Classic American Film, Thursday, Period 4

[eager-platypus.livejournal.com]

When the students first arrived to class, Ziva was too busy reading through her e-mail to greet them like she usually did. After a minute, she finally realized that she needed to start class, and shut her laptop, putting on a small, forced smile to hide her stress.

"Good afternoon," she said. "Today, we will be getting into the 'classic' part of our class title. The American Civil War was one of the bloodiest and deadliest wars in this country's history, and there have been so many films set in that time period that we could spend an entire semester on those movies alone, and still have some left that would remain unwatched. We, however, only have time to focus on one such film, so I decided that we should watch Left With the Breeze. It might be an old film - it was made seventy years ago - but it still appears on many lists as one of the best movies ever made."

Eying her laptop, and all of the e-mails from Ducky and Abby that she still had to read, Ziva added, "We will not be having a discussion question today. All you must do is stay seated and watch the movie." Somehow, she didn't think the students would mind her sudden change of plans.

Library [9-23]

[wesleynotponcy.livejournal.com]

Wesley was in the library. He had nothing else to do, so he was checking one of the shelves to make sure everything was in the proper order. Yep, it was going to be another exciting day.

Tracking: Urban v. Wilderness; Thursday, Period Three [ 09/23 ].

[colourfulscents.livejournal.com]

Angua had made sure to save all of her breathing for before class started and reminded herself that she had to just go in there, choke it down, and talk for maybe ten minutes and then that would be it. She wouldn't think about there was a full moon today and, as a result, she felt incredibly carnal and wolfish and hairy and irritated in human skin and a big giant laundry list of other unpleasant things that was only going to get worse in a room filled with able-bodied youth and a handful of bloody vampires.

"Hokay," she said, since she was trying to not make it obvious she was uncomfortable with class today. "Real short class today, you guys, because I want you to get out there and get working on this today, although you have all week to finish it. You'll all find on your desks a map of the island, including streets and paths in the Preserve. One of the key things about being able to track in an urban environment is to understand the typical escape routes or other roads something you're tracking might be taking, just as, when tracking in the woods, knowing where the deer trails or other indications of frequent movement, can be useful in finding sources of water or prey. So I want you all to take a map and, though the course of the week, figure out at least three different urban paths and three different wilderness ones that could be useful to know. Is there a shortcut, perhaps, behind Caritas that could lead you to interrupting someone's escape? A particular spot that it's easier to get on the roofs and take the higher ground? A deceptively thick thicket perfect for setting a trap? That sort of thing."

"And that's all I really have for you today. Go ahead and head on out to check out some possibilities, or just go home for the rest of the hour. It doesn't really matter as long as it's finished by next week and we'll talk about this in more depth then."

And the sooner they left, the sooner she could breathe again.

[[ OCD is on the way up! ]]

[[ Previous Classes ]]

Ethics [Thursday, September 23, 2nd period]

[sith_happened]

Anakin scrawled Most of the trouble in the world is caused by people wanting to be important.--TS Eliot on the board and then turned around to face his students. "Pride--or hubris, if you speak Latin--in the Catholic religious tradition of this planet, is considered the original and most serious of the deadly sins. In order to deal ethically with other people, we need to acknowledge this very human flaw in ourselves and others. We want to believe that we are different, better than everyone around us." His gaze sharpened. "We're not. Everything is connected. You, me, the rocks outside, the deer in the preserve, the beings who live across the causeway, the trillions who make up the multiverse around us." He smiled a little ruefully. "The dozens of different versions of yourself others might have met before arriving on this island..."

He leaned back against his desk. "I grew up as a slave on a desolate planet beyond the normal reaches of the law in my society. When I was rescued by Jedi and told that with training, I could be like them, my pride in myself and my abilities quickly spiraled into arrogance and disdain for those who were teaching me. It took some very difficult lessons for me to realize that pride was probably my greatest fault."

Though there were arguments for most of the other Deadly Sins, too.

"So, learning to swallow our pride and admit we're not quite as special or brilliant as we thought we were is never a fun process," he continued. "How high do the stakes have to be before we'll admit we've made a mistake or have been fooled?"

Hopefully everyone else doesn't have to be limbless, on fire, evil and alone first...

Famous Shipwrecks of the Deep [Thursday, Period One, 9/23]

[takesaftermom.livejournal.com]

Summer had sent out a handwaved e-mail to her students to meet in the Danger Shop for class. She waited for everyone to arrive before starting. "Fandom thought it amusing to turn me into a bird last week, so I apologize for missing out on class. But Ariel did a wonderful job taking over for me, so everything was in good hands." She smiled in Ariel's direction if she was there before continuing. "Today, we're learning about the Titanic. On April 15, 1912, the Titanic sank after colliding with an iceberg. It was a White Star ocean liner and had all the amenities you could ever imagine -- a gymnasium, pools, a squash court and Turkish baths."

Once Summer finished with her lecture, the students would find that parts of the Titanic had been simulated for them to explore.

"At 11.40pm on 14 April 1912, the Titanic’s lookout rang the bell three times and said, “Iceberg right ahead”. Sadly all subsequent efforts to avoid collision came too late and a rock-hard spur of ice ripped into the ship like a giant tin opener, puncturing 250ft of the ship’s hull. With too few lifeboats on board for the number of passengers, panic started to set in. At 2.20 am on 15 April 1912, the Titanic made her final plunge into the depths of the North Atlantic - 1,503 people died," she added. "I think it's fairly safe to say that the Titanic is the most famous shipwreck of all time. It sank a few hundred miles southeast of Newfoundland and was discovered on September 1, 1985." It was safe to say that the Titanic was near and dear to Summer's heart and she'd give anything to get to explore it, hence her creating the dive in the Danger Shop for her students.

"The ship had broken into two virtual halves - the bow and the stern. The bow remains relatively intact, while 2000 feet away the stern lies severely damaged and deformed. People can see the famous shipwreck on board a submersible that sets off from Canada. Today, I've made it so you can dive down to the ship and actually explore parts of it. So have fun and if you have any questions, feel free to ask me."

[OCD is up.]

[Syllabus | Class Roster]

Student Council | Friday Lunchtime

[suit-of-awesome.livejournal.com]

Another year, another batch of wide-eyed youngsters for Barney to corrupt. And George, but he was well on his way! Barney gathered the group in the classroom he'd transformed into his very own boardroom last year, complete with mahogany table, plush swivel chairs, and an awesome gavel that only Barney got to hold, lo siento el presidente.

He smacked the gavel against the stand when he felt like getting things going. "Settle down, kiddos, and welcome to your 2010 student council. Good job being better than your peers, not that it was that hard if this crowd is any indication. Today you guys get to talk Parents Weekend so I'm gonna let you guys talk it out. Any questions can be directed to your new senior leader, El presidente, Alexander Michaelangelo Karev!" No, he didn't care if that wasn't Karev's name, it just sounded good.

The Science of Deduction, Friday - 9/24

[3patchproblem.livejournal.com]

Today the danger shop was set up to look like, well, another classroom. Not terribly exciting compared to bodies and crime scenes.

"St. Luke's is well known for their academic honesty and the caliber of students attending." Meaning their parents weren't who's anymore, rather whom's now. "Unfortunately for them, a theft has occurred the day before the final examinations. Mr. Soames--"

As Sherlock pushed a button on his phone, an older man appeared in the classroom. Because he enjoyed this technology far, far too much.

"--left his office, locked, to pick up lunch. According to him, he'd only been gone an hour. But when he returned, the door was unlocked and someone had tampered with his computer, gaining access to the answers for the exam planned for the following day. The only evidence left at the scene was a smear of mud just inside the doorway and faint scratches on the floor in the same spot."

The corner of his mouth turned up in something like amusement. "Not wanting a scandal, they contacted me to solve the case."

Because he was the Goddamn Sherlock Holmes.

"They have narrowed the suspects down to three students." Another push of a button and the teacher disappeared, replaced by three young men. "These three were the only other people in this particular building during that hour. Your job is to partner off, question them and draw your conclusions as to who is guilty from that and the evidence I have given you."