Muggle Magic (AKA. Science)

Malia’s second day at Hogwarts began with porridge for breakfast (AKA oatmeal) for breakfast.  She requested the overnight variety since she’s not a fan of traditional cooked oatmeal and I was happy to oblige since I also think the pasty version of oatmeal is loathsome. We tossed some strawberries and milk in with the oats last night and had a cool, creamy breakfast. After she ate and completed her reading minutes, she attacked her muggle studies with gusto so she could move on to her magical education.

During her house orientation, she created a tie in her house colors so everyone would know that she’s a Gryffindor through and through. Then she moved on to Potions, which was easily her favorite subject of the day. She made some exploding elixir by mixing mandrake root (baking soda), dragon spit (dish soap) and volatile solution (vinegar) in her cauldron. She learned how to use basilisk venom (dish soap) to send spiders (ground pepper) running. She also created some dancing unicorn milk by injecting it with leprechaun elixir (food coloring) and more dragon spit (dish soap). She ended her school day by learning to make a balloon and a feather levitate (assisted by the magnet on the end of her wand). We couldn’t cover all the potions in her book in one class period, so she is excited about having another lesson later in the week.

As a random, yet related, comment, science is one of the subjects that is getting glossed over with the switch to online learning. She is learning the basic concepts in the 3rd grade core, but there won’t be time to go into as much depth as there would be in a traditional classroom learning environment. As such, we are working to enrich her learning outside of what is assigned online. We got several books that dig deeper into the concepts of force and gravity, heat, and energy and she is completely engrossed. She loves that she is learning the basics of physics since all the boys talk about it so much. 😊