Teacher's wizarding Hogwarts classroom is pure magic for students
For one third grade teacher, the creation of an incredible Harry Potter-themed classroom didn't come to life through magic, but through countless hours of hard work.
Tressa Bargella, a teacher at the intermediate school in Pennsylvania's Valley View District, told "Good Morning America," "He [Harry Potter] is so relatable. He struggles with many of the same issues they do. A difficult home life, bullying issues, forming real and lasting friendships, and embracing their own identities."
Bargella went so far as to mail each student a personalized "Hogwarts acceptance letter" on parchment paper with a Hogwarts wax seal prior to the start of school. In the "acceptance letter" each student was also sent a train ticket to "board" the train to Bargella's 3rd grade classroom.
"They came in with their eyes as wide as saucers and their mouths open, " Bargella said of the day prior to school starting that parents and kids were invited to visit the classrooms at the school.
Bargella first became a fan of Harry Potter through her oldest daughter. She said it's a great theme for this age group -- 8 and 9 year olds -- because while they are peripherally familiar with the character, few have yet read the books.
"Just from a literary standpoint, it's great. We've already started the first book and hope to do two or three this year. After that they get a little dark," she said.
But there's nothing dark about Bargella's reading. She puts on what she calls her "big British glasses" and reads in her best British accent for about 15 minutes each day while the kids follow along in a PDF version of the book. "Some are beginning to feel comfortable reading aloud," she said. No small feat considering the high frequency of unusual words in the books. "it makes it all worthwhile," she said.
Bargella told "GMA" the kids are "under a lot of pressure. Some kids have anxiety and anything I can do to make it exciting to come makes the learning experience so much better." She added the behavior problems have been almost non-existent.
"They come in environment with so much going on, they're comfortable. It's like a home away from home," she said. "There's so much neat stuff relating something in the room back to their lives whether it's academic or personal growth. I can tie Harry Potter in to almost anything we are doing. They're learning and they don't even realize it."
