Please pardon our dust. This page is under construction, and the information here is not final.
History
Traditionally, wizards have received a rather different education from their muggle counterparts. Many subjects considered essential to muggles were taught in the home or outright ignored by Old World wizards. But in America, wizards realized the importance of blending in among the non-magical folk, especially after the repeal of Rappaport's Law. So they began to devise ways to have young witches and wizards educated right alongside muggle children during their early years, only to be later sent off to Ilvermorny or Winchester.
In Mythic Wood, things are even more deeply integrated. The wizards there value their strong community, and prefer not to send their children off to distant boarding schools.
Long before white men ever set foot in Mith-Ih-Kwuh Valley, the shamans of the Coos people made use of a series of underground caves for ritual and training purposes. Like many places in Mith-Ih-Kwuh, the caves were suffused with magic, considered sacred by benevolent spirits who kept them secret and safe.
When Old World wizards arrived in Mith-Ih-Kwuh along with mugglish Oregon Trail settlers, they eventually formed a pact with the Coos, and later with other local tribes. Part of this concord was an agreement to make mutual use of the caves as a place to train young wizards away from the prying eyes of muggles.
When the settlement began turning into a village, the very first schoolhouse was built right atop the underground caves, and the Wizards made sure to include a secret entrance, where wizard teachers could sneak the magical children away for special lessons. As time went on and the schoolhouse became obsolete, new schools were built on the same site, always with secret access to the caves.
The ACCEL Program
In modern Mythic Wood, the elementary, middle, and high schools are all on a single campus. muggle and wizard children attend regular classes together. But all magical students are enrolled in a special program called ACCEL: Alternative Curriculum and Counseling for Exceptional Learners.
ACCEL is often confused for either a gifted and talented program or special education. It is actually described as a program designed for students who have been identified as having a different way of learning, and it is supposed to cater to their particular needs. Of course, it is all smoke and mirrors to disguise the real reason that a percentage of the school's population disappears for mysterious classes every day.
Where Is My Favorite Class?
You may notice that some classic Hogwarts classes are missing from the curriculum.
With the heavy integration into muggle society, there is no need for an equivalent to Muggle Studies. Likewise, Astronomy is a part of regular muggle science.
The content of History of Magic is covered in the first six years (K-5th) of magical education.
Defense Against the Dark Arts is just not something considered as broadly important by MACUSA as it is by the Ministry of Magic. Most of the information learned in this class is distributed as appropriate between early education, Charms, Transfiguration, and Magizoology.
Divination is just not taken seriously in America. It is widely considered to be little more than guesswork and deliberate vagueness and is therefore not a part of the curriculum. This isn't to say there are no wizards that practice the art; in fact, it is taken quite seriously by Native shamans.
Curriculum
Miluk Elementary School
From Kindergarten through 5th Grade, children attend Miluk Elementary School. There they learn the fundamentals of language, math, science, and social studies. This is supplemented by experience in art, music, and physical education (including health classes). For wizard children, their ACCEL curriculum is focused on two things: control and secrecy.
During these early years, magical kids are taught focus and restraint. This is to keep their powers under control to avoid those unfortunate magical outbursts that can wreak all kinds of havoc and threaten the secrecy of the wizarding world. This doesn't involve any kind of wand use. It is based on meditative techniques and plain old practice.
Of course, magical outbursts aren't the only thing that can cause a breach of secrecy; children often don't appreciate that what they say can have drastic consequences. Teaching wizarding children to keep their silence, and even to lie about magic to the muggles, is arguably more difficult than getting their powers under control. What child wouldn't want to tell his muggle playmate all about his adventure in the forest with a pukwudgie? It's all made even more difficult when trying to help a child distinguish between a lie that protects wizardkind, and the sort of lie one should not tell.
At the end of the 5th Grade, wizard children are required to take an exam called the CROW, or Competency Review on Obfuscation of Wizardry. This is meant to test their understanding of the International Wizarding Statute of Secrecy and their ability to uphold it, as well as their skill at keeping their powers in check. No American wizard is allowed to use a wand until they pass the CROW.
Walker Middle School
From 6th to 8th Grade, students at Walker Middle School can first begin choosing some of their classes. While math, social studies, English, P.E., and a foreign language remain core classes, there is now some room for electives, such as Art, Music, Journalism, Yearbook, Creative Writing, Wood Shop, and more. This is also when the school had organized sports teams. Walker Middle has a football and a basketball team. Walker Middle School shares the High School's sports areas, auditorium, and workshop classrooms.
Day one of the 6th Grade is the first time a young witch or wizard is legally allowed to touch a wand. ACCEL time on that first day is spent allocating wands to the magical middle schoolers. From then on, they are finally taught proper wandwork, taking classes in Charms, Transfiguration, and Potions, as well as elective courses like
Rocklin High School
<MORE TO COME>
Things to Cover:
- Native magic
- Age/grade stuff
- Wand rights