Harry Potter Chemistry (With Printable!)

While we were away overseas my youngest son Roo read the Harry Potter books and man, oh man, did he ever love them.  Well, who wouldn't?

That gave me an idea for some writing and chemistry activities, and I'm not talking about the chemistry between Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger!

Each night for a week I arranged 'potions' (actually kitchen chemical and physical changes) for Roo to discover when he got up in the mornings.

Sshhh, don't tell him it was chemistry!  Or that he's really learning how different materials can be combined for different purposes (Year 2, Australian Curriculum).

Here's an example of one I wrote (read on if you can't see the image on your device, and to find the actual substances used):

In case you can't read it, it says...

Confusing Concoction

In 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban', Harry has to brew this potion but he can't get it right.  

Try it yourself!

Harry's version:
Add golden dragon's blood to water (0.5 cup to 1.5 cups).
Add one troll eyeball.
Shake well.
Has it combined?

The Half-Blood Prince's version:
As above, but add a few drops of whomping willow sap as needed to cause the liquids to combine (emulsify).

Snape's mark:

And there's a space for him to write what mark he would give it.

You can get the printable for free here, or by clicking on the image above.

You need:

• water 
• oil 
• dish liquid 
• a gruesome toy eyeball or small ball

The dish liquid combines the oil and water because the dish liquid molecules are attracted to both oil and water.  Of course we discussed this after he made the potion.

Potions are also a great way to get kids into procedural writing and cooking.  Making potions is one of my kids' favourite things to do outdoors.

Look at the great writing Roo did!

And while we're on the subject of Harry Potter, we saw the most amazing thing in Lapland...

Expecto Patronum!

Do you know any chemical combinations which could be turned into fun Harry Potter potions?  Please let me know in the comments, as I'm starting to run out of ideas and I've got an 8-year-old begging for more potions!

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