Harry Potter fans tell you what spells they want to learn

A chill wind from Hogwarts blew into our offices last month, carrying with it hundreds of entries to our Harry Potter Contest. We asked young Times readers (ages 8-14), all eagerly anticipating the movie "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," to describe for us the spell they would most like to learn as members of Dumbledore's Army. The six winning entries appear below; read and enjoy, as we wait for the movie's arrival at midnight on July 10.

Ankur Mukherjee / Expelliarmus

Upon joining Dumbledore's Army, the first Defence Against the Dark Arts spell to learn should be Expelliarmus.

Expelliarmus can be used to push offensive things, people or enemies back with really great force. Now this is something I could really use in school. Picture a bully chasing one down the street — I could turn around and use Expelliarmus on him and he would fly 20 feet in the air and land on his face. Wouldn't that be something?

I could also use the spell in the cafeteria if they were serving the gross type of turkey and gravy. I could use Expelliarmus on it and make it fly out the cafeteria window, and instead have the pizza that the teachers were going to have.

I could also use Expelliarmus on the baseball field when I am batting. All I have to do is use it to hit the ball straight out of the park.

This is THE spell to learn — first repel your enemies to give you time to learn other spells.

Ankur Mukherjee, 11, owns all the "Harry Potter" movies that have been released on DVD to date. "I watched the fourth one three times," he says. "I like at the end when Harry and Voldemort fight in the graveyard." Ankur just finished fifth grade at Juanita Elementary. Apart from reading "lots of books," he likes to make comics, play computer games, and spend time with his Labrador, whose name is Loon.

Gus O'Leary / Vienteum

If I joined Dumbledore's Army, the spell I would want to learn would be Vienteum (vee-ent-ee-um) which sends a big forceful gust of wind at someone to knock them down. (Viento is Spanish for wind.)

I would learn this because after knocking them down, I could affect them with a more effective spell. It's even better in a crowded space, because it'll knock down several people at once instead of just one person.

I could also use it to blow something at someone or something away from me. It's very useful for moving something heavy because it's so strong that artifacts can be blown around.

Finally, you can use it in a combo with Expelliarmus, because after knocking their wand out of their hand, you can blow their wand away!

Nine-year-old Gus O'Leary has just completed third grade at Lowell Elementary. He loves to read, particularly the Harry Potter, Warriors and Lemony Snicket series. His hobbies include baseball and guitar, which he just started this past winter, and his favorite movie is "Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith." He consulted a Spanish dictionary to help him name his spell.

Cassidy C. Chang / Accio

If I were in the D.A., and we desperately needed a spell to learn, I think I would choose "Accio [fill in the blank]." I would choose that spell because if nobody did any Stopping spell, then I could make anything I wanted (or fill in the blank) come to ME! For example, if I were going to my best friend's birthday party, and I wanted to make the best card and wrap it in the best wrapping paper, then I could just say, "Accio, scissors!" And I wouldn't have to even move my legs! (Also, scissors in our house are always hard to find!)

Cassidy C. Chang is a 9-year-old who lives in Seattle and just finished third grade at Salmon Bay School. In her spare time, she enjoys soccer, playing the piano and going to movies (recently, "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End"). With her mother, Cassidy has read all of the Harry Potter books and especially enjoyed the third one, "because it's fun how they go back in time."

Lauren Michael / Bat-Bogey Hex

I hate Professor Umbridge so intensely, there are times when (especially after she requests us to read another pointless chapter of Defensive Magical Theory) I just want to leap out of my chair and hex her. A particular hex I have in mind is the infamous BatBogey Hex. Though this spell is not your average Defense Against the Dark Arts material, it could be very handy if that toadlike "professor" catches Dumbledore's Army in action. The hex is perfect for a quick escape, as the flying boogers tend to obscure the recipient's eyes. Also, if I performed this spell in front of my peers I would gain instant popularity. Who knows? "Study groups" like the D.A. might become cool in the eyes of students at Hogwarts. We as a group do not know what Umbridge may have in store for us should she find out what we are doing, so the entire lot of Dumbeldore's Army should learn this beyond awesome BatBogey Hex — it may very well save our lives.

Lauren Michael, 14, says "I'm kind of a nerd and I like being a nerd." One of her nerdy interests: Politics. "I like to keep up with what's going on," she notes. Another: Geography. In seventh grade (she's now completed eighth at Skyview Junior High in Bothell), she competed in the National Geographic Bee and placed in the top 70 in the state. Lauren says she appreciates the Harry Potter series because "the books are getting older as they go along," adding, "I like Harry's girl problems."

Dalton Scott / Reductor Curse

If I were in Dumbledore's Army, the first spell I would like to learn would be the Reductor Curse. Why I would choose this spell is because it is easy to learn. In three meetings' time, Lavender Brown blasted a table to smithereens! Plus it can destroy things easily, and that may come in handy some time. Lastly, a weaker spell of this type could make a handhold in a rockwall. So, after all I've told you, you should also think learning "Reducto" would be a blast — literally!

Ten-year-old Dalton Scott already knows he'd like to be an author when he grows up. He writes "fiction things about boys who find out they're wizards, like Harry Potter," and he has shared his work for the past three years at Skagit Valley College's annual Young Authors Conference. Like all writers, he loves to read. Favorite book this year: "Gregor the Overlander," part of the Underland Chronicles series by Suzanne Collins. Dalton recently finished fifth grade at Highland Elementary in Lake Stevens; in addition to reading and writing, he likes math, riding his bike and playing card games.

Michelle Fredrickson / Cheering Charm

If I could choose one spell against Voldemort, I would pick the Cheering Charm! You see, I would act under the impression that Voldemort is only killing because of a deeply rooted anger, depression and feeling of abandonment that he has had ever since he was orphaned. The Cheering Charm leaves one happy, excited, and a generally happy and peaceful person. As the Death Eaters do whatever Voldemort wants, they would back down if Voldemort, now a happy man due to Cheering Charms, ordered it. With a single charm, Voldemort could see just how wrong murder is! Perhaps these new morals would stick with him forever! However, while Voldemort was cheerful, I would destroy his horcruxes, just to be safe.

Michelle Fredrickson, now 13, has been reading "Harry Potter" since the first grade — over and over. "I've read the third book 27 times to date," says the Issaquah homeschooler. Not that she's a bookworm, exactly. Michelle is active in 4H as a breeder of guinea pigs. She currently has 38 of them, including Miss Snuggles, Ricky Ricardo and — no surprise — Draco ("because he's gray and he bites"). "We had a Hermione," she laments, "but she died in childbirth."