Greetings from the Family Activities Staff of the Pennsic War!
The deadline to submit classes for Pennsic that will appear in the site book is mere days away, on May 1st!
The Family Activities department runs three separate tracks of classes and activities, and all three are still looking for teachers. Teachers do not have to have been background checked or have any specific youth qualifications. They just need enthusiasm for their subject and a willingness to teach. Having a second adult for the class is helpful, but not required.
Family Point, focused on those aged under 10, is looking for teachers of hands-on crafts, mostly for Peace Week slots. If you are not sure what to teach, we have pre-packaged activities ready to go, such as Viking bead lacing and rune carving, which just need teachers.
Youth University, aimed at those aged nine to 14 (and located at the playground), is looking for SCA history, persona-specific, and hands-on classes targeted to tweens. We have openings during both Peace and War Week.
Teen University, aimed at those 13 to 17 (and located in the regular university area), is also looking for classes on SCA history, actual history, heraldry, sewing, other hands-on classes, and practically everything in which adults are also interested. Many teens also take classes at the regular university, however we provide a lower-stress entry point for those who need it. We have openings both weeks.
If you are interested in teaching, you can either enter the class in the Pennsic University System in the parent/child category with a note in the additional scheduling for either TeenU, YouthU, or Family Point, or you can email me.
Please help us provide a full slate of classes for each group in order to help our next generation fully integrate and remain interested in our society.
Many thanks,
Mistress Leonete D’Angely, Pennsic Family Activities Coordinator and former teenaged Pennsic attendee
A change in the light? A soft smell in the air? A gentle kiss of a breeze instead of an ice-knifed gale? Well, ok, not today given the snowstorm blanketing much of southern Æthelmearc, but it’s coming!
If you are weary of the bite of winter, I invite you to think of the warmer months ahead … particularly June!
The good folk of the Shire of Abhainn Ciach Ghlais look forward to welcoming you to the Spring 2018 session of Æthelmearc Æcademy and War College, which will be held on Saturday, June 16. Event information can be found here: http://aecademy.net/spring2018/index.shtml
The theme for this session will be Adornments, Embellishments, Flourishes, and Garnishes.
We can all find ways to up our game, whether by adorning a garment with intricate embroidery, embellishing a tale, adding flourish to a calligraphed signature, or garnishing a tasty dish.
Teachers are thus encouraged to offer classes that will inspire others to “kick it up a notch.”
Already, we have classes in:
Making turnshoes (An all-day, make-it-and-take-it class!)
Protocol for RP events (Helpful tips for Royalty Liasons!)
Running an event (Great for autocrats wanting to up their game!)
Scandinavian boxes (Spiff up your camp!)
Sewing hats (Every outfit is better with a hat!)
Short-sleeved Italian gown (Just right for Pennsic!)
For this session, we will be using two sites: one is a church with typical classrooms; the other is a fire hall with one large open room.
Having two kitchens means that those wishing to teach hands-on cooking classes will be able to do so without interfering with lunch prep. The fire hall is especially suited for multi-hour, messy classes.
Brewers will be pleased to learn that the fire hall will allow us to offer a Brewers’ Guild Roundtable.
For the martially inclined, we have a large, flat open field that can accommodate any number of fighters and fencers.
In addition, Duchess Ilish is already working to line up a stellar slate of classes for our Youth Track. We welcome classes taught by our youthful artisans as well as for them.
I hope you will consider sharing your knowledge, skills, and passions with AEthelmearc by teaching a class (or two!)
The class schedules for recent sessions of AEcademy have filled up more than a month before the event. To avoid disappointment, please don’t wait to register your class … sign up TODAY!
From Mistress Alicia Langland, Chancellor of the Æthelmearc Æcademy:
Were you one of the many artisans who devoted uncounted hours to researching, crafting, and documenting your Ice Dragon entry?
Photo by Lady Aine ny Allane.
So much time and effort went into your piece … Wouldn’t it be nice to have all that work transcend a single event?
Why not have your Pent entry do double duty by using what you’ve created as the basis for a class?
Here are some ideas to get you started:
Historical Background Class
The research you did for your entry provides you with the historical background and practices needed to understand who, when, where, why, and how someone in the Middle Ages would have crafted your item. This information would also be of interest to students in a class. In a Historical Background class based on your research, you might include information about:
the item’s time period, culture, or geographical area
the artifact, illustration or painting, historical document, or website that inspired your work
how your item would have been produced in the Middle Ages or Renaissance
additional books, websites, and other sources you used for researching your project
Sharing this information will speed your students on their way toward creating their own versions.
How-I-Did-It Class
Chances are, as you created your item, you had to make decisions along the way. A class in which you describe in detail the decisions you made — about tools, materials, and procedures — would be of immense help to someone who’s always wanted to try doing what you’ve accomplished. In a How-I-Did-It class based on your entry, you might include information about:
what tools and materials you used to make your item, why you chose them, and where you obtained them (If you made the tools you used, include how you did that as well!)
what techniques you used and why you used them
any particular steps you would change if you were to do this project again
Especially helpful — in addition to your finished project, of course — would be any practice pieces or missteps. Sharing problems to avoid or solutions that worked for you would give your students confidence that they, too, can be successful.
Make-and-Take Class
With the knowledge and skills gained by creating your entry, you can help others make their own great thing. By providing tried-and-tested materials and demonstrating recommended techniques, you can help your students avoid time-consuming and costly mistakes. In a Make-and-Take class based on your entry, you might provide:
(for a reasonable fee) supplies and materials needed to make the item
loaner tools needed to make the item
step-by-step instructions needed to make the item
If you took progress photos of your entry as you worked on it, these would provide you with a step-by-step format to follow in your class. Sharing the photos with the class would help visual learners — those who learn best by seeing — understand and remember what you’ve said. They would also serve as a reminder for students who continue working after the class is over.
You’ve already done so much work to create your piece … in fact, much of the work of putting together a class is already done!
If you have questions about how to turn your Ice Dragon entry into a class, please contact me at ae.aecademy@aethelmearc.org
Illumination by Lady Mairghread Stiobhard Inghean uí Choinn
The Avian and Industrious Barony of Thescorre is pleased to again announce that the College of Three Ravens will be in held on February 21st, 2015. The College will take place at the Western Presbyterian Church, located at 101 E. Main St, Palmyra, NY 14622. The site will open at 9:00am and close at 9:00pm. Those present after 9:00 pm may be pressed into clean-up duties! Classes will begin at 10:00am and continue until at least 4:00pm. The site is handicapped accessible and has ample parking.
We are anticipating a pleasing variety of classes. If you have a class that you would like to teach, please contact the Chancellor of Classes, Lady Kadlin Sigvaldakona kadlin@thescorre.org. Please see her call for classes, below.
With your paid reservation, please include “C3R” in the subject line.
The adult site fee of $7 includes a sideboard lunch (children under eighteen – $4, children under 5 – free). A family cap of $22 for the *site fees only* will be in effect. A $5 non-member surcharge must be collected at the door for adults without proof of membership. The site is dry, no alcohol permitted. No flames – open or enclosed are allowed.
Lady Elen Woderose speaks with Lady Mairghread Stiobhard Inghean uí Choinn, the autocrat of College of Three Ravens 2014. Photo credit, Lord Simon Peregrin (Bob Wheeler).
A sideboard lunch will be prepared by Baroness Mistress Sadira bint Saleem-(315-524-9823) pchakalis@yahoo.com. A Tour Across Europe feast will be prepared by Baroness Nuzah bint Saleem-(585 615 0398 mins469@yahoo.com) with assistance from Lady Elzbieta and Lord Andrew. Please contact Baroness Nuzah by 1/31/15 with dietary restrictions. Adult feast is $9 (children under eighteen – $5, children under 5 – free). Feast seating is limited to 85. Feast reservation cannot be guaranteed unless reserved by 2/15/15.
Pre-reservation for this event is always appreciated for planning both the sideboard & feast. Please send reservations to the reservationist/tollner THL Otelia d’Alsace ( Esther Heller, 1355 Walworth-Penfield Rd, Walworth NY 14568 galoot@localnet.com). Checks are to be made payable to SCA NY Inc – Barony of Thescorre. Please do include modern name, SCAdian name & membership number (where appropriate) for each person to be covered by your payment. Also, indicate if any are minors, and for whom feast reservations are desired. Inclusion of contact info will be invaluable in clarifications. Please remember that the only good reservation is a paid reservation.
For further information or questions, please contact the autocrat: Lady Mairghread Stiobhard Inghean uí Choinn (Margaret Wilcox) at wilcox.margaret@gmail.com or 585-414-3748 before 8:30 pm.
At the 2013 College of Three Ravens, the feast featured this delicious dessert sideboard. Photo Credit, Lady Mairghread Stiobhard Inghean uí Choinn.
Call for Classes
Unto the Good Gentles of Aethelmearc does Lady Kaðlin Sigvaldakona send Greetings!
As Chancellor of Classes for the upcoming College of Three Ravens event in the Industrious Barony of Thescorre, I am humbly requesting for gentles to share their knowledge and skills by signing up to teach a class (or two)! This day of teaching and learning will be on February 21, 2015 at the Western Presbyterian Church, located at 101 E. Main St, Palmyra, NY 14622.
Please use the following format when supplying information:
SCA Name: (as you wish it to appear in the class listings)
E-mail address: Class Name: Class Description:
Class Format: (lecture, round-table, hands-on, etc) Length of Class: (one 50 min block or two 50 min blocks)
Handouts provided: (yes/no)
Participant Fees: (if any)
Class Limits/Restrictions: (# of participants, no children, children with supervision, etc.) Room/equipment requirements: (table space, access to sink, use of projector, etc )
Preferred teaching time: (am, pm, either)
Please send emails to kadlin@thescorre.org with ‘C3R’ in the subject line.
Greetings from the Family Activities Staff of the Pennsic War!
