foster care

Chapter 13 – Nightmares, Bullying and Encouragement – Parent Discussion

I have two major themes I want to discuss about this chapter: 1) nightmares, night terrors and fear and 2) the effects of encouragement when it comes to being bullied. Part I: Nightmares The visions H...

A Teacher’s Wishful Superpower

What Superpower Do You Want? I have been asked what superpower I wish I could have multiple times throughout my life. I have never been able to come up with one superpower I would love to consistently...

A Cloak of Invisibility

One of my favorite things in the Harry Potter series is the cloak of invisibility. There are so many times a magical cloak that makes you invisible could come in handy in life! At least this is the ca...

Chapter 10 – Blending a Family – Parent Discussion

  Coming Together to Make a Unit Chapter 10 of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling ends with a brilliant quote: “There are some things you can’t share without ending up liking each o...

My Journey Through Foster Care

The Beginning… Hi. I am Jasmine and I want to tell you about what I have been through when I was a foster kid. I didn’t have a good childhood till I was 6. I was taken [away from my biolog...

Chapter 16 – Time to Get Schooled – Kids’ Discussion

We’re almost to the end of Harry’s first big adventure at Hogwarts School. Harry has been through a lot in this book. Here is some of what we have seen happen: Harry discovered that he was...

Chapter 12 – The Mirror of Erised – Parents’ Discussion

This chapter is entitled The Mirror of Erised, a mirror which Harry encounters while wandering the castle when he was supposed to have been in bed. He looks into the mirror and sees his parents in the...

Chapter 4 – Parent Discussion – How are you parenting? Like a Dursley or Hagrid?

The beginning of chapter 4 is one of my fears. No! I don’t have a fear of my children finding out that they are wizards. I am a bit scared of having my wife nudging me in the middle of the night...

Chapter 3 – Parent Discussion – What information do I share with my child?

After reading this chapter of Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone with my children, I feel that the fear and anxiety of Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia was almost palpable. The anxiety came out ...