Wilderness Survival; Wednesday, Second Period [02/14].

[sword_chocobro]

Class was back on the mountain again, with its temperate main base and its snowy side off in one direction and the desert side of in the other, and there was a small table set up beside Gladio this time with a bunch of booklets, pamphlets, and other information.

"Fire," he said, getting class started and lifting the first finger before continuing the list, "shelter, water. We've got three of the main points of wilderness survival down pretty solid so far, but now we're going to move onto the next one: food. There's a couple different directions to go with that one, so this'll span over several lessons, but today, we're focusing on what might seem like the most simple, but, out in the wild, it can get a little complicated...and maybe even dangerous, and that's foraging.

"Now, we could have foraged pretty okay here in the preserve on the island," he continued, "but things are still pretty limited and safe out there. Here, we have the opportunity to spot a wider variety and a wider range of things to avoid, plus a couple of different climates, because you'll obviously have a harder time in more difficult terrain.

"SO we're going to take some time to go over some general guidelines on how to tell if a plant might be safe to forage for food, as well as some general guides to what you might find around these simulations for reference. Of course, the best way to prepare for a foraging situation is to be well-versed in these skills and have a wide knowledge of your area, but in an emergency situation, you might not exactly have had the time to prepare, so today we'll practice being able to determine what to forage effectively. Let's start, then, with some common plants that'll really pull you out of a desperate pinch...."

Conversational Japanese; Wednesday, Fourth Period [02/14].

[id_kill_him]

When the students came into the classroom that day, they would find their teacher there, actually, unlike last week. They would also each find a small bag of chocolates on each of their desk, along with that week's vocabulary and phrases list.

"Today," Yukari said, with nary a moment to address the lack of class last week, "is Valentine's Day, which is a very stupid holiday filled with a lot of ridiculous notions about love and feelings that we don't need to go into, but it is an opportunity for us to delve into love and romantic culture in Japan, and words and phrases that could be used on the dating scene, if you give into that sort of nonsense.

"We'll start," she said, "by explaining that, if you're used to Valentine's Day in the Western world, you might be surprised to hear that they do things a little different in Japan. In Japan, Valentine's Day is strictly when women and girls give gifts, especially chocolate, to all sorts of people, not even those with which they have a romantic relationship with, while White Day, which is a month later on March 14th, is when the men reciprocate in kind. Which means," here she gave a bit of a chuckle, wagging a finger at the class, "I'm expecting all of you men in the class to reciprocate in kind and if I don't see a lot of chocolate around March 14th, it's probably not going to look good for your grades!

"Now, there are different types of chocolate based on your relationship to who you're giving it to, and I've included a list of the types in your information for today. This chocolate I've given you is obviously giri choco, because anything else would be highly inappropriate for a classroom setting. And, of course, I have some jiko choco, which is the most important kind of Valentine's Day chocolate there is.

"So," she said, winding down to a conclusion as she dipped into her much-larger-than-the-others bag of chocolate on her own desk and started to unwrap one, "Valetine's Day chocolate is a very important cultural milestone in Japan, and now we'll start to talk about other Japanese dating customs, important phrases to use when romantically interested and things to say on a date, as well. And when we're done with that, you'll all pair up and practice as if you're on a date, and hopefully not wind up with a drink in your face."

That's how most of Yukari's dates would probably end.

If she actually went on dates.

(She'd definitely be doing the drink-throwing).

Music, Wednesday

[suitably_heroic]

The instruments were back in the corner again, and Lana smiled at everyone as they settled. "So far we've been figuring out our instruments on our own, but of course a good deal of music involves more than one instrument. Duos, trios, bands - a lot of music is the result of people working together. You can play a chord on some instruments on their own, but you can also play single notes or related chords on others."

She picked up a page from the pile of music scores at the front. "We've got simple tunes here, and we'd like you to try to play them together. In groups of three for a while, and then we'll pick one and try to do it as a group. Try one as it is, then see if you can embellish a little without changing what everyone else needs to do. Let's practice listening to each other and working together, learning to harmonize and make it sound good."

"And once we get around to doing the whole group, I want you guys to go one after the other," Atton added. "So group A starts, group B and C listen. Group B joins in, group C keeps listening. And then by the end, we'll all play."

He tossed the class something that might have been half a genuine smile. "There's something pretty great about getting in tune with someone else," he said, "Feeling like they've got your back. Musically speaking. I'm hoping some of you people get that feeling today."

He cleared his throat.

"... Or you know, don't, and call the Hallmark police and tell them I said that."

Teamwork, Wednesday, February 14, 2024

[sith_happened]

The two teachers were at the front of the classroom again and in an effort to never have anyone ever address Anakin as "Grandpappy" again, he'd decided that no one in class would talk today.

"We're playing Charades," he announced.

Ahsoka was only able to resist bringing it up because she wasn't sure how much he knew about that lumberjack business. "Think of it as an exercise in non-verbal communication. For when you don't share a language, or the person you're speaking with is hard of hearing."

"Or when you're in combat and need to communicate without yelling," Anakin added helpfully.

"Though in that case, it's helpful if you actually pay attention to the person trying to warn you about the gundark nest."

"There was no way I should've guessed that gesture meant gundark," Anakin protested.

"We were on Vanqor, what else could it have meant?"

"That's not the point." It was entirely the point. "We have a hat full of words for you to act out." None of them were gundark. "Let's see how well you do without talking."