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Weekly Online LessonOnline Lesson ArchiveGrade Level: 5-9
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Hooray for Harry
Harry
Potter fans may not be able to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and
Wizardry, but now they can learn from two of the textbooks used by young
wizards at the fictional institution. On March 12, 2001, author J.K. Rowlings
and publisher Bloomsbury plc release two new books as complements to the
wildly popular series: "Quidditch Through the Ages" and "Fantastic
Beasts and Where to Find Them." Rowling wrote the books under the
pen names Kennilworthy Whisp and Newt Scamander respectively.
In the US Rowling's books are published by Scholastic. Over 30 million copies of the books have sold worldwide.
Proceeds from the "Schoolbooks," including all of author J.K. Rowling's royalties, are being donated to Comic Relief U.K., a charity that helps disadvantaged children in Great Britain and around the world. Because Comic Relief U.K. has corporate sponsors who pay for administrative costs, 100% of the proceeds go directly to relief efforts. Release of the books coincides with the charity's Red Nose Day on March 16th.
This week's online lesson—of particular interest to you Hogwarts devotees—is about Rowling, Comic Relief, and all things Harry Potter.
About the Books
Begin
this week's lesson with a visit to Bloombury's Harry
Potter site. This page gives you several places to go. If you
are one of the rare few who don't know much about the Harry Potter series,
click Muggles
Enter Here for an introduction (muggles are people who can't do
magic). Click Witches
& Wizards Enter Here to open the secret Potter site. You will
need to supply the correct password to get in, but if you follow the hidden
clues you should figure it out.
When you enter the Witches and Wizards site, start off by clicking Creation of Harry Potter and read how Rowling conceives and writes each new book in the series. You will also learn how the books are published, publicized, and distributed.
Next,
click Meet J.K.
Rowling and read about the author's youth, her education, and
her life's accomplishments. This is one of the best short biographies
of her you'll find anywhere. You can also get to know Rowling by watching
a series of video interviews. Click The
New Book and then click Video
Interview. From there click any of the interview topics (you will
need RealPlayer to view them).
For one final bit of fun, click Send a Howler. In Harry Potter terms, a Howler is a loud angry message you can send when you're unhappy with someone. Or you can send an Owler if you want to be nice. Choose a Howler or Owler from the drop-down list, and then, in the next page that opens, enter the e-mail address of someone you know whom you want to receive the message. Click Preview to see and hear it yourself, and then click Send The Howler/Owler to send the message off.
About Comic Relief
Pay
a visit to the Comic
Relief site to learn how the proceeds of the new Harry Potter
schoolbooks will be used. Read the announcement, and then click Find
Out More. Read this page, and then choose from the drop-down list
a category of needy children. How much does it cost to send a child to
school for a week in developing nations? How will proceeds from the Harry
Potter schoolbooks be used?
While at the site, learn more about Comic Relief UK and the work this charity does by clicking Comic Relief and reading Story So Far. What is the Golden Pound? When was Comic Relief started, and where does its name come from?
Movie Trailer and Fun
Here's
a final bit of fun for this week's online lesson. The first Harry Potter
motion picture is now in production and scheduled for release in November
2001. Visit the Official
Harry Potter Film site and, after the intro, explore freely. Among
the many activities available, you can now watch the first trailer for
the upcoming movie. Click Daily
Prophet, and then click the headline Hurrah!
The Trailer is here! Choose the media player you have, and click
the appropriate link. (QuickTime is usually the best quality.)
© Copyright 2002
Learners Online, Inc.