Oh, so you think I made a typo do you?! Well sorry, no, that is definitely not a typo. I very consciously typed Hairy, instead of Harry and for a very good reason. In this post, find out what hair (or lack thereof) has to do with my healthy (or not-so-healthy) interest in Harry Potter and find out my favourite free resource maker websites which can be used to add some magic into your classroom, with a simple flick of a wand.
I have been slightly obsessed with Harry Potter for a little over 17 years now. I grew up with this fantastic series of books, and movies, and some of my fondest childhood memories were centred around Harry Potter. I can recall lining up at many a bookshop to get my hands on the latest release book, and then having to wait for my brother to read it first, before I could enjoy the magic. Apparently, that was a privilege that he earnt by being born prior to me. The order of birth logic however, I did not understand, but I must say that it is thanks to my big brother and his hair that we both really did get into Harry Potter in the first place. So thank you bro, I guess, for being born with a nice head of hair.
I’ve always wondered if my life would be just that little bit less magical if my brother didn’t have a home hair-cut at the exact moment that he did, back in 2001. I wondered just this week actually, if I would have had such an awesome Harry Potter themed lesson with my class on Wednesday, if the events that unfolded on that fateful day in April, 2001 had been any different.
Let me tell you a little story, so that you have an understanding of the bizarre way that my interest (obsession!) with Harry Potter came about. Just as a side note, I am writing this with my Harry Potter pencil which I took out of my Harry Potter (Platform 9 3/4) pencil case, in my Harry Potter notebook while Harry Potter is on in the background on Netflix…..
Exhibit A: Just some of my HP school stuff! :-)
So here we go. The year was 2001. I was in Year 6. My brother was in his first year of high school. He was getting ready for his first high school ANZAC Day March. My beautiful late mother, used to cut my brother and father’s hair. Pretty easy because they used to have it quite short – a number 3 I believe. I can still picture this moment, like it was only yesterday. She had my brother on the seat in the laundry, and off she went, giving my brother fresh hair and turning him into a handsome young man who is “growing up too fast”! Approximately 2-3 minutes into this particular haircut, we hear this “Ummm, so you’ll have to wear a hat for a few days”. I was intrigued, to say the least. I couldn’t see any blood – she didn’t cut him. He wasn't screaming. So what was the issue?! It turns out that our dear mother forgot to put the comb on, so she shaved a bald strip right up the back of my brother’s head. I was 11 and I secretly found my brothers' misfortune HILARIOUS. Anyway, just like she always was, our mother was right. My brother’s hair did grow back….not a big deal. So, what does this story have to do with Harry Potter?! Nothing yet, you’re absolutely right…..please continue…..
My mum had a HUGE HEART and she felt bad for turning her handsome boy, into a not-so-handsome boy…..so she came home one day with a gift for my brother, to say “so sorry for shaving a bald strip into your head, please forgive me”. She bought him the first three HARRY POTTER BOOKS! At that very moment, when my mother handed her little gift to my brother in the kitchen of our childhood home, I had no idea that 17 years later, I would still LOVE Harry Potter, and that simple giving of literary gifts would change my life forever.
Why did I tell you this? What does it have to do with teaching? Well even though I’ve loved everything Harry Potter for almost two decades, it has only been recently that I have acquired so many VISIBLE items that show my keen interest in Harry Potter. These visible items include, but are not strictly limited to: my pencil case, my pens, my pencils, my desktop background, my Youtube search history and all of my school books. So understandably, there have been a lot of Harry Potter questions this term from my students. “OMG do you like Harry Potter?”, “OMG, is that a Harry Potter pen?”, “What house are you in?”, “What is your favourite book?”, “What is your favourite movie?”, to the deeper type questions such as “Which character do you relate the most to in Harry Potter Miss, and why?”, “Do you ever close you eyes for a moment and wish you could transport yourself to Hogwarts. If so, which class would you find yourself in and why?”. I am in my element. I want to answer alllll the Harry Potter questions.
The students LOVE that I LOVE Harry Potter. For my fellow fanatics, we all know that the magical school of Hogwarts is broken up into four houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has certain personality traits associated with it, and I feel like I have the power to know which house every person I talk to is in (adults and children alike). For people who are “into” Harry Potter, the first question asked is “What house are you in?”. You can learn SO MUCH about someone by their answer. Most students have already done the quiz, that sorts them into their houses. If they haven’t done it, I make sure they do it because I need to….I repeat, I NEED TO KNOW this vital piece of information. It’s so important it almost needs to go in their student file. Just saying! Critical to getting to know my learners. If you want to see what house you are in, sign up to Pottermore and take the House Sorting Quiz (and please let me know what house you are in.....although I probably already know!!!).
I still feel like you are thinking “Why are you telling us this, on your teaching blog?!”. I’m getting to my point. Slowly. But what this shows so far is that teachers really need to take an interest in their student’s interests. I try and do this all the time, and it’s so interesting because my students like such a vast array of things from playing video games, to karate, to motocross, to anime. I want to learn more about what they like, I find it interesting! But what is even more beautiful in a classroom is finding COMMON INTERESTS. Sure, other than Harry Potter I love cycling, hiking, reading, coffee and nature, to name a few……and a handful of students also enjoy those things. But I have found that SO MANY STUDENTS also love Harry Potter, and it’s so great to have this common interest as a discussion point and a way to get to know each other. Lately I have gone one better than this and used Harry Potter as a way to get ALL OF THE STUDENTS engaged in their learning. Using Harry Potter in my lessons has had a phenomenal response from my classes.
Here is a little example. In my Italian class, the students are learning the imperfect verb tense. Even just making the sentences they have to translate based around Harry Potter, got them all so excited and engaged. I taught them the names of the houses in Italian, and students were sorted into their houses and just because kids love free stuff, I gave them a house pencil and anyone would have thought it was Christmas! We’ve now had Harry Potter as our lesson theme for a week and I don’t think it’s ever going to get old (for the teacher and the students!). I found an e-book of the Italian version of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and an Italian audiobook on Youtube, and for homework the students have to listen to a chapter in the audiobook and follow along with the text. One of them came back the very next day and said “I hope it’s okay, i’m up to Chapter 14”. Of course that is okay, in fact, it’s more than okay!
The pencils I gave my students, and the lovely Hogwarts projection on the board!
The sentences to translate using the imperfect.
I could write about Harry Potter until the cows come home (I also LOVE cows, but that’s a topic for another post), but I am aware that that is probably enough. As promised, below are my top 7 go-to websites which make awesome worksheets with the flick of a wand (or a few touches of a button!), and can basically be used in any classroom. That’s one awesome website for each awesome Harry Potter book. Also, I’ve done up a little example based around the fabulous theme of Harry Potter…..for my own personal enjoyment. (Be right back, going to go and print myself off this little HP workbook!).
1. BINGO maker. https://myfreebingocards.com/bingo-card-generator
2. WORDSEARCH maker.
3. CROSSWORD maker.
or
4. MAZE maker.
and
5. FLASHCARD maker.
6. DICE maker
7. VOCBULARY/DEFINITION match up maker.
So hopefully from this you have learnt the following:
1. If you don't put the comb on the hair cutter device, all of the hair comes off.
2. Books are a life changing present.
3. Harry Potter is fabulous.
4. Finding common interests with your students is so important in building relationships and enhancing student engagement.
5. It is fun to have Harry Potter themed lessons.
6. If you have never tried to enjoy Harry Potter, it's not too late!
7. There are so many amazing online teacher tools that save you time and that your students will love.
8. Kids like free stuff, especially when it is something to do with Harry Potter!
If you've stuck with this post until now, thank you. If you want to know what Harry Potter House I'm in - it's Slytherin. How about you? Let me know! Also I just want to publicly and sincerely thank J.K. Rowling, because without her this blog post, and the extra magic that has been a part of my life for the past 17 years wouldn't be. Thank you Joanne, from the bottom of my heart.
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