‘Harry Potter’ comes to life in Wantagh

Quidditch may have started out as a fictional sport, but in Wantagh it’s just as real as baseball, basketball or football.

Students at Wantagh Elementary School, under the direction of phys. ed. teacher Christine Moran, are playing the sport which originated in the “Harry Potter” books and movies. The unit began in March and runs for five weeks, which each class playing eight times.

“It’s a big deal,” Moran said. “It’s different. It brings the whole school together.”

The students are divided into four teams — Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. Moran said it creates bonding within the school as a kindergartner and fifth-grader could be earning points for the same team. It also creates fun rivalries as sometimes siblings end up on different teams. The positions in Quidditch are chasers, beaters, keepers and seekers. The balls used are called quaffles, and the chasers can score points by getting its through an opponent’s rings — or a hula hoop hanging from a basketball hoop.

Moran brought the “Harry Potter” theme to the gym with pictures, posters, wizard hats and broomsticks. A sign above the door reads “Hogwarts Express,” for the school Harry Potter attended. She also plays music from the movie as the children play.

“I don’t know how many Long Island schools do it,” Moran said, noting that Quidditch has been a phys. ed. unit in Wantagh since 2003. “I’m sure a few. We just take it up a notch.”

Moran said the students get good exercise because during each round of competition, they don’t stop moving. It also lets them exercise their imaginations, she explained.

Second-grader Jack Nicoletti is a big “Harry Potter” fan, having seen all the movies and read some of the books, so playing Quidditch in school is a treat. “It’s similar to the game they play in the movie,” he said. “It’s the same exact teams.”

Emma Murphy doesn’t know as much about “Harry Potter,” but said she still enjoys the game and earning points for her team.

There are many ways to earn points beside the matches in phys. ed. Moran questioned the older students on their knowledge of the books, and over spring break children were encouraged to design posters.

During the matches, the seekers have to find the golden snitch, hidden somewhere in the gymnasium. Once they find it, they have to use words to describe where it is, which also earns points.

When the competition wraps up, the team with the most points wins the House Cup.