Planning calendar
Before the application process begins for your MSA program, have the dates for the events your ambassadors are responsible to attend. This takes planning time for the sponsors. Take the entire school year into consideration and think about the school/district calendar and conferences where you want to highlight your MSAs.
It's important to have your planning calendar with events, including locations and times, ready to send with the MSA application acceptances or to have available at your first scheduled meeting.
Some things you may want to consider in the planning of your MSA calendar:
- Dates of major events for your district. Back to school time is an exciting time to highlight your MSAs. Does your district have a “Back to School Bash” that you might want your MSAs to attend and demo Minecraft? Does your district have professional development dates that students could attend? Think about the dates that your district and/or school scheduled and consider the best and most appropriate events for your MSAs attend.
- Space your MSA events. Hold enough events to keep your MSAs engaged in your program, but not too frequently that they get burned out. Consider that parents and guardians of your MSAs will likely be responsible for transportation to and from events. Be considerate of the times of your events so parents and guardians are able to work around their schedules.
- Avoid school calendar conflicts for teachers and students. Account for holidays, breaks, and district and/or state testing.
- Engage your MSAs with a check-in once a month. Even if you aren't meeting with your MSAs every month for a face-to-face meeting, a conference, or a student showcase opportunity, keep them engaged with a monthly check-in.
- Aim for balance. Your MSAs may be busy with school, sports, and other extracurricular activities in addition to your Minecraft Student Ambassador program. When you create your MSA calendar for the year, be mindful of the other things their lives. In addition to your monthly check-ins/meetings you may want to have them attend an event every other month or even once a semester.
Chaperones and mentors play an important role at each event. Seek out ample support to maintain an appropriate ratio of adults to students. Chaperones can be parent volunteers or other educators willing to support the MSA sponsors. Seek them out in advance of each event and assign informal roles to each chaperone.
Consider the transportation needs of students and families. Do you provide school buses? Do students and parents need to provide their own transportation to MSA events? If public transportation is available, are the locations of MSA events accessible to transportation lines?
When planning snacks and meals, take into account the nutritional needs and allergy considerations of the MSAs. If any of your MSAs have an allergy that requires an epi-pen, ensure they have it with them and accessible at each event.
Have a management plan for each student that addresses safety and allows for active time and rest time. Also, have a plan for the accountability and security of your devices at each event.