So You Say You Want a Revolution: Week 3, Period 3

[tricksy-spy.livejournal.com]

Aly was finishing writing on the whiteboard as the students came in, but she turned with a smile once everyone was seated. "Morning to you. I hope you all came with your tongues well-exercised and ready to charm." She made a little face. "And pretend that didn't sound terribly dirty. What we're talking about today is persuasion. Nearly everyone needs to talk people into seeing things their way once in a while, but in a revolutionary situation, it becomes much, much more important. You don't only need to convince people to join the revolution, but you need to convince bakers to help feed your troops, talk guards into leaving a window unlocked, spin the issues for journalists to write about, and even persuade your own people to stay disciplined and wait for a plan instead of running in willy-nilly.

"It's a sad fact, but a good 70% of a rebellion is going to be planning, and you need to make sure you know how to use that time to talk your fellows into to your excellent ideas." Aly flashed a smile at that. "Because you'll all have them right?" She pointed to the whiteboard. "Two things are up there. First is a 8 point guide to persuasive arguments. The examples under the points are from a speech by French leader Charles de Gaulle. If you don't know about him, take some time this week to look him up. He was quite a character. But what he did in this speech is walk into a room full of French soldiers who were ready to fight to the death to keep Algeria a French territory. He walked into that room and gave a speech about the benefits of Algerian independence, and by the end of it, the entire room was on their feet cheering for something they'd have scorned an hour earlier. In this world, at least, it's considered one of the greatest examples of persuasive speaking ever, and a copy of it is on each of your desks to reference."

( Examples below! )

Canada Is Not That Strange And Other Biases | Wednesday | Period 2

[just-add-starch.livejournal.com]

When the students arrived today, they'd find Fraser sitting behind the desk and several words written on the chalkboard. Those words were: BIGFOOT, THE LOCHNESS MONSTER, CHUPACABRA, HIPPOCAMP, and HOBGOBLIN.

Once everyone was seated, Fraser got to his feet and smiled at the class. "Good morning. Today, we're going to be talking about mythical creatures. Behind me, you'll see the names of just a few of the mythical creatures that are part of this world's folklore. In the most basic of terms, a mythical creature is something that doesn't exist, according to most people, but hasn't been completely ruled out as fake. The first two, especially, have been the subjects of many expeditions and attempts at capturing and proving that they are real. There's been some evidence but nothing to prove conclusively that these creatures do exist."

He paused and crossed his arms. "Now, here, obviously, the rules are a little different. Here, mythical things exist and no one really bats an eye. We're an exception to the rule. Mythical creatures to us are like horses and cows to people from the outside world. If they came to this island and saw the teal deer or the gremlins, they might not be able to immediately handle it. There's interest, though, in the strange and unknown and that is what drives people to try and prove that these things do exist. Why do you think they haven't been able to find proof? Is it because they truly don't exist? Or perhaps these creatures have evolved to the point of hiding and protecting themselves that well that no one finds them. Yet, people will continue to search. I think people would continue to search even if someone proved, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that these were completely mythical creatures. Someone is always going to have hope."

Fraser nodded and looked out at the class. "Assignment for today is brainstorming why people seek out mythical creatures. Do you have any other ideas as to what might drive people to spend money and time on something that might exist? Does that make them crazy or just dedicated? Let's hear what you think."

Library [9-15]

[imonscholarship.livejournal.com]

Dan had been in a writing funk lately, so he decided to spend his shift with a notebook and a large cup of coffee, trying to see what would come out of it. It wasn't going well.

Annonucements, Wednesday Afternoon

[mouthy-merc.livejournal.com]

Maybe they should have guarded that intercom system better. Or maybe, just maybe... Deadpool was on it with permission.

...maybe.

"Gooood afternoon, kids. William Murdoch and Princess Ariel von Disney please report to the Vice Principal's office. William Murdoch and Ariel. That is all."

Boom-De-Yada Science - Danger Shop, Wednesday, Period 1 [Week 3]

[worsethanaunts.livejournal.com]

The Doctor didn't say hello today. Very rude of him. Instead, he launched into a lecture about why the sky was blue, the different types of clouds and the layers of Earth's atmosphere.

The important part was that while this was going on, they were all standing on a vast field of clouds. Yes, up in the sky. "Now," he said once he talked non-stop without allowing interruptions (anyone who tried got a single finger - no, not that one - pointed at them to shush them while he prattled on about the topic at hand), "you might notice we're standing on clouds. They're not normally solid, so don't try this at home. The Danger Shop has been reprogrammed so that the clouds are solid and bouncy." He bounced up and down to demonstrate. It was like a gigantic outdoor trampoline only fluffy and soft. "You won't fall through. Try not to run into the invisible walls." They were still there, after all, even though they couldn't be seen.

And with that, he started bouncing around.