HERRIMAN, Utah -- It was a magical week for third graders at Blackridge Elementary School in Herriman as they transformed their classrooms into a place for young witches and wizards.
Third-grade curriculum includes learning about genres of literature, and this week, it's fantasy. So, fantasy became reality in Herriman as the school was transformed into Hogwarts, the school made famous in the “Harry Potter” franchise.
But the real magic is clearly in the relationships between students and teachers.
“The kids get to come and get sorted into different houses, and we do fantasy things all week studying that genre,” third grade teacher Brittany Larson said.
The houses at Hogwarts are a student's community. Eli Rush is in Gryffindor, which he says makes sense.
“I’m brave, and it's the house that Harry Potter was in,” he said.
Larson said it’s a collaborative effort involving the entire third grade.
“Third grade is all doing this together, and it's been really fun because the kids have been able to interact with each other, and not only work with the kids from my class, but the Gryffindors from the whole grade get together and have been rotating to different teachers as well,” Larson said.
It’s an elaborate process, as the classrooms are transformed and the students and teachers dress to fit the part. And each student has a wand, which was handmade by a student from Riverton High School.
“It’s been the best week of my life,” Eli Rush said.
“It’s awesome,” fellow student Anna Rush agreed.
The students have taken classes like potions, care of magical creatures and charms.
“We got to make liquid luck, gillyweed and some other ones,” Anna said of those classes.
Friday, students were engineering a cart rollercoaster for the goblins at Gringotts Bank.
The idea is to teach the fantasy genre, but the learning is real, and really fun.
See the video above for a look at the Hogwarts themed lessons at Blackridge Elementary.
