Latest Harry Potter Film Brings Magic to Syosset Library

Harry Potter has cast a spell on the , bringing excitement to the children’s department.

In celebration of the release of the last Potter film, the library hosted its own last Friday. The program, designed to be a fun-filled afternoon for children and teenage volunteers of the community, was organized primarily by Ms. Sharon Long, who has been the head of the library’s teen center for the past three years.

“I’m a fan of the books and the movies,” Long said. “We’ve had a lot of requests for teen volunteers and I tried to think outside the box about a program that would be fun for both kids and teens.”

Approximately 30 children from kindergarten to fifth grade were involved in the two-hour program, with about the same number of teenage volunteers.

Upon arriving at the library, the children watched a clip from the original Harry Potter movie. A hand-crafted “sorting hat” then assigned each child to their “house” at Hogwarts. The kids got a kick out of wearing the hat and receiving their own house badges. Everyone received their own “magic pass,” a bookmark that allowed them to participate in and keep track of activities.

Long and her colleagues were dressed in full Hogwarts-attire and had established various stations of fun-filled Harry Potter activities for the children to participate in. Volunteers served “butterbeer” while the kids decorated their own pretzel stick wands and chocolate witch hats.

There were plenty of arts and crafts to create, including Harry Potter glasses made out of pipe cleaners and miniature brooms. The fun continued with raffle prizes that included Harry Potter Lego's, key chains, and bookmarks. At the end of the event, the kids each brought home a package of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans.

The little wizards and the volunteers all left with smiles on their faces, as it was a magical day for everyone involved!