Planning calendar

  • 3 minutes

Before the application process begins for your MSA program, one of the things that you'll want to have in place are the dates for the events that your ambassadors will be responsible for attending. This takes some planning time for the sponsors. You'll need to take the entire school year into consideration and think about the school/district calendar as well as any conferences that you want to highlight your MSAs.

It's important to have your planning calendar with events, including locations and times, ready to send out with the MSA application acceptances or to have available at your first scheduled meeting with your MSAs.

Some things you may want to consider in the planning of your MSA calendar:

  • Consider dates of major events for your district. Back to school time is always 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 already scheduled that students could attend? Think about the dates that your district and/or school already have scheduled and consider the best and most appropriate events to have your MSAs attend.
  • Space your MSA events apart. You want to hold enough events to keep your MSAs engaged in your program, but not too frequently that they get burned out. Also, consider that the parents and guardians of your MSAs will more than likely be responsible for their transportation to and from events. Be considerate of the times of your events so parents and guardians are able to work around their schedules. Be aware of your school calendar to avoid conflict for teachers and students. Be sure to account for holidays, breaks, district and/or state testing, etc.
  • Engage your MSAs with a check-in once a month. Even if you aren't meeting with your MSAs every month either for a face-to-face meeting, a conference, or a student showcase opportunity, keep them engaged with a monthly check-in. You can host this check-in on Microsoft Teams or even get creative with Flip.
  • 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're creating your MSA calendar for the year, be mindful of the other things they have going on in their lives. In addition to your monthly check-ins/meetings with your MSAs you may want to have them attend an event every other month or even once a semester.  

Important things to keep in mind:

Illustration of the Why Minecraft poster with the text: IMPORTANT THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND. These ideas are: having chaperones and mentors, considering the transportation needs of your students and their families, providing snacks/meals at events for your students, and having a safety plan in place.

Chaperones and mentors play an important role at each event.  Seek out ample support so that you maintain an appropriate ratio of adults to students.  These chaperones can be parent volunteers or other educators who are willing to support the MSA sponsor(s) at the event.  Seek them out in advance of each event and assign informal roles to each chaperone.

Consider the transportation needs of students and families.  Will you provide school buses?  Will 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've 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.