I think it's pretty safe to say that we are ALL (adults included) having a great time at Hogwarts MiniCamp! We've entered into our second week here and the young wizards have been very busy. (So has Professor McGonagall, aka: your's truly, who sometimes must also take on the dual role of House Elf and tend to tasks in the home, kitchen and across campus.) We've had a lot of imaginative play and free exploration and some more organized "lessons" as well. Potions Class has been a favorite here by far. Here's a peek at some of our latest concoctions:
Bubble Bubble, Toil & Trouble: You really can't go wrong with baking soda and vinegar here. Add in some color (we used red, yellow and orange liquid watercolor in our vinegar), some glitter (because, why not?), and some unique containers and tools (we used plastic cauldrons, "stirring wands" [chopsticks], various glass bottles and jars, pipettes, glass flasks and dessert cups, tiny dessert spoons and various pieces from a metal tea set I use in our dramatic play area here) and you've got yourself the perfect setup for Potions Class. It's the perfect backyard adventure for any wizard in training or budding scientist. We called this Potions Practice Class since I really just let the boys have at it in their own way rather than giving any formal instruction. It was colorful. It was bubbly. It was messy. It was fun!
Polyjuice Potions: We love the magical feel of Hogwarts and we also love science. Especially on a Monday. A friend of mine told me about her kids' lava lamp experiment at a virtual camp last week and I decided I had to try it. I've heard that if you take an alka seltzer, you'll feel better fast. Other than that, I had no idea what that stuff is used for. (Antacid and pain relief, apparently...) But here, it's used for polyjuice potion lamps and in today's Potions Class, the boys made their very own. You can see a variety of ways to make a polyjuice potion lamp (aka: lava lamp) here from STEAM Powered Family. We made the glow in the dark version using tonic water, vegetable oil, food coloring (each of the boys chose two colors) and alka seltzer tablets broken into pieces. We first set up and tested the polyjuice potions in daylight at our dining room table. Next, we took them, along with a UV flashlight into our dark bathroom with the door closed. 
Disclaimer: If you are the parent of boys, you may not want to take a UV flashlight into your dark bathroom. I'm going to need therapy. Bleach and therapy.
But the glow in the dark Polyjuice Potions were so cool!
S has an incredible eye (and memory) for details--especially edible details. He has truly been the inspiration and brilliance behind much of our curriculum here at Hogwarts MiniCamp. Among his contributions to the agenda were "a feast" and "the cake Hagrid makes for Harry Potter that he doesn't get to eat." So last week, I conjured my inner House Elf and cooked up a feast for dinner. It was a pretty kid friendly and low maintenance feast of homemade pizza, cut up fruits and veggies and soda for a special treat (enjoyed inside a Harry Potter cup with a swirly straw, of course). We used the "nice" dishes, set out some place cards and even had a special dessert of "butter beer pudding and biscuits" and some "Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans" (butterscotch pudding and jelly beans).
There certainly isn't any doing things half way here. Y takes the "school" component of Hogwarts so seriously (as he so misses school right now) that he often wears his backpack and Gryffindor tie all day! And everyone was particularly diligent about eating our themed Shabbos dessert this past week. As someone who really stinks at decorating cakes, I relished the opportunity to recreate this one!
Happy Playing!
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