Katherine McDaniel, history professor at Marietta College, center, quizzes students on class content as Zoey Miller of Fort Frye High School, left, Miles Miller of Oak Grove Christian, and William Burnett look on. The Castle in Marietta hosted a Harry Potter style class that combines local lore and fantastical elements. (Photo by Kristen Hainkel)

MARIETTA — The Castle in Marietta hosted a Harry Potter-style class that combines local lore and fantastical elements.

Kyle Yoho, education director at The Castle, said he hoped by engaging students with something they know, they might become interested in local history.

“I combined the real history of The Castle in the History of Magic class,” he said.

It’s a gateway event,” Katherine McDaniel, history professor at Marietta College who played the headmistress for the students.

The museum hosted two sessions, a beginner session in the morning for students who hadn’t attended the camp before and an advanced one for students who had attended their first camp in September.

Jaye Warman, Castle volunteer, asked students what the difference between a troll and an ogre is during their magical studies class Saturday as The Castle in Marietta hosted a Harry Potter style class. (Photo by Kristen Hainkel)

“We added the advanced session due the feedback we got,” Yoho said. “Students told us they wanted to come back and do it again. They would have come back the next weekend if we let them.”

Students attended three different classes: Care of Magical Creatures with Castle volunteer Jaye Warman, Potions with Marietta College chemistry professor Debbie Egolf, and History of Magic with Yoho. After the classes, students are acknowledged for their achievement with a graduation ceremony.

During Warman’s class, students cut out pictures of fantasy creatures and match them to a description.

Zoey Miller, a freshman at Fort Frye High School, said she was enjoying the class and is a volunteer at The Castle.

Yoho said while this event might be considered out of the box, he was happy to participate.

William Burnett, 12, left, of Devola, listens to Jaye Warman while Isabella Chang, 9, of Vienna, works on her magical creatures assignment at The Castle Saturday in Marietta. (Photo by Kristen Hainkel)

“It’s not an event people would expect us to do, but it gets kids and families involved with The Castle,” he said.

Kristen Hainkel can be reached at khainkel@newsandsentinel.com

Harper Cameron, 9, of Vincent, center, Isabella Chang, 9, of Vienna, and William Burnett match their magical creatures to their description during The Castle’s magical studies class Saturday. (Photo by Kristen Hainkel)

Katherine McDaniel, history professor at Marietta College, greets students as their headmistress at The Castle during their magical studies classes Saturday. The museum hosted a Harry Potter style class that combines local lore and fantastical elements. (Photo by Kristen Hainkel)