What I see often that happens when elementary school readers are given Harry Potter is that they start the book, perhaps even making it through the second in the series and stop, deciding that they don't like Harry Potter and generally don't pick the series up again. Their parents are confounded because every child likes Harry Potter and it is the ultimate chapter book so why not their child?
Harry Potter is HARD, much harder than most childrens and young adult (and adult) books. Not only are they very difficult to read but the books are very long and there are seven of them which is a lot for a young reader.
Additionally, Harry Grows up throughout the series and while he is fairly young when his adventures begins, he is an adult when the series ends, dealing with issues that to older readers can relate to more than younger readers. The series is also very dark, the later books so much so that many adults find them scary. Because of their length and reading levels I classify these books as Young Adult which are also appropriate for very advanced younger readers who are interested and motivated to read the series.
Here are the lexile rating and page length for all the books in the series.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone: Lexile: 880 Length: 320
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Book 2): Lexile 940 Length: 352
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Book 3)
: Lexile 880 Length: 448Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book 4): Lexile 880 Length: 752
Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix
: Lexile 950 Length: 870Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Book 6)
: Lexile 1030 Length: 672Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Book 7)
: Lexile 980 Length: 784That places the books from a sixth grade reading level to an eighth grade reading level (book number six). Which means that elementary school age kids who are reading on grade level are going to find these book far more difficult than almost anything they have read, even at school.
My Fourth or Fifth Grader Loved Harry Potter and sped through all of the books!
You should be proud of your child and yourself. You have a very good reader on your hands. You should also encourage your child to reread these books again when they are in middle school so they can pick up what they probably missed the first time. Part of the reason that these books are loved so much by librarians and teachers is because they are so difficult and many readers push themselves (YAY) because they are so enthralled in the story..
My seven year old has read books at a higher reading level than that so they're ready right?
Don't do it!! The sheer length of these books is too much for kids that young. If they're asking then get them the audio books. Keep their reading to books that are shorter and wait till they are in third or fourth grade. If they're audio book fans, that is always an option.
My child really wants to read the books but I'm afraid they're going to be discouraged as I know they are not super strong readers:
Try the audio books, they can listen to the books in the car or before bed (you could read them aloud but that will take months) . Your child will develop literacy skills and enjoy the stories without being bogged down while trying to get through the text or struggle with the length. They can either read along with the audio books (my daughter loves to do this) or listen to the books without the text. You can find the audio books in your public library.
When is the right age to encourage my child to read Harry Potter?
These are young adult books that are perfect for a middle school aged child and are perfect for summer reading. They are also generally on middle school recommended reading lists for schools that allow kids to pick their own books to read during silent reading periods at school. The series is great for fourth or fifth graders who are advanced readers to start.
There are a few series, such as Percy Jackson, or The Underland Chronicles
that are similar but not as quite as difficult or lengthy that are good predictors as to their readiness to read Harry Potter. If your child has gotten through one of these series without difficulty then they should be able to handle Harry Potter. The Harry Potter series is fantastic and one that I highly recommend. However, parents need to be educated on the difficulty of the series, understanding that they are not the only books written for children and that your kids will be more likely to enjoy the series if they read it later rather than earlier.
There are so many wonderful children's books out there for kids to read. Including ones that are filled with action and magic. When you child first starts to enjoy reading for pleasure search for books that include topics they will enjoy and are written at a reading level that will not frustrate them. Leave the 600 page difficult books till they are old enough to enjoy them without working too hard.
