mood, and may need to stay overnight in New London as well. (There's a small inn they get a room for me in right across the way when that happens.)

I'll let you know either way Tuesday, but if I'm not back by, oh, 7pm, would you mind dreadfully checking upstairs to see how the NEWT students are doing, or letting them know they can reach you by journal if there's a problem? Of course, if it's cloudy, no worries. I can give you the names as soon as they figure out which of them most want the extra credit points for doing it. (They're all so busy already, the dears.)

Private message to Poppy

[alt_sinistra]

I do have a couple of small things about the orienteering to ask you about, but really, they're trivial - there's brooms and some scrambling in the rocks down the cliff, but nothing that's a particularly dangerous risk beyond that. (And we've got some precautions in both cases.)

What I really want to ask you about is the new representative for the YPL committee from St. Mungo's. Healer Deverill, you may remember, I quite liked, and I'm not sure why he's been replaced. (Of course, I get very little say in that sort of thing.)

The new one is apparently a Healer Stint - I don't have his first name yet. Do you know anything of him?

Private Message to Aurora Sinistra

[alt_poppy]

We could do both, if you like. I could plan tea for either afternoon, though you know that occasionally emergencies arise that overturn such engagements. I would like very much to see you, though, if you've the time.

As for consulting, let's take care of that here so it's not left up to chance.

Private message to Ron Weasley and Katrina Bundy

[alt_sinistra]

Mr Weasley and Miss Bundy -

Again, thanks for an excellent suggestion and the work you put into your proposal. For various reasons, we've had to adapt several of your ideas, but it saved the YPL committee a great deal of effort to have a starting place.

I wanted to thank you in public - but I'd also like to extend a private thank you. For any one Astronomy assignment this year, you may have a two week extension, on request (at any point before it's due) without penalty to your grade. Since you helped me manage my time and get everything done that needed doing, I thought it would be fair to help you do the same.

[alt_padma]

It sounds brilliant, Professor! And it will be a lovely way to introduce the visiting students to Hogwarts.

But - you did say that the CCF are being asked to help set up? That means we shan't be able to actually go on the scavenger hunt, right?

Only I think some people may not realise that they won't be eligible for any prizes if they're part of the crew, is all.