Wizarding primary schools again

[jennifer.k at lycos.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 16571

A question (which might be based on another Flint). I am totally not
> remembering where the whole "teddy turned into spider" scene is, at 
all,
> so I may have my facts off, but if Ron was three when Fred (or 
George,
> can't remember, apologies) turned his teddy into a spider, they were
> only four or five. So I'm inferring from this that wizarding 
children
> *do* dabble in magic, but they're not formally schooled until 
Hogwarts.
> 
> Any thoughts? Did I get ages wrong or anything? I can't believe I 
can't
> remember where that *is*....
> 
> --Amanda, losing brain cells by the day, seems like


Ohh how lovely! My field exactly - digging up the nitpicky stuff :) 
Its all in HP and the Chamber of Secrets, chapter 9 (the Writing on 
the Wall), page 117: "...when I was three, Fred turned my - my teddy 
bear into a dirty great spider beacuse I broke his broomstick."

Since the twins are two years older than Ron, that would make them 
five when all this took place. 

>>As to why they don't learn simple charms - one theory may be that
 Dumbledore wants to make sure that all children start their magical 
education on a similar footing.

I always thought about wizardingkids different chances of succeding 
in school as something similar to mugglekids chances of succeding 
there - different levels of consciousness and general knowledge 
depending wether they are from stimulating backrounds or not. Not 
that they overall knows that much more about actual spells and things 
like it, but being used to magic, being there to watch it at home, 
dealing with it from weak age, might increase their chances to 
succeed their magical education, no matters how Dumbledore tries to 
equalize it. I know Hagrids words: "Everyone starts from beginning at 
Hogwarts, but it don´t mean they end up with the same grades.

/Jennifer