Want to gain an edge in college-level critical discussion? Having the urge to re-read the Harry Potter™ books? Put your vacation reading toward an experience that will prepare you for the college classroom with the Summer Scholars Harry Potter™ Seminar, a course that makes summer vacation academically engaging – and just a little bit magical. Aimed at giving students real experience with the kind of writing, analysis, and discussion that’s crucial to succeeding in college, this Summer Scholars course provides a concrete look at literary and film analysis as well as academic discourse as it’s practiced in university courses. We’ll approach those skills through writing analytically, conversing critically, and integrating various learning styles as we discover the multiple ways to interrogate a text. Through exploring the wizarding world, students in every planned course of study get a jump on preparing for breadth classes in the humanities through close analysis and critical thinking. For English and Education majors, the course builds skills that are vital to in-major coursework, like understanding literary theory and educational practices. After experiencing literary criticism with a popular text in this course, students will have the background to generate stronger essay topics and more tenable thesis statements, improving their abilities in college writing and critical thinking. They’ll also more confidently navigate the atmosphere of discussion-based classrooms. Since many classes assign points to class participation, this can be one of the most crucial skills a student can develop before college – no matter what major the student wants to pursue. We’ll address questions like: -When we fall in love with a book – or a franchise – how does that shape a culture? - Why was Harry Potter™ such a literary phenomenon? -What happens to a book’s meaning when it is adapted to film? -How do J.K. Rowling’s authorial choices show up in her characters or plots? -As readers, what assumptions do we make about how magic works, and what do those assumptions show us about ourselves?