Reading/Writing Classfor Dreadies (OPEN)

[Sylvirci]

Michael walked briskly through the Acolytes quarters stopping occasionally to put up flyers announcing a class to teach reading and writing as well as freshen up skills for those who were out of practice. He knew not everyone, and most likely those who wanted the class, wouldn't be able to read it.

 

So when he finished the flyers he stood at one end of the hallway for their quarters. Then using a weave of Air to amplify his voice he annouced loudly, " Attention all Acolytes! I, Dreadlord Michael, will be starting a class to teach reading and writing for those who have never learned and those who wish to improve. Everyday after breakfast in the North Library I will hold a two hour lesson for those interested. This will be a month long class with a test at the end." Finished with his annoucement he walked briskly from the hall and back to his own quarters.

 

---

 

The next morning he waited in the Library for his students to appear. The tables were set up to give him the head of the class with three rows of tables so students could face him. He had set up quills and parchment of cheap quality on the tables and a smooth five by seven hands slab of polished onyx with a long pointer. Then he waited patiently for his students to arrive, he would forgive lateness today but not after that.

 

He sat facing the "classroom", his cloak over the back of his chair. He was a tall elderly man, around his fifties or sixties with tufts of grey just above his ears. His face was kind and prone to smiles, while his eyes held great knowledge and wisedom that overlapped a gentleness deep in them. In this pose he could have been anyone's grandfather and his posture suggested he felt like he was.

 

Dreadlord Michael, NSW for the Congress of the Shadows

 

OOC:Ok, this will be four posts for learning with a fifth for a "test", that means six posts total. The first being your arrival to the Library and impression of your teacher. ;) Feel free to ask whatever questions you may think to, I'll give a week for others to post before posting the first lesson.

 

 

[Raeyn]

 

Poking her head out of her chambers, Rendra eyed the bit of paper affixed to the wall.  Eying the man at the end of the hall, she raised her voice to call out and ask what it said, when he suddenly announced, "Attention all Acolytes! I, Dreadlord Michael, will be starting a class to teach reading and writing for those who have never learned and those who wish to improve. Everyday after breakfast in the North Library I will hold a two hour lesson for those interested. This will be a month long class with a test at the end."

 

Blinking at the man, and the flier on the wall, she muttered, "I can only to be hoping that he wasn't fool enough to put up fliers for a class to learn how to <i>read</i>... who would tell us what they said?!"  She went back into her room, and closed the door behind her.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Still, the young Dreadlady-to-be was happy to have caught the announcement; in spite of her extremely common background, Rendra had always thirsted to know more... not that anyone had had the time to teach her, especially not her family!  So it was with great pleasure she found herself in the Library the following morning, looking around the room idly.  <i>"I... I'll be able to read </i>all<i> these books, if I did want to be reading them,"</i> she thought with a small smile, somewhat oblivious to the other students filing in.

 

It wasn't until several other pupils had settled in that Rendra turned her attention to the man in the front of the room.  He was the same possibly daft fool who had put the fliers up in the Acolyte halls - <i>"Thinking we could read them, perhaps... how some people take their skills for granted!"</i>  He looked to be a kindly, doddering old fool; sort of how one would stereotype any generic older shopkeep to look.  Of course, appearances counted for nothing here - all had sworn their souls in service to the Great Lord, so the only guarantee was that they all had something go 'wrong' in their pasts to lead them to this path.

 

But still, the young Taraboner <i>had</i> to ask the question that was on her mind, "Michael sir," she called out, her face hardening slightly as all the eyes in the room turned to her, "Why did you put up notes in the quarters if this is for a reading and writing class, if those of us that have come here can't read yet?!"

 

 

[Sylvirci]

Michael sat there quietly and watched as the students settled into seats. Once they were all seated, he got ready to speak but before he could a slim lass spoke up as she glared about the classroom. He kept his face calm and gentle as he slowly rose and walked over to stand right before her.

 

Looking down at her he weaved a simple flow of Air to hold her in place and raise her head to look him in the eye. " My dear I will remind you to not question your elders. However, you do have a good point so I shall tell you this. If you or anyone else wishes to learn, and you should, you will make sure that you ask the right people the right questions. It was a test to see if people would have to courage to speak up and learn!" Removing the flow, he stepped back and walked back to the front of the class.

 

Turning back to everyone he spoke gently, but loudly, " For the rest of you you would do well to learn from this girl. Never fear to ask questions, as long as you learn from the answers to better serve our Great Lord! Now I will begin by explaining letters and sounds as I write them on the board behind me. You will copy each letter five times as I write them and repeat the sounds. Let's begin!"

 

Taking the pointer he turned to the slab of onyx behind him and put the tip against the slab as he channeled fire. Sparks sizzled to the floor as he moved the pointer along the onyx and he spoke, loudly and distinctly, each sound as he continued to write the letters. He looked back once after he wrote the first letter and saw that no one was attempting to do as he instructed. With a quick thought he pinched the girl who had spoke out earlier with a slight thread of air saying, " Do I need to dance your hands like a puppets girl? Do as instructed!" His voice was still gentle but there was no mistaking the commanding tone underlying it. Satisfied he continued without any more pauses, going slow enough for them to hear and see as he went about the task of teaching them.

 

When he finished all the letters he turned and rapped his pointer once on his makeshift desk. Once they all looked at him he spoke, " You may take your quills and ink bottles to your rooms after you have turned in your papers. I would highly recommend practicing in your spare time. Once your paper is done to my satisfaction you may go." Then he started walking around the room and stopped every now and then to correct someones mistakes until the last student was done and gone.

 

Dreadlord Michael, NSW.

 

OOC: Last chance for anyone else to join. Just post first impressions and responses to the first lesson before the 24th of June!

[Raeyn]

 

Rendra bit back annoyance when their instructor held her with the Power, but the glower quickly went out the door with his backhanded compliment.  <i>”He has a point though; I really should watch what questions I ask around this bloody madhouse,”</i> she grumped to herself, smoothing down her latest and prettiest dress.  It was a lovely deep blue that complimented her skin and was cut in the style of the Tarabon upper classes, and she almost felt nobility in such garb, even if it was only a very fine wool.

 

Almost yelping at a sudden pinch, Rendra jerked her head up.  "Do I need to dance your hands like a puppet, girl? Do as instructed!"  She was chagrined to notice that Michael had already started putting shapes on the board.  She quickly reached for her quill, almost upsetting the ink pot in her haste and reached for a sheet of parchment.  Having dunked the quill in ink, Rendra was having a difficult time figuring out exactly how to hold the bloody thing!  Ink dripped from the quill onto a corner of the parchment as her hand hovered; her mind was working to comprehend the shape.  Slowly, she started scritching it out; the shapes were very blotty from the excess of ink, and shaky from the woman's lack of experience, but were kind of close to what was engraved into the board.

 

Her sullenness over the reprimand faded as the lesson continued; she was still putting either too much or too little ink on the quill, and so the letter-shapes ranged from splotches to hen-scratch and everything between... and all wavery.  Michael stopped by several times, and gave her pointers, but it was still very slow going until she had something copied well enough to pass muster.  “I think, child, you are going to need a lot of practice,” he said to her with a small smile as she continued her efforts while other students began to leave, “But you've already stated that you're completely new to this, so we shall be patient; take your things back to your chambers as instructed, and make sure to put a few hours into this every night until the next class,” he further instructed, and gestured to the door.

 

Nodding, Rendra carefully stoppered the ink bottle; she prayed to whomever was listening that it wouldn't muss up her fine new dress!  Once that was done to her satisfaction and stashed in her belt pouch, she quickly gathered everything else and headed off; there was many a thing to do for this student Dreadlady, and now she had to find more time for this!

 

 

[Sylvirci]

Michael sat behind the desk once more. A week had passed he was keen on seeing how many had actually practiced their letters over the past week. Once again the students filed in and sat at their tables. New paper had been placed before them as well as new ink bottles and quills.

 

Waiting patiently for the last student to find their seat, he stood and using Earth and Fire weaves, cleared the writing slab. Then he turned once more and tapped the pointer sharply on the desk to get their attention. " Today we'll start with simple words then have a quick review of your letters and sounds. I want you all to come up one at a time and sound out each letter from your own writing and then turn in all your papers you wrote on. We shall begin those reviews as soon as I have finished today's leeson. We will do twenty words today and Rendra, you shall go last."

 

He turned and started tracing on the slab simple words such as cat and dog. Sail, boat, man and so on until he had twenty words. Turning back to the class once more he said, " Now the same as last week, you will sound out the words as you write them. Unlike last week, you will only write the word once and turn it in with your work from the last assignment."

 

He then walked around the class and helped those who needed it and made corrections as he felt necessary. Satis fied that all had it down for the most part he returned to the front of the class saying, " We shall now begin your sounds from last week. Do not disappoint me!"

 

Then he sat down to listen and read. Each student came up and did as instructed, some sounded horible and their papers looked as bad as they sounded. Those ones he gave extra work to do during the next week, the others needed minor adjustments but overall did quite well. Then it was Rendra's turn.

 

Michael NSW Dreadlord

 

OOC: Feel free to chose simple words to use to make up the twenty. Also the choice of success or failure for the sounds of the letters is yours, just keep in mind that it means extra work for failure! ;)

[Raeyn]

 

Rendra entered the classroom feeling slightly more confident than when she had left it the week prior.  Although time had been short, she had practiced as much as she possibly could, even forfeiting sleep to some degree to work on scribing out the letters painfully by wan candlelight.

 

<i>"It almost is like drawing a bit</i>", she thought to herself as she settled into her chair.  Smoothing down her skirts, she arranged her writing materials and settled in to listen to Michael's lecture.

 

"Today we'll start with simple words then have a quick review of your letters and sounds. I want you all to come up one at a time and sound out each letter from your own writing and then turn in all your papers you wrote on. We shall begin those reviews as soon as I have finished today's leeson. We will do twenty words today and Rendra, you shall go last."

 

She started to open her mouth to protest all this singling out, but some hint of prudence clamored through and kept her silent.  The young woman knew very well that she was probably having the hardest time of it, and that perhaps the teacher was only trying to give her a little help by seeing how everyone else in the class handled it.

 

~*~

 

The review of letters and sounds went well enough, and before the young Taraboner woman knew it, it was her turn to read the words on the board.  She had taken special care scribing them out; thinking of it like drawing helped immensely.

 

Handing the paper to Michael with her work from the week before, she turned her attention to the board and began to sound out the words, "K... Kat... do.. dog... mmm.. maan..."

 

Rendra felt drenched in sweat from the combination of being the center of attention and the concentration required for her to make the sounds make sense together.  By the time she had stammered out the last word (t..t-eee), she was quite ready to sit back down again.