Beginning Gemstones
Instructor Information
Jeanine Joanna Todd, also called Fionnula, Lady of the Harvest
Course Description
This is course is designed for the absolute beginner to get a good foundation in the formation, structure, hardness, mineral composition, physical and metaphysical properties of crystals and gemstones. Additional information will be given on colour correspondences, Chakras, vibrational rates, and other correspondences for each stone in the course. We will also spend a little time talking about lustre, transparency, and refraction of light to help you identify stones visually and through structural details. No pre-requisites. No required texts.
GS 101 - Gemstones for Beginners Requirements
There are no prerequisites for this course. You do not have to have completed any courses in Wicca or Paganism. We will not be doing any magic or spellwork in this course. We have no required textbook or other written materials for GS101. However, if you decide to continue on to the intermediate level, there will be requirements both for stones and for other tools. Contact the instructor for further information about the continuation courses.
For this class, you do need:
- regular school supplies such as pens, pencils, paper, paper
clips, highlighters, etc. - a three ring binder or other holder for loose leaf papers
- access to a printer that will allow you to print out your course materials
For your own notes, may I recommend:
http://www.cafepress.com/thepagancampus.28915100 A link to a journal from the campus store ($9.99)
Course Content
If you are interested in which stones we'll be covering in the class, here
is the list:
(You do NOT have to own any stones for the class, but it sure would be more
fun, you know!)
- Obsidian
- Rose Quartz
- Agates, Blue Lace
- Agates, Tree and Moss
- Sandstone
- Tiger's Eye
- Petrified Wood
- Marble
- Gold
- Copper
- Silver
- Peacock Copper Ore, also called Chalcopyrite
- Pyrite, also called Fool's Gold
- Moonstone
- Alabaster, Gypsum (Desert Rose Selenite)
- Pearl
- Mother of Pearl
- Hematite
- Sodalite
- Amethyst
- Green Aventurine
- Red Jasper
- Geodes and Ochos
- Fossils
- Rock Quartz Crystals
- Carnelian
- Turquoise
- Citrine
- Amazonite
- Amber
Instruction and Tutoring
To contact the instructor, please use the following protocol:
- Go to the profile page for the Instructor.
- Click the email icon and send a personal email message, NOT an instant message, please.
- For tutoring, please be specific and give the details about what you are having difficulty with and any other matters which the instructor might need to be aware of in order to assist you.
Grading
The course will have 9 units or lessons, plus a final exam. There is no research project for the Beginners Level course.
- Each homework or quiz will count 10%.
- The final exam makes up the final 10%.
In other words:
- Homework and Quizzes: 90%
- Final Exam: 10%
Attendance, Copyright, and Work Submission
As we will have no scheduled chats, there will be no 'attendance' per se, however, you are required to sign in to the site weekly and retrieve the assignments / turn in work. If you must miss an assignment deadline, please inform the instructor as soon as you are aware of the problem to make arrangements. We do our work week by week so that the final lesson and exam are completed by the end of term. With this understanding, attendance means you turned in your work in a timely manner.
Anyone not turning in work by week three will be dismissed without any email notification. It is assumed that you will not be able to keep up if you have not turned in work or communicated your situation with the instructor within a three week period. This is a regulation beyond the three week sign in dismissal. The site protocol is to remove anyone not signing in to the classroom by week three. This class regulation goes further. If you do sign in, but are not turning in work, you will be terminated after week three.
Any posted materials are copyright of the instructor. It is NOT permissible for you to copy off materials from this course (or any other at TPOC) and use them at your discretion for other purposes. You are registered as a STUDENT. This constitutes an agreement that you have chosen to be influenced by the instructor of those classes for which you register. Simply put, you are here to study and be evaluated. Our materials are not 'up for grabs' to be used at any coven or Pagan gathering or further publication on- or offline of your choice. If I determine such use has been made of my materials, it constitutes grounds for immediate removal from any and all of my classes and being banned from registering for any future course of mine. Intellectual property is not free for the taking.
Homework Format
The homework is in journal format on the site. This means that you copy the homework questions in their entirety and paste them into the journal entry provided. Then save whatever you enter on the site itself when you are finished with it. I can look at your work there and grade it, leaving any comments for you with the grade. No other student can see your work. However, as the instructor I can see all the student work. So rest assured, there can be no cheating from cyberspace.
Some notes about work submission:
- Do not submit only answers. If you do not post the questions, it is far too easy to get the answers out of order and make a really low score on an assignment. I cannot give you a grade based upon what I 'think' you might have done. So post both questions and answers, and avoid this type of error.
- Follow the instructor's directions. This is a mark of responsibility and respect. If I ask you not to submit answers in all capital letters, then please do not submit answers in capital letters.
- If I tell you not to use outside resources, then do not use outside material to 'find' the answers. If you know of some other source that covers our topic and you're just crazy about it, bring that up on the message boards, but do not submit 'answers' from that site. Use the course material. I will only grade answers that come from the course material.
- And if you have personal experience with something, feel free to submit that as an "aside" AFTER you give the answer from the course material. I can't reproduce your individual results in most cases, so there is no way to verify personal experience. THAT'S why I don't give credit for it.
- If you are not finished working on an assignment, please make a comment on the journal to the effect that it is not finished so I don’t grade it prematurely.
- Further instructions on how to submit homework are given with each homework assignment. Be sure to follow those simple instructions as you turn in work.
Certificate of Completion
There will be an official TPOC Certificate posted for you to print off at the end of the course once you have completed *successfully* the final exam.
Disabilities and Compensatory Measures
Anyone with a computer and the ability to read and print off resources or otherwise store them (audio, video, etc.) in a manner that the student can access and utilize the information will be able to register for this course. The academic nature of the course means that you must have some access to the materials offline as well as on the site. If you have need of help due to physical difficulties with this process, please contact the instructor for further information.
Eligibility
You will be able to register for the CGS 201 course, the intermediate level, upon completion of this course. It is a prerequisite that you study this course prior to taking that one. The intermediate course is also a prerequisite before you sign up for the Advanced Crystal Healing course CH 301. For further information about supplies and other prerequisites for courses in this series, please contact the instructor.
Course Outline: Gemstones for Beginners
- 1: "Let's Rock and Roll"
- Introduction
- How to choose a reputable Rock Vendor
- Rock Formation
- 2: "Getting Booked"
- Recommended Website and Reading List
- Crystal Systems
- Metaphysical Perspective on Crystal Systems
- Obsidian: our example entry
- 3: "Rolling Stones"
- Rock Tumbling 101
- Chakras and Corresponding Gemstones
- Colours and Meanings of Gemstones
- Let's Meet Rose Quartz
- 4: "Forming a Band .... or Two"
- Banded Stones
- All About Agates
- Blue Lace Agate
- Tree Agate
- Moss Agate
- Sandstone
- Tiger's Eye
- Petrified Wood
- 5: "Making Records"
- Record Keeper Stones
- All About Quartz
- Rock Quartz
- Amber
- Fossils
- Marble
- Geodes and Ocos
- 6: "Hard Rock"
- The Mohs Scale of Hardness
- Why Hardness of Rock Matters, metaphysically speaking
- Pearl
- Mother of Pearl
- Moonstone
- Gypsum
- Alabaster
- 7: "Heavy Metal"
- Prospecting
- Gold
- Silver
- Copper
- Fool's Gold
- Peacock Copper Ore
- 8: "The Heart of Rock and Roll"
- Transparency and Refraction of Light
- Luminescence and Lustre
- Hematite
- Apache Tears
- Turquoise
- Carnelian
- Red Jasper
- 9: "That's a Rap!"
- Sodalite
- Citrine
- Green Aventurine
- Amethyst
- Amazonite
- Quiz: Units 6 - 9
- 10: "Rock On!"
- Final Exam
- Final Exam
Copyright © 2007 Jeanine Joanna Todd
