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Information about the zookeepers at the Australian Zoo.

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To make a donation or to find out more information please call Australia Zoo. Read more here!

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Re-write the scene from Chapter Two: The Vanishing Glass from the point of view of one of the following characters: Piers Polkiss, the Snake, or the Keeper of the Reptile House. Use the resources attached to help you with details.

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read this excerpt from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

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The snake suddenly opened its beady eyes

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Piers Polkiss

Piers Polkiss was a Muggle and Dudley Dursley's best friend. Despite being scrawny with a face like a rat, he was a member of Dudley Dursley's gang and was usually the one who held people's arms behind their backs so Dudley could hit them. Piers did not like Harry Potter, because Dudley did not, and he always followed Dudley's lead. Piers would also join Dudley at Smeltings Academy.

On Dudley's eleventh birthday in 1991, Piers accompanied him, the Dursleys and Harry to the zoo. During the trip, Piers saw Harry talking to a snake in the reptile house. When Harry was pushed out of the way, and then unintentionally made the glass disappear, Piers fell into the enclosure with Dudley. When Piers told the Dursleys that Harry had been talking to the snake, they gave Harry his longest ever punishment.

During the summer of 1995, Piers was still part of Dudley's gang as they roamed the neighbourhood, bullying younger children.

23 June 1991: For Dudley Dursley's eleventh birthday, Piers Polkiss goes to the zoo with Dudley's family (his parents and cousin Harry Potter)

Piers is of Anglo-Saxon heritage and means "rock." It is a variant of Peter, from the Greek for "rock." Polkiss may be a variation of Polk, which itself is a variation of the Scottish names Pogue, Pollack, or Pollock, meaning "from the pool or pit."

Behind the scenes

Appearances

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Piers Polkiss was a Muggle and Dudley Dursley's best friend. Despite being scrawny with a face like a rat, he was a member of Dudley Dursley's gang and was usually the one who held people's arms behind their backs so Dudley could hit them.

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read this article to learn about how you can have this type of job...

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Place yourself into one (or more) of these reptile jobs and careers working with reptiles.

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Enter the Reptile House to find ZSL London Zoo's amazing collection of reptiles and amphibians, including snakes, lizards, frogs and crocodiles!

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Fun facts for kids including photos and printable activity worksheets; suitable for Kindergarten through Grade 6.

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Harry slightly begrudges being a Parselmouth, as it serves as a constant reminder of the part of Voldemort inside him.

© JKR/Pottermore Ltd. ™ Warner Bros.

But there's a lot more to Parseltongue than you might think. Here are some things you may or may not know about the language of snakes...

It's a rare skill

Knowing Parseltongue isn't quite the same as learning Spanish. Firstly, you don't so much learn it as just innately know it. The language is incredibly rare, as Harry is told countless times. The only place it isn't rare, is within the bloodline of Salazar Slytherin himself - and as such, is usually hereditary.

'So?' said Harry. 'I bet loads of people here can do it.' 'Oh no they can't,' said Ron. 'It's not a very common gift. Harry, this is bad.'
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

It has a bad reputation

And thanks to that Slytherin-connection, no one is quite a fan of Parseltongue. Harry's reputation is severely tarnished when his skill becomes known to Hogwarts in Chamber of Secrets, to the extent that they think Harry opened the Chamber.

In Order of the Phoenix, a Rita Skeeter scoop (who else?) tells the whole world he is a Parseltongue, leading Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic at the time, to distrust him even further post-return of Voldemort. And as Ron sums up quite efficiently when Harry first uses it, it just sounds 'creepy'.

© JKR/Pottermore Ltd. ™ Warner Bros.

You can imitate it

Harry was left perplexed when Ron and Hermione managed to break into the Chamber of Secrets during Deathly Hallows. Why? Because you need be able to speak Parseltongue to open it.

As Ron demonstrated, however, sometimes a strong imitation of it is enough for a snake to understand - sort of like when you're going on holiday and you yell out vague sentences in a French accent from your phrase book.

It's sometimes hard to speak it

At least in the case of Harry, Harry found he could only ever speak Parseltongue when he was face to face with a snake, or at the very least, the image of a snake. However, Harry could always understand it, which caused great confusion when there didn't seem to be any snakes around... such as poor Bathilda Bagshot in Deathly Hallows, where Nagini had used her corpse as a body. Shudder.

© JKR/Pottermore Ltd. ™ Warner Bros.

You don't just have to talk to snakes with it

During a trip through the Pensieve to learn about Voldemort's family, the Gaunts, Harry witnesses the family speaking to each other in Parseltongue. Young Morfin Gaunt, who was Voldemort's uncle, seemed particularly taken with it, and from what Harry saw, seemed to prefer it to English.

Seeing as the Gaunts were so dedicated to their pure-blood line, it makes sense they would isolate others as much as possible by using their own language.

'Hissy hissy, little snakey, Slither on the floor, You be good to Morfin
Or he'll nail you to the door.'
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

Professor Dumbledore could understand it

As J.K Rowling revealed, Albus Dumbledore had mastered Parseltongue too. - although he could not speak it aloud. We're not sure why Albus learnt the language, but perhaps the Hogwarts headmaster wanted a better understanding of Voldemort.

Not all snakes are awful

Before Harry even knew what Parseltongue was - heck, before he even knew what magic was - he met a rather chatty boa constrictor on a visit to the zoo with the Dursleys. Rest assured, Harry was invited on the trip by accident.

After a brief chinwag about Brazil, Harry's inadvertent magic released the constrictor from his glass confines. 'Thanksss, amigo' he said as he slithered away; much more polite than the likes of Nagini and the Basilisk.

© JKR/Pottermore Ltd. ™ Warner Bros.

Harry can no longer speak it

Harry being an accidental Horcrux meant he was bound to Voldemort in so many ways, just like Voldemort was bound to serpents. Not only could Harry speak the language of the snake, but could see through the eyes of Nagini, another of Voldemort's Horcruxes as it turned out.

Once the part of Voldemort's soul that dwelled inside Harry was destroyed, however, Harry discovered he was no longer a Parselmouth; an added bonus of Voldemort's demise.

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Everything you didn't know about Parseltongue - Pottermore

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Harry slightly begrudges being a Parselmouth, as it serves as a constant reminder of the part of Voldemort inside him. © JKR/Pottermore Ltd. ™ Warner Bros. But there's a lot more to Parseltongue than you might think. Here are some things you may or may not know about the language of snakes...

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Harry Potter's uncle by marriage, Petunia's husband, Dudley's father. Expresses his prejudiced views at every opportunity

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Click on this link to read about this character

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Spoiled son of Vernon and Petunia Dursley

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Watch the video...then think about the different points of view of the characters in this scene.