Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
discussion
At what age do you think it is appropriate for kids to start reading Harry Potter?
I suspect most kids will probably be ready to handle the darker parts of the material by the time they have the patience to read the longer books solo. If they're expressing interest, I'd say give them the first book and see how it goes.
I began reading the series at the age of seven and I feel it is appropriate for that age. I believe that it is still quite a hard read for that age group because as much as I loved it then I loved it more growing up because I could comprehend more.
I started in 4th grade. I think that around 3rd 4th and 5th grade depending on what kind of books you like to read is when you should start, but thats just my opinion:)
I read them when I was about 8-9, maybe I was 7. My nan's an English teacher so I literally got given them as soon as they were out. I don't regret it one bit, I think it's sad when parents deny their children reading books. Oh well.
I meant by that the age range. Obviously you wouldn't give your child Sookie Stackhouse or anything like that, but Harry Potter is classed under children's.
I've never heard of Sookie Stackhouse...
I think about 7 is a good age, but i'd only let them read to about 3 because 4 is when it starts to get disturbing (voldemort being reborn and stuff)
I started as soon as I could read and then my dad and I read them together. Memories. :)
The first few books (One, two, and three) I think are fine for kids at least 7 or 8, but after that maybe 10 or 11?
I started reading them when I was 9. I think any age is fine for them to start, though I don't know about the fourth-seventh books.
It depends on whether you would cut them off or not, and it's more for their mental maturity than actual age. If you want them to read the whole series at once, I would say 11/12, 10 at the youngest. I think a 6/7 year old would be fine reading the first three but you would need to wait until they're older to read the rest because four is when death is more involved and it isn't appropriate for that age group anymore.
It was easier when they first came out because you could grow up as the books were released. For example, I gave my nephew the first two books after COS was released when he was ten as I felt that the themes and situations were suitable for his level of maturity. However, I wouldn't want him reading any of the books from GOF onwards until he was into his teens so if the situation was the same today I might have waited a little longer.
I started reading Harry Potter when I was 10. I think the first couple of books are ok for 10 year olds but as soon as you get up into Goblet of Fire it's probably best for a little older age.
Latonya wrote: "I just wanted to ask this to see what you guys generally thought. I would like my kids to read them but not sure when to introduce them. What age did you let your child read Harry?"I began reading them after Prisoner of Azkaban came out. I must have been in, oh, fourth grade. Waiting for the next book was painstaking. I don't think they would necessarily need to wait before reading the later books. As long as they ask about words they're unfamiliar with (due to some of the English dialect), I think once they hit the reading level it's fine. I would strongly urge them to reread the books as they get older, though. It's fun to see what you missed the first time.
I'd say about 10, it might a little too full on for anyone younger than that... I dunno, it kind of depends on the child :) SOme may b ready while some may not :)
As soon as a person can read!!!!!
I became interested in them around age 9 when my teacher read bits of it in class and after I saw the first movie. I would think they'd be more appealing to children and young adults. I would say late primary school would be a good time.
Michael wrote: "I started reading them when I was 11 and each year when a new book came out I was the same age as Harry :P"I wish timing worked like that for me... It didn't.
I would say it depends on the kid and their maturity level. If my child is showing the ability to handle the books at age 7, then I will let them. What I plan on doing with my kids, is any book they are reading I will read with them so we can discuss it and I can help them understand or work through something aren't comprehending. My parents did this with me and if a book was too much for me I knew to put it down or talk about what I had just read. It was honestly a great way for us to bond. :)
Celticgirl wrote: "Michael wrote: "I started reading them when I was 11 and each year when a new book came out I was the same age as Harry :P"I wish timing worked like that for me... It didn't."
except...that they didn't come out every year....Especially towards the end when the books were released 2 to 3 years apart....so....
Latonya wrote: "I just wanted to ask this to see what you guys generally thought. I would like my kids to read them but not sure when to introduce them. What age did you let your child read Harry?"I started them when I was 5, my parents read them to me shortly thereafter. Except for the last two, 6 or 7 is probably fine.
I plan on reading the HP series to my unborn child while they are in the womb....
My dad started reading them to me when I was 4. (my ears perked up when I heard the word 'cat' in the first chapter, and I was hooked ever since)Harry Potter soon became the nightly routine. It came to the point where 'bedtime' came whenever Dad finished reading a chapter. There's no way my parents could have asked me to wait a few years before continuing on to the fourth book, because I would have thrown the biggest fit ever witnessed by man.
My parents had no issues with me reading the fourth book when I was six years old because they thought I was mature enough to deal with the themes. The only problem my mom had with it was me watching the movies because she thought that for me (6 at the time) to see real people getting killed and tortured might mentally scar me or something.
She wasn't expecting me to be so obsessed with the series, and she found that as long as I read the book first and was mentally prepared to witness this stuff, I was fine.
I think it depends on the maturity of the child rather than the age.
Callie wrote: "Celticgirl wrote: "Michael wrote: "I started reading them when I was 11 and each year when a new book came out I was the same age as Harry :P"I wish timing worked like that for me... It didn't."
..."
Oops... I never really paid attention to the release dates of Harry Potter books, my mom was the only one who read them at the time.
My parents read the first two for me when I was 5-6 years old. I learned how to read 5 years old but that was too heavy reading for me. I reread them when I was 7-8 and I remember when I read the Prisoner of Azkaban that Hermione's time turner was the biggest 'plot twist' I had ever read at the time. So it was great for me to read the first books so young. Of course when I read the last book I was 15 but it might not be the best book for younger kids. But my cousin is 10 and she is reading them now. I remember when I was 12 I read books like The Lovely Bones and Thousand Splendid Suns and the Kite Runner which aren't really appropriate for children that age but I loved them. So maybe 10-13 would be the perfect age.
First two books can be read at any age. For the rest of the books, some people would say they aren't appropriate for under 12, but it depends on the maturity level of a child. If they understand it's just a book and read it for fun, you needn't worry.
Nitin wrote: "First two books can be read at any age. For the rest of the books, some people would say they aren't appropriate for under 12, but it depends on the maturity level of a child. If they understand it..."Yeah, that sounds about right. I actually don't remember when I started reading Harry Potter...
In Denmark, there's a rule of thumb, that says, the kid has to be about the same age as the leading persona of the book...
Let them read if they are interested. They may not understand all of the topics or the motives based upon their age and maturity, so if they want to talk to you, allow them to explore and get clarification. Everything from why Voldemort is evil (he is secretly motivated by fear and insecurity), why bad things happen to good people (Fortunae rota), why boys chase girls (it'll make sense in a few years), all the way to why Severus Snape is the amazingly complicated character he truly proves to be and the dazzling sacrifices he made for his love.As for how dark the content runs, I was reading the likes of Steinbeck and Hemingway (and many others) when I was 6. Rowling, at her darkest and grittiest, pales in comparison to Of Mice and Men, The Sun Also Rises or For Whom the Bell Tolls.
I started reading 'Sorcerer's Stone' to my six year old daughter this winter. We are now about a quarter of the way through 'Chamber of Secrets'. I guess we will just continue on at our slow pace, about 5 pages per night, and as long as she seems to be able to handle the intense moments as they come along we will read them all. This has given her confidence as a reader, sometimes she follows along as I read. Prior to this, the only chapter book we finished was '101 Dalmations'. We tried some others, 'Wizard of Oz', 'Harriet the Spy' and she wasn't motivated to continue to the end.
The Harry Potter series has really captivated her and she is very engaged in the story, to the point of acting out 'Hogwarts' scenarios while she plays. She has now started reading shorter, more age appropriate chapter books on her own. Harry Potter books motivate her, so I can only see them as a good thing.
I recently asked my 18 year old how much he understood back when I read it with all my boys at the ages of 9-5 he being the 5 yr old. He said he got the basic story but didn't understand all of it. What he did get though was being with us all curled together at night before bed having the experience of reading together and that has taken him back to reading them again and again..as well as other great books.
I didn't read them till sixth, wish I had read them sooner. As soon as the can read chapter books they should read it.
Line wrote: "In Denmark, there's a rule of thumb, that says, the kid has to be about the same age as the leading persona of the book..."That rule is applied sporadically in the US, too, although around here, you get a lot of ten-year-olds reading stuff that's geared to older kids. My personal's daughter, for instance, read the fourth Harry Potter book when she was 11. I mentioned off-hand to my personal trainer that it might be a bit old for her daughter, because there's death and other things that would probably be better suited to someone a little older. Personally, I'd be worried about my ten- or eleven-year-old being traumatized by certain stuff in the later books, like Voldemort's rebirth and Cedric Diggory's death in the fourth book, and the way Umbridge treats Harry in The Phoenix of the Order.
I also think it depends on the kid...My 11 year old niece have read the first 2 books, but her sister wouldn't be able to read them at that age...
Does that make sense?
Yeah, it does make sense, Line. Some kids are ready for the books at 11, some aren't.
I'd say they should start at 8. It depends on the kid though. I know some who've read it at 5 but I think to truly appreciate the intricacy and themes, it should be 8 or above.
I read them all when I was 14 so really there's no start or end on the age range on harry potter. I watched the 3rd film when I was 7 though and was fine with it but I do remember it being a little scary so maybe the book would be too...? I also thought when I was about 9 that the 5th one looked scary though...although when I watched it years later, I was fine :)
i think when they are ready.. i would think it depends on the kid and his interest..
I think a great age to start reading Harry Potter is either 11 or 12. That way, as the kids read the books, they kind of grow along with Harry. Also, I don't think all kids have the attention span for say, The Order of the Phoenix, when they are younger than 10. My sister who is 11 loves the books, but sometimes gets bored with all the Ministry of Magic details.
I read them when I was eight or nine, but I skipped a grade so it was like a mature nine or ten year old reading them.
i think that the appropriate age for a person to start the harry potter series is any age as long as they could read it. i think that the series can relate to any age as long as its interesting to them. for example, i started the sires when i was in fourth grade and i loved it because it related to me. some say that it is an adult book because it has violence. i think this series is food for anyone.
I started reading them when I was 9 or 10, my parents had asked me to read them about a year before that. Personally, if your kids are mature enough, I think you should let them at it! It's your decision, though.
I think that you should start reading harry potter at 13 years or older. The book is based on a teenager and I think that when you should read it. The book also has some advanced vocab but you should be able to understand most of the story
Any age as long as you enjoy it!
My mother never censored what I read and I didn't do that to my children, either. They read what they liked. So if they haven't found Harry Potter by about age 10, you could suggest the series to them and let them take it up – or not. Books are like food, I think. Each to his own taste. Provide the smorgasbord offered by a library card and let them sample a wide variety of treats.
I read them in 3rd grade and again in fifth.
My mom read the first four books to me and my older siblings starting when i was four and i can safely say that you should not do that ever because it ruined my appreciation of the books since i decided to read the fifth on my own as the first book i read for myself. I think it depends on your kids maturity level but if you decide to read it to them which is a really good idea, don't start when they are four (though my brother was okay with it and he was 6) and don't change anything to make it less scary because it messes up the fourth book if you think Wormtail cuts his hair!!
I think all kids should have read to them Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, all the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Gallaxy, and The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings trilogy. By the time you finish all that they should be ready to read Harry on their own. So 9 or 10, that way they can hope for an owl on their 11th birthday.
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Even the last one was fine for me aged 9 but maybe it wouldn't be for everyone but I think you should let your child read them anytime in primary school because it really feels like magic then. Also they are still young enough to dress up and (if they're really obsessed like I was) write esays on gilliweed and dementors and get really exited incase they get a hogwarts letter when they're 11. Plus, they might get embarrased about reading Harry Potter when they start high school(Or middle school in the US I think it's called)