Nice job making it all the way to OWL! Remember, you now need to complete two of these lessons to gain your OWL, one in each term. But as always, you can do as many as you like.
1. Advanced Charm-Casting
Now that you’ve had lots of practice casting simpler charms, it’s time to move on to something more advanced! So, what makes a charm advanced? We’ll start with the obvious: advanced charms are much more difficult to cast than beginner ones, and this is usually due to their complexity.
Some charms have to be long-lasting, or alter the constrains of space, or cover a lot of distance or time. Some charms require a lot of precision, and must be preformed meticulously. Some just have to do something that’s inherently difficult to do, for whatever reason.
Here are some examples of charms that are advanced, without being too dangerous for you to attempt casting.
Bubble-Head Charm - creates a bubble around the caster’s head, allowing them to breathe underwater
Caterwauling Charm - creates an alarm across an area that is activated by the presence of unauthorized people
Disillusionment Charm - makes an item or person invisible by camouflaging them with their surroundings
Homonculous Charm - able to locate and track all living beings within an area
Object-Tracking Charm (Avenseguim) - tracks the origins of an object by making it point the way to its owner
Portkey Charm (Portus) - turns an object into a Portkey - the usage of this spell is restricted by the Ministry of Magic, but I have obtained special permission for you to try casting it in class, under my supervision
Protean Charm - links objects to each other, so that changes made to one will appear on the others
Tracking Spell (Appare Vestigium) - makes recently occurred footprints and traces of magic appear - the amount of time shown and the size of the area can change depending on the skill of the caster
Undetectable Extension Charm (Capacious Extremis) - expands the capacity of an object, without changing its outward appearance of size
Homework
Choose one of the charms from the above list and try to cast it. It may take you a few tries, and you might not manage a perfect cast, but you should be able to get at least partway there. Remember to describe your whole process: preparation, casting, and results. You might want to consider why this charm is difficult to cast as part of your preparation, so you can focus on overcoming those difficulties.
2. Deeper Look: Charm of Your Choice
If you’ve looked ahead at the NEWT lessons, you may have seen that we’ll be doing some deeper analysis of a handful of advanced charms. Analyzing spells in this way, considering how they work, limitations, and how they can be used, can be quite interesting as well as a great way to expand your understanding of Charms as a subject.
For this lesson you’ll be doing the same thing, but with a charm of your own choice and the chance to look at whatever aspects of the spell you find the most interesting, instead of the more focused NEWT lessons. You can choose any charm that interests you, as long as it isn’t one you’ve already studied in class, or might study next year (i.e. don't choose the Fidelius Charm, the Memory Charm, the Trace, or Unplottability).
Homework
Find a charm we haven’t studied yet that you’d like to take a deeper look at, and create a project that explores and analyzes it. You can use any medium and include whatever you think is most interesting. Just make sure you include at least a basic description of the charm’s effects and uses, and preform a demonstration of it (unless you can’t safely do so, in which case you should explain why you can’t).
You could also explain how the charm might work, what makes it useful, how it could be misused, what other spells it works well with, etc. You can do a simple write-up or something more creative, just make it interesting!
3. Charming Origin Stories
Something we haven’t touched on yet is the people in history who invented some of the charms we use most commonly today. Some charms started out simply, such as the Wand-Lighting Charm, which was first used publicly by its inventor Levina Monkstanley when she was working at the Ministry and dropped her quill in a dark corner, much to the astonishment of her colleagues. Others have stranger or more exciting origin stories.
Homework
Look up and read about the following inventors and how they first used their charms.
Disarming Charm - Elizabeth Smudgling (most likely)
Anti-Alohomora Charm - Blagdon Blay
Levitation Charm - Jarleth Hobart
Mending Charm - Orabella Nuttley
Then pick a charm with unknown origins, and write an origin story for it; in other words, write a story describing the first time a newly invented charm was used. Make up details and be creative!
4. Charms Techniques: Wandless and Nonverbal Spellcasting
Many magical folks never bother to learn how to cast spells nonverbally or without their wand, since most day-to-day situations don’t require these skills. However, they can give you some great advantages if you do learn how to use them, and even if you never need them, it’s still pretty cool to be able to cast spells silently or without your wand.
Nonverbal spellcasting is a lot easier to learn than wandless spellcasting, because you still use an incantation, you just say it in your head instead of out loud. It can still be difficult to master, though, since you need a slightly different sort of concentration and intention. Nonverbal spellcasting is really only necessary in defence situations, though, so we won’t be looking at it too deeply in this class.
As for casting spells without a wand, you might have wished you could do this if you’ve ever lost your wand or had it flung out of your hand by a Disarming Charm. Well, wandless magic is possible, but it’s very difficult to learn for those who are accustomed to using a wand.
Most magical folks who grew up in wand-using cultures can’t cast spells without their wand, and the ability to do so is a mark of great magical ability. Wandless magic can also be unpredictable and hard to control, which adds to its level of difficulty. If you are able to master it, though, it can definitely be a useful skill to have for those times you find yourself without your wand.
The interesting thing about wandless magic is how different it seems to be in different cultures. Some groups of people, such as African and Indigenous peoples, have never used wands, and yet they can still easily preform magic. For those of us who have grown up in cultures that do use wands, though, wandless magic is a highly advanced skill.
Homework
Tell me more about wandless magic. What are some possible advantages and disadvantages? Why do you think some cultures rely so heavily on wands, while others don’t? Tell me your thoughts.
5. Charms Techniques: Bewitched Objects
One of the great things about charms is that they can last for a long time, and continue to work long after being cast. Some are even permanent. Others will eventually wear off, some quite soon, others after a much longer amount of time. Either way, any object or person who is currently under the effects of a spell is known as being bewitched, and sometimes bewitching an object can be a very useful technique.
You may remember the way Professor McGonagall brought all of Hogwarts’ statues and suits of armour to life to fight in the Battle of Hogwarts. This is an example of objects being bewitched. Using the incantation Piertotum Locomotor, McGonagall bewitched the suits of armour to be able to move and fight, as well as making them loyal to the school.
Bewitched items don’t only have to be used for self defence in a battle, though; they can also be just for fun. Fred and George particularly liked bewitching snowballs to attack people or annoy Ron by repeatedly knocking into the window of the Gryffindor common room.
The Knitting Charm is another example of a charm used to bewitch an object. This charm works on knitting needles and yarn, making them knit by themselves, and is quite a time-saver. And these are just a few of the many ways bewitched objects can be useful or fun.
Homework
Design a charm used to bewitch an object, and make a pamphlet, comic, or infographic (or any kind of presentation that includes text and images/drawings) to advertise your charm. Show me what’s so great about it!