Today I arranged for the teacher recertification class from UVA Wise to have a tour of the James Madison University campus, or simulation, in SL. It was awesome! Lykopis Darkstone, who is a professor there and built the sims, lead the tour. She showed us three areas: the theater, Stonehenge, and living quarters for students and professors living and learning abroad in Florence, Italy.
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| Landing spot with Wilson Hall in the background |
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| Lobby of the JMU Theater |
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Inside the theater
Leko Littlebird has painstakingly recreated the actual theater | | | | |
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Leko uses this space to create scene design virtually before building it in real life, saving money, time and materials. His students have space in skyboxes to do building as well.
Lykopis' own students have several assignments in SL. One is at Stonehenge. They walk through a green space clicking gems for notecards which provide information about the 10000 year old Neolithic site. Once inside they learn even more. She's built it precisely as it was when whole including the sunlight from the correct direction at sunset at the winter solstice.
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| JMU Study Abroad space in Florence, Italy |
Some lucky faculty, graduate students, and undergrads get to spend three months in this space. The house they live and study in while in the physical world is a maze of narrow halls, small rooms, and gated stairways. Visiting this space in SL first, helps them get their barrings and prepare for their experience in Italy. Faculty traveling with family get a realistic look at how small the space is, helping them not to over pack!
