The Kid Bucket List kid have been obsessed with Harry, Herminone, Ron and many of the characters from the books and movies for a few years now so when I was thinking of ways to prevent them from feeling like they were stuck under the stairs, I went on a hunt for Harry Potter inspired activities and found a plethora of resources. It made sense to share how you too can bring the world of Harry Potter home for the kids!
Bring the World of Harry Potter Home for the Kids
Table of Contents
Wizarding World
This website promises to bring the Hogwarts to your home as you access the Harry Potter at Home hub. It the result of an amazing collaboration between J.K. Rowling, Audible, Bloomsbury, OverDrive, Pottermore Publishing and Scholastic, who have created this resource to bring a touch of Harry Potter magic to our new daily lives.
There’s a sorting ceremony (I always thought I was Gryffindor but it turns out I’m more Ravenclaw), quizzes, games, reading items and so much more. It’s perfect for both the Potter nerd and the regular Muggle.
Harry Potter: A History of Magic Exhibit | British Library
Thanks to the magic of Google Arts and Culture you can now explore the Harry Potter exhibit at the British Library. Through this incredible resource, both you and the kids can explore the journey of Harry Potter, lessons in Muggle magic, the history of magic and so much more. It is an incredible website, but be warned….. once you start exploring the library you may find it difficult to leave!
Universal Studios Orlando VR 360
We headed to Universal Studios Japan to explore Hogwarts and had the most amazing adventure. We planned to head to Orlando over Christmas 2020 but have postponed our trip. In the meantime, we are getting our Harry Potter theme park fix by watching YouTube clips. This particular version gives the kids control to move the camera to see different parts of the park. They loved this!
Want more? You might like this roundup of 7 virtual Harry Potter attractions on YouTube.
Open License for Teachers
As an educator who is completely redefining how I deliver education in my setting, discovering that J. K. Rowling and her agents The Blair Partnership have relaxed the usual copyright permissions required to read aloud her books, was one of the highlights of my week. We are now allowed to record ourselves reading any of the Harry Potter books 1-7 and upload them onto our school secure network or closed educational platforms until the end of July. A full set of Guidelines for Teachers are downloadable here.
Thank you J. K. Rowling!
Hogwarts Digital Escape Room
It is your first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and you could not be more excited! Welcome to the virtual Hogwarts digital escape room. We have a little fun trying this out. It isn’t high tech, but it’s fun and the kids need to read each section carefully to move forward.
Hogwarts Online
Hogwarts online is an online Harry Potter community that has been running since 2001. It’s a roleplay space and seems to be very popular. I am yet to head in to really give it a go and I would recommend doing this before you release your kids into this world. Hogwarts Extreme seems to be a similar space.
The Store of Requirement
If you love Harry Potter as much as we do you will probably want to do a little shopping from home over the current break from shopping centres. The Store of Requirement which boasts to have Australia’s largest range of Officially Licensed Harry Potter merchandise. They post everything to Australian addresses for free too!
Butterbeer at Home
We’re non-drinkers in our house so were a little worried about trying Butterbeer at Universal Studios Japan. We were excited when we learned that there is a non-alcoholic version and upon tasting it, became addicted. Wizarding World Park have pulled together recipes that they believe taste like the real thing. Guess what I’m doing over the next few weeks (if I can source all the ingredients!).
So what do you think? Do you now have some idea of Harry Potter gold that will entertain the kids? Maybe we’ve missed a favourite, we would love to hear. Leave us a comment
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