In a move to reach new generations of Harry Potter fans, Scholastic and best-selling author J.K. Rowling have launched an online Harry Potter Reading Club and announced a live webcast for October 11 featuring a rare appearance by Rowling who will answer questions from kids.

The webcast, which is presented by the Harry Potter Reading Club and will begin at 12:00 noon ET (9:00 a.m. PT/5) from Rowling’s hometown of Edinburgh, Scotland, features a live virtual author visit to American classrooms to discuss the world of the famous wizard and the new free, online, interactive Pottermore experience.

The webcast marks the first time Rowling has answered kids’ questions live since 2007.

For educators, librarians, after school program coordinators and parents who want to organize a book club, the new Harry Potter Reading Club provides a full set of  tools to get started and the first 10,000 registrants will receive a welcome kit including bookmarks, stickers and nametags.

Additional features of the club include discussion guides for all seven Harry Potter novels, a live Twitter feed at #hpREADS, a series overview, a terminology glossary and pronunciation guide, and every month Scholastic will add new themed activities tied to the club discussions and the Pottermore experience.

Pottermore, which officially launched on April 14, is the only place that offers new Harry Potter content by Rowling, and is the exclusive retailer of Harry Potter eBooks. Nearly US$5 million worth of the eBooks sold on the site in its first month.