All Activity

I'd just like to take a moment to thank Lorania Riverrider for all her sterling work as junior prefect. Lo, it's been truly wonderful having you on the team.

Happy, happy birthday, @Prof. Amy Lupin! I'll fetch the pistachio croissants.

Unfortunately, we've lost access to our in-built ruby counting tool, so you won't be able to check your ruby totals from your profile or the homepage at the moment. We've created a spreadsheet to keep track of people's totals for the term so far, though. As before, we'll only update the totals once an activity has finished. If you spot any mistakes please let us know. Even though we're not able to provide an activity by activity breakdown like we could previously, we do have staff records of what everyone received for each particular activity, so we'll be able to look into it for you. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MYvjtxs0U8O6vjRW8-UMdV2lGF96kyKKAmT3gBnMcak/edit?usp=drive_link

Approved @Eunice Abott - first year

People who have submitted a correct solution so far... River Fenwick Prof. Scarlet Leslie-Lewis

For me, the floor plan and exhibit order can make or break the museum experience. While it’s a privilege to have a larger space for a museum, it’s arguably not very common, and the museum's flow has to be creative to showcase it all. I personally like a lot of walking room, with some space between each piece, so I can read without others hovering and talking practically in my ear to converse with their group. Having an abundance of benches is also something I like, giving time to sit a bit further away to enjoy the museum while taking a break.

We are honored to introduce our guest speaker, Shigeru Miyamoto, who is widely regarded as one of the most influential game designers, producers, and directors. If you don’t know the name, you’ll certainly know the games! Having worked at Nintendo for almost 50 years, he has worked on some of their best-selling game franchises, including but not limited to Mario, The Legend of Zelda, and Donkey Kong! Today, he’s here to share some of his experience with all of us, cluing us into some behind-the-scenes processes and stories that will give us more appreciation for the making of video games, or for those of you who are developers or looking to become one, some great tips that may aid you in your endeavor.

Some recent feedback at my museum suggested that, while many of the larger companies featured in the exhibits greatly contributed to the shaping and history of video games, there is a distinct lack of highlighting for those that are less represented. To improve upon this, we are going to open another exhibit that focuses on those underrepresented in the industry, such as independent developers. With time, we hope it becomes more of a rotating exhibit, with enough material to change out the different games and developers, continuously showing support for those who don’t have the influence of bigger companies to advertise on a larger scale. We would also like to invite the people behind works that qualify for a spotlight in our museum to present their game here.

One unique item from my museum’s gift shop is a Memory Card Journal. Designed to resemble a PS1 memory card (without being an exact copy, of course), it offers color options and a space on the front to write your name, making it personal and distinctly journal-like. Unlike standard notebooks, each lined page boasts a special gaming-themed background that pays tribute to a specific game, while the corners showcase matching pixel art. This makes the journal not just a place for writing, but also a celebration of gaming history with every page turned.

Some books arrive on the shelves with a sense of excitement and mystery. Others…take a little more effort to notice. Prefects Who Gained Power is, unfortunately, one of those books that many students walk past without a second glance. It’s full of rules, responsibilities, and very serious stories about prefects doing very official prefect things, and advancing to very important and official jobs. Important? Yes. Thrilling? Well…that’s another question. The publisher has finally decided something must be done, and the first step is the cover. For this task, you’ll design a brand new and very exciting cover for Prefects Who Gained Power. Post your covers below by 23:59 HOL-time on the 31st of March to earn 10 rubies.

This month, we’re spotlighting notable Hogwarts alumni as we channel our inner Percy Weasley and peruse Prefects Who Gained Power. This little known text profiles former Hogwarts prefects who found fame and influence in the wizarding world . Task 1: https://gryff.net/index.php?/topic/4674-prefects-who-gained-power-task-1/ Task 3: https://gryff.net/index.php?/topic/4675-prefects-who-gained-power-task-3/

There are so many prefects featured in the book that it can sometimes be hard to remember who’s who while you’re reading. Here are details from the book about 5 former prefects who went on to have notable careers in the wizarding world (one is Fumi Ito). Work out when they graduated (one graduated in 1964), what prominent position they ended up gaining (one was a magizoologist) and what their best subject was when they were at Hogwarts (one was history of magic). 1. The person who became Head of Magical Law Enforcement graduated 4 years after the person whose best subject was charms. 2. Of the person who graduated in 1980 and the person who graduated in 1976, one became Head Healer at St Mungo’s and the other was best at DADA. 3. Cordelia Cherrytree was not the person who became a member of the Wizengamot. 4. The person whose best subject was herbology graduated after Cordelia Cherrytree. 5. Ben Adebayo was not the person who became a member of the Wizengamot. 6. The person who graduated in 1972 became a cursebreaker. 7. The person whose best subject was herbology was either the person who became Head of Magical Law Enforcement or the person who became a member of the Wizengamot. 8. The person whose best subject was herbology graduated 8 years before the person whose best subject was transfiguration. 9. Ben Adebayo‘s best subject was not herbology. 10. Of the person who graduated in 1968 and the person who became a cursebreaker, one is the person whose best subject was herbology and the other is Isabella Pérez. 11. Ekram Sharma didn't become Head of Magical Law Enforcement. To earn 10 rubies, send your solution to me (Prof. Sky Alton) via private message by the 31st of March, 11:59 PM HOL-time.

The book’s main focus is on what prefects went on to do after they left the castle but it does include some details about their time at school. Pick a prefect we’ve never heard about before (in other words, invent one) and tell us what their crowning achievement was while they were at Hogwarts. You could go silly (did they put a stop to a particularly audacious prank?) or serious (did they help out in a crisis?). Your response should be 100 words or more for full credit. To earn 10 rubies, please post your responses below by the 31st of March, 11:59 PM HOL-time.

The get-well-soon card would have a light background featuring a Quidditch pitch, with the goalposts visible at one end and stands along the sides. The main text in black would begin with “Wishing you a,” followed by an illustration of a broomstick chasing a Golden Snitch. The words “speedy recovery” would be integrated into the broomstick’s handle, placed in the upper-middle section of the card. Smaller text at the bottom would read: “Hope you get well soon! Rest up. The pitch can wait.”

And there goes Dai Llewellyn, shooting upwards at quite a steep angle; it must be hard for him to hold onto his broomstick. He continues to look down at the pitch over his shoulder, which I have to assume is to get a bird’s eye view of where the Golden Snitch, Bludgers, and Quaffle are—oh, would you look at that! He’s plunging downward, straight down, toward what seems to be the scuffle between some of the Chasers. What in the name of Merlin’s pants is he—I see it now, yes, the Golden Snitch is just below them, almost hiding. But there’s no way he—he is! He’s diving right between them, his arm outstretched right where that Golden Snitch was, but I have no idea how he plans to stop; it’s too low for him to pull back up in time. So we’ll see if he...he turned his broomstick just as his hand wrapped around it, and he’s sharply turning his broom, missing the stadium by mere inches, and he slows to a rest. He’s raising his arms and...he’s done it! He’s gotten the Golden Snitch, ending the match at 210 to 50, thanks to the reckless but effective stunt pulled off by Dai Llewellyn!

Due to a series of misadventures, our autumn term awards are coming to you a little late this time round but that doesn’t mean we can’t have our usual uproarious party (uproarious? Get it? No?). Prof. Trevelyan is setting up the butterbeer fountain as we speak. But first, thanks to everyone who has contributed to the house so far this year – whether that’s by earning points, taking part in activities or just dropping by to say hello. And as ever, huge thanks to the Gryffindor staff for keeping us all entertained with magical activities – you guys rock! :D And now onto our fabulous students… Up first, the Platinum Quill for the term’s highest point earner. And with 1920 points to his name, @Janne Halla is a very worthy winner indeed. Then there are our ruby based awards. The Phoenix, for highest earning Gryff, goes to @Ellie Vernez, while @River Fenwick scoops yet another well-deserved Lionheart award for being our highest earning visitor! Studious Simba, our award for a Gryffindor doing great things on the educational side of things, goes to @Sophia Williams. Sophia always blows our collective socks off with her dedication in classes, so we felt we just had to mark that with a shiny this term. Next up, Curious Kitten: the award for an enthusiastic person who adds a bit of sunshine to proceedings. This term, it goes to @Tom Harik. It’s been lovely seeing Tom around HOL and The Den a little more this term – he’s definitely brightened up the place ! Consistent Cub is an award for a lion making a splash in several different areas and this time, it goes to @Lexa Winslow. It’s been a pleasure to have Lexa join us in Gryff and to see her bring the sweet sound of music to the classrooms with her very own class. That’s all for this term but we’ll have more awards to hand out at the end of the year and we’re looking forward to recognising even more lions then. Have a fabulous term and work hard (but not too hard)! Now, for that butterbeer fountain….

Approved @Madison Sterling - first year

Ah, reviews. They’re immensely important for any museum as they spread the word about the wonders to be found inside. People are far more likely to pay you a visit if lots of other witches and wizards are singing your praises (and hopefully not grumbling about the price of cauldron cakes at the museum café…) For this task, we’d like you to write a 100 word review. You could either write a visitor review for your own museum or pick one of your fellow participants’ museums to write a review for (if you pick that option, please make sure it’s a very positive review!). To earn 10 rubies, post your reviews below by the updated due date of the 15th of March, 11:59 PM HOL-time.

They say you shouldn’t play favourites… but I’m sure many curators do. Is there a particular exhibit in your museum that you’re very fond of? Perhaps you really like the history behind it, perhaps it just draws the visitors’ eyes, or perhaps you had to go to great lengths to get it… We’d love to hear the backstory behind one of your exhibits in at least 100 words: how did it come about and why did you choose this one to display over other exhibit ideas? Please make sure you pick a new exhibit to focus on , rather than reusing one from a previous task. To earn 10 rubies, post your responses below by the updated due date of the 15th of March, 11:59 PM HOL-time.

We'll be posting fresh tasks as usual in the next few days but due to the forum downtime, we'll accept submissions for He Flew Like a Madman until the 8th of March.

People who turned in a correct solution were... River Fenwick

People who turned in a correct solution were... River Fenwick

More often than not, people see the finished exhibition in a museum and don’t always think about the work that happens behind the scenes. Curators spend a lot of time planning, researching, and making decisions about what should be displayed and how it should be presented. It can be exciting work, but it can also come with a few challenges along the way. Curators often have to balance many things at once, such as limited space, different ideas about what should be included, and the responsibility of caring for important objects. They also need to think about visitors and how to make exhibitions clear, interesting, and meaningful for many different people. In at least 100 words, share what challenges you think curators might face while preparing and managing exhibitions. You can think about practical problems, creative decisions, or even working with other people on a project. To earn 10 rubies, post your responses below by the 15th of March at 23:59 HOL-time.

Sometimes a visit to an exhibition feels very different when someone's there to guide you through it. A guide can point out small details, share stories behind the objects, and help visitors understand why certain pieces are important. Many people enjoy learning this way, especially when the person leading the tour is clearly excited about the exhibition and wants to share that interest with others. For this task, imagine you are offering guided tours for your exhibition. Write a short piece of at least 100 words, inviting visitors to join, explaining what the tour will be like, and what they can expect to learn or see along the way. To earn 10 rubies, post your tours below by the 15th of March at 23:59 HOL-time.

The deadline for Museum Curators has been extended to 15 March.