Episode 20: The Ghost in the Graveyard
Wing, Raven and Dove talk about Sweet Valley Twins Super Chiller 2: The Ghost in the Graveyard. They also discuss Bleak Valley and how the book ties into this theory.
Music is provided by Stuart Taylor, who can be contacted on taylorstuart602@gmail.com if you wish to commission music.
You can read our recaps at Sweet Valley Online, tumblr or visit us at Facebook or Twitter (follow @SweetValley_)
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Middle school vs junior high are functionally the same, it’s a technical difference depending on the grade levels.
Junior high is the older construct where you’re trying to keep the population at the high school lower by outsourcing the ninth grade because you can’t (or won’t) build a second campus. [Sometimes towns won’t build a second high school because their current campus is dominant in sports, etc. because of the large population and a split would water down the talent.]
Middle school is more common, it’s usually just 7th & 8th, but sometimes includes 6th. It goes back and forth as the education pendulum swings…
I specifically asked about this when I was getting my teaching credential.
Elementary: K-6 (6th optional)
Middle School: 6/7/8 (6th optional)
Junior High: 7/8/9
High School: 9-12
I can easily see a middle or high school hosting a sports day for elementary school kids. That would be easily done in a small school district.
In Los Angeles county, the middle and upper class neighborhoods tend to be their own city, which means people grow up in a district with multiple elementary schools, 1-2 middle schools, and 1 high school. This is how I picture Sweet Valley, because you’re right next to another city, but you’ve never socialized with them.
I grew up in a large city, there are three school districts had 10+ full (1500-2000 student) sized high schools, one of which is now the largest district in California. There are various smaller districts as well. The district I work at a single middle/high school. It’s a mid sized high school (1300-1400 students.)
There is a high school in the region that’s over 3000 that uses junior highs (for the reason noted above.) They count the freshman in their population but freshmen aren’t on campus unless they have a specific class that’s only held at the high school. I’ve heard of 4-6000 students in massive schools in Texas or inner city, which frankly sounds awful.