Harry Potter: Diagon Alley

The newest park at Universal Studios is Diagon Alley. Diagon Alley is Harry Potter's first glimpse into the Wizarding World. It is where Hagrid brings him to buy his school books and where he finally deposits Harry at King's Cross Station.

The entrance to Diagon Alley isn't exactly visible from the road, but if you see the purple Knight Bus and look to the left you should see the entrance - or at least park of it. We can't let the Muggles in! And when you do and you walk through the brick entrance ... be prepared to be amazed! My breath caught in my throat and I barely held myself together as I felt as if I was truly walking into the magical marketplace where you can find your share of cauldrons, wands, robes, and other magical menageries.

The first thing you should do is high tail it back to Gringotts and hop in line for this ride. We got lucky and only had to wait about 45 minutes but the wait can be up to several hours. If you ride in the afternoon (think nap time) that is your best bet for short lines. They do a good job keeping you entertained in line with Gringott's advertisements and signs. Once you enter the bank itself, there is plenty to see. You will feel as if you are actually entering the Wizarding bank. The goblins are exceptionally real and look you in the eye as you walk deeper and deeper into the vault. The ride itself is amazing. (We did ride it twice since the first time it broke down on us. But they gave us a free express ticket to return.) It is 3D (4D maybe? You can feel the wind and the heat as you ride) and truly makes you feel as if you are on a cart escaping from Gringotts. 

After this, make sure to grab a Butterbeer (frozen or regular) and explore the many shops of Diagon Alley. Hop in line at Ollivander's and watch the Wand Chooses the Wizard ceremony. Then BUY YOUR WAND. 

I don't care how old you are. BUY A WAND. It is worth the money. The wands are interactive and all over both parks you can cast a spell and watch magic happen. Embrace your inner child and let the magic come alive. Trust me, you'll be glad that you did it. Plus - you have a really cool souvenir to bring home with you! 

End your day by eating at the Leaky Cauldron. The british pub fare is incredible. I enjoyed the Fish and Chips and they were probably the best french fries I've ever had. My mom had the pie sampler (cottage pie and meat pie I believe) and she said that was really good as well. The food is well worth the money and the atmosphere is spot on. It looks just like the Leaky Cauldron as described in the book and depicted in the movie. 

Tomorrow we explore the world of Hogsmeade! Potter on! 

The Harry Potter Experience

To say that I am a Harry Potter fanatic is an understatement. Like a dementor sized understatement.

I completely believe the magic is real and have since I was 10 years old when the first book was released and made its way into my hands. I don't know what it was that originally drew me into the Harry Potter books ... perhaps it was my avid reading or the cover looked interesting ... whatever it was, I was stuck for good.

So, when I learned that Universal Studios opened a SECOND Harry Potter area at their parks in Florida I knew I had to go. The question no longer was how can I make that happen but WHEN can I make that happen? And make it happen, we did. We took a trip to Universal Studios in June and spent 2 1/2 days at the parks.

I walked into the park bouncing like a little girl. I had a huge smile on my face and couldn't contain my excitement as I approached King's Cross Station and Diagon Alley. It didn't matter that I had been awake since 3 am after sleeping for 3 hours ... It was 2 pm and I was FULL of energy. I didn't even know what to do with myself as I saw the Knight Bus parked right outside. There isn't much better than seeing the world you spent so much time in come to life, and better yet? You get to be a part of it.

Was it as cool as I imagined it to be? Better. It was 100% better. Universal did an exceptional job bringing this world to life. It was real and authentic in every way. I can't even begin to describe what it is like to see hundreds of people wandering around in Wizard robes waving their magical wands.

So, how do you make the most of your trip to Universal?

Stay tuned, Potterheads, Stay tuned. 

For The Times They Are A-Changin

They say change is a good thing. They say that everything must change and evolve. They say that the only thing constant is change. They say that time changes things.  They say that change is inevitable. They say, they say, they say.

I know it is an age old question, but who the hell is "they" and what do they actually know?!?!

This week the school year ends. In less than 42 hours my fourth year teaching fourth grade will be over. This year was the first year of Educator Effectiveness. It was the first year we had to prove our worth to the state, to prove that we were effective. It was the first year that our state made the move to not require educators to hold a bachelor's degree in an education related field.
Change.

Typically, I spend the last week of school packing up my classroom for summer and packing up my life as I prepared to move to Colorado for 2 1/2 months. This year, I am not going to Colorado. I am only packing up my classroom with an uneasy feeling deep in my soul, like I am waiting for the other shoe to drop with a massively loud clang as it bounces down a flight of stairs.
Change.

Just over two months ago, I was in a committed relationship that I thought was going all the way. I thought that I would have an incredibly busy summer spent hanging out with said man. We are no longer together and I head into summer without a lot of day to day plans and without the mountains to soothe my soul.
Change.

This year I will watch my twin brother getting married. I watch as he plans his wedding with his wonderful fiance. I look at how much he has grown up and swell with pride that my "baby" brother's life is falling into place exactly where it should be. I move towards the feeling that I will be the only single adult in our immediate family. No more buddy system for us single folks!
Change.

So, maybe what "they say" is true. Chang is inevitable. But the real question is what do YOU say?

To quote Avenue Q, "except for death and paying taxes everything in life is only for now." Change may be the only constant thing in life, this is true. The changes in life aren't going anywhere and there isn't anything we can do about it no matter how much we fight, scream, kick, and claw away from it. So, we should have something to say about the change. How we react. How we feel. What we say in the heat of the change - be it good or be it bad. Maybe that should be our goal ... to react to change with poise, elegance and hope and see how it goes down the road.

If that doesn't work ... then bite, kick, scream, and claw your way through life until you find peace because the truth of the matter is that we don't have any control and life will be better once we accept that. :)

(Now if you figure out that acceptance ... please guest author!)

Have Courage and Be Kind

Tonight I went to see (for the second time) the live action Cinderella with my niece, Isabel.

There is a strong theme that runs through this movie that is actually one that should be heard loud and clear in our world and taken to heart by every Cinderella loving girl or boy. Surprisingly enough it isn't that a new pair of shoes can change your life - though I do openly and  wholly support the purchase of new shoes... But ... The message was much stronger and much more important than that.

Have Courage and Be Kind

What exactly does it mean to be kind? How do we define kindness?

Interestingly enough my students had a guidance class today which was centered on the idea of kindness. Their substitute guidance teacher started the lesson by asking them what it means to be kind to others? My students fumbled with finding a definition that didn't include the word 'kind'. They shared examples like "well it means to be kind to someone else" or "being kind to someone is well, you know, being kind". Nobody could actually offer up a definition of the word kind without using the word itself. They could, on the other hand, offer up a lot of examples of how you can be kind to others.

Kindness can be defined as being friendly, generous and considerate of others.

This definition doesn't seem too difficult to understand. Be friendly. Be generous. Be considerate. It all seems pretty straight forward to me. But ... if it really is that easy, then, why is it so hard to do?

I think the movie meant their phase "Have Courage and Be Kind" to mean two separate things. Have Courage. Be Kind. Two separate entities. I can absolutely see how that would be the case ... but I would disagree. I think that have Courage and be Kind to others can be seen as one message. Have the courage to be kind to others: be friendly, be generous, be considerate.

It takes courage to be friendly to those who are different than ourselves. It takes courage to be friendly to those who have differing beliefs than we do even if we believe they are wrong to our core. It takes courage to be friendly and not roll our eyes, or provide a snippy comment without thinking. It takes courage to be friendly rather than resort to violence or bullying. It takes courage to be kind.

It takes courage to be generous to those who are less fortunate than we are or to those who are more fortunate than we are. It takes courage to be generous with our time when we offer it up to others even when we have so much on our over flowing plates already. It takes courage to be generous to someone we have never met. It takes courage to be kind.

It takes courage to be considerate of others feelings. It takes courage to acknowledge their feelings and that what we say might hurt them. It takes courage to realize that words are stronger than actions. It takes courage to be considerate of how others might feel when you act out against their wishes. It takes courage to be considerate when standing up for what you believe in. It takes courage to be kind.

We all have loads of s*** piling up in our lives that we need to deal with on a daily basis. We all have trials and tribulations that we are fighting to overcome and we are all on different steps of that journey. And even though we would all like to be egocentric in our thoughts, words and actions ... we need to remember the importance of being kind.

Have Courage and Be Kind.

photo from here

The State of Teaching

Fair warning ... this post will focus on the downward spiral that is the teaching profession. So if you are a republican supporting, Scott Walker loving, hating public education kinda person ... you can stop reading now. Or better yet, please do read on. Read on and open your eyes to the travesty that is happening in what used to be a great, great state.

A statement released today by the Department of Public Instruction said that, "The legislation being rolled into the biennial budget would require the Department of Public Instruction to license anyone with a bachelor’s degree in any subject to teach English, social studies, mathematics, and science. The only requirement is that a public school or school district or a private choice school determines that the individual is proficient and has relevant experience in each subject they teach."

So. Wait. Let me get this straight. In the state of Wisconsin anybody with a bachelor's degree would receive a teaching license? Anybody? It doesn't even matter what their bachelor's degree is in, they would be licensed to teach English, social studies, math and science?

Someone please tell me, how does having a Bachelor's degree in Business Management gives you the appropriate credentials to teach common core mathematics to a bunch of fourth graders? Please, tell me how a Bachelor's in Business Management is going to help you teach the multiplication place value sections area model to a student who comes from a low income family and can't afford to eat breakfast?

By this logic, I am qualified to do all sorts of things with my life. I have a Bachelor's degree in Education so clearly I am qualified to work in other fields as long as I have relevant experience.
I have flown in a plane and therefore I am qualified to fly a plane.
I have cooked food and therefore I am qualified to be a top chef in a fancy restaurant.
I have sung along to the radio and therefore know that millions of people who like to hear me sing.
I have driven a car and therefore can be the Chief Executive of Automobile Safety.

Right?

Now what do they consider 'relevant experience' in the field? If they aren't required to have a degree in teaching and take courses in each of those subject areas ... where do they receive the relevant experience? Is it enough to have sat through math classes during elementary school - does that count as experience? Where is the line drawn?

On the flip side of this ... we are treating our teachers who have a valid, hard earned teaching license as if they are the scum of the earth. Teachers are required to undergo the Educator Effectiveness evaluation system. The system where we look teachers square in the face and say, "You Suck. Now prove you don't."

Even in the justice system we say that people are innocent until proven guilty. We give them the benefit of the doubt and allow them to state their claim. Yet, we don't give educators the benefit of the doubt. I'm not saying that we don't need an evaluation system. We just need a refined one where we differentiate what teachers are asked to prove. We shouldn't tell all educators that they suck and then ask them to spend 20+ hours to prove their worth to 'the man'. 20+ hours where they could be working on activities that they could use with their students.

I don't know if I know the answers to solve these problems. But I do know that we are not doing right by our students. We are not supporting the teachers who work hard and sometimes even give their lives to support their students. We need to keep qualified educators in the classroom.

Something has got to change or the state of our state will continue to burrow deeper into the mud.