Classic American Film, Thursday, Period 4

[eager-platypus.livejournal.com]

When the students arrived to class today, they'd find the room set up as usual, except that next to the television, there was a table of moddable snacks, instead of just popcorn. It was possible someone was happy to not be a gazelle this week.

"Good afternoon," Ziva said, once everyone was settled in their seats. "I hope that you all enjoyed your break from classes, especially if you went on the school trip, and I am very glad to see you all back to your proper genders." Yeah, she was glad that was over too. Truly, there was no end to the island's awkwardness. "I know Homecoming is at the front of everyone's minds, but I am afraid today's movie does not relate very well. It does involve a party though, in a way, if you wish to stretch things a bit." Be glad she wasn't trying to sell it as a holiday film too. "Some people might not consider it to be a classic, but I believe that any film that spawns three sequels and has instantly recognizable catch phrases counts. Make sure to take some food before you get too comfortable, all right?"

Library [10/21]

[faithandscience.livejournal.com]

William had been surprrised- but pleased- to find a handwaved message from the librarian asking if he was still interested in a position of an aide. Which, really- spend the whole day surrounded by books? Of course William was all for that!

As it was his first day, today William could be found behind the desk, familiarising himself with the tasks required for the job.

Tracking: Urban v. Wilderness; Thursday, Period Three [ 10/21 ].

[colourfulscents.livejournal.com]

So far, so good. Angua was feeling a bit irritable, but not enough that class was going to be problematic. She hoped. The fact that the gender thing had resolved itself and that some of the students might be distracted with Homecoming anyway would help.

"So today," she started, having a seat on the desk in the front of the classroom, "we're going to just have a bit of a discussion class, since having the week yesterday probably got most of our minds off of tracking. Two parts. The first is in reference to what happened earlier this week. I know that not everyone found themselves a different gender on Sunday and Monday, but I'm curious. What did you happen to learn from being different in that way? And, more importantly, how can you use the experience to give you a perspective on better tracking, if anything?"

"And, secondly, the topic I had planned for the class, are signs we can look for when searching for someone or something in an urban environment. In the wilderness, you have better access to the classical trappings of tracking: food prints, subtle changes in the environment like snapped twigs or crushed grass. You consider commonly used animal trails and natural spots for water and shelter. Where are spots where one might burrow to hide or reach higher ground to keep a lookout for danger? These are the things I wants us to talk about today, and how can those translate to tracking something in an urban landscape, where you don't exactly have as many twigs to break, and hard paved streets may prevent the easy use of footprints? We'll just open it up, see where it goes."

"And then, for next week, I'd like you to spend some time observing behaviours and others things of the people around you that can be further used as tracking signs. Perhaps a friend of yours always has Cheetos for lunch, and so you could look for signs of cheesy powder left on doors he or she might have used. Or maybe you yourself always reads the newspaper in the morning; where are you putting it afterwards that someone might notice, and therefor be able to discern where you have been? Is there someone who always brushes their hair in the bathroom and leaves a few traces of it in the sink? Keep an eye open for tracking signs in every day life, and next week we'll see how they match up to the ones we thought of this week."

"And, yes, those were all good examples of what we're discussing today, to help get the ideas going. And we're talking about things, physical evidence left behind, so those of us with particularly honed senses should set those aside for this particular lesson and focus on things more tangible. Any questions? Let's get started."

[[ OCD on the way has left behind a clue! JAAAAAAM! ]]

Previous Classes ]]

Glee Club, Music Room, Thursday Afternoon [ 10/21 ].

[shes-got-legs.livejournal.com]

No one should be surprised to see Ariel bouncing and excited about Glee Club this week; the one thing about the vacation in the mountains was that they didn't have club, after all! And there was a lot of work to be done, and Homecoming was on its way, and, really, there was no reason not to be excited.

"Okay, guys," she said, "we're all back to the island and hopefully back to the right genders, and we have a lot of work to do for the concert coming up in November, but if anyone wants to share anything about being a different gender or the trip to Vail in general in song, go for it! That's what we're here for, to let things out in song!"

"I got the feeling that not everyone liked Quinn's Mickey idea, but some of us did, so we'll take some time to see if we've got any ideas for that one. And for those of you who weren't so convinced, we'd still love to have everyone involved, but," she lifted up some sheets of music which she started handing out, "I looked into a few other options that might be fun or even more meta more your tastes, and we're still open to ideas on a third piece for everyone."

"So grab some snacks and let's get started, you guys!"

[[ OCD is up! ]]

Famous Shipwrecks of the Deep [Thursday, Period One, 10/21]

[takesaftermom.livejournal.com]

The students would find themselves back in the classroom for today's lesson.

Summer sat on the desk in the front of the room and waited for everyone to get settled before she began her lecture.

"The sinking of the Belgrano warship is one of the most dramatic and controversial events of the Falklands War. The Falklands War was fought in 1982, between Argentina and the United Kingdom. over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. The islands are located east of Argentina, in the South Atlantic Ocean," she explained. "The war began in April of 1982. On May 2, HMS Conqueror, the British nuclear submarine, fired two torpedoes at the Argentine warship, ARA General Belgrano. The British attempted to retake the the islands with a naval task force and by amphibious assault. Some 300 men were killed on impact, due to the attack. As the formidable Argentinian warship began to sink, one of the most difficult marine rescue operations ever was conducted. The torpedo strike killed 323 of the Belgrano's 1093 crew, nearly half of Argentina's total war casualties."

Summer paused, letting her students process that information.

"The conflict ended on June 14, 1982 and the islands remained under British control. The war lasted a total of seventy-four days and resulted in the deaths of 257 British and 649 Argentine soldiers, sailors and airmen. Three civilian Falklanders also lost their lives in the assault."

It was an unfortunate side effect of war. It was one of the reasons Summer disliked conflict.

"The area where the Belgrano sank is classified as a War Grave under Argentinian law. In 1994, the Argentine government conceded that the sinking of the Belgrano was "a legal act of war". In 1999, Sir Michael Boyce, First Sea Lord of the Royal Navy, visited the Puerto Belgrano naval base and paid tribute to those who died," she added. "In February 2003 the National Geographic Society, in conjunction with the Argentine navy, launched an expedition to scour the depths of the South Atlantic for the wreck. After nearly two weeks at sea, in extreme Southern Ocean weather conditions, the expedition was unable to find the ship. Despite the fact the cruiser is thought to be 4km underwater, 180km off the coast of Argentina and in notoriously rough seas, the team hoped its equipment — the same used to locate the Titanic — would quickly find the wreck. Sadly, the wreck still remains undiscovered to this day."

[Wait for the OCD's a go!]