First Years, Lesson Two

After reading carefully through the introductory quiz he gave his students on the first day, Professor Landon Carter was feeling very confident that he would have a good year this year. Many of the students seemed eager to learn which lifted Landon's spirits up. The man was at the front of his classroom lining up each and every tool that they would be using throughout their time in the course on the table at the front of the room. He knew that going through each and every tool individually would be boring and time consuming and so he wanted to make it fun. To do this, Landon had set up a game for the students to play. A great section of the Greenhouse had been cleared of plant rows in favour of wooden pallets that were filled with many different kind of dirt and sand. There were six in all, each measuring two by two meters. If the children did not find this fun, he would not know what else to do.

When everyone started filing in group by group, Landon greeted them all with a smile. "Please stand next to a pallet each." he told them as they made their way inside. Once he was sure that everyone was there, he began his lesson. "Today we are going to be learning about each and every tool in Herbology. With me here I have a spade, a mattock, a spading fork, a draw hoe, a rake, pruning shears and a few little wheelbarrows." Landon pointed to each one as he said them, making sure that the students knew which ones were which. "In each pallet in front of you there are different kinds of dirt. Every different kind of soil has nutrients and densities perfect for the plants that grow native in them. Sandy soil is better for shrivelfigs, heavy and clay-like for Mandrakes, light and dry for bouncing bulbs and so on. We're going to get to know the soil and the tools we use for Herbology by going on a little treasure hunt." Looking around the room, the man could see some of the student's faces light up, and he just smiled at them all, glad that they were already liking the sound of the day's lesson.

There were no rules as such, but there were some interesting prizes and results. Buried beneath the pallets were a mixture of knuts and sickles, the latter being further down in the piles and harder to reach. Also in the soil, however, were twelve raw eggs spread between the six pallets. Professor Carter instructed the students to attempt to retrieve as many knuts and sickles as they pleased using the tools. Successfully rescuing an egg from the dirt and returning it to him would grant the lucky student/s one galleon. There was a catch; each witch and wizard could only touch the dirt with the tools. By experimenting with each set with each soil and finding out which worked best, everyone had a chance of winning the knuts, sickles and perhaps a galleon or two. Landon encouraged the students to rotate around the pallets to work with different tools and soils. By the end of the lesson there were many grubby, sweaty and happy students.

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Assignment: Roleplay the lesson, and have fun! The first five people who take the time to have their character find an egg will receive extra points in lieu of actual money.

 

[Alana Cosgrove]

Alana had a good feeling about Herbology when she entered the Greenhouse and saw the usual set up had been altered slightly so now a section of wooden pallets had been set up that looked to contain different types of sand and dirt. At least they would be doing something practical even if Alana didn’t love the idea of getting dirt under her nails.

After being instructed to stand by a pallet, Alana looked over the tools she now had at her disposal. Professor Carter began to go through the names of the tools they had and what they were primarily used for. The professor then informed them that they would be getting to know both their tools and the dirt in front of them by having a treasure hunt, buried in the dirt were knuts and sickles as well as potentially eggs which they could exchange for a prize. Alana was curious and it wasn’t as if she had anywhere else to be.

Once they were given the go ahead to begin Alana rolled up the sleeves of her work robes and began to **** through the dirt with some of her tools, primarily using the spade to shovel down and scrape away the dirt so she could try and find what was hidden. She managed to find a handful of knuts and two sickles but she wasn’t giving up until she found an egg. It seemed like she had more dirt on the floor around her than what was left in her pallet but she wouldn’t be deterred. Eventually she dug far enough down with her spade and spading fork that she managed to find an egg, as well as the bottom of her pallet. Hopefully emptying most of her dirt onto the floor wouldn’t prove an issue with Professor Carter. She took the egg over to the professor and laid it gently on his desk. “Do you want the coins I found too? Or do I keep those?” She smiled at him.

 

[Rosalind Montgomery]

Rosalind was once again in a fantastic mood as she made her way to the greenhouse. She noticed tools set out, all ones she recognised of course, and listened to the professor tell them about what they'd be doing. Rosalind wasn't a competitive person but she knew she was already skilled at this kind of work. Recognising the type of soil, she used the appropriate tool to try and carefully find the coins and eggs hidden within. She worked methodically, humming to herself but deep in concentration. She didn't care about making a mess or getting dirty, simply determined to get out the coins and the eggs she could find. Rosalind managed to get out an egg, placing it delicately to the side with the other coins she'd found and wiping her face, getting dirt on it. She smiled broadly, pleased with her hard work.

 

[Saturday Weeks]

Saturday Weeks entered the greenhouse and saw the cleared space with wooden pallets filled with different types of dirt. The setup screamed adventure and challenge, just the kind of thing she loved. She quickly made her way to a pallet, her keen eyes already examining the various soils in front of her. Saturday made a mental note of each tool, eager to get her hands on them. Saturday's eyes lit up at the mention of a treasure hunt. She glanced around and saw that her classmates were equally intrigued. Professor Carter explained the rules, or rather the lack of strict rules, which made it even more exciting. The objective was to retrieve as many knuts and sickles as possible using the tools provided. And there were also twelve raw eggs hidden in the soil, with a galleon reward for each one retrieved unbroken.

With the instructions clear, Saturday picked up a spading fork and started with the sandy soil pallet. She worked methodically, carefully sifting through the dirt, her focus intense. The first knut she found was a thrill, and she quickly moved on, switching tools and trying different techniques. She used the rake to comb through the light and dry soil, finding a few more knuts. Her favorite moment came when she spotted the top of an egg in the clay-like soil. She carefully used the draw hoe to loosen the soil around it, then switched to the pruning shears to gently lift the egg out without breaking it. She held it up triumphantly and carefully walked it over to Professor Carter. By the end of the lesson, Saturday was sweaty and her hands were dirty, but she felt better. She cleaned up and left upon dismissal.​