Fifth Years: Lesson Three

Professor Nakamura patiently waited for his students to arrive, closing the door behind them once all of them had entered. “Welcome back fifth years,” he greeted before launching straight into the lesson. “Solar eclipses – it is the name given to when the moon passes between the Earth and the Sun, the moon casting a shadow onto the Earth. This can only happen during a new moon but doesn’t happen every new moon. Otherwise, we all would be accustomed to seeing them, wouldn’t we?” He smiled brightly. “When you stand in the line of totality, the moon completely blocks out the sun.”

“Moving on, we will now talk about lunar eclipses. Generally speaking, a lunar eclipse is when the Earth blocks the light of the sun and casts a shadow on the moon. There are three different types: the penumbral eclipse, the partial lunar eclipse, and the total lunar eclipse.” Professor Nakamura paused to let everyone catch up with their notes. “The total lunar eclipse is known for its bright red colouring. Now, what does this have to do with witches and wizards? These aren’t subjects taught in this class but you might have heard in other classes that certain plants harvested at an eclipse have different magical properties. Now, you do have homework this week, which I hope you’ll all hand in next lesson, but that’s it for tonight. See you next class!” Professor Nakamura said, dismissing the students. He was sure some were disappointed not to use the telescopes this week but the theory was important.

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Roleplay the lesson.

Three options for homework (extra credit):
Option 1: Research and write an essay on Solar Eclipses (150-300 words is acceptable)
Option 2: Write a journal entry of a person watching a solar eclipse (150-300 words is acceptable)
Option; Make your own graphic of a solar OR lunar eclipse, find out about the parts and label them and add some detail.

 

[Savannah Walters]

In the end, Savannah had decided to go to the dance and it had been the right choice to make. She had really enjoyed being able to go to the dance, and enjoyed being able to have some fun. She knew this and all the semesters beyond this were going to be difficult, were going to be challenging, so having a bit of time before hand was going to be good. She had a good time, and hadn’t because of it fallen at all behind, really she felt like she was miles ahead of everyone else in the year anyway, so one night wasn’t going to affect her much. She was getting her notes and book together and then headed out of the dorm room to class.

Savannah walked into the astronomy classroom and took her usual spot in the room. She glanced up at the professor as she finished taking out her notes and books and as the man got started on the lesson. She wrote the title of the lesson and then got to getting down what the professor was telling them about it. It was pretty interesting what the man was saying, she didn’t care all that much the stars, but she did enjoy these things, it was far more realistic and interesting to her. She got down what the professor was saying about them and then was happy when the lesson was wrapped up with some rather easy homework.

 

[Cassius Styx]

Cassius Styx strode into Professor Nakamura's astronomy classroom with a hint of curiosity lingering beneath his usual air of cockiness. As Professor Nakamura began the lesson on solar eclipses, Cass started to take some notes. The professor's clear explanations and engaging manner drew him in, and he quickly jotted down key points about how solar eclipses occurred when the moon passed between the Earth and the Sun, casting a shadow onto the planet. Cass raised an eyebrow slightly at the mention of the line of totality, where the moon completely obscured the sun, a phenomenon that fascinated him with its potential magical implications.

When the discussion shifted to lunar eclipses, Cass adjusted his focus, absorbing the information about how the Earth blocked the sunlight and cast a shadow on the moon, resulting in various types of lunar eclipses, penumbral, partial, and total. He made careful notes about the distinctive features of a total lunar eclipse, especially its characteristic red hue, a detail that sparked his interest. As Professor Nakamura mentioned the magical properties associated with plants harvested during eclipses. He made a mental note to explore this connection further outside of class, intrigued by how celestial events influenced magical practices. When the lesson concluded, Cass packed up his parchment and quill, already planning to start on his homework later that evening. He left the classroom.​

 

[Ruto Vernier-Raison]

Valentine’s celebrations had happened and Ruto was quite happy with herself after participating in them. She didn’t have a date or a significant other, however was beginning to appreciate the importance of love, and helping deliver the roses was actually quite fun. It gave her an excuse to be prancing about outside, and definitely gave her something to keep her mind off the fact that she didn’t have anyone to share the day with. It was time for classes now however, and so Roo packed her belongings in her backpack and headed to them.

Roo entered the Astronomy tower and into the classroom for her third lesson of the semester. She headed straight to her usual seat, taking out her belongings and her writing equipment for a lecture. The professor started the lesson quickly, talking about solar eclipses. Roo loved solar eclipses and believed that to witness one meant good luck was around your corner. She wrote notes as the professor spoke, glad that there was no having to copy notes on the board. She happily thanked the professor for this as she exited the classroom at the end of the lesson.