It’s never too late! I have a friend who only read them for the first time last year, and she’s an adult in her mid-30s.

Girl, I’mma have to bring you a book.

I will say that Harry grows up with the series, much as the kids do in the movies. So things get more complex and darker as the series moves on, and the first book is really laying groundwork for the amazingness that follows. I read the first book at 13, so I related to 11-year old Harry in a different way than I think adult readers would. That said, I have plenty of adult friends who liked book one as adults, for what it’s worth. But most of them agree it gets way better as it moves on. Personally, I think book 6 is her best work, but book 3 is where the series really takes off (in my view). I don’t want to spoil anything. Just take that journey with Harry. It’s so worth it.

In the end, what I can tell you is that when the going gets tough, the tough re-read Harry Potter.

: )

Thanks for your response, Iris. I really liked this part in particular: “Miss Estella made late-blooming students like Longbuttom feel just as important while sieving out the Harry Porters for specific roles from the moment she laid eyes on them.”

I think it’s great when teachers realize that in order to connect with all students, they may have to make adjustments for specific individuals since we all learn differently.

And I too love Dumbledore, but I decided not to use him since he never taught any of Harry’s classes. That said, I could easily write a whole post on how he’s a mentor!

Thanks for your response! In particular, I really liked this part of your comment: “Of course, nobody was actually there because they liked math, so I had to do what I could to make it entertaining! I loved teaching math, showed that enthusiasm every class, and seeing light bulbs go off above students’ heads (however rare that may have been) was super rewarding.”

I think with this perspective as a teacher, you probably lit up more light bulbs than you realized. I really believe students appreciate and notice when a teacher tries to take dry (AKA “boring”) material and make it interesting and relevant to their lives.

You’re the only one who shared your Hogwarts house! I’m a little surprised, to be honest. That said, you seem like a Ravenclaw!

Like you, I see bits of myself as a teacher in several Hogwarts teachers. It’s interesting how much we can identify with fictional teachers when thinking about our own professional development.

And also, that’s a great Hagrid quote. Like you (and Hagrid), I try to really be myself as much as possible in class. Nerds for the win!

Your comment really got me thinking about teachers and teaching styles and how much further I could have taken this example. Like you, I see a lot of Lupin in myself, but since he only taught at Hogwarts the one year, I honestly didn’t think about using him as an example when I wrote this post. That seems kind of ironic now, given that his style is a lot more like mine. (McGonagall is great, but I’m not that kind of authority figure, you know?)

I think you nailed it with this observation: “Lupin is patient, he explains the point of his exercises, and he takes a genuine interest in his students.”

I think those three things are some of the most important parts of teaching when it comes to really connecting with students.

Thanks for responding and giving me more to think about!

Thanks for your response! I’m so glad to learn there are so many HP fans in our class.

Thanks! That’s so nice to hear given how long I spent working on it!

Yes, yes, and yes: “It’s amazing how interactions with people who have such different life experiences can be so eye opening for ourselves.”

It’s also amazing which interactions end up having the most significant impacts on us.

So in short, I agree completely with your response, and you’re right that I do try to keep these sorts of experiences in mind with regard to teaching instruction.

Oh wow! I didn’t even think about experiencing this issue from the angle you’ve described, but now that you’ve brought it up I can say I also relate to that.

Thanks for giving me a new perspective on that part; maybe it will help me do better with eye contact in the future.

As for the hand shakes, I KNOW! What’s worse than them skipping you is when they give you a wimpy one because you’re a girl. Alas.

Thanks! You’re totally right that eye contact is different across cultures, which only makes all this more complicated.

*Makes eye contact & looks wistfully into the distance*