Magic Archives

This week at Camp ROGA, we swept off our invisibility cloak and revealed Harry Potter World with exclamations of awe. Fresh from platform 9 ¾, students gaped in wide-eyed amazement at the gym, as before their eyes it was transmuted into a magical castle. And as soon as their jaws clamped shut, they were whisked away to be draped in their robes and ushered into their magic classes. A world of polymorph potions, flying brooms, sarcastic sorting hats, and fearsome dragons awaited our students, so come, join them, and figure out if YOU too are a wizard (or witch) at Camp ROGA’s Harry Potter World.

Before the students could start casting spells and make trouble on the Marauder’s map, they had to take a trip through Diagon Alley to secure themselves some school supplies. The materials needed for their classes at Camp ROGA were myriad and bizarre, and many precautions had to be taken against evil professors, nasty beasties, and wicked death eaters. So let’s go down the list. One of the things students wanted more than anything was the chance to try out for the Quidditch team, and to do that, they would need the fastest broom they could make. The master crafters at Quality Quidditch Supplies and Broomstix showed the students the ropes, and with a cry of Accio! sent them to their work. The name of the game was aerodynamics: whoever could make the sleekest broom would have the best shot at a place on the Quidditch team, so students had to tie the ends of their brooms (which were made of yarn) as tightly and as neatly as they could. Also important was the color of their broom, as all the students agreed that color determined broom speed. What they did not agree on was which color did what, and different camps were made on whether red or pink was the faster color.

While the students were in Diagon Alley, they also had to get a messenger owl, so they could receive messages from home and send Howlers to each other as pranks. To make these, we had the students choose their favorite species of owl so we could obtain a proper breed. Students got to look all throughout Eeylops Owl Emporium and pick what eyes, feathers, and other features they wanted their owls to have before returning to the shop where they could take (make) their dream owl back home with them. Each owl came with their own little messenger pouch so students could store whatever letters they wanted; magical or otherwise.

Now, after getting their school supplies, the students hopped on a train and set off toward Hogwarts proper, but look out! Even before they could get into the school, the students were set upon by the whomping willow! In this activity, Students had to guard their luggage and school supplies from the whomping willow, who was determined to destroy them. To do this, students had to pile up their luggage in a protective stack away from the whomping willow and shield it with whatever charms they had learned before school started (let’s hope they studied up!). Of course, the cunning and magic-resistant whomping willow saw through the apprentices’ tricks and found the gaps in their defenses, so after escaping its wicked grasp, there was much repairing to do! (You wouldn’t want to go through the year with a broken wand!)

But before they could magic their wands and broom back together and hit the books (literally!), students had to take a turn below the Sorting Hat to decide their houses! They steeled their hearts and gathered their wits about them to ensure they got the house they wanted. Nerves were high, but you should always remember that if you ask the sorting hat for something, it will always respect your wishes. For this exercise, your house determines what exercise you would be doing. Ravenclaw would be doing airplanes, Slytherins, the worm, and so on. Students could go up to the hat as many times as they wanted to change their exercise, though what they would be doing was up to the sorting hat to decide.

Now that the students were sorted into their houses, it was time to head into class. Taking a trip down to the dungeon had the students finding themselves in potions class, with the menacing Professor Severus Snape looming over them, watching their every move. Potion making is a precise craft, and one misstep could have your cauldron going Boom! Right in front of you. Students carefully mixed bezoars and eye of newt (water and glue) under the watchful eyes of their instructors, stirring precisely and evenly, before adding one last super secret ingredient (glitter). After which they were inspected with discerning eyes and house points were distributed to the instructors’ favorite potions (we gave points to everyone).

After the students had finished the dreaded potions class, they headed up and outside to Hagrid’s class, Care of Magical Creatures. Many magical creatures were there for the students to meet, but first, they had to manage their textbook, The Monster Book of Monsters. This was a tricky book to handle, as careless roaming fingers had to watch out or the books might try to have a nibble! Luckily (or unluckily for the books), these books were some of the books caught by the whomping willow, so students had to repair and rebind the books before they could use them. The normally monstrous books became really quiet under the care and attention of their new owners. With new bindings, eyes, and teeth in place, these Monster books purred lovingly under the hands of their owners, and only snapped about when their owners turned them on other students, seeking to chomp on the arms of their rivals.

After all the tiring class work, students were excited to stop by the great hall and stock up on all the food from their wildest imaginations.

A specialty offered up by Professor Pomona Sprout—a veritable Vegetable Garden for all of the students’ nutritional needs, including carrots, celery, and a variety of other healthy vegetables.

The students also enjoyed a variety of “House Snacks.” Depending on the house you received from the sorting hat, you could get Ravenclaw Grapes, Gryffindor Bugels, Hufflepuff Puffs, and Slytherin gummy worms. You should remember, though, that the sorting hat always respects your wishes (and you can choose whatever you want).

We also offered feed for the weary messenger owls in the form of vegipuffs and pretzels, and other things which owls crave.

Finally, with tensions between houses high and many spells learned, the students were ready for dueling class and the chance to throw their nastiest hexes at their rivals. A great battle for Camp ROGA was fought on the school grounds with spells (water balloons) flying everywhere, but when the dust settled, there was plenty more magic to enjoy for the rest of the water day. Students even had the chance to ride on magic carpets and brooms across the lake at the edge of Hogwarts.

As the train departs back for Platform 9 ¾, students are left with fond memories of their camp as they return once again to their normal lives. But camp this week taught us even the most mundane of moments could be magical, and that there is always a spell for any situation. Until the next adventure coming up with Camp ROGA Artful Antics week… stay magical, and remember, everyone’s a wizard (or witch) at heart.

A little mystery, a dash of misdirection, and a whole lot of magic filled the air this week as Camp ROGA conjured up its Magic and Illusion week! Whether we were practicing levitation and wall-climbing spells, or pulling rabbits out of hats, our little magicians were pulling out all the stops for a grand magic show! So come one and come all as we give you a peek behind the curtain and show off just a couple of the spellbinding moments of this week!

Of course, before the magicians could cast any spells, they needed to craft their magical focuses. When making their magical implements, our magicians had a lot of options, and not just about what kind of spells they wanted to cast. On the one hand, you can not go wrong with a good old-fashioned wand. A quick implement, meant for speed of light casting, these wands were embedded with the powers of shooting stars! Made from popsicle sticks and sticker stars, these wands fit easily into the magician’s hands and would imbue them with abilities wrought in starlight. All they needed was a couple of magic words and a little belief to set them off. Of course, this also made for a lot of loud noise and flailing arms, as the magicians cast battle magic at each other, speaking gibberish and wildly gesticulating. Truly, it was a sight to behold.

Aside from just wands, campers would also come across two other tools to add to their arsenal. One was the Spinning Disk. This magical instrument was meant to beguile their foes and audiences alike with its rapid and mysterious spinning, and strange, arcane symbols carved on each side. The campers got very creative with this one. Some designed their Disks with spirals on one side to hypnotize any unwary passersby and get them to do their bidding. Some drew “terrifying” creatures on the sides to drive off any annoying mortals in fear. One student I saw also drew some actual Norse runes they had looked up before class on their disk, which were so far beyond my comprehension they made my head spin (he wouldn’t tell me what they meant). Another student would also use the seashells in the Camp ROGA flower bed to commune with the creatures of the ocean and ask for their wisdom. When they answered, though, the sea creatures sounded suspiciously like the Camp ROGA staff (who were whispering over their shoulders).

When it came down to practicing magic, we decided to stick with the classics, and you don’t get any more classic than levitation spells. We are also, luckily, very well acquainted with airtime. Above, you can see some of the magicians’ early attempts to get themselves up in the air and flying around. One technique we practiced was the classic flying broom. This involved campers mounting up on one of the bars, usually the ones near the rec floor, and using them to fly through the air. This magical, propelled flying required focus and a great deal of dexterity, as well as the ability to avoid falling off their brooms mid-flight. When that happened, they had to hang on tight with their arms or legs to stop themselves from plummeting off their broom!

Another spell our campers practiced was levitating objects instead of themselves. This technique was not as intuitive, and our magicians had to explore a couple of different pathways to success. In one method, they switched out their wands for magic staffs, using them to propel balls through the air in a mighty display of magical prowess. These worked by using air spirits hidden within the staffs to suck the balls in then spit them out with great force. Other campers tried using telekinesis to hold up objects in the air with nothing but their minds. While initially unsuccessful, after much practice using the power of their minds, the magicians figured out that they could use their minds to control their bodies to go and pick up the objects, so we called it a win. And finally, one magician decided to conjure up some rings to hold up his objects. This was very successful, but required an incredible amount of patience and dexterity to accomplish. Above, we can see him in the depths of concentration on his levitation ritual, working with the skill of a long-practiced master to give the power of flight.

Of course, no magic show would be complete without mastery over one of the most classic tricks of all: pulling a rabbit out of a hat. In order to accomplish this, our magicians felt it was best to get into the mindset of a rabbit. Above, you can see the magicians’ efforts to understand their little furry companions, as they transmute themselves into rabbits and conjure themselves out of hats. One game where the magicians did this was called “Rabbit in the Hat,” where the transmuted rabbits would run underneath a hat, trying to escape before it came down around them. When the hat was lifted back up again, any rabbit still trapped had mysteriously disappeared, and the hat seemed to have gotten a little bigger. One pair of siblings decided to take the experiment a step further. They procured a mat and, with a wave of their wands, transformed it into a hat! Then they hopped in and made themselves disappear (from where the coaches could see them).

Even magicians need food, so Camp ROGA conjured up some healthy and energizing snacks to keep their mana bars full and ready to keep casting spells. Here are just a few.

For one of the snacks, we decided to give the magicians another wand. The only difference was that this one was made of fruit, and the only spell it could cast was Power Word: Hunger be gone. For another snack, we designed a couple of magic carpets using fruit, yogurt, and Graham crackers to fly the campers all the way to Flavortown and back.

This week, some wicked witches cast a weather spell on us and told us to BEWARE THE IDES OF–Thursday, so we had water day on Tuesday instead. This did not stop our magicians from taking control of the elements, mainly water, and harnessing them to their whims. They used their power over water to accelerate their magic carpets, riding them at breakneck speeds while still letting them off safely when they were done flying. They also harnessed their water elements into Battle magic, tossing compact balls of water to and fro, determined to hunt down the evil witches who had cursed the camp with inclement weather, though, they might not have gotten the right people in the end.

And with that final spellbinding spectacle, Camp ROGA’s Magic and Illusion week drew to a magical close. From the magic wands to the sleight of hand tricks, it’s weeks like these that remind us that summer is truly magical. We hope you’ll join us next week for Camp ROGA Beach Bash week!

Rochester Gymnastics Academy

Tag Archives: Magic

ROGA Blog: Camp ROGA: Harry Potter World

ROGA Blog: Camp ROGA: Magic and Illusion