Post by itsgillian on Mar 30, 2012 21:27:08 GMT -5
Gillian finished straightening out his stack of books. They were arranged by upcoming lesson plans and relevance to his teachings. Among the pile was the one that students should be bringing with them. It was a newer book, but a good one nonetheless. It was called 'Oh My Gods!: A Look-it-Up Guide to the Gods of Mythology'. Gillian was both excited and nervous. He knew students were antsy and they didn't all appreciate Mythology like he did. Of course, Gillian was raised in Italy, his ancient home was the setting for most of these tales.
Pushing himself up from his chair, he rested his palms on the desk and leaned over, his authoritative eye roaming around the room at the empty desks. They would soon be filled with young and inspiring minds- mind the fact that some of them hate the class- and they would be expecting to learn something. A while ago, Gillian had planned to teach about the Titans, the elder gods, first. They came before the Olympians so it was only necessary to teach them first. The vibrant and detailed history of the gods like Zeus and Aphrodite branched from these sole Titans. To Gillian, it was pretty important.
Turning to his board, Gillian picked up his chalk and began copying the names of the Titans. He separated them into two columns. There were the female and male Titans listed.
He expected the students to copy them down and make room for pairings and the children (the second generation of Titans). He would explain those later, though. All they needed to know at this point was who their parents were and that this lead to the uprising of the younger gods, the Olympians, and it was a dramatic shift in the Mythological paradigm. With everything done, Gillian brushed his hands off on a towel at his desk and overlooked the class once again.
In all honesty, when footsteps dared echo into the hallway outside his room, he froze. He was completely read to teach, but he wasn't ready for the criticism of his topics of choice. It wasn't the most thrilling thing unless you found as deep of an interest as Gillian himself did. He could see his classes getting really interesting and very hands-on as they got to how the Olympians got their powers. He had a lesson planned where they would represent a God with his or her powers only, and given a situation, they would fight their way out of it.
His eyes lit up at the thought of teaching the new bunch of children everything he knew. Gillian would make it worth their while. With a smile, he began to sit down, straightening out his desk again even though it was perfectly fine from before. Running a hand through his hair quickly, then moving to adjust his spectacles on the bridge of his nose, he rested his hands in his lap and leaned back in his chair.
Students began filling up the room slowly, a few at a time, mostly from collective houses. They seemed to work in partners and pairs, sticking together. Gillian would have a hay-day breaking them apart very soon. The point was to get everyone comfortable and uncomfortably familiar with each other. With a polite bob of his head, Gillian raised himself up off his feet again, folding his hands inside each other behind his back. He took a stroll down the middle of the room, a makeshift aisle, and observed everyone quietly.
With a louder cough, he turned back towards his desk and waited for everyone to get quiet. "Welcome students," he nodded to everyone and motioned around his room, "you seem to have wandered into Muggle Mythology. My name is Gillian Rossi. Please do not call me 'Gill' or 'Gills', because unlike the nickname, I cannot breathe underwater. I like to be called Professor Rossi, refer to me from now on as such." He took a few steps down the aisle, making eye contact with everyone. "There are no real rules here, only common sense respectability. Do not talk while I am teaching, unless the rare occasion where your belittling chatter has anything to do with Mythology as a whole. Do not bring anything up along the lines of House Rivalries inside this classroom. It will not be tolerated in the least bit." Taking a few more steps, he turned on his heels and faced them from in front of his desk. "The last thing I need to mention before we get started is: Have respect for people around you. We are all unique individuals with different minds and different backgrounds. If you cannot respect that, I cannot respect you. If you act as a young child with the immaturity that shows when you are disrespectful, I will have no choice but to treat you as such."
He brought his hands to his hips and looked around, memorizing the new faces and some of the old ones he had seen around. "First things first. For about- let's say- ten points; Who can tell me what the difference is between legends, folktales, and myths?" He raised his brows in a convincing manner and chuckled. "Now don't all talk at once." He teased the still silence at first, knowing that it was kind of early in the morning for young adults. They would have to get used to it. After he had gotten answers, he turned and motioned, with arms spread, to the chalkboard. "Please copy these names of the Titans of Greek Mythology down and take out your assigned books. Leave room for pairings and the children. I will explain more about them later."
Moving to the back of his desk, he sat on the edge and glanced around the room, waiting for students to finish copying. Picking up his book, he flipped through until he found Hades. "I'm not sure if all of you have heard of Hades, but, for those of you that haven't- Hades rules the Underworld. For five points and my respect, who can tell me why Hades is so cranky all the time?" He posed the question with a smile, hoping someone would get it.
Pushing himself up from his chair, he rested his palms on the desk and leaned over, his authoritative eye roaming around the room at the empty desks. They would soon be filled with young and inspiring minds- mind the fact that some of them hate the class- and they would be expecting to learn something. A while ago, Gillian had planned to teach about the Titans, the elder gods, first. They came before the Olympians so it was only necessary to teach them first. The vibrant and detailed history of the gods like Zeus and Aphrodite branched from these sole Titans. To Gillian, it was pretty important.
Turning to his board, Gillian picked up his chalk and began copying the names of the Titans. He separated them into two columns. There were the female and male Titans listed.
Males:
Oceanus
Hyperion
Coeus
Cronus
Iapetus
Oceanus
Hyperion
Coeus
Cronus
Iapetus
Females:
Mnemosyne
Tethys
Theia
Phoebe
Rhea
Themis
Mnemosyne
Tethys
Theia
Phoebe
Rhea
Themis
He expected the students to copy them down and make room for pairings and the children (the second generation of Titans). He would explain those later, though. All they needed to know at this point was who their parents were and that this lead to the uprising of the younger gods, the Olympians, and it was a dramatic shift in the Mythological paradigm. With everything done, Gillian brushed his hands off on a towel at his desk and overlooked the class once again.
In all honesty, when footsteps dared echo into the hallway outside his room, he froze. He was completely read to teach, but he wasn't ready for the criticism of his topics of choice. It wasn't the most thrilling thing unless you found as deep of an interest as Gillian himself did. He could see his classes getting really interesting and very hands-on as they got to how the Olympians got their powers. He had a lesson planned where they would represent a God with his or her powers only, and given a situation, they would fight their way out of it.
His eyes lit up at the thought of teaching the new bunch of children everything he knew. Gillian would make it worth their while. With a smile, he began to sit down, straightening out his desk again even though it was perfectly fine from before. Running a hand through his hair quickly, then moving to adjust his spectacles on the bridge of his nose, he rested his hands in his lap and leaned back in his chair.
Students began filling up the room slowly, a few at a time, mostly from collective houses. They seemed to work in partners and pairs, sticking together. Gillian would have a hay-day breaking them apart very soon. The point was to get everyone comfortable and uncomfortably familiar with each other. With a polite bob of his head, Gillian raised himself up off his feet again, folding his hands inside each other behind his back. He took a stroll down the middle of the room, a makeshift aisle, and observed everyone quietly.
With a louder cough, he turned back towards his desk and waited for everyone to get quiet. "Welcome students," he nodded to everyone and motioned around his room, "you seem to have wandered into Muggle Mythology. My name is Gillian Rossi. Please do not call me 'Gill' or 'Gills', because unlike the nickname, I cannot breathe underwater. I like to be called Professor Rossi, refer to me from now on as such." He took a few steps down the aisle, making eye contact with everyone. "There are no real rules here, only common sense respectability. Do not talk while I am teaching, unless the rare occasion where your belittling chatter has anything to do with Mythology as a whole. Do not bring anything up along the lines of House Rivalries inside this classroom. It will not be tolerated in the least bit." Taking a few more steps, he turned on his heels and faced them from in front of his desk. "The last thing I need to mention before we get started is: Have respect for people around you. We are all unique individuals with different minds and different backgrounds. If you cannot respect that, I cannot respect you. If you act as a young child with the immaturity that shows when you are disrespectful, I will have no choice but to treat you as such."
He brought his hands to his hips and looked around, memorizing the new faces and some of the old ones he had seen around. "First things first. For about- let's say- ten points; Who can tell me what the difference is between legends, folktales, and myths?" He raised his brows in a convincing manner and chuckled. "Now don't all talk at once." He teased the still silence at first, knowing that it was kind of early in the morning for young adults. They would have to get used to it. After he had gotten answers, he turned and motioned, with arms spread, to the chalkboard. "Please copy these names of the Titans of Greek Mythology down and take out your assigned books. Leave room for pairings and the children. I will explain more about them later."
Moving to the back of his desk, he sat on the edge and glanced around the room, waiting for students to finish copying. Picking up his book, he flipped through until he found Hades. "I'm not sure if all of you have heard of Hades, but, for those of you that haven't- Hades rules the Underworld. For five points and my respect, who can tell me why Hades is so cranky all the time?" He posed the question with a smile, hoping someone would get it.