Arithmancy Lesson 2: The Challenges

[lemondrop13]

Professor Shackleton unlocked the doors to her classroom and entered to see the plain white walls that had been present since the beginning of term. But she smirked to herself because she knew what lied underneath that illusion of pristine cleanliness - walls covered in painted numbers and calculations in an assortment of colors and sizes. And just as soon as all the students had entered and the lesson was ready to begin, Shackleton would lock the door and remove the spell for the illusion so that the students could enjoy their numerical masterpiece!

In the meantime, Shackleton arranged herself behind the podium, setting out her lesson plan and an open textbook, and waited for the students to take their seats.

[BeccaBear]

Allie walked into the classroom and took a seat upfront.
"Hello, Professor." she said.

[kerryleanne]

Hello again Professor Crystal said as she entered, giving the Professor a friendly smile and taking her seat

[Eclipsed]

Shayna wandered in slowly, taking her seat near the back of the class in silence. She wasn't much in the mood for Arithmancy today, she'd been worryinh over the subject ever since the beginning of term. Numbers were definitely not her forte.

Dropping her satchel next to her, she clasped her hands on top of the desk, and it wasn't long before her fingers began to fidget nervously, waiting for the start of the lesson.

[Angie]

Playing absentmindedly with the tips of her long dark ponytail, Willow stepped in the Arithmancy classroom, for the second lesson of the term. Sigh. This was sure not one of her best subjects, for the third year very much disliked math.

But she had to take it. One because Ravenclaw needed points, and two, because her father was pretty much forcing her.

"Hello Professor Shackleton. Having a good day, I hope?", Willow greeted politely with a nod and a small smile on her face, to the Arithmany professor, that on Willow's opinion was a genius. Why? Well, you pretty much had to be a genius if taught such a complex subject like Arithmancy.

Or so she thought.

Taking a seat in the middle of the classroom, she waited for the lesson to start.

[Liisa]

Astrid walked in and immediately spotted her best friend Allie. She quickly took the seat next to her and placed her bag on the back of her chair. "Good afternoon, Professor." she said. "How are you today?"

[Tommehbell]

Tommy dragged herself to class. She was trying to make the best of the choice to stay at Belle's. She didn't like being here, and she might as well dissolve into the carpet for all the attention anyone paid her around her. She walked into the class and went for a seat in the back. She grabbed the last one in the row closest to the wall. If one is going to be ignore might as well choose a seat so that you aren't blocking someone's view of someone else. She put her books on her desk and sat down.

[Crayola]

Aaah. Arithmancy - the person lesson to give someone a headache. However, Evangeline really liked it. Not because she truly believed in any of it - even though she was surprised to find it right sometimes; but because it was a challenge. All those numbers exercised her brain, it was amazing.

"Hello Professor! How are you today?" She said cheerfully, entering the classroom and making her way to an empty desk, before getting her notebook and her textbook out and opening it on the chapter XVII.

[Liisa]

Astrid saw one of the Slytherin girls come into the class with a very unhappy look on her face. She had never talked to her before but she thought that her name might be Tomasina. She hated to see anyone feel so badly and so she shot her a quick smile before turning to face the front of the class. She hoped that it made her feel a little better, though she doubted it. Why would anyone want a perfect stranger smiling at them?

[SilverTiger]

Rhiannon slipped into class quietly. Looking around, she saw Willow already there, and felt happy that it at least appeared that some Ravies were going to class. She was disappointed and mystified as to how they seemed to be unable to earn points, and not lose them as well. So going to class was a plus.

Finding a seat in the second row from the front, she sat down and smiled at Professor Shackleton. "Hello, Professor Shackleton," she said, before starting to pull out her arithmancy journal, textbook, and a pen from her school bag.

[Flipper]

Eva walked in the Arithmancy classroom. That was a classe she was looking forward to have! In arithmancy, the girls acctually did some real work. And, for Eva's hapinness, they worked with numbers.
She was still trying to control her sarcasm, something that wasn't easy.
"Good morning, Professor Shackleton." the thirteen year old girl took her usual spot in the middle of the classroom.

She sat down, she took her quill and her notebook out of the bag. She found a blank page and waited the class to start.

[Tommehbell]

Quote:

Originally Posted by LisaPotter1125

Astrid saw one of the Slytherin girls come into the class with a very unhappy look on her face. She had never talked to her before but she thought that her name might be Tomasina. She hated to see anyone feel so badly and so she shot her a quick smile before turning to face the front of the class. She hoped that it made her feel a little better, though she doubted it. Why would anyone want a perfect stranger smiling at them?

Tommy glanced up from the very interesting top of her desk, she saw a girl looking at her a smiling. She looked around her to see if she was blocking her view of someone else. She was sitting in the back in the last seat, surely the girl was smiling at someone else. She put her head back down so she wouldn't make a fool of herself by smiling back at the girl.

[lemondrop13]

Professor Shackleton greeted each student who entered the classroom and when the room appeared full enough, she removed her wand from her pocket, locked the door to the classroom and with a flourish of her wand, removed the illusion she had cast over the walls of the classroom. The calculations of the students' Pinnacles shone on the walls, clear for everyone in the room to see.

She spoke softly, "There. That's much better! And now to begin the lesson! Today we are going to study the Challenges, a counterpart of the Pinnacles that we studied last class. Everyone please open to chapter 17 in the textbook. Now, someone please elaborate on what the Challenges are and what they tell us."

[FoxFire]

"The Challenges are a set of numbers that guide us through reaching the highest points of our Pinnacles," Gwen replied, raising her hand. "They're like goals to reach throughout our lives."

[D.A Forever]

Savannah's hand raised before she spoke, "The Challenges are a predictive indicator, a set of numbers which outline for you what it is that you must face to reach the highest peak of your Pinnacle." and finished getting digging her quill and Arithmancy journal out of her bag.

[Liisa]

Astrid was ready with an answer as soon as she heard the 1st question. She raised her hand and said, "Challenges are weak points in our Life Path. They are weak links in the chain of life which must be overcome for us to grow and develop properly. We learn by meeting the challenges and mastering them. The nature of challenges are shown in the Life Path."

[BeccaBear]

Allie opened her book, the raised her hand to answer.
"The Challenges are a predictive indicator. They are a set of numbers that outline for you what it is that you must face to reach the highest peak of your Pinnacle. Challenge Numbers are not meant to be overcome, they indicate what you must become." she said.

[SilverTiger]

Rhiannon opened her textbook and started taking notes. It seemed redundant to her to answer the question the professor had posed, since several students had already spoken, and they were all saying the same thing. So she remained quiet, figuring she could answer a later question. Or at least she would know what she was doing once they started the calculations.

[Tommehbell]

She raised her hand slowly not knowing if she was going acknowledge or not, but at least she was an attempt to get some points. "They are the doors through which you must advance in order to ascend the spiral staircase of your personal development. Challenge Numbers aren't hurdles that you have to jump over, they tell you what you have to become." She said.

[lemondrop13]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FoxFire

"The Challenges are a set of numbers that guide us through reaching the highest points of our Pinnacles," Gwen replied, raising her hand. "They're like goals to reach throughout our lives."

"Very good. Three points to you."

Quote:

Originally Posted by D.A Forever

Savannah's hand raised before she spoke, "The Challenges are a predictive indicator, a set of numbers which outline for you what it is that you must face to reach the highest peak of your Pinnacle." and finished getting digging her quill and Arithmancy journal out of her bag.

"Correct. Three points for you, as well."

Quote:

Originally Posted by LisaPotter1125

Astrid was ready with an answer as soon as she heard the 1st question. She raised her hand and said, "Challenges are weak points in our Life Path. They are weak links in the chain of life which must be overcome for us to grow and develop properly. We learn by meeting the challenges and mastering them. The nature of challenges are shown in the Life Path."

"Partly correct. But the Challenges aren't meant to be overcome, as much as they signify what we must become. One point for you."

Quote:

Originally Posted by HPobsession33

Allie opened her book, the raised her hand to answer.
"The Challenges are a predictive indicator. They are a set of numbers that outline for you what it is that you must face to reach the highest peak of your Pinnacle. Challenge Numbers are not meant to be overcome, they indicate what you must become." she said.

"Exactly what I was just referring to! Three points!"

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tomasina Riddle

She raised her hand slowly not knowing if she was going acknowledge or not, but at least she was an attempt to get some points. "They are the doors through which you must advance in order to ascend the spiral staircase of your personal development. Challenge Numbers aren't hurdles that you have to jump over, they tell you what you have to become." She said.

"Eloquently stated! Three points to you!"

Professor Shackleton was quite impressed that the students seemed to have either done the appropriate preparations before class or at least were able to locate the information in the textbook. She asked another question, "And how does finding the Challenges compare and contrast to finding the Pinnacles? I'm not asking how we find each individual Challenge. I want similarities and differences between the Challenges' and Pinnacles' calculations."

[BeccaBear]

Allie raised her hand again.
"Well with the pinnacles you add the day, month, or years, but with challenges you subtract them." said Allie.
"I actually have a question about that. When you add the pinnacles you do the 'reducing first, then adding together' method. DO you do the same witht he challenges, but with subtracting?" she asked.

[kerryleanne]

Crystal put her hand in the air, Professor when making the Pinnacles you add the parts of your date of birth when working out the challanges you subtract them

[Crayola]

Evangeline rose her hand in the air upon hearing the question. "Our four Challenge Numbers go right along with our Pinnacle Numbers and cover the same years. They are found in our date of birth just like the Pinnacles, but.." She took a pause to breathe before continuing. "..instead of adding the numbers in our date of birth, the Challenges are found by subtracting them." Eh. She hoped she was right.

[Liisa]

Astrid was happy to get some credit for her answer. She knew that she had messed up the wording somehow. She raised her hand again, hoping to do a little better with this answer.

"Your four Challenge Numbers go right along with your Pinnacle Numbers and cover the same years. They are found in your date of birth just like the Pinnacles, but instead of adding the numbers in your date of birth, the Challenges are found by subtracting them."

[PhoenixRising]

Amelia had been sitting in the second row of the lesson, rereading the chapter in the textbook, where she hardly noticed Professor Shackleton already began the lesson. Without even looking up, the seventh year raised her hand and began to answer the question. "Challenges are found in your date of birth, just like the pinnacles. However, instead of adding the numbers in your birthday, you subtract them."