FIVE MESSAGES 
 TO TEACHERS OF 
 
 NETTIE ALICE SAWYER
 
 jt 0. HUNNEWELL 
 
 
 S S27 
 
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 Southern Branch 
 of the 
 
 University of California 
 
 Los Angeles 
 
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 This book is DUE on the last date stamped below 
 
 APR 2/H924 
 APR 2 3 i no * 
 
 MAY 2 195IP 
 
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 FIVE MESSAGES
 
 FIVE MESSAGES 
 
 TO TEACHERS OF 
 
 PRIMARY READING 
 
 By 
 NETTIE ALICE SAWYER 
 
 Formerly Supervisor of Primary Education, Seattle, Washington 
 
 Author of "The Little Kingdom Primer" and 
 
 "The Little Kingdom First Reader" 
 
 47991 
 
 RAND McNALLY & COMPANY 
 
 CHICAGO NEW YORK
 
 Copyright, igij : 
 By Nettie Alice Sawyer 
 
 Chicago
 
 DEDICATED TO 
 
 FRANK B. COOPER 
 
 Superintendent of Schools, Seattle, Washington, 
 whose true understanding of and deep 
 sympathy with the needs of the "little 
 ones" has made it possible for the 
 author to evolve the outlines and methods 
 presented herein and to demonstrate 
 their practicability for our Public Schools
 
 ^ CONTENTS 
 
 <\ PAGE 
 
 Dedication 5 
 
 An Opening Word --- 9 
 
 Message One 11 
 
 Model Lesson Illustrating Blackboard Work Preliminary 
 to Book Lessons. 
 
 Message Two - 44 
 
 Suggestions for Teaching the Primer and the First Reader. 
 
 Message Three 65 
 
 Word Study as Related to Reading. 
 
 Message Four 110 
 
 Seat Work as Related to Reading and Word Study. 
 
 Message Five 145 
 
 Outlines of Subject Matter. 
 
 Reference Books ------- - 212 
 
 Index 215 
 
 7
 
 FIVE MESSAGES 
 
 TO TEACHERS OF PRIMARY READING 
 
 AN OPENING WORD 
 
 AIMS OF FIRST-GRADE WORK 
 
 T^HE leading motive in all first-grade teaching should 
 be to develop the child. Too often the aim seems 
 to be merely to make him master of the printed page 
 with all possible haste. 
 
 With the child's development as the chief considera- 
 tion, all those exercises which contribute to it should 
 be included in his instruction. Reading is only one 
 of these exercises. The term "development" is here 
 used to include the mental, moral, and physical growth 
 of the individual. Instruction which partakes of this 
 all-around nature is decidedly more profitable for the 
 child than that which is narrower in its scope. 
 
 The foregoing suggestions should not be interpreted as 
 implying that to teach the child to read is of little relative 
 importance. To teach him to read properly is of very 
 great importance; that is, to read with understanding 
 and appreciation of that which is worth reading. Indeed, 
 the child's best development is dependent upon the growth 
 of his power thus to read. There is, therefore, great 
 necessity for him to have reading lessons based, even 
 from the first, upon that which appeals to and develops 
 understanding and appreciation. It is gratifying to note
 
 io Five Messages 
 
 in this connection that the most successful reading les- 
 sons, from the reading standpoint itself, are those which 
 meet these requirements. Reading lessons of this descrip- 
 tion only have a right to consideration as a factor in 
 the child's true development. Such lessons only fulfill the 
 broad aims of all first-grade teaching. These aims may 
 be expressed as follows: 
 
 i. To cause thoughts to unfold in the minds of pupils; 
 to open up new interests and let them gradually expand, 
 rather than to force facts or appreciations upon pupils 
 or to finish a subject in a day. 
 
 2. To stimulate observation, reflection, and expression, 
 shaping the work so as continually to give pupils things 
 to find out through personal experience and investigation 
 through inquiry, and all other possible ways, and then to 
 be reported to their class. 
 
 3. To keep a proper balance between impression and 
 expression, giving due importance to all forms of the 
 latter, such as oral reports of observations and expe- 
 riences, reproduction of stories and poems, songs, drama- 
 tizations, plays, games, drawings, and hand work. 
 
 4. To unify the subjects taught, correlating them, not 
 presenting them as separate bits of knowledge. 
 
 5. To bring the natural activity of children into play, 
 not repressing it and making pupils passive, but stimu- 
 lating them to action. 
 
 6. To help pupils form wholesome and healthful 
 habits with reference to their physical welfare. 
 
 7. To develop moral character by means of lessons 
 which emphasize such traits as kindness, obedience, 
 industry, thoughtfulness, cleanliness, and honesty. 
 
 8. To teach children, through practice, something of 
 the secret of self-control and of conduct which respects 
 the rights of others.
 
 MESSAGE ONE 
 
 MODEL LESSONS ILLUSTRATING BLACKBOARD WORK 
 PRELIMINARY TO BOOK LESSONS 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 Steps Preliminary to Blackboard Lessons 
 
 "DEFORE beginning the blackboard lessons which are 
 to occupy the months of September and October, let 
 the teacher study the outlines in Message Five in order 
 to discover possibilities for subject matter. Then from 
 these outlines let her select- such topics as seem best 
 suited to the needs of her special school. At this point 
 she may be impressed with the idea that much remains 
 to be done after all possible outlines have been prepared. 
 Methods must be considered which are suitable to accom- 
 plish at the same time the development of thought and 
 the steps preliminary to the mastery of the printed page. 
 
 A Blackboard Method Sketched 
 
 In this chapter, an attempt is made to sketch a method 
 for the first work in reading which meets the require- 
 ments mentioned above. 
 
 This sketch does not suggest a ready-made scheme 
 which will relieve teachers of all responsibility. Such 
 schemes only rob them of their individuality and soon 
 cause their work to become meaningless. Rather, it 
 presents material and method in keeping with aims 
 already stated, and indicates the general steps necessary 
 for their accomplishment. 
 
 ii
 
 12 Five Messages 
 
 How to Understand the Point of this Method 
 
 Teachers desiring to become familiar with this method 
 are requested to follow to the letter all suggestions found 
 in the next paragraph. 
 
 Read the Opening Word carefully. Next, read Message 
 Five to ascertain whether it offers material suitable to 
 accomplish the aims stated in the Opening Word. Then 
 re-read the notes accompanying the outlines to determine 
 whether each is consistent with the outline it introduces. 
 For example, read the note accompanying "The Pets 
 of the Home and School," p. 148. Those who follow 
 these suggestions can scarcely fail to get the underlying 
 thought and general plan of work. 
 
 An Imaginary Teacher Introduced 
 
 At this point Miss Gray, an imaginary teacher, is 
 introduced. She is thoroughly acquainted with the 
 method under consideration and will illustrate it by con- 
 ducting a series of model lessons, teaching a class of 
 ordinary six-year-old beginners. She has spent the 
 opening days of school in organizing and making ready 
 for the regular work, which begins at this point. 
 
 Before Miss Gray calls her class to the board, please 
 examine her daily apportionment of time for reading 
 and the subjects most closely related to it. 
 
 Morning Opening Exercises: In which the subject 
 of the day is introduced. 15 minutes. 
 
 Reading: 15 minutes twice daily with each of two 
 classes. 60 minutes. 
 
 Literature: Including story-telling, dramatization, and 
 lessons based upon poems. 20 minutes. 
 
 Word Study: 15 minutes twice daily with each of
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 13 
 
 two classes. 60 minutes. This includes various word 
 drills, visualizations, and phonic exercises. 
 Songs and Games. 25 minutes. 
 
 SERIES I OF MODEL LESSONS 
 
 Illustrating the incidental use of the written word in the 
 earliest stages of reading 
 
 First Lesson 
 
 what kitty likes best to eat 
 
 "Children, we were talking yesterday about Mary's 
 pet." (Writes the word "pet" on the board as she speaks 
 it.) "Do you remember what it is? Yes, a kitty." 
 (Writes the word "kitty" as she speaks it.) "Can you 
 tell me something that every pet" (not pronouncing 
 "pet," but pointing to the written word and asking 
 pupils to give it) "needs?" After several irrelevant 
 suggestions some child says, "Something to eat," and 
 Miss Gray answers, "Yes, something to eat." (Writes 
 "eat" as she speaks it.) 
 
 From this point on, the phrase "waiting for pupils to give it" 
 will be expressed by printing in italics the words that pupils are to 
 pronounce when the teacher points to them and pauses. 
 
 "How many of you have watched a kitty eat? Let 
 us make a list of the things kitty likes best to eat, and. 
 write it on the board." They thus develop the following 
 list: 
 
 kitty 
 milk 
 bread 
 meat 
 Miss Gray so directs this conversation concerning 
 kitty's food as to require pupils frequently to pronounce
 
 14 Five Messages 
 
 the words on the board, at the same time following 
 strictly the thought of her lesson, not stopping for drill. 
 Among other points she refers to a kitty that has bread 
 and milk every day and to the little girl who never for- 
 gets to feed her. She finally asks the class, also indi- 
 viduals, to name again the things that kitty likes, as she 
 points to the words representing them. Thus, at the 
 very close of the lesson, she makes this slight attempt 
 to fix these words in the minds of her pupils, but does 
 it by reviewing the thought of the lesson. 
 
 Before sending the pupils to their seats she tells them 
 to watch their kitties eat and to be ready to-morrow to 
 tell more about what they like. 
 
 Discussion of First Lesson 
 
 The conversation recorded above might have taken 
 place without the aid of board work, as do many such 
 conversations in the first grade. It probably would 
 have taken place in that manner but for the fact that 
 Miss Gray, recognizing the need for training the eye to 
 see words as well as the ear to hear them, decided to 
 improve the opportunity here afforded for such training 
 by writing incidentally the important words as she spoke 
 them. When she used a word for the first time she both 
 spoke and wrote it, but when using it the second time she 
 pointed to it and paused while the pupils pronounced it. 
 
 Because the members of the class were permitted to 
 share freely in the exercise, they were interested and, 
 consequently, gave it their undivided attention. They 
 soon caught the idea that they must respond readily when 
 the teacher pointed to a word, and as a consequence the 
 conversation was not interrupted by long pauses on their 
 part. Of course, the success of the pupils in this is
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 15 
 
 accounted for by the fact that Miss Gray was thoroughly 
 familiar both with thought and method, and therefore 
 knew how to keep the conversation moving smoothly. 
 
 During this lesson six words were introduced, as follows: 
 pet, kitty, eat, milk, bread, and meat. As words commonly 
 needed in future work occurred, Miss Gray wrote part 
 of them upon the board. Having previously planned 
 her lesson, she knew what words would thus "occur," 
 and had decided which of them it would be best to bring 
 out at this particular time. At the close of the period 
 she copied these words into a notebook to which she will 
 refer in preparing her future word drills, and will impress 
 them in accordance with methods suggested in Mes- 
 sage Three. 
 
 Second Lesson 
 what the canary bird likes best to eat 
 
 In response to the teacher's request for the names of 
 other pets, a little girl mentions the bird which she has 
 in a cage at home. Miss Gray then suggests that a free 
 bird is much better than a poor little "shut-in" bird, but 
 that, because some people will keep birds in cages, it is 
 all the more necessary to think about their care. 
 
 In a lesson not recorded here the class discussed "What 
 the Dog Likes Best to Eat." Therefore this lesson begins 
 with the following lists on the board : 
 
 kitty dog bird 
 
 milk meat 
 
 bread bread 
 
 meat milk 
 
 "Children, did you ever have a bird that liked milk? 
 No. Did you ever have a bird that liked meat? No. 
 Will a bird eat bread ? Yes. Does it like anything else
 
 16 Five Messages 
 
 better? Yes, seeds." (Writes the word "seeds" under 
 "bird" as she speaks it.) "Is there anything besides 
 seeds that your bird likes better than bread? Yes, fruit." 
 (Writes the word "fruit" under "seeds" as she speaks 
 it.) "Is there anything that your bird likes to drink 
 better than milk? Yes, water." (Writes "water.") 
 The board now contains the following lists: 
 
 kitty dog bird 
 
 milk meat seeds 
 
 bread bread fruit 
 
 meat milk bread 
 
 water 
 
 "Children, did you ever see a kitty that liked seeds? 
 No. Did you ever see a dog that liked seeds? No. 
 Did you ever see a kitty that liked fruit? No. What 
 one thing do they all like? Yes, bread." 
 
 After comparing the tastes of the pets in this way, 
 Miss Gray closes the lesson by having the class name 
 the things each pet likes best as she points to the words 
 that represent them. Thus, at the very close of the 
 lesson, she makes another slight attempt to fix the words 
 in the minds of her pupils through review of the thought. 
 
 Discussion of Second Lesson 
 
 Perhaps some one asks, "Should the above lessons be 
 called reading?" Possibly not, according to some defini- 
 tions of reading. Nevertheless, they afford opportunity 
 for the most important part of all reading, — the thought 
 part. Strictly speaking, they are conversations in which 
 the written word is introduced incidentally. It is our 
 endeavor to have the written word mean all it can to the 
 pupil from its very first presentation. Surely these
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading ij 
 
 lessons could not be called mere word study, because the 
 sentence, not the word, is the unit of thought. For 
 example, when Miss Gray said, "Did you ever have a 
 bird that liked meat better than seeds t" her unit of thought 
 was the whole question. The three words ' ' bird, ' ' ' 'meat, ' ' 
 and "seeds" written upon the board were not isolated, 
 but held together by her oral words, which accompanied 
 them and gave them their setting. 
 
 Whatever the above lessons may be called, they certainly 
 give opportunity for work with beginners which more 
 nearly approaches true reading than do those beginning 
 lessons which place much emphasis upon form and, 
 consequently, little upon thought. 
 
 Third Lesson 
 the care of pets 
 
 "Children, let us talk about what our pets need. We 
 have already talked about one thing they need. Yes, 
 something to eat." (Places on the board the lists of food 
 previously developed.) "What do we call all this? 
 Yes, their food." (Writes the word "food" as she speaks 
 it.) "Where do the pets get their food? Yes, they find 
 a little, but we give them most of it. Let us talk about 
 the part we give them. Does our kitty find milk, or 
 must we give it to her? Should we expect our little dog 
 to hunt for his meat ? No. Why? He would go hungry, 
 or else it would make a little tramp dog of him and a 
 little thief. Sometimes a little tramp dog gets poison. 
 So we must give our little dog meat and other kinds of food." 
 
 The class names the kinds of food and considers how 
 they should be supplied to the different pets, and how
 
 18 Five Messages 
 
 children can thus help in the care of pets. A point is 
 made of the cruelty of neglecting to feed them. Miss 
 Gray now suggests that there is something else which 
 pets need. "Yes, each pet needs a bed." (Writes the 
 word "bed.") The children then talk about the best 
 kind of bed for each pet, where it should be put, of what 
 it should be made, and how cared for. They next com- 
 pare the beds of the different pets, accounting for their 
 differences. 
 
 The lesson closes with a summary of the ways in which 
 children may care for pets. 
 
 Discussion of Third Lesson 
 
 The thought taken up in this lesson was partly review 
 and partly advance. That concerning the food was 
 largely review, while that concerning the bed was advance. 
 It is usually best to let the old and the new overlap in 
 this manner. 
 
 The review was not apparent so far as the pupils were 
 concerned, for a new thought, the care of pets, had been 
 introduced, which freshened and gave new meaning to 
 a reconsideration of what they had already taken up 
 under the guise of what pets like best to eat. 
 
 The whole secret of successful review is here suggested. 
 Teachers should not require pupils, merely for the sake 
 of drill, to go over the very same thoughts two lessons in 
 succession, for in so doing the class usually loses interest. 
 Teachers should select, rather, closely related subjects 
 for consecutive days, so that the new thought of one day 
 will continue that of the preceding, thus naturally calling 
 for a review of it, as in the case of the present lesson. 
 
 The point, then, in here presenting this third lesson is 
 to illustrate how such review may be accomplished.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading iq 
 
 Fourth Lesson 
 the story of amy stewart 1 
 
 "Children, I wish to tell you the story of a little girl." 
 (Writes the word "girl" as she speaks it.) "Her name 
 was Amy Stewart. She was a little girl who loved to 
 play." (Writes the word "play.") "She wanted to 
 play all day long. One day her mother said, 'Amy, I 
 think you are old enough to learn to work.' " (Writes 
 the word "work.") "Amy answered, 'Oh, mother, I 
 love to play. I do not want to work.' Her mother 
 said, 'You know that you have nice little pets that need 
 food. Your kitty needs milk, your bird needs seeds and 
 water. They need you to care for them, Amy. Mother 
 thinks you should learn to work.' But Amy answered, 
 'Oh! I love to play. I do not want to work.' Then she 
 ran off to her play. 
 
 "She soon met a little squirrel" (writing the word 
 "squirrel") "and said, 'Little squirrel, you have nothing 
 to do but eat. Come and play with me.' The little 
 squirrel answered, 'I have a large family to care for. 
 They need much to eat. I must put away food for winter. 
 I have no time to play. I must work.' 
 
 "Just then a bee" (writing the word "bee") "came 
 buzzing by. Amy turned and said, 'Little bee, come and 
 play with me. Surely you have nothing to do but to eat 
 and to play.' But the bee answered, 'Did n't you know 
 that I had to work all day long at making honey? I 
 never play.' 
 
 "So Amy walked away. She was thinking. But in 
 a little while she met a little ant" (writing the word 
 
 1 Adapted for this purpose from Kindergarten Stories and Morning 
 Talks by Sara E. Wiltse. Ginn and Company, publishers.
 
 20 Five Messages 
 
 "ant") "carrying a crumb of bread. She asked the little 
 ant to come and play, but he answered, ' I am so happy to 
 have this bread that I am glad to work for it, so you see 
 I cannot play.' The little girl then sat down on a stone 
 and thought about what they had all told her. They all 
 had to work. She sat thinking a long time. Suddenly 
 she got up and ran home. She had something to tell 
 her mother. Can you guess what it was? This is what 
 she said, 'Oh, mother, now I am ready to learn to work.' 
 "After that, Amy fed her kitty every day, and she 
 never once forgot her little bird. She gave it seeds and 
 fruit and bread and water every morning before she went 
 out to play." 
 
 Discussion of Fourth Lesson 
 
 The story, thus adapted and made to summarize 
 previous work, is a convenient form of lesson when closing 
 a subject. Pupils enjoy a story presented in this way, 
 for they feel they have a part in telling it. 
 
 It will be remembered that all words in italics are given by 
 pupils and not by the teacher. See note in the first Model Lesson. 
 
 Here a word of warning is necessary. Teachers, once 
 familiar with this form of reading based upon story-telling, 
 are apt to devote too much of their reading time to it. 
 They should remember that, while this is excellent in its 
 place, much of the first-grade reading material should be 
 based upon the child's actual observation, investigation, 
 reflection, and oral expression. 
 
 Teachers can easily find and adapt or invent all the 
 stories they need for such purposes. See the list of story- 
 books given in Message Five.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 21 
 
 Fifth Lesson 
 our APPLES 
 
 "Children, I found something good to eat this morning 
 and brought some for you. I brought three. Can you 
 guess what? One is red, one is yellow, and one is green." 
 (Writes "red," "yellow," and "green" as she speaks 
 the words.) Some child answers, "You brought some 
 candy." The teacher replies, "No, not candy. If you 
 ever have any green" (does not pronounce "green," but 
 points, and pauses while pupils pronounce) "candy, do 
 not eat it until you ask your mother about it. What 
 besides candy might be red or yellow or green t Yes, an 
 apple." (Writes the word "apple.") "I have three 
 apples here in this paper bag." (Shows a paper bag.) 
 "Who would like to find the red applet" (Does not 
 pronounce any word in italics, but pauses while pupils 
 pronounce.) In the same manner the teacher has pupils 
 find the yellow apple and the green apple. She next has 
 a child pick up each apple as she points to the word that 
 tells its color, thus matching object and symbol. 
 
 Then the teacher gives a variety of dictation exercises 
 as follows: "Put the red apple on the table. Put the 
 green apple on the chair. Bring me the yellow apple. 
 Who can put the green apple on the window sill, then 
 put the red apple on one side of it and the yellow apple 
 on the other side?" 
 
 Next, pupils examine the apples to see if each has a 
 stem, and if so, whether short or long, the teacher writing 
 these words and shaping conversation so as to have 
 occasion to point to them and pause while pupils pro- 
 nounce. 
 
 Miss Gray next says, "Children, if I should cut this
 
 22 Five Messages 
 
 red apple in two, what do you think I should find ?" Pupils 
 answer, "The seeds and the core and the white part," 
 and the teacher writes "seeds" and "core" and "pulp." 
 Miss Gray then cuts the apple in two, having pupils 
 touch and name the parts found. Next she has them 
 find the words representing these parts. 
 
 Before sending pupils to their seats, the teacher tells 
 them that she will leave this apple on the table, expecting 
 them to find out at noon which way the apple seeds point, 
 whether toward or away from the stem, and to be ready 
 to tell her to-morrow. 
 
 Discussion of Fifth Lesson 
 
 This lesson takes up a new thought, not continuing 
 the subject, "The Care of Pets," which unifies the four 
 preceding lessons. The same general method is here 
 indicated, however. The point special to this lesson is 
 the observation of actual objects in class. 
 
 Many teachers prefer this type at the very beginning 
 rather than that represented by Lesson I, where pupils 
 report what they already know. It depends largely 
 upon pupils and teacher as to which is the better at the 
 start. Both types should be used after a very short 
 time. 
 
 SURVEY AT CLOSE OF SERIES I 
 
 A summary of the reading situation up to date 
 
 The five lessons presented constitute Series I. They 
 have been given to illustrate the use of the word, written 
 incidentally, as the earliest stage in reading.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 23 
 
 How Long to Use Words Incidentally 
 
 Perhaps some one now wishes to ask how long a teacher 
 should continue writing words on the board during con- 
 versations with her pupils. This work should continue 
 during the whole year, but should not be used as an 
 exclusive exercise in reading lessons more than two or 
 three weeks. By the close of the first month of school 
 average pupils should begin to have some power to read 
 short sentences from the board. It is the object of Series 
 II to illustrate how this power may be developed. 
 
 Points Made in Series I 
 
 Attention is here invited to the following points in 
 Series I: 
 
 1. Miss Gray has had pupils observe objects in class 
 and has also requested them to observe their pets at home 
 and report to the class, thus recognizing the importance 
 to pupils of first-hand experiences. 
 
 2. She has selected familiar subjects, has encouraged 
 freedom and participation, and therefore has been able 
 to depend upon pupils taking part in all conversations. 
 In other words, she has made the oral language of pupils 
 the foundation for their future reading. 
 
 3. She has questioned pupils, and has made the lessons 
 represent their knowledge, not her own. 
 
 4. She has not "dragged in" words; all that she has 
 employed have been needed in the development of her 
 thought. She has selected from the conversations and 
 placed upon the board those words which in future her 
 class will need to use commonly in connection with the 
 subjects outlined.
 
 24 Five Messages 
 
 Her notebook for words now contains, among other 
 words, the following: pet, kitty, eat, milk, bread, meat, 
 dog, bird, seeds, fruit, water, care, bed, food, girl, play, 
 mother, work, red, yellow, green, apple, stem. Most of 
 these words are already familiar to her pupils, having 
 been impressed upon their memory in accordance with 
 suggestions in Message Three. 
 
 5. She has improved several little opportunities for 
 impressing moral points (kindness to animals) without 
 "preaching." 
 
 6. She has had a real point to each lesson, as is seen 
 in the fact that she has been able to give each a title. 
 
 In order to avoid all confusion between reading and word study 
 it is thought best to place all suggestions and discussions concerning 
 the latter subject in a separate chapter. 
 
 SERIES II OF MODEL LESSONS 
 
 Illustrating how the first sentences for reading may 
 be developed and taught 
 
 By referring to Miss Gray's October notebook one may 
 find the following outline on birds which affords a part 
 of the subject matter for this series: 
 
 1. Let pupils observe neighborhood birds and report 
 to class: 
 
 Songs How they move 
 
 Color How they fly 
 
 Size Where they stay 
 
 When they sing What they eat 
 
 2. Take up special study of the robin. (See outline 
 in Message Five, pp. 189-190.)
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 25 
 
 First Lesson: The Clause as Stepping-stone from 
 Word to Sentence 
 
 reporting observations on birds 
 
 "Children, you remember that you promised me to 
 watch the birds and tell me about them. What did you 
 promise to tell? Yes." (Teacher writes each clause after 
 the children give it) : 
 
 When they sing What they eat 
 
 Where they stay How they fly 
 
 11 Who has found out about this?" (Points to the clause 
 that says "When they sing.") Pupils now give their 
 reports. 
 
 In the manner just described Miss Gray takes up as 
 many of these clauses as she thinks best, conducting the 
 work so as to have the reports direct, not allowing pupils 
 to wander far from the subject nor to waste time in useless 
 elaboration. Nevertheless, she directs the conversation 
 so as to have frequent occasion to refer to these clauses, 
 not reading them herself after the first time, but pointing 
 to them and asking pupils to read. Sometimes she calls 
 upon the class and sometimes upon individuals. 
 
 She closes the lesson by requesting them again to 
 "watch the birds " and to read once more the things they 
 are to watch for: 
 
 When they sing What they eat 
 
 Where they stay How they fly 
 
 It might be added that Miss Gray continues to write, 
 as in Series I, any words brought out in conversational 
 lessons which she thinks appropriate to add to the list 
 of words in her vocabulary notebook.
 
 26 Five Messages 
 
 Discussion of First Lesson 
 
 Here the written clause is employed in the same manner 
 as was the written word in Series I. Pupils do not find 
 it any more difficult than they found the word, since its 
 oral context suggests its meaning and, therefore, its 
 expression. Miss Gray says nothing about "expression" 
 of course, but insists upon pupils reading each clause 
 as if they were talking it. She does not point to the 
 separate words, fearing that the very movement of her 
 pointer may suggest jerky reading. With one even stroke 
 she draws the pointer along under the whole clause as 
 the class or pupil reads it. 
 
 It will be seen that, as here employed, the reading of 
 the clause represents a step between the reading of the 
 word and the reading of the sentence. The clause is 
 here an integral part of the conversation, as was the word 
 in Series I. 
 
 Frequently subjects develop in such manner as to 
 call for the use of the phrase instead of the clause, or for 
 both phrase and clause, as intermediate steps between 
 the use of the word and that of the sentence. 
 
 Second Lesson: The First Sentences 
 when birds sing 
 
 "Children, you said you would try to find out more 
 about when birds sing." (Miss Gray writes the clause 
 and waits for pupils to read aloud.) " Have you done so? 
 
 "First, when might they sing? Name the different 
 parts of the day. Yes, 'morning,' 'noon,' 'evening.'" 
 (The teacher writes each as she speaks it after the pupils.) 
 
 "Let me ask you some questions. Do they sing in 
 the morning?" (Writes "in the morning" and asks
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 27 
 
 pupils to decipher the phrase.) "Yes. Do they sing 
 in the evening?" (Pupils decipher "in the evening.") 
 "Yes." 
 
 In this way the thoughts to be developed later in the 
 lesson in sentence form are first developed in phrase form. 
 "Now, children, let us write about this on the board. 
 What shall we say first?" After attempts from several 
 pupils, modified by suggestions from the teacher, some 
 child says, "Birds sing in the morning," and Miss Gray 
 writes it. Then by similar questions and suggestions she 
 calls from the pupils the following sentences, which she 
 writes under the first: 
 
 They sing at noon. 
 They sing in the evening. 
 They sing all day. 
 
 The teacher next proceeds to test them as follows: 
 "Who can find the sentence that says 'They sing in the 
 evening?' The one that says, 'They sing at noon?' 
 The one that says, ' Birds sing in the morning? ' The one 
 that says, 'They sing all day?'" 
 
 Before dismissing the class the teacher spends some 
 little time on this exercise, having each pupil find and read 
 one of these sentences. With one even stroke the child 
 draws the pointer along under his sentence as he reads it. 
 
 Discussion of Second Lesson 
 
 Although several actual lessons have intervened between 
 this and the first of this Model Series in which one or two 
 sentences were used in addition to words, phrases, or 
 clauses, the above lesson represents thejfirst attempt at 
 rounding out a thought sufficiently to produce what may 
 be called a reading lessor/ This lesson represents some 
 little effort on the part both of pupils and teacher. Miss 
 
 /
 
 28 Five Messages 
 
 Gray continued to question until she called forth related, 
 well-worded answers, not writing down every answer 
 given her. 
 
 We, therefore, have here a few short sentences repre- 
 senting a unit of thought, not an indefinite number of 
 sentences involving tiresome repetitions which obscure 
 the point of the lesson. Miss Gray does not believe that 
 words should be repeated again and again in meaningless 
 sentences merely for the purpose of giving pupils practice 
 in recognizing and pronouncing them. She believes 
 that each word which is repeated should add something 
 to the thought of the lesson. In this connection it 
 should be noted that this lesson affords a special oppor- 
 tunity for impressing the words "they" and "sing," because 
 their repetition is necessary to the thought. It is a very 
 convenient fact that the most effective review of words 
 is thus found in lessons which have a central thought 
 naturally and logically worked out. 
 
 It will be noticed that this lesson represents the expres- 
 sion of actual experience on the part of the pupils, since 
 they were asked to tell what they had found out by watch- 
 ing the birds. Subject matter which represents experience 
 affords some of the best reading material for beginners. 
 Not only does it give opportunity for reading, but it 
 necessitates oral language work, which is very important 
 at this point. 
 
 Before pupils can learn to read they must learn to talk. 
 In doing this they must be guided by the teacher through 
 questions and suggestions as described. This point 
 cannot be emphasized too strongly. In fact, these early 
 lessons may be designated either as "language-reading" 
 lessons or "reading-language" lessons. 
 
 It will be noted that the pupils' part is performed 
 principally in giving the sentences orally. The teacher
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 2Q 
 
 does not expect them to have power, at this point, to read 
 their sentences after they are on the board. She therefore 
 reads them aloud and asks pupils to find each sentence 
 after she has read it, frequently finding it necessary to 
 assist them in doing even this. She probably will continue 
 thus to read for pupils for several days, or until she develops 
 power in the most mature to make the start for themselves, 
 after which others will gradually follow their example. 
 
 Teachers desiring to have their first sentences based 
 upon the apple work reported in Series I, Fifth Lesson, 
 may, by appropriate questioning, evolve such lessons 
 as the following: 
 
 We have three apples. We cut the red apple in two. 
 
 One is red. It has a core. 
 
 One is yellow. It has some seeds. 
 
 And one is green. It has pulp. 
 
 The apple seeds are brown. We tasted the red apple. j& 
 
 The pulp is white. It is sweet. 
 
 The seeds are in the core. We tasted the green apple. 
 
 The core is in the pulp. It is sour. 
 
 With these apple lessons, the same method of devel- 
 oping and writing sentences, then helping pupils find and 
 read them, should be observed as in the bird lesson just 
 reported. 
 
 Preliminary to the use of sentences, such written phrases 
 as, "a red apple," "the green apple," "in the core," and 
 "the apple seeds" should be employed along with con- 
 versation so shaped as to give opportunity for using them. 
 
 The discussion of the lesson, "When Birds Sing," 
 applies equally to these apple lessons, the point of each 
 being the development of the first sentences. 
 
 *•*•
 
 30 Five Messages 
 
 Too much emphasis cannot be placed upon the fact that the 
 time element is very important in all board lessons. The con- 
 versational part should be developed largely in the morning opening 
 exercises, or in oral language lessons, thereby saving all possible 
 time for actual reading. 
 
 Third Lesson: Incidental Use of the Written 
 
 Sentence 
 
 the little girl and the little bird 
 
 Once a little girl met a little bird and said '* Where do 
 you stay?" (Miss Gray writes each sentence of this 
 lesson, and pauses to see if pupils can give it. If not, 
 she gives it herself.) The little bird answered, "You 
 can tell that." The little girl said, "How can I tell?" 
 Then the little bird answered, "You have two eyes. 
 Watch me." The little girl said, "Thank you, little 
 bird, I shall watch you." 
 
 At the close of the story the board contains the following 
 sentences : 
 
 Where do you stay? Watch me. 
 
 You can tell that. Thank you, little bird. 
 
 How can I tell? I shall watch you. 
 
 Miss Gray now says, "Do you remember this story 
 well enough to help me tell it again?" She starts it 
 herself, and supplies the necessary setting and elaborations. 
 At the exact place where each sentence fits in, she points 
 to it and pauses while the members of the class read it. 
 If they cannot do so she reads for them. She will re- 
 view this story from time to time in the future, until 
 pupils can read the appropriate sentence in each case 
 when she pauses.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 31 
 
 Discussion of Third Lesson 
 
 Two or three shorter attempts at story-telling, employ- 
 ing only one or two sentences, have preceded this. The 
 longer attempt better illustrates the point and is, therefore, 
 given here. > 
 
 Teachers can easily adapt stories so as to bring in short 
 sentences which serve as an excellent introduction to the 
 more sustained efforts which come a little later, at the 
 same time seeing to it that each story so employed has a 
 real point. 
 
 At this point another word of warning should be sounded 
 with reference to the overuse of stories as a basis for 
 first-grade reading. Teachers should not yield to the 
 temptation of giving undue time to this form of work 
 because it is fascinating. They should use it to serve 
 their purpose and then pass on, remembering that it 
 represents only one type of board-reading lessons. It 
 may be added, however, that such use of the board as 
 that here indicated may profitably accompany the telling 
 of stories throughout the year in morning exercises and 
 in the regular story-telling period. 
 
 This lesson looks more difficult than any previous 
 lesson because of what must be read between the lines. 
 Nevertheless, the mastery of each sentence is made com- 
 paratively easy because of its setting in the story, and 
 because the teacher gave it orally (if pupils could not do 
 so) when first she wrote it upon the board. Of course 
 elaborations, questions, and suggestions by the teacher 
 are here very necessary to successful reading on the part 
 of pupils. 
 
 Many board lessons can thus be worked out orally 
 which would not be successful as book lessons because 
 they would lack the proper setting.
 
 32 Five Messages 
 
 It must be remembered that helping the teacher 
 reproduce this story after she has once told it is a very 
 different thing from reading it without the preliminary 
 development, and does not require anything like the same 
 degree of power on the part of the pupils. 
 
 It will be noted that we here have the conversational 
 style, a style which lends itself well to the development of 
 expression. Recognizing as she does the value of good 
 expression, Miss Gray insists upon it from the very first. 
 Therefore she does not accept the work and leave these 
 sentences as soon as her pupils can decipher the words, 
 but she talks with them about how the little girl and the 
 bird must have felt, and endeavors to make them under- 
 stand that they do not truly read until they succeed in 
 saying these things as the little girl and the bird must 
 have said them. 
 
 In fact, the whole point of this lesson is expression. 
 The reason for here illustrating the incidental use of the 
 written sentence is to bring out the fact that, at this 
 stage, it is vastly more important that the child develop 
 fluency and naturalness in reading than that he gain 
 power to recognize and pronounce every word in every 
 lesson. He can easily be taught word pronunciation 
 later, but if allowed to read with poor expression at first, 
 it is with the utmost difficulty that he can later be given 
 the ideal of good expression. 
 
 Fourth Lesson: The Letter as One Type of 
 Board-reading Lessons 
 
 OUR WALK 
 
 "Children, let us write Mary and James about our 
 walk. You know, they had moved to the other school 
 when we took it. I will begin the letter by writing
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading jj 
 
 'Dear Children,' and then you may tell me what else to 
 say." 
 
 By means of questions similar to those employed 
 above in the second lesson, the following sentences are 
 given by pupils and written on the board by the teacher: 
 
 We took a walk. We saw it fly. 
 
 We looked for birds. We saw it eat. 
 
 We saw a robin. We heard it sing. 
 
 "How shall we close this letter? This would be a 
 good way." (Writes and reads, "Your little friends in 
 the B Class.") 
 
 "Now let us look at our letter. We must see that 
 it is just right before we send it." 
 
 Dear Children: 
 
 We took a walk. 
 We looked for birds. 
 We saw a robin. 
 We saw it fly. 
 We saw it eat. 
 We heard it sing. 
 
 Your little friends in the B Class. 
 
 "It will never do for us to send this letter until we can 
 read it ourselves. This is the only way we can be sure 
 that it says what we want it to say. 
 
 "We took what?" (Underlines "walk," and pauses 
 for pupils to pronounce.) "We looked for what?" 
 (Underlines "birds," and pauses for pupils to pronounce.) 
 "We saw what?" (Underlines "a robin," and pauses 
 for pupils to pronounce.) "Who took the walk?" 
 (Underlines "We" and pauses for pupils to pronounce.) 
 
 3
 
 34 Five Messages 
 
 How did we know about the robin?" (Underlines 
 saw," and pauses for pupils to say, "We saw it.") 
 How do we know that it could fly?" (Underlines 
 saw," and pauses for pupils to say, "We saw it.") 
 How do we know that it could eat?" (Underlines 
 saw," and pauses for pupils to say, "We saw it.") " How 
 do we know that it could sing?" (Underlines "heard," 
 and pauses for pupils to say, " We heard it.") 
 
 After this preliminary questioning, to emphasize both 
 words and thoughts, Miss Gray has the class read, sentence 
 by sentence, in response to her questions. For example, 
 she says, "What did we do, Roy?" and Roy reads, 
 "We took a walk." 
 
 After each sentence has thus been studied and read 
 the teacher has the class attempt the whole lesson, different 
 pupils reading different sentences. No child is quite 
 able, as yet, to begin with the first sentence and read them 
 all. Miss Gray, therefore, dismisses the class, telling 
 them that if some one can read the whole lesson to-morrow 
 she will copy it upon paper as he reads it to her, then 
 put it into an envelope and address it to Mary and James. 
 
 Discussion of Fourth Lesson 
 
 This lesson is like the second in that it represents the 
 expression of pupils written on the board by the teacher. 
 It differs from it in that it is put in the first person while 
 the preceding is put in the third. 
 
 Miss Gray thus puts some lessons into first person and 
 some into third for the sake of variety, both as to men- 
 tal attitude on the part of pupils and as to the form of 
 the lesson. 
 
 The first person lends itself especially well to the oral
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 35 
 
 expression of pupils. Moreover, it seems the natural 
 form for the letter, a type of lesson which has great attrac- 
 tion for the children. They get the best kind of drill on 
 words and sentences through self-imposed review in order 
 to have their letters just right before sending them, and 
 in order to read them to the teacher that she may copy 
 them on paper preparatory to sending. 
 
 It will be noted that the class was not dismissed as soon 
 as the sentences were all on the board, because an impor- 
 tant part was yet to follow. The teacher kept them, 
 helped them study, and prepared them to read the lesson. 
 Each sentence was worked over until the words were 
 thoroughly familiar to all and could be read with fairly 
 natural expression. When a pupil hesitated in the midst 
 of a sentence he was interrupted, helped further in his 
 study, and then called upon to read the sentence again. 
 The idea was impressed upon him that he must thus 
 study each sentence so as to read it off easily when he did 
 read it. In this way Miss Gray continues to impress 
 correct habits of expression already begun in the early 
 lessons. It does not trouble her that her pupils cannot yet 
 read the different sentences in close succession, and that 
 they have to stop and study each before reading it, be- 
 cause they are beginning to read each sentence by itself 
 with good expression. This she knows is the first step, 
 and therefore the one which principally concerns her at 
 this point. She is thoroughly familiar with and will 
 practice every phase of the development of expression 
 as given on pp. 53-55 in Message Two. 
 
 A series of letters, on some subject studied in school, 
 written to the city or county superintendent, represents 
 interesting work for pupils. Such a series written to the 
 parents to be taken home by one child after another 
 also represents profitable and pleasant work.
 
 3<5 Five Messages 
 
 Fifth Lesson: Description as One Type of Board- 
 reading Lessons 
 
 our sunflower 
 
 "Children, we have talked about this sunflower. Now 
 let us tell about it on the board. I will do the writing if 
 you will tell me what to say. 
 
 "First, is this sunflower little or big? Yes, it is big. 
 Who will tell that in a good sentence, beginning with the 
 words, 'This sunflower'?" Some child says, "This sun- 
 flower is big," and the teacher writes the sentence. 
 "Next, let us tell about the shape." Some child says, 
 "It is round," and the teacher writes this sentence under 
 the first. 
 
 "Who can tell what color the flower is?" The children 
 find the yellow leaves, and the teacher suggests the 
 name "fringe." 
 
 "Who will give a sentence that tells the color of this 
 fringe ? ' ' Some child says, " It is yellow, ' ' and the teacher 
 replies, "What is yellow?" The child then gives the 
 sentence, "The fringe is yellow." In order to call forth 
 a slightly different sentence, the teacher questions as 
 follows: "Who can tell this, beginning the sentence with 
 the words, ' The sunflower has' ?" Some child now answers, 
 "The sunflower has a yellow fringe," and the teacher 
 writes the sentence under the other two. 
 
 "What color of seeds has the sunflower?" A child 
 answers, "It has brown seeds," and the teacher writes 
 the sentence. 
 
 By this method the following lesson is evolved: 
 
 This sunflower is big. It has a green stem. 
 
 It is round. And it has green leaves. 
 
 It has a yellow fringe. This sunflower is pretty. 
 
 It has brown seeds. We like to look at it.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 37 
 
 The teacher next helps pupils to study and read these 
 sentences in a manner similar to that just described above 
 in the fourth lesson. 
 
 One child makes the article "a" too prominent in reading 
 the third sentence. Miss Gray has him read the whole 
 phrase, "a yellow fringe," in such a manner as not to give 
 "a" undue prominence. 
 
 Another child fails properly to emphasize the word 
 "seeds" in the fourth sentence. Miss Gray says, "Did 
 you say the sunflower has brown leaves?" The child 
 reads again, saying, "The sunflower has brown seeds." 
 
 The class shows growing power both as to recognition 
 of words and as to matters of fluency and expression. 
 While pupils thus need help both in studying and in 
 reading this lesson, they show growing power both as 
 to recognition of words and as to matters of fluency and 
 expression. 
 
 Discussion op Fifth Lesson 
 
 This lesson illustrates the description of an object 
 observed in class. This type is interesting to pupils 
 because it involves observation on their part, an exercise 
 which they are certain to enjoy if properly conducted. 
 
 There are many objects which pupils can profitably 
 observe in class, among which are different kinds of 
 flowers, seeds, leaves, fruits, vegetables, and pictures. 
 
 A description of actual objects observed in class is one 
 of the three types of board lessons most profitable for 
 pupils after they have gained power thus to evolve and 
 read sentences. 
 
 The lesson preceding this, the fourth, illustrates another 
 of these types — the report of experiences by pupils — 
 and may be called the letter type. 
 
 4 7 9 9 i
 
 j5 Five Messages 
 
 The third one of these types consists of the description 
 of the pictures in the first Primer which a class is to read. 
 
 In the next word-study exercise Miss Gray will drill 
 upon all words, brought out in this lesson, which she 
 wishes to make a part of the reading vocabulary of her 
 class. 
 
 It will be seen that Miss Gray continues to give special 
 heed to the matter of expression, having pupils read all 
 phrases as units instead of as so many separate words. 
 Then, too, she questions pupils to bring out expression, 
 as in the case of the word "seeds" in the fourth sentence 
 of this lesson. She avoids the use of mechanical devices 
 for expression, never saying, for example, "Say the word 
 'seeds' louder." 
 
 Because Miss Gray now feels that by the close of the 
 eighth week of school her pupils will be able to evolve 
 and read with expression board lessons of nine or ten well 
 constructed sentences, she is satisfied with the progress 
 they are making. 
 
 She realizes that this is the indefinite and delicate 
 stage, where it is impossible exactly to measure progress 
 by visible or tangible units. She knows that power to 
 read — to get and give thoughts, not mere words — is for- 
 ever dependent upon the development of the powers of 
 impression and expression. She knows, therefore, that a 
 language foundation is absolutely necessary for true 
 reading on the part of her class, and counts the time 
 which she has given for the laying of such foundation as 
 well spent. 
 
 At the close of this model series another word should 
 be added concerning the importance of conducting board- 
 reading exercises in such a manner as to save all possible
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 39 
 
 time for actual reading on the part of pupils. In order 
 to do this it is necessary that a large part of the con- 
 versations preliminary to reading take place during 
 opening exercises or during oral language lessons. 
 
 SURVEY AT CLOSE OF SERIES II 
 
 A summing up of the reading situation just before 
 taking up the Primer 
 
 Subjects Taught during Eight Weeks 
 
 It is understood, of course, that any teacher having 
 average pupils would develop, in the course of eight 
 weeks (the time covered by the Model Lessons) a number 
 of subjects in addition to the two touched upon in these 
 lessons. She should not prolong the reading on any 
 one subject beyond its natural limit, and thus wear it 
 threadbare. As stated above, it is not the idea to suggest 
 the work in full, but simply to present a sufficient amount 
 of it to illustrate the underlying principles upon which 
 this method is based. Teachers are expected to refer 
 constantly to the outlines in Message Five and to work 
 out the different subjects for themselves from suggestions 
 found in the Model Lessons. 
 
 When Pupils are Ready for the Primer 
 
 The last lesson in Series II suggests the ability of average 
 six-year-old beginners who have attended school regularly 
 for eight weeks. When pupils have acquired power to 
 do with comparative ease such work as is there suggested, 
 they are prepared for the Primer. Until they can do this 
 they should continue with board lessons. There is no
 
 40 Five Messages 
 
 time gained, in fact there is positive loss of time, in hurry- 
 ing pupils into books before they are ready. If one's aim 
 in teaching reading were merely to speed pupils through 
 many books, the best possible way to accomplish this 
 aim would be to have them thoroughly ready for the first 
 book. They would then quickly master the second and 
 third. 
 
 The average class of six-year-old beginners requires 
 about six or eight weeks in preparation for the Primer, as 
 suggested above, while the less mature pupils sometimes 
 require twenty weeks. 
 
 An Appeal in Behalf of Immature Beginners 
 
 Many first-grade teachers find at the close of the first 
 two months of school that their pupils seem to have 
 accomplished almost nothing. If they have improved 
 their time, let not such teachers be discouraged. Pupils 
 who are immature, either because they are young, of 
 slow development, or of foreign parentage, cannot cover 
 the ground suggested above in the time there designated. 
 
 Let us here make an appeal in behalf of these "less 
 mature" beginners. They are not necessarily "slow" 
 pupils, but simply those pupils who need more time than 
 do others to awaken. Teachers should go very cautiously 
 with them, advancing as they develop. Their work 
 should be of a nature to help them unfold and to con- 
 tribute toward their well-rounded growth. It should 
 not consist of forced and formal attempts at reading. 
 Such reading as is thrust upon children before their 
 observational and language powers are developed is 
 formal, unnatural, and unreal. When pupils are suffi- 
 ciently developed they soon acquire power to read, but 
 in their undeveloped state they need training of a more
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 41 
 
 fundamental nature than that found in forced reading 
 lessons. They need help in the general unfolding of their 
 natural powers through observation and first-hand expe- 
 riences, followed by talks, stories, songs, plays and games, 
 dramatizations, hand work, and other possible forms of 
 expression. What reading they do should be carefully 
 adapted to them and kept very simple. 
 
 An immature class thus nourished during the first 
 half year, and by this means prepared for the more reg- 
 ular work, often makes astonishing progress during the 
 last half year. 
 
 Objects of Messages One and Two 
 
 The work as presented and discussed in Message One 
 is representative of September and October blackboard 
 lessons for ordinary beginners. 
 
 Message Two takes up the work at the point where 
 the Primer is given to pupils, and directs teachers as to 
 methods of procedure. 
 
 TYPES OF LESSONS OMITTED FROM 
 THIS SCHEME 
 
 Attention is here called to the fact that the following 
 types of lessons have purposely been omitted: 
 
 1. The "idiomatic" type, illustrated by such sen- 
 tences as : 
 
 I see a kitty. 
 I see a dog. 
 I see a bird.
 
 42 Five Messages 
 
 I have a kitty. 
 I have a dog. 
 I have a bird. 
 
 I like a kitty. 
 I like a dog. 
 I like a bird. 
 
 Such lessons as those just given have been relegated 
 to word study. The idiom, as here used, serves merely 
 as a convenient hook upon which to hang words for drill 
 purposes, and not as a means of conveying thought. 
 
 2. The "action" type, illustrated by such sentences as: 
 
 Run to the table. 
 Ring the bell. 
 Wave the flag. 
 Hop to your seat. 
 
 This type has been relegated to word-study periods 
 or to recreational exercises. 
 
 The reason for omitting such lessons from regular 
 reading exercises is that they have no connection with 
 other subjects of study. 
 
 3. The "phonic" type, illustrated by such sentences as: 
 
 A fat cat sat on a mat. 
 
 Here the form of the word, rather than the meaning, 
 is the reason for its use. 
 
 It will be remembered that phonic work is not neg- 
 lected in this scheme, for it is given as a daily form of 
 word study. It is kept separate from the reading, how- 
 ever, until such time as pupils have enough phonic power 
 to assist them in the recognition of new words. In
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 43 
 
 whatever degree phonics enters the reading work before 
 pupils have such power, in that same degree it makes it 
 formal. The reading of such sentences as the one given 
 above serves as a profitable word-study exercise. 
 
 4. The "personification" type, illustrated by such 
 sentences as: 
 
 I am a flower. 
 
 I have many brothers. 
 
 We are afraid of Jack Frost. 
 
 Do you think he will get us? 
 
 The reason for omitting this type is that it confuses 
 little people. They can more easily tell of their own 
 impressions and experiences than imagine the feelings and 
 thoughts of inanimate objects and then put them into 
 oral sentences for the teacher to write on the board. Les- 
 sons developed in this way are often far-fetched, affording 
 little opportunity for real expression and consequent 
 mental growth. 
 
 5. The "cumulative" type, illustrated by such sen- 
 tences as: 
 
 The rabbit can run. 
 
 The rabbit can hop. 
 
 The rabbit can run and hop. 
 
 The rabbit can jump. 
 
 The rabbit can run and jump. 
 
 The rabbit can hop and jump. 
 
 The rabbit can run and hop and jump. 
 
 The main point to this type of lesson is the opportu- 
 nity for drill through ' play upon words, because the 
 thought is soon lost in endless and meaningless varia- 
 tions of expression. It is, therefore, omitted.
 
 MESSAGE TWO 
 
 SUGGESTIONS FOR TEACHING THE PRIMER AND THE 
 FIRST READER 
 
 RAINING possession of the first reading book is a 
 ^"^ great delight to every normal child. Learning to 
 read it under the guidance of a skillful teacher is a still 
 greater delight. 
 
 In view of the fact that the character of each individ- 
 ual is influenced to such an extent by his pleasures, let 
 every first-grade teacher aspire to be "skillful" to the 
 end that she may be instrumental in making permanent 
 the child's delight in good reading which comes with the 
 first book. 
 
 I. PRESENTING THE BOOKS 
 Introducing the Primer 
 
 The first step is to introduce the Primer to pupils in 
 such a manner as to help them catch its spirit at once. 
 Look at the pictures on the first few pages and discuss 
 them with the class. Enthuse them with the thought 
 that it will be a great pleasure to read this book. 
 
 Transition from Script to Print 
 
 It should not be a long nor a difficult task for any 
 first-grade teacher who has followed the suggestions of 
 Message One to make the change from blackboard to book 
 reading. She should not attempt it until her class is 
 
 44
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 45 
 
 ready; then she should make the transition easily and 
 quickly. The following suggestions are given for this 
 period: 
 
 1. Let pupils talk about the book pictures. Develop 
 short reading lessons, bringing out the ideas in the book 
 lessons by asking questions and writing on the board the 
 answers given by pupils. See that the important and 
 new words of the book lessons are brought into these 
 board lessons. 
 
 2. Write exact copies of book lessons on the board and 
 help pupils to study and read them. 
 
 3. Write the sentences of a lesson on slips of paper. 
 If there are five sentences and twenty pupils, for exam- 
 ple, write each sentence four times. Pass the slips to 
 pupils, asking each to find the printed sentence in his 
 book that matches the written sentence, and place his 
 slip under it. Have each study the words to see how 
 the script and print are alike and how different. At 
 certain signals, let pupils exchange slips and compare as 
 above until each pupil has had a copy of each sentence 
 of the lesson. 
 
 4. Word-study and seat-work periods may be used to 
 good advantage while making the transition from script 
 to print. See suggestions to be found in Messages Three 
 and Four. 
 
 Such printing as the teacher does on the board should be confined 
 to words. It is a waste of time for her to print lessons. 
 
 Phases in the Development of a Lesson 
 
 These phases may be presented by means of a concrete 
 illustration. Take, for example, the following lesson, 
 supposing it to be in the first Primer read by a class:
 
 46 Five Messages 
 
 This apple is ripe. The pulp is white. 
 
 The skin is red. It is juicy and sweet. 
 
 The seeds are brown. It is good to eat. 
 
 INTRODUCING THE THOUGHT 
 
 Imagine a class turning to this lesson for the first time 
 and the teacher questioning somewhat as follows: 
 
 "What do you think this lesson is about? An apple." 
 (Teacher writes the word.) "What kind of apple? Can 
 you tell by the picture? Here is a word that tells." 
 (Writes "ripe.") "You can say this word if you think 
 of the first sound. What do you think this lesson tells 
 about this ripe apple? Do you think it tells about the 
 parts of the apple? Name them. Yes, 'skin,' 'seeds,' 
 1 pulp,' and ' stem. ' " (Teacher writes the words as pupils 
 give them.) "Shall we read the lesson, and find out 
 what it does tell?" 
 
 Some such introduction to awaken interest and get 
 pupils into the proper spirit, likewise to bring out new 
 words, is necessary to every Primer lesson as well as to 
 most of the lessons in the First Reader. Introductions 
 should vary according to the nature of lessons. In each 
 case they should give the class a clew as to what thought 
 to begin with. As pupils grow in power the teacher's 
 questions should grow less suggestive, thus developing 
 independence on the part of pupils. 
 
 At this point the class should be given a drill upon 
 the words of this lesson which have just been developed 
 and written upon the board. In order to make sure that 
 all the new words are brought out, let the teacher consult 
 the word list in the back of the Primer. Let her then 
 employ any of the word-study devices found on pp. 68-74 
 in Message Three.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 47 
 
 STUDYING BEFORE READING 
 
 Immediately after the word study, or at a later period, 
 imagine the teacher questioning her pupils somewhat as 
 follows : 
 
 "Would you like to study this lesson a little before 
 trying to read it? Let me help you. The first sentence 
 begins with 'This apple.' Who can finish it? Look 
 at the second sentence. Does any one know what it is 
 about ? Here is the word that tells." (Points to "skin.") 
 "It says that the skin is 'red.'" (Writes the word and 
 encourages pupils to decipher it, not to guess at it.) 
 "Does the first sound help you to think of the word? 
 Yes, it is 'red.' Look at the third sentence. Find the 
 word that begins with 's.' You can see some of these in 
 the picture. Who can tell the word? Yes, 'seeds.' 
 What color are they? The word that tells begins with 
 'br.' Find it. Yes, 'brown.' Look at the fourth sen- 
 tence. What word is the same as some word in the first 
 sentence? Yes, 'is.' Find the word that tells the name 
 of a color. Where is it? Yes, it is the last word. Who 
 can tell it ? What is it that is ' white' ? Yes, the ' pulp. ' 
 Look at the next to the last sentence. You know the 
 last word because we had it this morning. Perhaps you 
 do not know this word" (underlining "juicy"), "so I'll 
 tell you what it says. Look at the last sentence. What 
 do we like to do with a nice ripe apple? Yes, 'We like 
 to eat it.' Find 'eat.' We like to eat it because it is 
 what? Yes, 'good.' 
 
 "Now, children, let us take just a minute more to 
 study. Find a word anywhere in the lesson that begins 
 with 's.' Yes, 'seeds.' Find another. 'Sweet.' An- 
 other. 'Skin.' Find the word that tells about the skin. 
 Yes, 'red.' See if you can pronounce words as I point
 
 48 Five Messages 
 
 to them. Each one may find and pronounce a word that 
 is very easy to remember; one that may be hard for 
 some one. Find any word you do not know and tell 
 where it is." Some child says, "The third word in next 
 to the last line," and the teacher replies, "That word 
 is 'juicy.' Let us see if you can tell the first two words 
 of each sentence; the last word of each sentence. 
 
 "Now, children, do you think you can read the lesson?" 
 
 The devices for study just given are much more exten- 
 sive than would be wise to use with any one lesson. A 
 class that needed all these would not yet be ready for the 
 book. These suggestions are, rather, to be drawn upon 
 as needed to stimulate pupils to proper effort. The study 
 should not occupy too large a part of the time. As 
 pupils gain power it should occupy less and less of it. 
 
 It should be noted in the lesson above recorded that 
 the teacher calls a sentence a "sentence" and not a 
 "story." A story consists of several sentences. 
 
 READING THE LESSON 
 
 Imagine the same pupils about to read the same lesson. 
 If they have to struggle with it, they are not ready for it 
 and should not be required to read it. If they are ready, 
 imagine the teacher questioning about as follows: 
 
 "What does the first sentence tell about this apple, 
 Willie?" Willie reads. "What does the next sentence 
 tell about the skin, Jane?" Jane reads. 
 
 In this way, in the early lessons, a question gives the 
 clew to each sentence the first time through. Before the 
 class is dismissed, however, they should read the lesson 
 again without clews. As pupils advance, teachers should 
 gradually withdraw such help, thus developing indepen- 
 dent power.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 4Q 
 
 A cardboard strip in the hands of each child is a great 
 convenience in helping him to keep the place. Let him 
 keep it just below the sentence to be read next. 
 
 In connection with the reading of the lesson teachers 
 should take great care that pupils proceed according to 
 suggestions given in "Habits Which First-grade Pupils 
 Should Form in Reading," found on p. 51 of this chap- 
 ter. Unless teachers give special heed to the formation 
 of these habits, they need not expect to produce good 
 readers. 
 
 TALKING OVER THE LESSON 
 
 Let us imagine the teacher questioning the pupils about 
 as follows : 
 
 "Children, are some of the ripe apples you have been 
 studying lately like this one? Yes. Are they all like 
 it? # No, some of them have yellow skins and some of 
 tKem have green skins. What about the color of the 
 seeds? They are all brown. What about the color of 
 the pulp in your apples? Some have white pulp and 
 some have pink pulp. Were all of your ripe apples juicy ? 
 No, some of them were dry and mealy. Were they all 
 sweet? No, some were sour. 
 
 "You think, then, that this apple in the book is just 
 one kind of ripe apple, don't you? Yes. " 
 
 Thus discussing a book lesson after reading it, and con- 
 necting the thought it contains with knowledge the class 
 has gained through study of the subject under consider- 
 ation, is important even though done briefly, because it 
 alone insures to pupils a grasp of the point of the lesson. 
 
 Readers whose lessons do not contain material which 
 can in this way be expanded and related through supple- 
 mentary oral language exercises are not suited to their 
 purpose.
 
 50 Five Messages 
 
 Planning Preparatory to Teaching Lessons 
 
 In preparing to teach any particular lesson, let teachers 
 proceed somewhat as follows: 
 
 i. Decide what to say or what questions to ask in 
 introducing the thought, in helping pupils study, in having 
 pupils read, in talking over the lesson briefly at the close. 
 For suggestions, see "Phases in the Development of a 
 Lesson," p. 45. 
 
 Teachers will find that in some of the book lessons 
 very little is required of them in the way of setting, while 
 in others it is necessary for them to make explanation 
 before pupils begin to read, also line by line as they read. 
 
 2. Decide upon and prepare for the word drill best 
 suited to the new or difficult words of the lesson; also 
 write these words, as well as the phrases of the lesson, 
 upon the board for reference during the reading period. 
 
 3. Decide upon location for class during the reading. 
 The pupils may remain in their seats, with frequent 
 opportunity to stand when they know and can read sen- 
 tences; or with instructions to each to skip quickly to 
 the front and read as called upon, or with ir ."tractions 
 to a whole row to pass to the front and stand until each 
 pupil has read. 
 
 Instead of remaining in their seats, the class may be 
 brought to the front and seated in little chairs, or on low 
 benches, so as to face the board; or, they may stand 
 facing the board. 
 
 By employing variety of location for classes, teachers 
 may add interest to the reading. They should make 
 changes so gradually, however, as always to keep pupils 
 feeling acquainted with the plan. 
 
 4. Decide whether pupils have power to read more
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 5/ 
 
 than one sentence of this particular lesson at a time; if 
 so, whether each shall read two or three. 
 
 5. Decide how pupils shall find the page. In the early 
 stages teachers may save much time by finding the page 
 for each child and strapping it down to the outside cover 
 by means of a rubber band. By the time pupils have 
 read from books for six or eight weeks they should have 
 been taught to read the number of the page and find it 
 quickly, thus saving much time. 
 
 Habits Which First-grade Pupils Should Form 
 in Reading 
 
 If first-grade teachers generally could realize the 
 advantages growing out of a few thoroughly established 
 habits in reading, they would see to the establishment 
 of these habits more carefully at the very beginning. 
 By such means they would increase the reading power 
 of their pupils and decrease the necessity of effort on their 
 part in developing independent readers. These habits 
 may be indicated as follows : 
 
 1. The proper use of the voice as to volume, pitch, 
 distinctness, expression. 
 
 2 . The correct position of the body when standing, when 
 holding the book. 
 
 No attempt is here made to give either an exhaustive 
 or an especially scientific classification of points, but 
 merely to present a brief outline for a few suggestions 
 which, if followed in the first grade, will bring practical 
 results. 
 
 VOLUME 
 
 Pupils should use enough voice to enable all in the 
 class to hear them easily. Very few pupils who are not 
 trained to this do so. The longer they are allowed to
 
 52 Five- M e s s a ge s 
 
 read in subdued voices the more difficult it is to establish 
 the correct habit. Having pupils read from some point 
 in the room at a distance from the class helps them in 
 developing volume. On the other hand, teachers must 
 guard against the development of the loud and harsh 
 voices which often result from efforts to secure proper 
 volume. 
 
 PITCH 
 
 Almost every first-grade reading class has one or more 
 pupils who have a tendency to read in a high key and a 
 strained voice. This tendency is usually the result of 
 effort or of nervousness on the part of pupils. It can 
 easily be overcome if taken at first, when only a "ten- 
 dency," but can be eradicated only with great difficulty 
 when once it has grown into a habit. 
 
 When a pupil begins to read in a high, unnatural voice 
 ask him questions that will call forth natural answers. 
 Then call attention to the two voices he uses and ask 
 him to read in his "talking voice." 
 
 DISTINCTNESS 
 
 Pupils may read indistinctly for any one of several 
 reasons. They may guess at words, and thus not wish 
 to be heard plainly; or they may sound only part of 
 the letters of words; or they may be lethargic and not 
 accustomed to put forth the effort necessary to cause 
 the vocal organs to produce words distinctly. What- 
 ever may be the reason for indistinctness it must be 
 cured. The " word ball game " suggested in the chapter 
 on word study is a valuable help in this work. Having 
 pupils read from a point distant from the class develops 
 distinctness as well as volume.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 53 
 
 EXPRESSION 
 
 The development of expression is less a mechanical 
 and more a thought process than is that of volume, 
 pitch, or distinctness. It need not be a difficult thing, 
 however, the whole point being one of naturalness. See 
 that children grasp the meaning of a sentence, then 
 question them until they express it in reading. For ex- 
 ample, suppose a child reads the sentence, "This is 
 Ben's dog," with no expression. Question him as fol- 
 lows: "Did you say, 'This is John's dog'?" Answer: 
 "No. This is Ben's dog." Or, "Did you say, 'This 
 is Ben's kitty' f" "No. This is Ben 's dog." 
 
 Such questioning to bring out the important words 
 is one of the best ways of securing natural expression. 
 
 Another form of unnatural expression comes through 
 an effort on the part of children to hurry through a sen- 
 tence. This usually represents the result of overstimu- 
 lation on the part of the teacher. She too often uses 
 such sentences as the following: "Who can read this 
 next sentence first?" "Oh, you are so slow to-day." 
 "Hurry; the time is almost gone." 
 
 When pupils have the "hurry" habit, tell them you 
 cannot understand them, so they will have to read more 
 as they talk. 
 
 Just the opposite of the " hurry" habit is that of read- 
 ing jerkily and one word at a time. It is the result of 
 allowing pupils to read before they are ready. This 
 habit can be broken up only by insisting that pupils 
 always make sure they know all the words of a sentence 
 before attempting to read it. 
 
 The proper inflection of the voice is a point that needs
 
 54 Five Messages 
 
 the teacher's constant attention. Many first-grade pu- 
 pils have a tendency toward the suspended voice at the 
 close of statements. The remedy for this is through the 
 meaning again, and not through mechanical directions. 
 Teachers should never say, "Let your voice fall at that 
 period," but rather, "Have you finished the sentence?" 
 If the pupil answers "Yes," she should say, "Your 
 voice did not tell me so. Read it again and show by 
 your voice when you have finished." By this method 
 the tendency toward the suspended voice at the close 
 of statements may gradually be overcome. 
 
 Another tendency of many first-grade pupils is toward 
 the falling voice in the midst of sentences. For example, 
 in reading such sentences as "Ben is kind to Nip"; "He 
 likes to play with him," they let the voice fall on the words 
 "kind" and "play." The remedy for this tendency, 
 likewise, is through the meaning. Teachers should 
 never say, "Do not let your voice fall," but rather, 
 1 ' With what word do you finish the sentence ?" If the pu- 
 pil answers "Nip," she should say, "Your voice sounded 
 as if you had finished at the word 'kind.' Read again, 
 and let your voice show just where you do finish." By 
 this method the tendency toward the falling voice in the 
 midst of sentences may be gradually overcome. 
 
 After giving careful attention to all the points men- 
 tioned above, many teachers fail to secure desired expres- 
 sion in the reading of their classes. They seem unable 
 to account for or to eliminate a certain heaviness of style. 
 The difficulty in such cases is due, usually, to the fact 
 that pupils forget to read to their audience. When once 
 they can be made to realize the necessity of making their 
 reading interesting to those who listen, they soon take 
 on a lighter and more conversational style.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 55 
 
 A word of warning is necessary at this point, however. 
 Pupils sometimes mistake the meaning of "making 
 their reading interesting," and take on an affected style. 
 Teachers must guard against this. 
 
 It is needless to say that to develop in first-grade pupils 
 the proper use of the voice requires much time and skill 
 as well as patience on the part of the teacher. 
 
 POSITION WHEN STANDING 
 
 The importance of the proper standing position can 
 scarcely be overestimated. To stand squarely on both 
 feet, leaning against nothing, and with chest up, puts a 
 pupil in the attitude which induces easy and independent 
 reading. This is one of the most difficult habits to estab- 
 lish, and one that calls for unceasing attention. 
 
 POSITION WHEN HOLDING THE BOOK 
 
 Every pupil of normal eyesight should be trained to 
 hold his book in both hands and in a comfortable posi- 
 tion, with eyes far enough from the page to allow the 
 class to see his face and to hear his voice. The tendency 
 to get the book up before the face and near the eyes 
 must be overcome, because it makes good reading utterly 
 impossible. 
 
 Again, to develop in pupils the habit of assuming the 
 correct position of the body in reading is a matter that 
 requires time and patience. Let teachers not become 
 discouraged, but remember that no phase of education 
 which is truly worth while can be accomplished in a day 
 or a week. 
 
 It is hoped, therefore, that all first-grade teachers will
 
 56 Five Messages 
 
 patiently and persistently endeavor to do what they 
 can to establish in pupils the habits of voice and body 
 so important to success in reading. 
 
 Review of Past Lessons 
 
 Review of past lessons is an important phase of the 
 regular recitation in reading. It keeps the thought 
 fresh; it affords opportunity for good expression because 
 of relatively few mechanical obstacles; it furnishes val- 
 uable repetition of words; and it provides extra material, 
 thus doing away with the necessity of reading the day's 
 lesson too many times. 
 
 Care should be taken, however, so to conduct reviews 
 as not to allow pupils to commit lessons to memory and 
 then to read in parrot-like fashion. 
 
 The following suggestions are given for this work: 
 
 1. Let pupils usually read their last lesson before tak- 
 ing up the new one. This takes only a short time when 
 pupils are equal to the work they are trying to do. 
 
 2. After the lesson of the day is finished let pupils 
 quickly read a review lesson or two before taking their 
 seats. 
 
 3. In regular review lessons assign some particular 
 page to the whole class and have pupils read one lesson 
 after another, each child reading one sentence; again, 
 each reading several sentences. 
 
 4. Give different pages to the different pupils and 
 ask each to be ready to read when called upon in class. 
 
 5. Ask each pupil to find his favorite lesson and be 
 ready to read it when his turn comes. 
 
 6. Write on the board questions calling for a knowl- 
 edge of past lessons; have pupils read silently, if possible, 
 and then answer orally.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading $f 
 
 Practices in Book Lessons for Teachers to Guard . 
 Against 
 
 i. Talking too much, thus wasting time and causing 
 pupils to listen to and lean on the teacher rather than 
 to work for themselves. 
 
 2. Allowing pupils to answer in words or phrases rather 
 than in sentences. 
 
 Pupils should not talk in stiff, stilted sentences, of course; this 
 would be as bad as the other extreme. But it should be a part of the 
 teacher's plan to have children talk naturally. She should not ask 
 questions and allow pupils to fill in answers by speaking merely 
 words or phrases. 
 
 3. Allowing one pupil to read when others are not 
 attending. 
 
 4. Allowing pupils to attempt to read when not ready. 
 
 5. Allowing pupils to sit or stand with blank or indif- 
 ferent minds instead of making them know they must 
 put forth effort throughout the entire reading period. 
 
 6. Allowing pupils ever to pronounce "a" and "the" 
 in isolation from the rest of the phrase to which each 
 belongs. 
 
 7. Allowing pupils to make a great buzzing with lips 
 while studying a sentence just preparatory to reading it. 
 Tell them that all good readers study with their eyes. 
 
 8. Calling a sentence a "story." 
 
 9. Allowing pupils to become excited and wave hands 
 wildly when desiring to read. 
 
 10. Substituting talking for actual reading, or allow- 
 ing anything but reading to monopolize the time of the 
 reading period. 
 
 11. Having two classes read the same lesson in one 
 day, thus allowing one class to hear the other and so 
 imitate it.
 
 58 Five Messages 
 
 12. Developing subjects in reading periods that should 
 be developed in opening exercises, or oral language 
 lessons. 
 
 13. Giving phonic drill during reading recitations 
 that should be relegated to word-study periods. 
 
 14. Having pupils read in concert. 
 
 15. Developing oratorical effects by having pupils (1) 
 study a sentence and then read it without looking at the 
 book; (2) glance off the book and at their audience while 
 reading orally. Neither of these practices is natural. 
 Let first-grade pupils be as natural as possible in reading. 
 
 16. Allowing violation of any of the points mentioned 
 under "Habits which First-grade Pupils Should Form 
 in Reading." 
 
 II. SUPPLEMENTING THE BOOKS 
 
 By "supplementing" reading lessons we mean the 
 discussion, expansion, and application of the ideas they 
 suggest. For example, if a lesson represents a dialogue 
 between kittens on the subject of cleanliness, the wise 
 teacher will find in this a conversational topic applying 
 to children as well as to kittens, and will improve the 
 opportunity thus afforded for an effective supplemen- 
 tary lesson. Or, if a reading lesson chance to tell how 
 certain children have cared for young birds that have 
 fallen from their nests, the teacher should encourage her 
 pupils to compare their experiences with those related 
 in the lesson. It is quite as important to teach children 
 to grasp and to express in their own way, and to follow 
 up ideas suggested by reading lessons, as to have them 
 do the actual reading. 
 
 The best reading books are those filled with lessons 
 which stimulate pupils to observation, investigation, and
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 59 
 
 oral discussion, and which plant in their minds interests 
 that may profitably be followed up indefinitely. The 
 supplementary lessons suggested by such readers repre- 
 sent an invaluable part of first-grade work. 
 
 On the other hand, reading books filled with lessons 
 which supply no incentives or possibilities for supple- 
 mentary activities and discussions do not deserve to 
 classify among true readers, for they do not lend them- 
 selves to the development of thought getting and thought 
 giving — the only valid excuse for which readers exist. 
 
 The following suggestions presuppose reading books 
 capable of being supplemented. 
 
 Opening Exercises 
 
 Devote the first fifteen minutes each morning to a 
 talk with pupils, bringing out the thought to be made 
 prominent throughout the day. By referring to the 
 outlines of Message Five teachers will find an abundance 
 of conversational topics suggested for each subject. 
 
 TYPES OF MORNING TALKS 
 
 The morning talk may be based upon the observation 
 of some object related to the subject of the day; it may 
 take the form of a report by pupils in which they tell 
 things they have been requested to find out at home or 
 elsewhere; it may be a matter of supplementary informa- 
 tion put into conversational or story form by the teacher 
 and given to pupils after they have done what they could 
 to get first-hand information on some subject under 
 consideration ; it may be a review of experiences the class 
 has had in a recent trip of investigation to some point in 
 the neighborhood — the grocery store, for example; it 
 may be a review of some subject studied at school, in
 
 60 Five Messages 
 
 which case pupils may often talk from topics written on 
 the board; it may be a combination of all these; it may 
 be of a moral nature, the teacher's motive being to im- 
 press some ideal. 
 
 Thus opening exercises afford numerous and valuable 
 opportunities for supplementing book lessons. 
 
 Teachers wishing models of morning talks will find them in the 
 book entitled In the Child's World given in the list of references in 
 Message Five. 
 
 Help from Parents 
 
 Whenever possible first-grade pupils should go to their 
 parents for information on subjects they are studying 
 at school. The first-grade child who does this parallels 
 the experience of his brother in the high school who resorts 
 to the library for desired information. 
 
 Any means of securing the cooperation of parents in 
 assisting the little ones in their first attempts at study 
 furthers the success of the teacher. Especially is this 
 true when working with a plan in which observation, 
 investigation, and reports by pupils play so large a part 
 as in the present one. Let the teacher, therefore, send 
 a tactful note to the parents of each child (if she cannot 
 find time for a call), explaining her purpose in the matter 
 and requesting their cooperation. 
 
 Songs and Games 
 
 Songs and games bring out an aesthetic appreciation 
 of subjects, and afford a means of expression such as 
 nothing else can give in the first grade. These may be 
 employed in music periods; they may be brought occa- 
 sionally into opening exercises when especially applicable 
 to the subject of the day; and they may often have a
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 61 
 
 place among the rest exercises. (References are given 
 with each subject in Message Five.) 
 
 Dramatization 
 
 "Playing" a reading lesson is a most fascinating form of 
 reproduction for first-grade pupils. Specific directions for 
 this work cannot be given because the work is essentially 
 spontaneous, growing out of conditions which arise in 
 individual schoolrooms and which call for special treat- 
 ment by individual teachers. However, the following 
 general directions may be helpful: 
 
 i. Let pupils read and at the same time think how 
 to play a lesson. 
 
 2. Let them talk it over, trying to agree among them- 
 selves how best to do this. 
 
 3. Let them read again to decide if their suggestions 
 are good. 
 
 4. Let different pupils try the different parts to see 
 how they succeed. 
 
 5. Let the teacher select enough children to take all 
 the parts and play the whole lesson while the others 
 look on. 
 
 6. Let her select new pupils for the parts each time 
 the lesson is played, thus giving equal opportunity to all. 
 
 Stories 
 
 Let teachers devote at least twenty minutes daily to 
 literature; more if possible. Let them give a regular 
 part of this time to stories carefully selected with refer- 
 ence to subjects under consideration, relating them to 
 other school exercises. (References are given with 
 each subject in Message Five.)
 
 62 Five Messages 
 
 PREPARATION FOR TELLING STORIES 
 
 In view of the fact that the treatment of stories is a 
 most important factor in the influence they have upon 
 pupils, suggestions are given as follows: 
 
 Most stories should be told, not read, to first-grade 
 pupils. Teachers should prepare these before presenting 
 them. Such preparation should consist of thoughtful 
 and sympathetic reading of the story from one or more 
 references; discernment of the underlying thought of the 
 story; selection and mastery of idioms; decision as to 
 the nature and scope of preparatory conversation rela- 
 tive to words, phases, or conditions likely to be unfa- 
 miliar. The narration should be vivid with employment 
 of dramatic elements. Since the same story is given 
 various shades of meaning by different story-tellers, and 
 since there are so many versions of some of the stories 
 here suggested, it frequently becomes necessary for a 
 teacher to adapt them. It will be seen that many of 
 the stories suggested in the references embody ideals 
 of honor, kindness, patience, courage, thoughtfulness, 
 and industry. These points should not be lost sight of 
 in the presentation. 
 
 HELP IN ADAPTING STORIES 
 
 Teachers will find help in the work of adaptation in 
 the words of Gudrun Thorne-Thomsen, one of our best 
 known story-tellers, who says: "A truly educative 
 story should stand the following tests : It should contain 
 a universal truth. It should not dwell upon the cruel 
 and the bloody. It should have a plain, simple plot. 
 It should be dramatic. It should leave a chance for the 
 child's own interpretation of its meaning."
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 63 
 
 NUMBER OF STORIES REPRODUCED BY PUPILS 
 
 It is not necessary that the small child reproduce all 
 the stories he hears. It would tax him, and would tend 
 to make the work mechanical. Nevertheless, he should 
 be required to tell some of them, since mental images 
 grow through expression. Then, too, in this way the 
 child enlarges his vocabulary and gains power over 
 language. 
 
 As the child grows in ability to grasp and to express 
 stories, he should reproduce more and more of them. It 
 is necessary for the teacher to exercise great care in order 
 to keep this work of reproduction from the two extremes : 
 first, of requiring pupils to reproduce so many of the 
 stories that the work is made formal; and, second, of 
 requiring them to reproduce so few that they become 
 greedy for new stories and unappreciative of the famil- 
 iar stories. 
 
 NUMBER OF STORIES TOLD BY TEACHERS 
 
 Teachers should exercise care not to introduce so 
 many stories that they become confused in the child's 
 mind. As a rule, however, teachers know and tell too 
 few rather than too many educative stories. 
 
 ASSISTANCE DURING REPRODUCTION OF STORIES 
 
 In oral reproduction teachers should question as to 
 omissions. They should not require set forms of expres- 
 sion, but should encourage use of idiomatic or specially 
 fitting expressions. They should not suggest wording, 
 but sequence of thought, when pupils hesitate. They 
 should deal sparingly with generalizations; but when 
 these are brought out, they should come from the pupils, 
 not from the teacher.
 
 64 Five Messages 
 
 v 
 y 
 
 Poems 
 
 Let teachers give regular attention to the teaching of 
 poems, selecting them, as well as stories, with reference 
 to subjects under consideration. Nothing can com- 
 pensate pupils for neglect of £his. It is impossible to 
 suggest any one way of teaching poetry, since every 
 poem is a law unto itself, and since conditions govern 
 methods. Nevertheless, the following suggestions should 
 be kept in mind. A teacher,should make special prepara- 
 tion for the presentation of every selection. She should 
 also prepare her class to appreciate each poem before 
 presenting it. A study of Song? of Tree Top and Meadow 
 (pp. 1 71-192), given as a reference in Message Five, will 
 prove helpful in such preparation. Before memoriz- 
 ing is begun, the poem should be interestingly read or 
 recited to the pupils to give them a whole view. Two 
 or more renditions, with conversation about the pictures 
 presented, may be necess-ary. Mental imagery should 
 be developed with every thought. Each stanza should 
 be mentally digested before the next is undertaken. A 
 poem once taught should not be drilled into pupils by 
 having one child after another mechanically repeat it. 
 This destroys mental imagery and robs the selection of 
 its real beauty. Repetition is necessary, but this may be 
 had through shorter and more frequent recitations. 
 Very little concert work should be given, because it tends 
 to destroy individual impression and expression. Above 
 all, a poem should not be overtaught. It should be given 
 an opportunity to make its own appeal to the child.
 
 MESSAGE THREE 
 
 WORD STUDY AS RELATED TO READING 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 The Supplement to Thought Reading 
 
 1 lA7'ORD study is the necessary supplement to thought 
 reading. Without it, pupils do not have sufficient 
 opportunity for review of words. With it, there is no 
 necessity for tiresome and meaningless variation of 
 sentences merely to impress words. 
 
 Number op Words Pupils Should Know 
 
 As to the number of words an ordinary class should 
 know at any particular time, it is impossible to say. At 
 the close of the first month the number is necessarily 
 indefinite, because in the early lessons drill cannot and 
 should not keep pace with thought, and because many 
 words are, therefore, partly learned but not firmly fixed. 
 At the close of the fifth month the number is even more 
 indefinite, because the phonic power which pupils have 
 developed by this time makes it possible for them to 
 pronounce, with a fair degree of accuracy, an almost 
 unlimited number of words. It is, therefore, not neces- 
 sary, nor is it intended, that word study shall exactly 
 parallel reading, but that it shall supplement it so as to 
 make such reading as is done at any time a matter of 
 thought getting and giving and not one of drill. 
 
 5 65
 
 66 Five Messages 
 
 Two General Types of Word Study 
 
 There are two general types of word study: 
 
 i. That employed in connection with reading and so 
 closely related to it that it can scarcely be distinguished 
 from it. 
 
 2. That employed in isolated drills and, consequently, 
 separated entirely from the reading. 
 
 Of the first type, there are three phases applied as 
 follows : 
 
 i. In the development of the words of a lesson, through 
 the thought as brought out by the teacher. (See p. 46 
 of Message Two.) 
 
 2. In the study of words during a lesson, for the 
 thought. (See p. 47 of Message Two.) 
 
 3. In slight drill upon words at the close of a lesson, 
 to review the thought. (See p. 16 of Message One.) 
 
 In early lessons pupils naturally approach the form of 
 words through the meaning, but later they must study 
 form more directly. Progress in word study, therefore, 
 involves an increasing amount of isolated drill. Atten- 
 tion is given exclusively to this kind of word study 
 throughout the remainder of this chapter. 
 
 There are three phases of isolated drill, applied as 
 follows : 
 
 1 . In studying words as wholes. 
 
 2. In studying words with reference to their phonic 
 elements. 
 
 3. In studying words with reference to the sequence 
 of letters composing them. 
 
 Each of these phases of drill is made the subject of a 
 separate section later on in this chapter.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 6? 
 
 Time Necessary for Word Study 
 
 In order that word study may react properly upon 
 reading, thus performing its part in our plan, it is neces- 
 sary to devote as much time to it as to the reading itself. 
 About thi rty mi nutes daily; for word study are therefore 
 suggested for each first grade in graded schools. The 
 distribution of this time among the different kinds of 
 drill is a matter of some importance, hence the following 
 suggestions: During the ikst_guarter, twenty of the 
 thirty minutes daily should be given to drills on words 
 as wholes. (See p. 68.) From two to five of these twenty 
 minutes should be given to visualization. (See p. 107.) 
 The remaining ten of the thirty minutes should be given 
 to phonic exercises. (See p. 91.) 
 
 During the second and third quarters, fifteen minutes 
 should be given to each, allowing, out of this time, about 
 five minutes daily for visualization. During the fourth 
 quarter, ten of the thirty minutes should be given to 
 words as wholes, and the remaining twenty to phonic 
 drill. From two to five of these twenty minutes should 
 be given to the first work in spelling. (See p. 108.) 
 
 Where to Find Words 
 
 As was said at the beginning, word study is supplemen- 
 tary to reading. This being the case, the words employed 
 should be taken from the reading lessons. It is neces- 
 sary, therefore, for teachers to decide which words of 
 each lesson should be listed for future drill; also, to decide 
 the best way of impressing each of the words thus listed. 
 
 Different Words Treated Differently 
 
 In considering the selection of words for drill purposes, 
 let teachers decide which are:
 
 68 Five Messages 
 
 i. Special to the particular lesson and, consequently, 
 not common enough to be put into the list. (Example, 
 Hallowe'en.) 
 
 2. Easiest for visualization exercises. 
 
 3. Suitable for use in connection with phonic work as 
 outlined later in this chapter. 
 
 4. Best to go in the list of words to be presented as wholes. 
 All words belong to this last list when first brought 
 
 out in reading, but many of those which obey phonetic 
 rules (phonetic words) gradually relegate themselves to 
 the phonic list as pupils grow in power. They do not 
 all do so in the first year, however, for, according to this 
 plan, first-grade .classes cover only the easy and most 
 common parts of the phonetic field. For this reason 
 many miscellaneous phonetic words are left throughout 
 the first year in the list of those to be taught as wholes. 
 A study of the phonic outlines found later in this chapter 
 will give teachers a clear understanding as to which 
 words should be placed in phonic lists and which in those 
 containing words to be presented as wholes. 
 
 After a teacher has thus decided the general method for 
 impressing each of the different words of a lesson, it remains 
 for her to select and use from the devices given below 
 only those best suited to the needs of her particular class. 
 
 I. DEVICES FOR IMPRESSING WORDS 
 AS WHOLES 1 
 
 FIRST QUARTER 
 Animation and Attention Necessary 
 In every word drill there should be animation coupled 
 with attention on the part of the pupils. This may be 
 
 1 The author is indebted to the primary teachers of the Seattle 
 Public Schools for many of these devices, as well as for many oi 
 those given under the head of phonics.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 6g 
 
 secured by employing quick and taking methods, to- 
 gether with a sufficient variety of devices. A "sufficient 
 variety" consists of just enough to stimulate interest 
 without confusing pupils and thus interfering with 
 concentration. 
 
 Careful Selection 
 
 From the following suggestions teachers should select 
 carefully the few best suited to the purpose of each day, 
 remembering that their choice need not correspond with 
 the sequence here given. A number of the devices given 
 are inserted for the purpose of lending animation and 
 brightness to exercises and are intended only for occasional 
 use. 
 
 Position of Classes 
 
 Let teachers vary the position of classes during word- 
 study exercises, sometimes calling them to the front and 
 sometimes allowing them to remain in their seats. 
 
 Every Child Must be Heard 
 
 In every recitation let teachers see that every child 
 speaks distinctly and loudly enough to be heard by every 
 other child. Otherwise, much valuable time is wasted. 
 
 Blackboard Devices 
 
 i. Write duplicate lists of words on the board. Point 
 to a word in one list, asking some pupil to put his pointer 
 on the same word in the other list. Vary this exercise 
 by erasing words and having pupils erase. 
 
 2. Pronounce words from a list on the board, asking 
 different pupils to point to them. 
 
 3. Give two pupils pointers and pronounce words
 
 jo Five Messages 
 
 from the board, seeing which can be first to touch each 
 word as pronounced. 
 
 4. Give two pupils white crayon; then pronounce 
 words, asking one pupil to place a cross before and the 
 other a cross after his words. The pupil first placing 
 his cross gets the word. Count to see which gets the 
 greater number. 
 
 5. Give two pupils crayons of different colors; then 
 pronounce words, seeing which pupil can be first to under- 
 line each word. Count to see which color underlines 
 the greater number of words. 
 
 6. Write words on the board promiscuously, asking a 
 group of pupils each to go and touch a word he knows. 
 When the teacher touches a pupil's word with her pointer 
 let him pronounce it. 
 
 7. Place a number of words on the board. Let the 
 teacher point to and pronounce a word, then hand the 
 pointer to some child, who also points to and pronounces 
 a word, and in his turn hands the pointer to some other 
 child, who proceeds in like manner. 
 
 Vary this exercise by calling for a word and having 
 some one point to it, allowing the one finding it to call 
 for another word and to select some one else to point it 
 out; and then to proceed in like manner. 
 
 8. Write words on the board. Send one pupil after 
 another to erase and pronounce those they know. 
 
 9. Let pupils look while the teacher erases a word 
 in a column or sentence. Let them say it, either singly 
 or in concert, after it has been erased. 
 
 Teachers should not have a great deal of concert work in drill 
 upon words as wholes. Weak pupils imitate the strong, thus 
 missing the growth that comes through effort, and many mistakes 
 necessarily go uncorrected. 
 
 10. Write a word on the board and erase it immediately.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading Ji 
 
 Let the pupil who pronounces it first take his place in 
 the "quick line." At the close of the exercise, have 
 each one in the "quick line" pronounce a word before 
 taking his place again in class. 
 
 ii. Write words on the board. Let a row of pupils 
 skip by, each touching and saying a word as he passes. 
 
 The Word Holder 
 
 Let teachers adapt to the "word holder," described 
 below, many of the devices suggested above for the board. 
 This little piece of equipment proves a great convenience 
 in word drills, giving freshness and added interest to them. 
 
 In making the holder let teachers proceed as follows : 
 
 Take a sheet of stiff tagboard 22" x 28", obtained at 
 slight cost at any printing office. Rule crosswise, leaving 
 spaces four inches wide. Next, cut strips of tagboard 
 i}4" x 22". Just above each line on the large sheet 
 paste one of these strips, putting glue on the ends and 
 lower edge only, forming a shallow pocket. The pockets 
 thus made are word holders which may be employed in 
 a variety of devices with word cards made as follows: 
 
 With a rubber pen or the rubber end of a lead pencil 
 write words on strips of cardboard 3" x 11", making 
 letters at least two inches high. On the back of each 
 card in small letters write the word in duplicate for the 
 teacher's use. In devices given below we speak of cards 
 thus made as "large word cards." Keep a list of words 
 written upon these cards (one word on a card), and keep 
 the words up to date with new ones brought out in read- 
 ing lessons. 
 
 In addition to duplicating with the "word holder" the 
 devices given above for blackboard, let teachers duplicate 
 with it all possible devices given below for cards.
 
 J2 Five Messages 
 
 Devices with Large Word Cards 
 (See directions for making these cards on p. 71.) 
 
 1. Hold cards before the class, one at a time, and 
 have them recite in concert; or have one child answer 
 at a time until all in the room have had a turn; or have 
 one child stand and recite until he makes a mistake, 
 when another takes his place; or let one row recite at 
 a time, the whole row standing as the teacher turns a 
 card toward the first child, one after another sitting 
 as he recites; or let the two sides of the room vie with 
 each other to see which can pronounce the most words 
 correctly. 
 
 The effectiveness of the above work depends largely 
 upon the manner in which the teacher handles the cards. 
 She should hold them in front of her and shift them 
 quickly, depending upon the small words written on the 
 side toward her corresponding to the large words which 
 are turned to the view of pupils. 
 
 2. Pass to pupils small cards containing words cor- 
 responding to those on the large cards. Hold up a 
 large card and let the child (or possibly several) who has 
 the same word on his small card bring it to the teacher; 
 let him hold it under the large card, so as to compare, 
 and then pronounce the word so all can hear. 
 
 3. Vary this exercise by writing a word on the board, 
 while pupils observe, instead of holding up a large card. 
 
 4. Place the cards in a row on the ledge of the board, 
 having the class pronounce the word on each as the 
 teacher puts it down. Pronounce words, asking differ- 
 ent pupils to pass up and get the cards containing them. 
 Let the teacher gather up the cards, having the whole 
 class pronounce as each word is taken from a pupil; or, 
 call for a certain word and have the child who has it
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading yj 
 
 quickly place it on the ledge of the board, continuing 
 thus until all cards have been placed. Let some one 
 child go to the board and quickly gather up all the 
 cards, pronouncing the word on each as he picks it up. 
 When he fails, let another child take his place. 
 
 5. Hold up a card. Let pupils see who can pronounce 
 the word first. Give the card to the one who does so. 
 Continue until the cards are all given out. Then count 
 to see which pupil has the most. 
 
 6. Hold up a card. Let the pupil who first recog- 
 nizes the word get it and come to the front. When 
 eight or ten pupils are thus standing in front, let those 
 in their seats pronounce the words, one at a time, taking 
 the places and cards of the pupils in front. 
 
 7. Let twelve or fourteen pupils stand in front of 
 the class, holding cards. Let them pronounce their 
 words, one after another down the line, while pupils in 
 seats watch and listen. Then let them quickly exchange 
 cards and pronounce again. Next, let two pupils from 
 the seats go to the front, one to each end of the line, and 
 see who, by pronouncing them correctly, can get the 
 greater number of words. Pupils holding the cards must 
 not give them up if those pronouncing make mistakes. 
 
 Miscellaneous Suggestions 
 
 1. Give daily drill in simple phrases composed of "a" 
 and its noun, also "the" and its noun; for example. 
 "a boy," "a girl," "the flower," "the fruit." Never 
 drill on nor refer to "the" or "thu." Teach pupils al- 
 ways to say the words of these phrases together as one 
 word, never allowing them to separate the articles from 
 their nouns, nor to emphasize the articles unduly. 
 
 2. Reserve a space on the board, in plain view of the
 
 74 Five Messages 
 
 class, large enough for about ten words. In this space 
 keep the words that most need to be impressed, and 
 drill upon them at spare moments. 
 
 3. During the transition from script to print invent 
 a number of devices for matching words, using both 
 cards and blackboard. 
 
 4. Sometimes dismiss a class, one at a time, by letting 
 each pupil slip away to his seat after pronouncing some 
 word indicated by the teacher. Keep those who miss 
 until the last, and give them a slight review before dis- 
 missing them. 
 
 SECOND QUARTER 
 Blackboard Devices 
 
 1. Continue devices employed the first quarter. 
 
 2. Write several columns of familiar words on the 
 board, each containing five or six words. Let each 
 pupil "run up and down" or "down and up" (pronounc- 
 ing) to see who can do it in the shortest time. 
 
 Vary this exercise by having pupils "run up" one col- 
 umn and "run down" another; also, by having one 
 child run up one and down another throughout the 
 entire list. 
 
 3 . Have a class turn to some page of the Primer. Write 
 words on the board and have pupils find them in the 
 book. 
 
 4. Write a list of words on the board. Have pupils 
 observe them carefully, then look away while the teacher 
 erases one. Have them look again to discover and tell 
 which word was erased. 
 
 Vary this exercise by using the word holder described 
 in devices for the first quarter, slipping a word card out 
 instead of erasing as above.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 75 
 
 5. Write words on the board. Have one pupil of 
 the class close his eyes while another points to a certain 
 word. Let the pupil whose eyes were closed then take 
 the pointer and pronounce words until he finds the one 
 selected, asking the question, "Was it 'mother'?" One, 
 many, or all the pupils answer, " No, it was not 'mother.' " 
 In this way, let several pupils have an opportunity to 
 take part. Use the word holder for this also. 
 
 6. Give the meaning of words on the board and let 
 pupils find and pronounce them. Thus: "Find some- 
 thing good to eat." Some pupil points to "apple." 
 
 7. Let two pupils cover their eyes while the class 
 observes the teacher erase a word from a list on the board. 
 Let the two then try to discover what word has been 
 erased. Call the one who finds out first the winner, 
 and let the other step back into class. Let the teacher 
 then select a new child to step up beside the winner, 
 ready to begin the exercise again. 
 
 8. W'rite about five familiar words on the blackboard, 
 not pronouncing them. Erase these after pupils have 
 visualized, and let them give as many as they can 
 remember. 
 
 9. Give daily drill upon such phrases as "a little girl," ' 
 "a pretty flower," "the warm sun." Vary this drill by 
 using phrases in a conversational manner. Say, for 
 example, "I never saw," and then write the words, "a 
 blue apple." Questions as well as statements may be 
 employed in this exercise. 
 
 10. Let the teacher tell some simple everyday story, 
 bringing in familiar words written promiscuously upon 
 the board. Let pupils point to each of these words as 
 she uses it and pauses for them to find it. 
 
 11. In preparing for Christmas work, draw a large 
 tree on the board and write in its branches the names
 
 y6 Five Messages 
 
 of possible Christmas gifts. Work out a variety of 
 interesting exercises from this. Use the outline of a 
 large Christmas stocking in the same way. 
 
 12. Select those Mother Goose rimes that contain 
 words common to the reading lessons of a class, and write 
 the important words on the board, but not in the same 
 sequence as found in the rime. Repeat the rime and 
 let pupils place the pointer on each of the words as the 
 teacher pauses for them to find it. 
 
 13. For review, let pupils give all the words they 
 can remember from past drills, and let the teacher write 
 them on the board. When all possible are given let the 
 teacher point to the words and call upon pupils promis- 
 cuously to pronounce. 
 
 14. Let the teacher play "deaf and dumb," writing 
 questions which pupils must answer orally. Let her 
 thus repeat important or difficult words in a variety of 
 questions. For example: 
 
 Are you warm? 
 
 Are you cold? 
 
 Are you at school? 
 
 Are you in the B Class? 
 
 15. Write a list of words on the board. Duplicate 
 it with another list beginning with capitals Give ex- 
 ercises for matching identical words. Use the word 
 holder for this also. 
 
 16. Let the teacher touch with the pointer three 
 words in succession and then call upon some child to 
 pronounce the words from memory. After doing so, 
 let the child point to three other words and call upon 
 another child, who must proceed as he did. 
 
 Vary this exercise by using large word cards and turn- 
 ing three before asking pupils to pronounce them. 
 
 17. Write a list of words on the board. Without
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 77 
 
 pointing, let the teacher pronounce the first word, the 
 class the second, the teacher the third, and so on; or 
 the girls the first and the boys the second; or let pupils 
 take turns. Vary this exercise by pronouncing only 
 every other word. Use the word holder for this also. 
 
 18. Before school on Monday morning write all the 
 words of last week's reading lessons on the board. Give 
 quick, animated review of these. For example, let the 
 teacher pronounce words and two pupils with pointers 
 see who can touch each word first. Employ a variety 
 of devices here. 
 
 19. Invent ways of utilizing the Primer in word drills. 
 For example, write the important words from some 
 review lesson and have pupils, who thus get the clew, 
 either name or find the lesson. 
 
 Devices with Large Word Cards 
 
 1. Place ten or twelve large word cards on the ledge 
 of the front board. Let two pupils begin at opposite 
 ends, pronouncing words in turn. If one misses a word, 
 the other has a chance at it. Let the point be to see 
 who can get the most words. 
 
 2. Place ten or twelve large cards on the ledge of the 
 board. Send a pupil to the front to hold up the cards, 
 one at a time, calling upon some pupil to pronounce 
 each as he does so. If this pupil can pronounce the word, 
 let him skip to the front, take a card, and hold it in view 
 of the class. Let the first pupil proceed in like manner 
 until all the cards are given out and are held by as many 
 pupils, standing in a row in front. Let each in the row 
 then call upon some pupil in the seats to pronounce his 
 word. Let him then place his word on the ledge and take 
 his seat. In like manner, dismiss the whole row and call 
 a new pupil to the front to begin the exercise again.
 
 78 Five Messages 
 
 3. Write words on small pieces of paper. Let one 
 pupil throw these upward and the others in the class 
 pick up those they can pronounce. Let pupils then 
 quickly put their words into a box held by the teacher, 
 each pronouncing them as he does so. 
 
 If this exercise causes confusion, omit it. It need not do so, 
 however. 
 
 4. From words taken from past reading lessons select 
 those verbs that lend themselves to dramatization, 
 writing each on a large card. Example, "fly," "come." 
 When the teacher holds up the word "come" and says to 
 some child, "Do this," let him step up to her. 
 
 5. Let the teacher give a large word card to each 
 child, telling him to be ready to pronounce it as she 
 quickly passes him in going the rounds of the class. If 
 he can do so, let her take his card and give him a new 
 one. If not, let her tell him to study until she comes 
 again, and then let her assist him if necessary. 
 
 6. Make charts of heavy manila paper or of tagboard. 
 Write on these the words that persist in being trouble- 
 some. For example, "was," "when," "why," "are," 
 "of," "this," and the like. Give some slight attention 
 daily to drills from these charts. 
 
 7. Have the class take position on the floor as for a 
 spelling match in higher grades. Let the teacher hold 
 up large word cards, giving a turn first to one side and 
 then to the other. Instead of "spelling down," let them 
 "pronounce down," each child taking his seat when he 
 misses. 
 
 Circle Games 
 
 (Class in circle, holding large word cards) 
 
 1. Let a child in the center start at some point and 
 pronounce as many words as he can. When he misses a
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading yg 
 
 word let the pupil who pronounces it take his place in 
 the center. 
 
 2. Let the teacher name two pupils, and let each pro- 
 nounce the word held by the other. 
 
 3. Let pupils play "Pussy Wants a Corner" as follows: 
 Let the teacher pronounce the words held by two pupils, 
 who must try to exchange places immediately, while a 
 child in the center tries to get one of the places. 
 
 Vary this exercise by touching one pupil, who imme- 
 diately pronounces the word on some card held by another. 
 Let this second pupil then pronounce the word on the 
 card of the first and try to exchange places with him. 
 Let the child in the center try to get the place of either 
 of the pupils who thus exchange. 
 
 4. Let some child speak the name of a second, who 
 pronounces the word held by the first child and then 
 names another, who proceeds in like manner. Let any 
 child who misses, step into the circle and remain there 
 until he can pronounce some word missed by another 
 child. 
 
 5. Let the teacher name about five pupils in various 
 parts of the circle, who must turn their backs as she 
 speaks their names. Let the children in the circle "turn 
 them back" by pronouncing words held by these pupils. 
 As the word held by each is pronounced let him face the 
 circle again. 
 
 Vary this exercise and make it more difficult by asking 
 pupils to give the name of the child who has each partic- 
 ular word. 
 
 6. Let the teacher whisper some word to the center 
 child, who holds a bean bag. For example, "thank." 
 Let him say "Frank," and quickly toss the bag to some 
 child, who immediately gives a riming word and tosses 
 it back to the center. Let the center child give another
 
 80 Five Messages 
 
 riming word and toss it to another, who proceeds as the 
 first child did. Let the teacher be ready with a new word 
 as soon as the common words of one "family" are thus 
 exhausted. 
 
 THIRD AND FOURTH QUARTERS 
 Blackboard Devices 
 
 i. Continue the devices employed the first and second 
 quarters. 
 
 From this point on, the study of words composed of 
 familiar phonetic elements should more and more be 
 relegated to the regular phonic exercises. Especially 
 is this true of word drills directly preparatory to reading 
 lessons. 
 
 2. Write three or four words on the board and let 
 pupils glance at them, quickly visualizing. Cover the 
 words with a piece of cardboard, asking pupils to pro- 
 nounce. 
 
 Vary this exercise by having a longer list of words and 
 asking pupils to turn about and pronounce as many as 
 they can remember. Use word holder also. 
 
 3. Hang a large word card on one child's back. Let 
 the word on the card correspond to some word in a list 
 of ten on the board. Let the pupils each describe the 
 word, giving one sentence, and let the one who holds it 
 guess the word from the descriptions. 
 
 Vary this exercise by using the word holder as follows : 
 Turn words in the holder to the board after pupils have 
 observed them. Let some child go to the front, take a 
 card, and, without letting the class see the word, describe 
 it for the class to guess. 
 
 4. Write a word like "pin" on the board, telling pupils 
 you are thinking of a riming word. Let them ask ques-
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 81 
 
 tions thus : "Is it something from which cups are made ?" 
 "No, it is not 'tin.' " (Writes "tin.") A long list is 
 often thus worked out before the right word is given. 
 
 5. Place a list of words on the board as "think," 
 "sing," "tree," "window," "still," and send two pupils 
 from the room to decide which of these words to act 
 before the school. If they decide upon "still" they will 
 probably enter the room walking on tiptoe. The child 
 who guesses the word from the acting, names another 
 child to help him act a new word from the list. 
 
 6. Have each child turn to the word list in the back 
 of the Primer and pronounce words in succession, omitting, 
 if necessary, those special to subjects or seasons. 
 
 7. To teach correct idioms, let the teacher quickly 
 write on the board "I have seen," asking some pupil 
 to read what she has written and to finish out the sen- 
 tence. Let him answer, for example, "I have seen the 
 show." 
 
 Let the teacher continue with such idioms as, 
 I saw Have you seen ? 
 
 We were Those girls 
 
 I shall go He is n't 
 
 Thus in one lesson much quick practice both in reading 
 and language may be given. 
 
 Let the teacher select idioms corresponding to the 
 needs of her class. 
 
 Miscellaneous Suggestions 
 
 1. Drill on words found on review pages in readers, 
 thus: Let the teacher write on the board some page 
 in the reader and ask the pupils to find it. Then let 
 her say, "Find and pronounce the second word in the 
 third line; the fourth word in the sixth line; the next 
 to the last word in the third line from the last."
 
 82 Five Messages 
 
 Vary this exercise by writing the words on the board 
 and having pupils pronounce them and describe their 
 location. When pupils hesitate over a word in the read- 
 ing lesson, teach them always to locate their difficulty 
 in this way. Nothing expedites matters more than the 
 formation of this simple habit. 
 
 2 . Give practice on the different forms of the same word. 
 For example, "look," "looks," "looked," "looking." 
 
 3. Present words grouped according to subjects. For 
 example, "What we see in the spring": "robins," 
 "bluebirds," "wrens," "violets," "tulips," "green grass," 
 "green leaves." Or, "A picnic lunch": "bread and 
 butter," "milk," "meat," "fruit." 
 
 4. Make lists of words found in readers representing the 
 different parts of speech and give frequent drills upon 
 them, employing word card, blackboard, and chart devices. 
 For example, let one list represent personal pronouns: 
 "I," "he," "she," "we," "they," "me," "us," "him," 
 "her," "them," "our," "their," "who," "whose." 
 
 5. Employ word-study devices that react upon language 
 habits. The following devices for enunciation are of 
 this description. 
 
 a. Write words ending with those consonants frequently 
 slighted in pronunciation and give pupils drill in pro- 
 nouncing them. For example, "must," "desk," "lisp," 
 "send." Give similar drill upon initial letters. 
 
 b. Write words ending in "ing," as "seeing," "going," 
 "doing," and have different pupils pronounce them dis- 
 tinctly. Again, write words ending in " ly, " as " sweetly, ' ' 
 "swiftly," "friendly," "badly." 
 
 c. Give pupils practice in pronouncing words that are 
 commonly run together as, "could you," "did you," 
 "wants to," "likes to," "you and I," "had ever," "found 
 you," "wants you."
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading #j 
 
 d. Send a pupil to the corner of the room and pro- 
 nounce some word for him distinctly, asking him to make 
 it just as clear in sending it back to you. Ask him why 
 it is difficult to say the word distinctly. Continue the 
 exercise with different pupils. 
 
 Practice Reading 
 
 According to this plan, all reading for drill purposes 
 is relegated to word study. During the last two quar- 
 ters, especially during the last quarter of the year, read- 
 ing may thus be employed to great advantage. The 
 remaining devices, therefore, are for practice reading. 
 
 1. Write sentences on slips of paper, using the difficult 
 words of the last lesson, and let the class read them. 
 After each child had read the sentence on his slip, let 
 pupils exchange and read again. Endeavor to have as 
 many different sentences as there are members in the 
 class, in order that pupils may not commit to memory. 
 
 2. Turn to review reading lessons in the book and 
 make them over by elaborating or omitting ideas, by 
 changing sequence of sentences, or by substituting different 
 words. Write these new lessons on the board to test 
 the reading ability of pupils. 
 
 3. Give drill upon sentences beginning with especially 
 troublesome words, such as "where," "when," "why," 
 "which," "what," "how," "here," "there," "then," 
 "those," "these." 
 
 4. Drill the class on action reading, employing the 
 following or similar devices: 
 
 a. Write on the board miscellaneous directions for 
 pupils to follow out in action. For example, "Run 
 to the window." "See if the wind is blowing." A 
 study of the vocabulary of her class will suggest to any 
 teacher an abundance of possible directions.
 
 84 Five Messages 
 
 b. Write on the board directions that call for imper- 
 sonation on the part of pupils. For example, "Play you 
 are a chicken. Fly to your coop. Scratch for worms. 
 Peep like a chicken. Fly to your mother. Put your 
 head under her wing." 
 
 Give directions for impersonating other animals; such 
 as the frog, the lamb, the duck, the robin, the rooster. 
 
 c. Write on the board the directions for reproducing 
 the activities of adults. For example, setting the table. 
 Thus— 
 
 Bring the table. Get the knives and forks. 
 
 Bring the tablecloth Get the spoons. 
 
 Put it on the table. Put them on the table. 
 
 Let teachers finish this lesson to suit themselves. 
 Let them work out others, such as dressing the doll, 
 putting her to bed, going to market, washing and ironing. 
 
 5. Phonetic drill reading. Let teachers brighten the 
 phonic exercises by putting phonetic words into sentence 
 form. For example, "A big frog sat on a log." 
 
 6. Dialogue is an excellent device for securing and 
 holding the interest of a class. 
 
 a. Write several short dialogues on the board in such 
 form that each of the two pupils reading may have 
 every other sentence. Ask two pupils to try one of these 
 dialogues. Next, ask two others to try another, and con- 
 tinue in this manner until all have been read. Then 
 begin with the first and have them all read again by other 
 pupils. The sample dialogue given on the following page 
 will suggest many others. 
 
 b. Copy on sheets of paper half as many dialogues 
 as there are pupils in your class. Make two copies of 
 each and number the duplicates alike. Give one copy 
 to each in the class. Call for "Number 1," telling the
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 85 
 
 two pupils who have this number to step to the front 
 and try to read their dialogue. The following is an 
 example : 
 
 Storekeeper. How do you do, little girl? 
 
 Little Girl. How do you do, Mr. Storekeeper? 
 
 Storekeeper. What do you wish, little girl? 
 
 Little Girl. I wish some fruit. 
 
 Storekeeper. What kind of fruit, little girl? 
 
 Little Girl. What kinds have you? 
 
 Storekeeper. I have oranges and bananas. 
 
 Little Girl. Please give me some oranges. 
 
 Storekeeper. How many do you wish? 
 
 Little Girl. I wish a dozen. 
 
 Storekeeper. Good-by, little girl. 
 
 Little Girl. Good-by, Mr. Storekeeper. 
 
 A Closing Word for Words as Wholes 
 
 1. Teachers should not endeavor to employ, at one. 
 time, too many of the devices suggested above. They 
 should employ just enough of them to keep the work 
 interesting and profitable. 
 
 2. No teacher should use any of these exercises merely 
 because they are suggested. Only those that bring 
 results should be continued. 
 
 3 . Some of these devices should be employed frequently 
 until outgrown, while others should be employed only 
 occasionally, to brighten up the work. 
 
 4. Exercises must be selected and adapted in such 
 sequence as to develop ever-increasing power on the part 
 of pupils. 
 
 5. Teachers should select devices for a week at a time, 
 organizing and adapting them to their special needs.
 
 86 Five Messages 
 
 II. OUTLINES AND METHODS FOR FIRST 
 GRADE WORK IN PHONICS 
 
 FOREWORD 
 
 Aim of Phonic Work 
 
 The aim of phonic teaching is to simplify for pupils 
 the pronunciation and spelling of words and to train 
 them in correct enunciation. This aim involves the 
 training of the ear to distinguish the elemental sounds of 
 the language, singly and in combination; it involves 
 the training of the eye to recognize the characters that 
 represent these sounds, and the training of the vocal 
 organs to produce them correctly. 
 
 Relation of Phonics to First-grade Reading 
 
 In phonic teaching words are treated as sounds and 
 not as signs of ideas, the point being to develop necessary 
 skill in recognizing and pronouncing words rather than 
 to bring out the thoughts they suggest. This being the 
 case, phonic training comes under the head of formal word 
 study, not under that of reading, and should be kept 
 distinct from the reading. Nevertheless, pupils should 
 apply whatever phonic knowledge they have at any stage 
 in pronouncing the words of their reading lessons. That 
 is, they should make attempts (not guesses) at deciphering 
 words illustrating phonic points upon which they have 
 been drilled. If their phonic power is not sufficient to 
 enable them to pronounce such words readily, the teacher 
 or class should assist them, thus preventing interruption 
 of thought. Such points of difficulty should then be 
 relegated to the next phonic period and there impressed 
 upon pupils.
 
 
 ,' 
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 87 
 
 Limits of First-grade Phonic Work 
 
 To give pupils a good knowledge of the phonic make- 
 up of our language naturally requires about three years., 1 
 It is unnatural, and therefore unreasonable, to undertake 
 all this in the first year. There is no more reason for 
 teaching three years of phonic work in one year than for 
 teaching three years of numbers in one. 
 
 The phonic elements most fundamental to the English 
 language, together with those most common to the first 
 book which pupils are to read, afford the best material 
 in this line for first-grade lessons. 
 
 r 
 
 Phonics in a Nutshell 
 
 The idea here is not to present a "phonic system" in 
 all its detail but rather to emphasize the few phonic 
 exercises fundamental to a thorough mastery of the 
 phonetic elements common to the words of the first- 
 grade vocabulary. This scheme may, therefore, be called 
 "Phonics in a Nutshell." 
 
 These fundamental phonic exercises are only four in 
 number, consisting of: 
 
 1. Drill upon certain memory facts. 
 
 2. Building words from memory facts previously 
 taught. 
 
 3. Teaching the long and short vowel sounds. (Dur- 
 ing the second half-year.) 
 
 4. Analyzing and pronouncing words. 
 
 By grasping the point of these fundamental exercises 
 teachers are much better prepared to do effective phonic 
 teaching than by committing to memory the details of 
 the hundred or more pages of the most complete phonic 
 manual in existence.
 
 88 Five Messages 
 
 No Diacritical Markings 
 
 No diacritical markings should be taught in the first 
 grade. Pupils have no need for a knowledge of them 
 until they begin the use of the dictionary in the fourth 
 year. They need not learn markings, therefore, until 
 they reach the third grade. The sequence of letters in 
 any phonetic word, not the markings, governs the pro- 
 nunciation of that word. Therefore, to teach markings 
 in the early lessons is only to complicate the work while 
 adding nothing vital to it. 
 
 Monosyllables Only 
 
 Monosyllables only should be employed in first-grade 
 phonics. They keep the work simple and afford an 
 abundance of exercises for all first-grade purposes. 
 
 By sounding the accented syllable of such words as 
 "kitty," "apple," "yellow," and "winter," pupils get 
 the clew and have no difficulty with pronunciation. 
 
 Exceptions Not Taught as Such 
 
 Words representing exceptions to rules of phonetic 
 pronunciation should not be taught as such. These 
 words should rather be taught as wholes. A list of such 
 exceptions belonging to the first-grade vocabulary are 
 given below: 
 
 one 
 
 eyes 
 
 some 
 
 are 
 
 full 
 
 done 
 
 who 
 
 love 
 
 word 
 
 put 
 
 says 
 
 want 
 
 was 
 
 they 
 
 come 
 
 two 
 
 live 
 
 shall 
 
 you 
 
 once 
 
 again
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 80 
 
 have 
 
 know 
 
 where 
 
 said 
 
 very 
 
 would 
 
 what 
 
 give 
 
 their 
 
 many 
 
 four 
 
 could 
 
 were 
 
 knew 
 
 there 
 
 does 
 
 work 
 
 watch 
 
 been 
 
 your 
 Time Required 
 
 should 
 
 Phonic work does not necessarily require a great 
 amount of time. As has been said previously in this 
 chapter, ten minutes daily during the first quarter is 
 sufficient. During the second and third quarters the 
 time may be extended to fifteen minutes, while during 
 the fourth quarter twenty minutes daily may be employed 
 to advantage. The time here suggested insures satis- 
 factory phonic results for all ordinary first-grade classes 
 provided 
 
 1. That all drills be conducted with animation and 
 thoroughness. 
 
 2. That each exercise have a real phonic point. 
 
 3. That all forms of past work be well kept up by 
 means of daily review. 
 
 Phonic Knowledge Every Teacher Should 
 Possess 
 
 It is imperative that every teacher of this scheme of 
 phonics know 
 
 1. The vowel and consonant sounds and the mark- 
 ings for the same as found in Webster's New Inter- 
 national Dictionary. 
 
 2. Equivalent vowel and consonant sounds.
 
 go Five Messages 
 
 3. General rules for the marking of letters and the 
 pronunciation of words. 
 
 4. All words in common use which are exceptions 
 to the general rules of pronunciation. Example, "come," 
 "put," "rule." 
 
 The points above may be gained from a study of Webster's New 
 International Dictionary. 
 
 Terms Suggested for Use in Phonic Exercises 
 
 There seems to be no unanimity as to the use of terms 
 in the various phonic manuals. One or more of the 
 terms "family," "phonogram," "key," "blend," and 
 "helper" are suggested in the best known manuals, but 
 usually with different meanings in different books. It 
 has been found necessary, therefore, to suggest terms 
 for the present plan. According to this plan words 
 have "family names" and "first names" as do children. 
 For example, in the words "cap," "tap," "raps," "clap," 
 and "snaps," "ap"and"aps" are "family names"; "c," 
 "t," and "r" are single "first names"; while "cl" and 
 " sn " are double "first names." The family name is thus 
 composed of the vowel and letter, or letters, following it. 
 
 The terms "vowel" and "consonant" are employed 
 when needed. Pupils have no difficulty in understand- 
 ing them when once they are explained. 
 
 Have pupils give the sounds of the letters and place in a circle 
 all those that let the voice out without hindering it. They thus 
 segregate the "voice letters" or vowels from the consonants and 
 understand the destinction between them. 
 
 The word "sound" is employed as a verb to indicate 
 to pupils that the teacher wishes them to pronounce 
 words phonetically. For example, when she tells a pu- 
 pil to "sound 'cap'," he does so by saying "ap, cap."
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading qi 
 
 FIRST AND SECOND QUARTERS 
 Outline of Work 
 
 i . Ear and vocal training. 
 
 2. Memory facts as follows: 
 
 a. The single consonants (hard sounds of "c" and 
 "g" and soft sound of "s"). 
 
 b. The following two-letter family names in short 
 a, e, i, o, and u: it, ig, og, im, am, ip, an, at, in, ed, up, 
 un, ob, em, om, ot, ap, en, urn, on, id, et, op, ut, ag, ad, 
 ab. 
 
 3. Word building, combining the family names and 
 consonants listed above under "Memory Facts." 
 
 4. Analysis of three-letter words containing the family 
 names listed above under "Memory Facts." 
 
 Method for Ear and Vocal Training 
 
 The purpose of ear training is to develop in pupils 
 what may be termed a "sense of phonics." In the be- 
 ginning it is to prepare them for the consideration of 
 words as sounds, and later to make their ears sensitive 
 to the niceties of sound as found in our language. 
 
 1. Give commands to pupils, pronouncing one word 
 in each very slowly, as "Roy, c-ome to me." Let them 
 see how many can follow directions thus given. 
 
 2. Pronounce very slowly the names of objects found 
 in the schoolroom, and ask pupils to find them. 
 
 3. Let the class go through the motions of making 
 snowballs and, while doing so, have some such conver- 
 sation as the following: "Let us pack them hard." 
 "What is the first sound in 'pack'?" "With what do 
 we 'pack'?" Answer, "Hands." "What is the first 
 sound in ' hands' ?" This suggests many similar exercises.
 
 Q2 Five Messages 
 
 4. Pronounce a word slowly and ask pupils to give 
 the first sound they hear in it. 
 
 5. Point to some familiar object and ask pupils to 
 tell the first sound they hear when they speak its name. 
 Example, "door," "bell." 
 
 6. Let the class discover the first sound in the name 
 of each pupil. 
 
 7. Pronounce a word slowly, and ask pupils to give 
 the last sound they hear in it. 
 
 8. Pronounce three words, two of which have the 
 same initial letter, and ask pupils to tell which words 
 begin with the same sound. 
 
 9. Give a sound, and ask pupils to give words begin- 
 ning with that sound. 
 
 10. Play a word ball game as follows: Let some child 
 stand in the farthest corner of the room. Then let the 
 teacher throw him a ball (word) with her lips. Let him 
 throw it back, taking care that it comes all the way (voice), 
 and that it all comes, not just part of it (enunciation). 
 
 11. Ask pupils to tell which two out of three words 
 sound alike: "Game," "fill," "tame"; "run," "cat," 
 "sun"; tell them that the words that sound alike rime. 
 Give them practice, thus, in recognizing riming words 
 by ear. 
 
 12. Let them give words to rime with those the teacher 
 gives. 
 
 Method for Teaching the Sounds of 
 Single Consonants 
 
 1. In presenting the consonants write on the board 
 familiar words, a few of which have the same initial 
 consonant; pronounce the words slowly, asking pupils to 
 listen and to discover, by ear, without looking, which 
 words begin with a certain sound; call attention to the
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 03 
 
 written form of the letter representing this sound ; finally, 
 let pupils point to all the words beginning with this 
 letter and give the corresponding sound. 
 
 In this manner introduce all the consonants as pupils 
 are ready to take them up. The previous ear and vocal 
 training should make this an easy step. 
 
 Let teachers begin with a few consonants and have the number 
 grow slowly but surely. They should not vary their devices for 
 drill so frequently as to confuse pupils, but should have enough 
 variety to make every exercise bright and interesting. They 
 should see that the pure sound of each consonant is given, 
 not allowing vowel sounds to contaminate. For example, "d," 
 not "du." 
 
 2. Drills for impressing the consonants may be con- 
 ducted as follows: 
 
 a. Exercises with cards: 
 
 Make daily use of tagboard cards cut 6" x 6"; letters 
 written upon them by means of a rubber pen or the rubber 
 end of a lead pencil. (Tagboard may be obtained at 
 slight cost at any printing office.) 
 
 Employ the card exercises suggested for "Words as 
 Wholes," p. 71. Nothing brings better results than card 
 exercises when properly conducted. They should be 
 employed daily. 
 
 b. Exercises from the blackboard: 
 
 Most of the blackboard devices given for "Words as 
 Wholes" may easily be adapted for impressing the sounds. 
 Other suggestions follow. 
 
 (1) Write the consonants on the board at random and 
 have the class sound each as it is written. Then point 
 to the different letters and have the class sound; or let 
 the class underline or erase letters as the teacher sounds 
 them; or let her erase letters and have the class sound.
 
 94 Five Messages 
 
 (2) Write the consonants at the top of the board in 
 the form of a border to be used in various quick drills. 
 Let one child take the pointer, pass to the board, and 
 sound the letters in order until he hesitates. Then call 
 upon some one else to continue. 
 
 (3) Let the teacher pronounce a word distinctly and 
 ask pupils to point to the letter that represents any 
 sound they heard in it. 
 
 (4) Place a list of familiar words upon the board and 
 ask pupils to find a word that begins with a certain 
 sound which she gives ; to find one that ends with a sound 
 she gives; to point to words that contain letters they 
 can sound. 
 
 (5) Place a list of several unfamiliar words on the 
 board, no two beginning with the same letter. Let the 
 teacher pronounce the words slowly and clearly, and ask 
 pupils to try to find them, thus applying their knowledge 
 of the sounds of initial letters. 
 
 (6) Write a letter on the board, telling pupils it is the 
 first letter of some important word in the last reading 
 lesson and ask them to try to think what it may be. 
 
 Pupils may be given six or eight weeks for learning the 
 sounds of the consonants. After this they should begin 
 to learn the family names. 
 
 Method for Teaching the Two-letter, Short-vowel 
 
 Family Names 
 
 1. In presenting these names write on the board the 
 word "Ben," for example, and ask pupils to give words 
 that rime with it (as "men," "ten," "hen"). Ask them 
 to listen as some one pronounces these words and try to 
 discover, by ear, the part that sounds the same in each. 
 If previous ear training has been thorough, pupils will
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading Q5 
 
 do this readily. Now, write these words under "Ben" 
 and have pupils discover, by eye, the part that looks the 
 same, and underline it in each word. 
 
 At this point, suggest the term family name for "en," 
 and first name for each of the letters, "B," "m," "t," 
 "h." Compare the words thus made with the names of 
 children, as — 
 
 Nora Smith Edna Smith 
 
 Henry Smith Willie Smith 
 
 Here also the family name is the same, but the first 
 name is different in each case. 
 
 In the same manner, gradually present the two-letter, 
 short-vowel family names given in the outline on p. 91. 
 
 2. Drills for impressing the family names may be 
 conducted as follows : After each family name is presented, 
 place it on a card, also on the board, with the consonants 
 and bring it into the drills as suggested above for con- 
 sonants. Have pupils say "en" when the teacher holds 
 up the corresponding card just as they sound "t" when 
 she holds up that card. These family names should 
 receive daily drill until made as familiar to pupils as are 
 the consonant sounds. Constantly review consonant 
 sounds while teaching the family names. 
 
 Method for Teaching Pupils to Build and 
 
 Pronounce Words 
 
 About the middle of the second month of school, after 
 
 the sounds of the consonants are fairly faml lar to pupils, 
 
 and after a few of the family names have been taught, 
 
 let pupils begin to build words. 
 
 1. Let the teacher write on the board some familiar 
 family name, asking pupils to give it. Then let her 
 quickly place before it some consonant and ask pupils to
 
 q6 Five Messages 
 
 pronounce the word thus built. In a similar manner 
 build a dozen or more words daily after beginning this 
 exercise. 
 
 2. Let the teacher hold up a card on which is written 
 a familiar family name and have pupils give it. Let her 
 quickly place before it another card on which is written 
 a consonant and have pupils pronounce the word thus 
 built. In a similar manner build a dozen or more words 
 daily after beginning this exercise. 
 
 The foregoing exercises may be varied by writing a 
 family name on the board and holding before it a card 
 containing a consonant ; or by holding up a card contain- 
 ing a family name and giving the consonant sound orally 
 for pupils to combine with the family name and pro- 
 nounce the word thus built. 
 
 3. Place five or six duplicates of some family name on 
 the board, "ill," for example. Ask pupils how they can 
 make "mill." Pupils answer, "By placing 'm' (giving 
 the sound, not name, of letter) before 'ill.'" Ask how 
 they can change it to "fill," and so on. 
 
 4. Place a family name on the board. Draw about 
 ten lines radiating from this to the left. At the end of 
 each line write a consonant. Point to those consonants 
 that combine with this family name to make words and 
 have pupils pronounce the words thus built. When all 
 possible combinations have been made, write a second 
 family name in the place of the first one and have pupils 
 pronounce all possible new words. 
 
 Teachers should combine only those family names 
 and consonants that make words belonging to the first- 
 grade vocabulary. They should never ask children to 
 pronounce combinations that do not make words ; neither 
 should they ask them to pronounce words which pupils 
 do not understand.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading gy 
 
 Method for Teaching Pupils to Analyze the Three- 
 letter Words Listed 
 
 i. Let the teacher sound words written on the board, 
 having pupils touch the family name in each as she gives it. 
 For example, the teacher says, "at, cat." Let some pupil 
 touch "at" as the teacher slowly gives this family name. 
 
 2. Let the teacher write words on the board and draw 
 lines under the family names, first helping pupils to 
 analyze and then asking them to sound words. They 
 sound by saying, for example, "ag, bag," or "un, sun." 
 
 3. Let the teacher write a family name on the front 
 board and another on the side board. Let her distribute 
 among the pupils several word cards, part containing 
 one and part the other of these family names. At a 
 signal, let pupils having words containing the family 
 name written on the front board, run up to the front; 
 likewise, the others run to the side board. Before giving 
 his card to the teacher and running to his seat, let each 
 child hold it before the school, and sound the word on it. 
 For example, let him say "op, top." 
 
 4. Sometimes when asking pupils to sound words dur- 
 ing the early stages, let the teacher hold under the family 
 name of each word a card on which is written a duplicate 
 of the family name in the word. This is but another 
 way of helping pupils analyze words. 
 
 5. Call about three pupils to the front, giving each a 
 card on which is written a family name. Give word 
 cards to pupils in the seats. At a signal from the teacher, 
 let one of the pupils at the front give the family name on 
 his card, and let all pupils who have words containing 
 this family name run up and surround him. Before 
 taking his seat, have each child sound his word. Repeat 
 the signal for the other two in front.
 
 q8 Five Messages 
 
 6. Write promiscuously upon the board, words repre- 
 senting different family names. Give pupils much 
 practice in telling those family names they know. For 
 example, "I know 'og' in 'dog.'" "I know 'in' in 'tin.' " 
 
 7. Give pupils much drill in underlining and telling 
 family names in words written on the board and then 
 in pronouncing the words. 
 
 The sooner pupils reach the stage in which they can 
 go through this exercise correctly and quickly, the better. 
 
 THIRD AND FOURTH QUARTERS 
 Outline and Method Combined 
 
 The material here given is divided into four groups. 
 To each of these groups every first-grade teacher should 
 devote five minutes daily. Pupils gain phonic power by 
 means of quick, animated drills of an extensive nature 
 more rapidly than by more intensive and seemingly more 
 thoroughgoing exercises. Teachers who cannot devote 
 twenty minutes daily to phonics should devote at least 
 ten, covering in two days the work here suggested for 
 one day. 
 
 Group I 
 
 Teach the following phonic elements as memory facts: 
 
 Family names: ack, eck, ick, ock, uck; ang, ing, ong, 
 ung; ank, ink, unk; all, ell, ill; ar, er, ir, or, ur. 
 
 Vowel equivalents and diphthongs: ay, ai, ee, oa, ea 
 (long and short), 00 (long and short), oi, oy, ou, ow. 
 
 Double consonants: bl, br, cl, cr, dr, fl, fr, gl, gr, pi, pr, 
 sk, si, sm, sn, sp, st, tr, sh, ch, wh, and th (hard and soft). 
 
 Introduce these phonic elements while helping pupils
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading qq 
 
 analyze familiar words containing them. For example, 
 introduce "th" and "ir" by helping pupils find the first 
 name and the small family name in the known word 
 "third." 
 
 The family names given in the phonic outline for the 
 first and second grades should be included with the 
 material for this group. They should be reviewed just 
 often enough to keep pupils thoroughly familiar with 
 them. 
 
 Place the phonic elements indicated above on the 
 blackboard, also on cardboard cut 6"x6" (one on each 
 square), and drill upon them as follows: 
 
 i. In the beginning point to each phonic element 
 on the board, or hold up one card after another, and 
 give the appropriate sound or pronunciation, having 
 pupils look and listen. In this manner cover the material 
 of Group I three or four times daily during the five 
 minutes allotted to this work. 
 
 2. Later, sound or pronounce each phonic element 
 of the list, having pupils repeat each immediately after- 
 ward. 
 
 3. Still later, devote five minutes to concert recitation 
 by pupils. Continue this until the class has power to 
 recite the whole list in any order. 
 
 4. Begin the individual work as soon as possible, 
 sometimes calling upon a different pupil for each sound 
 or pronunciation, and sometimes allowing one to recite 
 until he makes a mistake, when another should be given 
 a like trial. 
 
 After every* individual in the class has become able to 
 give all of these memory facts in blackboard and card 
 drills, two minutes daily is sufficient to keep up review 
 of this group. The other three minutes should then be 
 given to Group IV.
 
 ioo Five Messages 
 
 Group II 
 
 Build family names and words from familiar phonic 
 elements. 
 
 Let the teacher write "en" upon the board, having 
 pupils pronounce, and then add "t," evolving "ent," 
 and have pupils pronounce; let her add "t" to "oa," 
 evolving "oat" for pupils to pronounce, then place "c" 
 before "oat," evolving "coat" for pupils to pronounce. 
 
 Five minutes daily should be devoted to this class of 
 work until pupils have mastered the words listed below 
 for Group II. After that, let teachers give two minutes 
 daily to this group and the remaining three minutes to 
 Group IV. 
 
 i. According to the method suggested above, help 
 pupils build words from vowel equivalents and diph- 
 thongs listed in Group I as follows: 
 
 From "ay" — day, hay, lay, may, pay, say, way, dray, 
 play, pray, stay. 
 
 From "ai" — aid, paid, laid, maid, afraid, braid; ail, 
 fail, hail, mail, nail, pail, rail, sail, tail; ain, gain, pain, 
 rain, brain, stain, plain, grain, chain, dainty; aise, raise; 
 ait, wait; aint, paint. 
 
 From "ee" — bee, see, wee, free, tree, three; eed, feed, 
 need, seed, weed; eek, peek, cheek; eel, feel, heel, peel; 
 eem, seem; een, seen, queen; eep, deep, keep, peep, 
 weep, sheep, steep, sleep, sweep; eer, queer; eet, beet, 
 feet, sleet, sheet, sweet; eeth, teeth. 
 
 From "oa" — oad, load, road, toad; oaf, loaf; oam, 
 loam; oan, loan, moan; oap, soap; oar, roar; oard, 
 board; oat, boat, goat, float. 
 
 From "ea" long — tea; each, reach, teach; ead, bead, 
 read; eaf, leaf; eak, leak, weak, speak, squeak; earn, 
 cream, stream; ean, clean, mean; eap, leap, reap, cheap;
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 101 
 
 ear, dear, hear, near, tear, year; ease, please, tease; 
 eat, beat, heat, meat, neat, seat; eave, leave, weave. 
 
 From "ea" short — ead, head, bread, tread, thread, 
 spread, ready; eant, meant; eath, feathers. 
 
 From "oo" short — ood, good, hood, wood, stood; ook, 
 book, cook, look, took, brook, shook. 
 
 From "oo" long — too; ood, food; ool, cool, school; 
 oom, room, broom; oon, moon, noon, soon, spoon; oop, 
 hoop, droop, stoop; oose, goose; oot, hoot; oor, poor. 
 
 From "oi" — oice, voice; oil, boil, soil, spoil; oist, 
 moist; oint, point, joint; oise, noise. 
 
 From "oy" — boy, joy, Roy, toy. 
 
 From "ou" — oud, loud, proud, cloud; ounce, pounce; 
 ound, found, round, sound, ground; ount, count; our, 
 flour; ouse, house, mouse; out, shout, stout, trout, 
 about, sprout; outh, mouth. 
 
 From "ow" having sound of "ou" — bow, cow, how, 
 now, brow, crowd, owl, growl, brown, down, plow, town. 
 
 From "ow" having sound of long "o" — bow, low, mow, 
 row, sow, blow, grow, flow, know, slow, show, snow, bowl, 
 own. 
 
 Introduce variety in order of family names as soon as 
 possible. Example, "coat," "rain," "seed," — rather 
 than "seed," "need," "feed." 
 
 2. Review the two-letter short -vowel family names 
 by adding "s" to each. Example, place "ip" on the 
 board, having pupil pronounce, then add "s," evolving 
 "ips" for them to pronounce. 
 
 3. Help pupils build words from the family names in 
 Group I as follows : 
 
 back, Jack, pack, rack, sack, tack, black, crack, stack; 
 neck, peck, check, speck; pick, sick, tick, wick, brick, 
 stick, quick, pickles; lock, rock, shock, flock, pocket; 
 duck, luck.
 
 102 Five Messages 
 
 bang, hang, rang, sang, sprang; king, ring, sing, bring, 
 sting, swing, spring; long, song, strong; hung, rung, 
 sung, stung, strung. 
 
 bank, sank, tank, drank, thank ; pink, sink, wink, drink, 
 think; trunk. 
 
 all, ball, call, fall, hall, tall, wall, small; bell, fell, 
 sell, tell, well, spell, smell, swell, shell; bill, fill, hill, 
 kill, pill, still, chill. 
 
 car, far, jar, star, scar, March, card, hard, lard, garden, 
 large, dark, mark, park, arm, harm, sharp, cart, part, 
 tart, start, party, marbles, parlor. 
 
 her, fern, serve; bird, third, girl, whirl, first, dirt, 
 birthday; for, fork, form, corn, north, short; fur, pur, 
 curl, burn, turn, churn, hurt, burst, hurry, turkey. 
 
 Introduce variety in order of family names as soon as 
 possible. 
 
 In addition to words listed above, teachers should 
 help pupils build such other phonetic words as occur in 
 book or board reading lessons. Example, "el," "elp," 
 "help"; "il," "ilk," "silk"; "un," "unch," "lunch." 
 
 Group III 
 Develop a knowledge of and teach the short and long vowels. 
 
 i. Write on the board pairs of familiar words like — 
 am, came; fed, feed; him, time; it, white; from, home; 
 cut, cute. Let pupils underline the family names in each 
 pair and pronounce. Then let them give the sound of 
 the first letter of each family name, thus bringing out the 
 long and the short sounds of the vowels. Tell pupils 
 the names of the sounds as given. Example, "You 
 have just given the long sound of 'i.'" Continue this 
 until the sounds and their names are clearly distinguished. 
 
 2. Give pupils drill in reciting the long and short
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading ioj 
 
 sounds of vowels as the teacher points to the unmarked 
 letters written on the board, or holds up cards contain- 
 ing them. Example, "Give the short sound of each 
 letter to which I point; the long sound." 
 
 3. Give vowel sounds and have pupils name them. 
 For example, have a pupil say, "You gave the short 
 sound of 'o.' " 
 
 4. Pronounce words containing short vowels, also words 
 containing long vowels, and have pupils tell what vowel 
 sound they hear in each. 
 
 5. Have pupils compare "am" and "ame," "im" and 
 "ime," "om" and "ome," and tell the difference. Final 
 "e" may be called a fairy that can change "am" to "ame." 
 
 6. Give regular drills on the long family names listed 
 below, together with short family names previously 
 taught. Use the card and blackboard devices suggested 
 for first and second quarters. Do not make final "e" 
 a matter of discussion but, rather, one of drill. Have 
 pupils say "am" and "ame," as they drill upon these 
 unmarked family names, as if each were only a simple 
 sound. 
 
 Continue drill until pupils can recognize instantly, in any 
 order, and pronounce the long family names given below : 
 
 abe, ace, ade, afe, age, ake, ale, ame, ane, ange, ase, 
 aste, ate, ave; eed, eef, eek, eel, eem, een, eep, eet, eer; 
 ice, ide, ife, ike, ile, ime, ine, ipe, ire, ite, ive, ize; oke, 
 ole, ome, one, ope, ore, ose, ote, ove; ube, une, ure, use, 
 ute; ew. 
 
 Group IV 
 
 Have pupils analyze words phonetically and pronounce 
 them. 
 
 All of the exercises in Groups I, II, and III are to the 
 end that pupils may gain power for the work of Group IV.
 
 104 Five Messages 
 
 Let the exercises be so spirited that much ground 
 may be covered daily in the five minutes devoted to 
 this work. 
 
 i. Write words promiscuously on the board and ask 
 pupils to pronounce the family names they know. For 
 example, a pupil says, "I know 'et' in 'pet.' " Another 
 says, "I know 'eep' in 'sheep.' " 
 
 2. Place on the board monosyllables containing the 
 phonic elements suggested in Groups I and III and give 
 pupils much practice in underlining family names quickly 
 and then sounding words. For example, in sounding 
 the word "coat" have pupils underline "oat" and pro- 
 nounce it, then, without sounding "c" separately, pro- 
 nounce the whole word. 
 
 3. During the last quarter of the year, sooner if pupils 
 have power, lead them to pronounce words without first 
 sounding aloud by directing them as follows : 
 
 a. "Look at the family name in this word and think 
 it; the first name and think it; think the whole word; 
 now pronounce it." 
 
 Tell the pupils this is the way to study words. Later, 
 when they have gained power thus to study, direct them 
 as follows: 
 
 b. " Study this word ; pronounce it." 
 
 Until pupils have power thus silently to analyze and 
 pronounce most phonetic words common to first-grade 
 vocabularies, they have not gained the goal of first- 
 grade phonic work. 
 
 According to methods suggested above, have pupils 
 phonetically analyze words belonging to the following 
 groups : 
 
 1. Monosyllables containing two-letter family names 
 having short vowels. Example, "ran," "top."
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 10$ 
 
 2. Monosyllables containing the family names, vowel 
 equivalents, diphthongs, and double consonants given in 
 Group I. 
 
 3. Monosyllables containing final "e." 
 
 4. Words easily deciphered by pupils through appli- 
 cation of phonic power, such as the following: 
 
 answered 
 
 dasher 
 
 pumpkin 
 
 began 
 
 dinner 
 
 Saturday 
 
 begin 
 
 doctor 
 
 scamper 
 
 better 
 
 dollar 
 
 sister 
 
 bitten 
 
 ever 
 
 slipper 
 
 bottom 
 
 finish 
 
 standing 
 
 bulbs 
 
 kittens 
 
 under 
 
 bump 
 
 lesson 
 
 velvet 
 
 butter 
 
 lumber 
 
 visit 
 
 candle 
 
 manners 
 
 wagon 
 
 crept 
 
 mittens 
 
 whiskers 
 
 cunning 
 
 nodding 
 
 whispered 
 
 daffodil 
 
 powder 
 
 winter 
 
 Application of Phonics to Reading 
 
 Devices to be used during the phonic period preceding 
 any reading lesson: 
 
 1 . Select from the book and place on the board words 
 which contain familiar family names, underlining family 
 names, then have pupils sound and pronounce words. 
 
 2. Place on the board the familiar family names found 
 in the words of the lesson, and have the pupils find the 
 words in the book containing each and pronounce them. 
 
 3. Have pupils look at the book and tell the family 
 names they recognize, then sound the words containing 
 them. 
 
 4. Have pupils find all possible family names that
 
 106 Five Messages 
 
 have "a" for the vowel, and then sound the words con- 
 taining them; also "e," "i," "o," and "u." 
 
 5. Have pupils find and pronounce the small family 
 names in words. Example, "ar" in "park"; "es" in 
 "best"; "il" in "milk." 
 
 6. Have pupils find all possible long family names in a 
 lesson and describe their location. Example, "I find 
 'ake' in the third word of the second sentence." 
 
 7. After pupils learn to distinguish between long and 
 short vowels, help them decipher irregular words by 
 telling them the name of the vowel sound. Example, 
 "The vowel sound in that word is that of short 'u.'" 
 Pupils sound "touch." 
 
 8. Usually have pupils sound only the accented sylla- 
 bles in words of more than one syllable. This, together 
 with the context, will give them a clew to the pronuncia- 
 tion of most dissyllables used in First Readers. 
 
 Phonic work appropriate to a reading lesson: 
 
 The quick sounding of words is the only phase of phonics 
 that should ever enter the reading recitation. All drill 
 upon unfamiliar phonic elements should be relegated to 
 phonic periods. Pupils can, however, decipher quickly 
 many of the words of a reading lesson with slight helps 
 from the teacher, such as : 
 
 1. "Give the family name in that word; the first 
 name; now sound the word. 
 
 2. "What is the part of the word you do not know?" 
 
 3. "The small family name in that word is 'ur'; build 
 the larger family name." The child builds "urt" and 
 sounds the word "hurt." 
 
 4. "You know this word." (Writes "good.") " What 
 is this word?" (Substitutes "h" for "g.") The child 
 pronounces "hood."
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading ioy 
 
 5. "The 'a' in that word is long. What is the family 
 name; the word?" 
 
 When pupils encounter unfamiliar words containing 
 "ea" have them decide in each case whether the "e" is 
 short or long by the meaning of the sentence in which it 
 is found. Do the same with "ow" and "oo" words. 
 
 As pupils encounter words in which "c" has the sound 
 of "s," or "g" the sound of "j," or "s" the sound of "z," 
 call attention to these consonant equivalents whenever 
 necessary and have the pupils sound the words. 
 
 A Closing Word for Phonics 
 
 We have endeavored to impress the fact that all phonic 
 drill is to the end that pupils may acquire a key to pro- 
 nunciation for use in reading. Let teachers be quick, 
 therefore, to utilize opportunities for the application of 
 phonic power to reading lessons without interrupting 
 the thought. 
 
 If directions have been followed carefully, pupils wall 
 be able at this stage to pronounce most phonetic mono- 
 syllables common to ordinary first readers. 
 
 III. SPELLING 
 
 Suggestions for the earliest steps in spelling or for words 
 considered as to the sequence of letters composing them. 
 
 Visualization 
 
 Visualization should be employed from the beginning. 
 In this, the teacher should write a word upon the black- 
 board in large, easy handwriting; should assist pupils 
 in concentrating their attention upon its form; should 
 then erase and have pupils reproduce the word in a large, 
 easy hand. During the first three quarters of the year
 
 108 Five Messages 
 
 the reproduction should be entirely upon the blackboard, 
 but during the last quarter upon paper as well. When 
 paper is used for this purpose pupils should write with 
 soft broad pencils. In either case, the writing should 
 be large and free. Not more than one word should be 
 attempted at first. Gradually, pupils will grow in power 
 until they can reproduce several words during an exer- 
 cise. Not more than two or three minutes should be 
 given to visualization at first, but this may gradually 
 be increased to ten minutes. 
 
 Let teachers see to it that pupils form letters correctly, 
 not starting at the wrong point nor moving the hand in 
 the wrong direction. 
 
 Oral Spelling 
 
 There should be no oral spelling in the first grade until 
 the last quarter, and only a very little of it then. Its 
 purpose here is merely to fix the names of letters in the 
 minds of pupils and to serve as a slight preparation for 
 the regular spelling exercises of the second grade. 
 
 i. Let pupils pronounce the words of the regular word- 
 study exercises, then name their letters in order as they 
 look at them. 
 
 2. Let pupils visualize words; then, with closed eyes, 
 name their letters. If they cannot remember them, let 
 them look again. 
 
 3. Let the teacher spell words and the pupils write 
 them. 
 
 4. Let pupils spell some of the easy phonic families; 
 examples, "at," "ed," "in," "og," "up," "ack," "ink," 
 "ong." 
 
 5. Let pupils build and spell words from phonic families. 
 For example, let the teacher point to "at." Let pupils
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading ioq 
 
 think of words that belong to this family and spell them, 
 as r-a-t, c-a-t, m-a-t. 
 
 A CLOSING WORD 
 
 Let the following observations serve as a closing word 
 for this chapter : 
 
 By comparing the word-study devices for the beginning 
 of the first quarter, it will be discovered that much 
 progress is suggested during the course of the year. 
 
 While the material suggested above is very important, 
 and thoroughly to be mastered, the most distinctive 
 feature of this chapter is found in the fact that it is 
 intended ever to be kept secondary to the end for which 
 it exists — the unlocking of the thought of the printed page.
 
 MESSAGE FOUR 
 
 SEAT WORK AS RELATED TO READING AND 
 WORD STUDY 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 TT IS essential to the success of all first-grade work 
 that pupils be provided with profitable occupation 
 for seat periods. It is especially essential to success in 
 reading that they be provided regularly with related seat 
 work made constantly more difficult as they grow in power. 
 Beginning first-grade classes may represent any one 
 of the following types : immature pupils; average pupils; 
 mature pupils. Each teacher is, therefore, under the 
 necessity of providing her class with seat work in accord- 
 ance with the type to which they belong. 
 
 Educational Features Twofold 
 
 The educational features of seat work are twofold; 
 those relating to the manipulation of materials, and those 
 of a more strictly mental type. 
 
 Manipulation of Materials 
 
 The manipulation of materials always claims first 
 attention. During the first quarter it is necessary for 
 the teacher to take five minutes of every seat period 
 teaching pupils how to go about the work, and giving 
 them power to pursue future exercises independently. 
 During the entire year, when giving pupils a new form of 
 seat work, it is necessary for the teacher to spend a period 
 teaching them how to do it. 
 
 no
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading m 
 
 Mental Features 
 
 The "mental" features of seat work, as distinguished 
 from the "muscular," are often overlooked. In cases 
 where this is true, exercises represent nothing more than 
 "busy work," and are unworthy of skillful teachers. 
 
 Seat Work Must Represent Progress 
 
 Seat work must represent progress. The devices used 
 each week should be a trifle more difficult than those of 
 the preceding week, and should be kept up to date, thus 
 paralleling subjects taught. 
 
 Careful Assignments 
 
 Careful assignments of seat work should be made. 
 Teachers should see to it that pupils not only know what 
 they are to do, but that they grasp the point of each 
 exercise before undertaking it. For example, when a 
 list of words is involved, let the teacher call upon the class 
 to pronounce it before setting them to work. 
 
 Inspection of Finished Work 
 
 All seat work should be inspected when finished. The 
 first few exercises with a new device require more care- 
 ful inspection than do later ones. Teachers should keep 
 in mind the particular point in each exercise that is most 
 difficult for pupils, and should be able to tell at a glance 
 if the class, as a whole, has accomplished it. Allowing 
 an extra moment for the work of slow pupils, the ordi- 
 nary inspection need not cover more than two or three 
 minutes. In most classes there are a few quick pupils 
 who can quietly assist the slow ones after completing
 
 H2 Five Messages 
 
 their own work. In rural schools the older pupils can 
 easily inspect the seat work of the little ones. 
 
 Pupils Held to Tasks Assigned 
 
 Pupils should be made to feel the importance of seat 
 occupation by being held to all tasks assigned. This fact 
 suggests to teachers the necessity of always assigning 
 possible tasks and, as said above, of inspecting all work 
 when finished. 
 
 Management of Material 
 
 Much depends upon the teacher's management of 
 material. The seat-work period may be conducive to 
 the smoothest possible running of school affairs, or it 
 may be the signal for general disorder. Material for 
 every seat period should be ready and close at hand at 
 the opening of each session. In rural schools the older 
 pupils may have entire charge of such material. 
 
 Work to Fill Entire Periods 
 
 Teachers should plan enough work to occupy pupils 
 throughout entire periods. Extra kinds or quantities 
 should be given regularly to those "quick" pupils who 
 are sure to finish before others and, then, to cause dis- 
 turbance if not employed. 
 
 The Training of Monitors 
 
 Monitors should be trained to distribute and take up 
 each variety without assistance. Teachers should pro- 
 vide against interruptions and emergencies by having 
 pupils understand what else to do if, for any reason, 
 they cannot do the work assigned.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 113 
 
 Necessary Equipment 
 
 The equipment necessary for providing the kinds of 
 work suggested in this chapter is extremely simple, con- 
 sisting of: 
 
 Paper: 
 Tagboard, medium weight. 
 Newspaper; imprinted, white and colored. 
 
 Pencils; large and soft. 
 
 Colored crayons. 
 
 Colored lentils. 
 
 Colored inch sticks. 
 
 Paste and toothpicks. 
 
 Alphabet cards. 
 
 Scissors. 
 
 Envelopes; large and cheap. 
 
 Paper weaving mats. 
 
 Rulers; marked off into inch lengths. 
 
 Hektograph; hektograph paper and ink. 
 
 Where to Procure Equipment 
 
 The materials here listed are inexpensive and may be 
 obtained as follows: 
 
 Tagboard, unprinted newspaper, and hektograph pa- 
 per, from any firm dealing in paper or from a printing 
 office. 
 
 Paste, hektograph ink, and envelopes, from any firm 
 dealing in stationery. 
 
 Pencils, colored crayons, lentils, inch sticks, weaving 
 mats, alphabet cards, rulers, and scissors, from any local 
 firm dealing in school supplies. 
 
 Teachers may procure ready-made hektographs at 
 establishments carrying school supplies, or they may 
 make their own from either of the following formulas: 
 
 8
 
 1 14 Five Messages 
 
 Homemade Hektographs 
 
 Formula No. 1: 5 oz. Knox's gelatine; 1 qt. glycerine. 
 
 Soak gelatine in one quart of water over night. Next 
 morning add glycerine and place in a double boiler. 
 After it begins to boil, let it continue from five to seven 
 minutes. Then pour into two shallow cake tins, each 
 having a surface about 10" x 12," being careful to 
 avoid bubbles. Set away to cool, removing with a 
 knife any bubbles that may appear. Do not use for 
 forty-eight hours. If in good condition, it will be spongy 
 to the touch by the end of this time. If it is soft and 
 sticky instead, pour it back into the double boiler and 
 cook a little longer. 
 
 Formula No. 2: 6 oz. white glue; 7 oz. water; 14 oz. 
 glycerine; 4 or 5 drops carbolic acid. 1 
 
 Soak the glue in water an hour. Add the glycerine 
 and boil in a double boiler twenty minutes, stirring fre- 
 quently. Pour into a shallow cake tin as directed in 
 Formula No. 1. 
 
 A good hektograph ink may be made by dissolving one 
 dram of purple aniline in one ounce of water. It is quite 
 as well, however, to purchase hektograph ink from a dealer. 
 
 If the hektograph is to be used often, it is a saving to 
 own two; in which case it is necessary only to rinse off 
 the lint with lukewarm water after using, letting it stand 
 two or three days, or until the ink has settled, before 
 using again. Washing with warmer water wastes the 
 filling and, unless much care is exercised, makes the 
 surface rough. 
 
 If for any reason the hektograph should become rough, 
 it may be melted by placing it upon a warm radiator or 
 stove; then set it away to cool on some level surface. 
 
 1 Double these quantities if two hektographs are desired.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 115 
 
 How to Use the Hektograph 
 
 Place the hektograph in a warm room several hours 
 before using it, so that it will take on the temperature 
 of the room. 
 
 In cold weather, better results may be secured if a 
 cloth wrung from hot water is laid for a moment upon 
 the surface of the hektograph, which should then be dried 
 thoroughly before the pattern is applied. 
 
 The method of using the hektograph is here indicated 
 by means of specific directions for making a set of enve- 
 lopes containing material necessary for the second device 
 under "matching identical words" suggested on p. 118 
 of this chapter. 
 
 Take as many envelopes as are needed to supply the 
 largest class of a room. Slip into each a tagboard card, 
 slightly smaller than the envelope, on which is written 
 a list of words. Write the following label on the out- 
 side of each envelope: "Matching identical words — 
 Device b." 
 
 Mark all the envelopes with the same number, but 
 each with a different letter. Put into them material 
 made according to the following directions: 
 
 Take a sheet of smooth hard-finish paper (hektograph 
 paper) a trifle smaller than the surface of the hektograph 
 and fold it into oblongs about three quarters of an inch 
 wide and two inches long. Then unfold and with hek- 
 tograph ink, using a coarse pen, carefully draw free-hand 
 lines along each crease made by folding. Next, write in 
 the oblongs with hektograph ink duplicates of the words 
 on the cards placed in envelopes. Let the ink dry at 
 least fifteen minutes; over night is better. An indeli- 
 ble pencil may be substituted for hektograph ink. 
 
 Impress the copy by applying it, face downward, to
 
 u6 Five Messages 
 
 the hektograph, smoothing carefully with a warm hand 
 three to five minutes before removing. 
 
 Next, print the copies by applying to the surface of 
 the hektograph thin tagboard of proper size. An eraser 
 covered with a soft white cloth is a convenient means of 
 applying the tagboard, one or two sweeps of the eraser 
 doing the work. If the copies grow dim before enough 
 have been taken off, touch the surface of the hekto- 
 graph with a damp sponge, being careful not to blur 
 the copy. After the required number is thus printed, 
 let the teacher (or pupils) cut along the lines separating 
 the words, in this way making small word cards. 
 
 In rural schools where teachers have less than .five 
 pupils in the beginning class it is better for them to have 
 tagboard cut at the printing office into oblongs i" x 2" 
 and to have the upper-grade pupils write the words on 
 these oblongs. The hektograph is scarcely a saving of 
 time where classes are less than five in number. 
 
 Place the small word cards made from each sheet in 
 an envelope and take them all to some upper-grade 
 class, requesting them to label the small word cards 
 contained in each in accordance with the number and 
 letter on the outside. By this means a pupil can readily 
 recognize his own material if he chances to drop it and 
 can return to the teacher's desk any not belonging to him, 
 making it easy for her to keep work properly segregated. 
 
 Many primary teachers organise "helping clubs" with pupils 
 of the upper grades, obtaining much assistance for themselves and 
 affording pleasure to the pupils. In rural schools the older pupils 
 may constitute the " helping clubs." 
 
 Before putting a rubber band around the set of envel- 
 opes thus made ready for use, let the teacher see that 
 the small cards are nearest the front of each envelope and
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading ny 
 
 the large card nearest the back. Let her then tuck the 
 flap of the envelope between the large card and the 
 back, thus keeping the small cards from falling out. 
 
 The method just described for preparing the contents 
 of this special set of envelopes is suggestive of that for 
 the preparation of all envelope devices requiring hekto- 
 graphed material. Each envelope containing small cards 
 should also contain a large card. Whenever a copy is 
 needed as a guide for pupils in the work it should be 
 hektographed on this card, but with exercises where one 
 is not needed, the large card is necessary to keep the 
 small cards from falling out of the envelope. 
 
 In case teachers prefer to hektograph guide material 
 on the outside of envelopes instead of placing it on the 
 large cards inside, they can easily do so. Cards have 
 the advantage, however, of keeping surfaces more nearly 
 flat and of remaining unsoiled for a longer time. 
 
 Many teachers prefer large tagboard envelopes to 
 the smaller and cheaper ones. These may always be 
 obtained at a reasonable price. 
 
 Receptacles for Seat-work Material 
 
 Some teachers prefer small tagboard trays, or paper 
 plates, or wooden butter plaques in place of envelopes 
 during the first few weeks, or until pupils have learned 
 to handle material with some degree of care and can be 
 trusted to manipulate the flaps of envelopes as sug- 
 gested above without tearing them. 
 
 Some teachers prefer the small boxes obtained at drug 
 stores; others, the very small tagboard ice-cream pails 
 obtained at ice-cream stands. 
 
 Another very convenient receptacle for seat work may 
 be made as follows: Take a piece of tagboard 9" x 11".
 
 n8 Five Messages 
 
 Fold one of the 9-inch edges slightly past the center of 
 the sheet and crease. Fold the other 9-inch edge so as 
 to lap slightly over the first edge, making an envelope 
 5" x 9". Paste these edges together. Next, close one 
 end by folding back half an inch and hemming it down on 
 the machine. This gives an envelope 5" x &}4" open at 
 the top. A set of such envelopes may easily be stood up 
 in a box when not in use. 
 
 The author's part in the preparation of the following 
 devices is largely a matter of selec^ipiv and organization. 
 > She acknowledges help from teachers' books and mag- 
 azines, and also from \many ^primary teachers of the 
 Seattle public schools, who have assisted in selecting 
 and adapting the best devices from the many tested and 
 in rejecting the others. 
 
 FIRST AND SECOND QUARTERS 
 I. Words as Wholes 
 
 1. Have pupils outline words. \j 
 With a heavy pencil write words on paper, making 
 
 one space letters about two inches high. Give a word 
 and some lentils to each child, asking him to outline the 
 word. Seeds may be used for the same purpose. 
 
 2. Have pupils match identical words. < 
 
 a. Give pupils envelopes containing small cards repre- 
 senting several duplicates of each of a number of words. 
 Let them segregate these into as many groups as there 
 are words, placing all that are alike in one group. 
 
 b. Give pupils envelopes containing large tagboard 
 cards on which are hektographed lists of words, and 
 small cards (one word on each) representing duplicates of
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading iiq 
 
 the lists. Let them place the small cards on their desks 
 to correspond with the order of words on the large card. 
 
 Vary this exercise by having pupils place words to 
 correspond with the order of those written on the board. 
 
 c. Make hektograph copies of large sheets ruled into 
 oblongs i"x2", writing words in every other row of 
 oblongs. Give to each pupil one of these copies, together 
 with an envelope containing duplicate words on cards 
 i" x 2", and have him build into the vacant oblongs the 
 same words as are written just above them on the sheet. 
 Give pupils several copies of each word to build one upon 
 another. 
 
 3. Have pupils match names and pictures. </ 
 
 Give pupils envelopes containing small cards on which 
 names are written and small outline pictures printed off 
 on the hektograph or cut from magazines and pasted on 
 cards. The pictures may be left in one large sheet with 
 room enough below each for the corresponding word, or 
 each picture may be cut out by itself, in which case it 
 may be. placed in the envelope. Let pupils match pic- 
 tures and words. 
 
 Teachers should have not difficulty in finding suitable 
 pictures to serve as copies in hektographing material for 
 this device. They may be found in the backs of maga- 
 zines of all descriptions, including teachers' journals, 
 in the catalogues of publishing houses, and in sets 
 prepared for this purpose and sold by publishing 
 companies. 
 
 4. Have pupils match colors, forms, numbers, and 
 words. 
 
 a. Make sets of envelopes containing several pieces 
 of paper representing each of the six colors, and word 
 cards representing the names of these colors. Let pupils 
 match.
 
 720 Five Messages 
 
 ■ 
 
 b. Make sets of envelopes each containing several 
 
 squares, oblongs, triangles, and circles, together with word 
 cards representing these forms. Let pupils match. 
 
 c. Make sets of envelopes containing colored forms, 
 together with word cards representing descriptive phrases. 
 For example, "a red circle," "a blue square." Let 
 pupils match. 
 
 d. Make hektograph copies of large sheets ruled into 
 two-inch squares containing the names of forms. Give 
 each pupil a copy, together with a supply of colored 
 wooden lentils, having him place these in the squares 
 according to the name of the form written in each. For 
 example, "circle," "square." 
 
 e. Make copies the same as for "d," writing in squares 
 words representing color instead of form. Let pupils 
 place in these squares any form or number of lentils so 
 long as they get the correct color. 
 
 /. Make copies the same as for "d" writing in squares 
 words suggesting number instead of form. For example, 
 "one," "five," "ten." (Do not let the numbers go 
 above ten.) Have pupils place in squares the right 
 number of lentils. 
 
 g. Make copies the same as for "d," calling for color 
 and form. For example, "red circles," "blue squares.'' 
 
 h. Make copies the same as for "d," calling for 
 number and form. Example, "five squares," "seven 
 circles." 
 
 i. Make copies the same as for "d," calling for number 
 and color. Example, "one red," "three green." 
 
 /. Make copies the same as for "d," calling for num- 
 ber, color, and form. Example, "three blue squares." 
 
 k. Make copies the same as for "d," writing a dif- 
 ferent suggestion in each square so as to give review of 
 "d," "e," "/," "g," "h" "i," and ";'," all in one exercise.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 121 
 
 5. Have pupils make cuttings and drawings represent- 
 ing words. 
 
 Give each pupil a card on which is hektographed ten 
 or twelve names of common objects. Let him draw a 
 picture or make a cutting illustrating each word. Later, 
 let him draw or cut from lists on the board. 
 
 6. Have pupils illustrate phrases with colored crayons. 
 Write on the board phrases from reading lessons, such 
 
 as "a green leaf," "a yellow pear," "a red apple." Let 
 pupils illustrate them. 
 
 II. Sentences 1 
 
 1. Have pupils match identical hektographed sen- 
 tences. 
 
 In order to adapt this suggestion to this stage let 
 teachers give a number of sentences almost but not quite 
 alike. 
 
 2. Have pupils place separate sentences on desks to 
 correspond with the order on a card or on the board. See 
 suggestion under "Words as Wholes," p. 118. 
 
 Later, cut half the sentences into separate words and 
 have pupils rebuild to match copies. 
 
 3. Have pupils place hektographed sentences giving 
 color and form under the colored forms. 
 
 Employ variety of sentences. Example, "This is a 
 
 green square," "I have," "Here is," "Do you see?" 
 
 Later, cut up the sentences and let pupils rebuild them. 
 
 4. Have pupils paste on paper, from board copy, 
 sentences which have been cut into words. Let pupils 
 take these sentences home and read them to parents. 
 
 'From this point on it is well, in preparing hektograph copies for 
 seat work, to underline family names which have been made familiar 
 by previous phonic exercises.
 
 122 
 
 Five Messages 
 
 5. Have pupils place under a picture one or two de-' 
 scriptive sentences written on cards. 
 
 Several pictures with corresponding sentences may be 
 given to one pupil as one exercise. 
 
 III. Phonics 
 
 1. Have pupils match identical script letters. 
 
 2. Have pupils group words according to initial letters: 
 a. Placing in squares, oblongs, or circles which are 
 
 hektographed on large sheets and marked with letters, 
 words of the same initial letter written on small cards. 
 
 
 a 
 
 
 
 c 
 
 
 
 and 
 
 
 
 cat 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 b 
 
 
 
 d 
 
 
 
 boy 
 
 
 
 dog 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 b. Placing groups of words on desks in the same order, 
 with reference to initial letters, as letters placed on cards. 
 
 c. Placing words in groups according to their initial 
 letters. 
 
 3. Have pupils segregate identical two-letter short- 
 vowel family names into groups. Make this exercise 
 constantly more difficult by increasing the number of 
 family names. 
 
 4. Have pupils place words on desks under family 
 names to which they belong.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 123 
 
 First, give them long strips of paper on each of which 
 are written, in a horizontal line, family names corres- 
 ponding to those in words to be placed under them. 
 
 ap 
 
 un 
 
 cap 
 
 sun 
 
 sap 
 
 run 
 
 tap 
 
 fun 
 
 Later, substitute for the strips the family names 
 written on separate cards the same size as the word cards. 
 Have pupils find these, place them at the top of desks, 
 and then place corresponding words under them. 
 
 The above suggestions are for script. The whole 
 series may be adapted so as to match script with print, 
 or print with print. 
 
 IV. Reading 
 
 1. Have pupils review board lessons. 
 
 Let the teacher copy on the back of a large tagboard 
 envelope each interesting blackboard lesson that seems 
 suitable for future seat reading. Let her place inside 
 the envelope a copy of the lesson cut into sentences. 
 When she has as many different lessons as she' has pupils 
 in her largest class, she has a "set" and can begin the use 
 of it. This set will serve for as many seat periods as it 
 contains lessons, because each child has a copy of only 
 one lesson at a period.
 
 124 Five Messages 
 
 Let each pupil first try to read the lesson on his 
 envelope and then place the sentences contained inside 
 in proper order to correspond with that on the outside. 
 Later, cut the sentences in two. Still later, cut them 
 into separate words. 
 
 Tagboard cards for copies of the lessons and small 
 envelopes for sentences and words to duplicate' them 
 may be used in place of large envelopes. 
 
 The same idea may be carried out by means of 
 duplicate copies of discarded primers. 
 
 2. Have pupils read easy new lessons. 
 
 Let the teacher compose, or copy from primers not 
 used in her school, a "set" of very simple but interesting 
 lessons on familiar subjects, using pictures frequently 
 instead of words, and, if possible, illustrating each lesson 
 prettily in water colors. Let her remember to underline 
 familiar phonic family names, thus making the reading 
 easier for pupils. 
 
 The independent reading of these lessons during the 
 second quarter serves as a stepping-stone to the reading 
 of primers suggested as a form of seat work during the 
 third and fourth quarters. At the close of this exercise 
 let one or two pupils read their lessons to the class. 
 This suggestion may prove too difficult for certain classes 
 during the second quarter. In such cases it should be 
 taken up later in the year. 
 
 V. Dictation for Pupils Written on Blackboard 
 or on Individual Cards 
 
 Several weeks before using any kind of seat work that 
 calls for a knowledge of the forms of animals or of natural 
 objects, let teachers put before pupils model cuttings, 
 and put on the board large mass drawings from which 
 pupils may make free-hand cuttings.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 12$ 
 
 1. Have pupils do free-hand paper cutting. 
 
 Employ the simplest forms of leaves, fruits, vegetables, 
 and trees during September, October, and part of Novem- 
 ber; the turkey and the duck during the latter part of 
 November; the reindeer and the camel during December; 
 the rabbit, the bear, the seal, and the Eskimo during 
 January. 
 
 Examples : 
 
 a. Cut an apple leaf. 
 Cut an orange. 
 Cut a pear. 
 
 Cut a beet. 
 
 b. Cut an apple tree. 
 Cut a poplar tree. 
 
 b. Cut a rabbit. 
 Cut a bear. 
 Cut a seal. 
 
 2. Have pupils do stick laying. 
 Examples : 
 
 a. Make a square. 
 Make an oblong. 
 Make a triangle. 
 
 b. Make two squares. 
 Make one oblong. 
 Make three triangles. 
 
 c. Make 2 squares. 
 Make 1 oblong. 
 Make 3 triangles. 
 
 d. Make a red square. 
 Make a yellow triangle. 
 Make a blue oblong.
 
 126 Five Messages 
 
 e. Make two red squares. 
 
 Make one green oblong. 
 
 Make four yellow squares. 
 /. Make 2 red oblongs. 
 
 Make 1 green square. 
 
 Make 4 yellow triangles. 
 g. Make a yellow chair. 
 
 Make a blue triangle. 
 
 Make an orange ladder. 
 h. Make a house. 
 
 Make a fence. 
 
 Make some trees. 
 
 3. Have pupils draw. 
 Examples : 
 
 a. (with colored crayon) 
 Make two green squares. 
 Make three red circles. 
 Make four blue oblongs. 
 
 b. (with large soft pencil) 
 Draw a robin. 
 
 Draw three robins. 
 
 c. Draw a bare tree. 
 Draw a fir tree. 
 
 Suggestions for alphabet cards and those for written exercises 
 are purposely omitted from the work of the first two quarters. 
 
 THIRD AND FOURTH QUARTERS 
 
 Teachers desiring more devices for first and second 
 quarters than those suggested on pp. 1 18-126, can 
 easily adapt them from the following suggestions 
 
 Sequence of work is indicated only in a very general 
 way for the third and fourth quarters. Teachers are 
 left to select and adapt according to their daily needs.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 127 
 
 I. Words as Wholes 
 
 1. Have pupils continue any work of the first two 
 quarters which is not outgrown. 
 
 2. Have pupils place days of the week (written on' 
 separate cards) in proper sequence on desks; at first 
 from copy, later with copy turned face downward. 
 
 Let pupils compare their lists, after completing them, 
 with the copy. Give each pupil ceveral duplicate sets 
 of the days of the week. 
 
 3. Have pupils place months of the year in proper 
 sequence, at first with copy, later with copy turned face 
 downward. 
 
 When completed, let pupils compare their lists with 
 copy. Give each pupil several duplicate sets of the 
 months of the year. 
 
 4. Have pupils match words representing the names of 
 numbers with the corresponding figures. 
 
 At first to ten, later to twenty. In the beginning the 
 figures may be placed upon one large card and pupils 
 instructed to place small cards containing corresponding 
 words opposite them, or vice versa. Later, a separate 
 small card should be given for each word and one for each 
 figure. 
 
 5. Have pupils make and use word-books as follows: 
 Take seven sheets of white unprinted newspaper 
 
 9" x 12". Fold each down the center, making a booklet 
 of four pages 6" x 9". With an ordinary pin, fasten the 
 seven sheets together, making a booklet of twenty-six 
 pages, exclusive of the first and last, which serve as cover. 
 In the upper corners of the pages of this booklet write 
 the letters of the alphabet, or have upper-grade pupils 
 write them, in proper sequence. 
 
 From an envelope containing words from past reading
 
 128 
 
 Five Messages 
 
 lessons hektographed on white imprinted newspaper, 
 let pupils select those beginning with the letter "a" and 
 paste neatly on page "a." Paste those beginning with 
 "b" on page "b," continuing thus throughout the book. 
 
 Let the teacher add new words from reading lessons 
 every few days to the envelope used for this purpose. 
 
 About once a week let pupils take these word books 
 home to show to parents. Encourage weak pupils to ask 
 for home help in drilling upon words in the books. 
 
 6. Have pupils underline familiar words on pages cut 
 from old magazines. 
 
 7. Have pupils match pictures and appropriate de- 
 scriptive adjectives. 
 
 Example: Pretty, green, large, small, round, good, 
 funny. •* 
 
 8. Have pupils place words on small word cards oppo- 
 site those of similar meaning written on the large card 
 in the envelope. 
 
 For example : 
 
 happy 
 large 
 
 glad 
 
 big 
 
 Vary this exercise by placing words of opposite meaning. 
 For example : 
 
 high 
 sweet 
 
 low 
 
 sour 
 
 II. Sentences 
 
 1 . Have pupils find in envelopes and combine parts of 
 sentences that review thoughts brought out in past read- 
 ing. (Not necessarily given in the exact form in which 
 they appeared in reading.)
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 12Q 
 For example : 
 
 Baby Bob has a little ball. 
 
 
 Ben has a big ball. 
 
 
 The clouds are white. 
 
 
 Ben made a bed for kitty. 
 
 
 2. Have pupils arrange sentences from envelopes in 
 proper sequence. 
 
 For this purpose it is necessary that teachers select or 
 adapt such sentences as represent decided sequence. 
 
 a. Placing the sentences of a simple story, read pre- 
 viously as a reading lesson. 
 
 Let pupils first work with whole sentences; next with 
 sentences cut in two; and later, with sentences cut into 
 separate words. 
 Example : 
 
 A black crow sat in a tree. 
 
 He had a piece of cheese in his mouth. 
 
 A cunning old fox came along. 
 
 He saw the black crow. 
 
 He wanted the cheese. 
 
 "You are a beautiful bird," said the fox. 
 
 "You must have a beautiful voice. 
 
 " Please sing a song for me." 
 
 The crow was pleased to hear this. 
 
 "Caw," said the crow. 
 
 Down fell the cheese. 
 
 Away went the fox with it.
 
 ijo Five Messages 
 
 b. Placing sentences from past reading lessons which 
 review their own experiences in order of occurrence. 
 Later, cut sentences in two; then cut them into words. 
 
 Example : 
 
 We took a walk. 
 We looked for leaves. 
 We found some pretty ones. 
 We brought them to school. 
 
 c. Placing sentences from past nature lessons according 
 to nature's development. Later, cut in two; still later, 
 cut into words. > 
 
 Example : 
 
 I was once a caterpillar. 
 I spun a cocoon. 
 I went to sleep in it. 
 I slept a long, long time. 
 I had wings when I awoke. 
 I spread my wings out wide. 
 Now I shall fly away. 
 Good-by, little children. 
 
 d. Placing sentences from review dialogue lessons in 
 proper order. 
 
 3. Have pupils select from envelopes sentences de- 
 scriptive of the day and place on desks. Later, after sen- 
 tences have been cut into words or phrases, let pupils 
 select these and build sentences exactly descriptive of 
 the day; at first from copy, later without one. 
 Example : 
 
 To-day is Friday. To-day is Monday, etc. 
 
 This month is January. This month is May. 
 
 The year is 19 13. 
 
 It is a cold day. It is not a cold day.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading iji 
 
 Snow is on the ground. There is no snow. 
 
 The wind is cold. The wind is not cold. 
 
 It is snowing. It is not snowing. 
 
 The wind is blowing. The wind is not blowing. 
 
 It rained last night. It did not rain last night. 
 
 This is a foggy morning. This is not a foggy morning. 
 
 The air is warm. The air is cold. 
 
 This is a sunny day. This is a cloudy day. 
 
 It is raining. It is not raining. 
 
 The sky is blue. The sky is gray. 
 
 The sun is shining. The sun is not shining. 
 
 There was dew on the grass this morning. There 
 
 was no dew on the grass this morning. 
 There was frost on the grass this morning. There 
 
 was no frost last night. 
 We cannot see the sun. We can see the sun. 
 A cloud is in the sky. There is no cloud in the sky. 
 There is not a cloud in the sky. There are clouds 
 
 in the sky. 
 The days are growing shorter. The days are growing 
 
 longer. 
 The clouds are white. The clouds are not white. 
 I think it will rain to-day. I think it will not rain 
 
 to-day. 
 The wind is from the east (or west or north or south) . 
 
 4. Have pupils find appropriate words in envelopes and 
 fill blank spaces left in sentences contained in the same 
 envelopes. 
 
 5. Have pupils build sentences from words telling of 
 activities for different days of the week. 
 
 Examples : 
 a. We go to school on Monday. 
 We stay at home on Saturday.
 
 Ij2 Five Messages 
 
 b. Monday is a school day. 
 Saturday is not a school day. 
 
 c. Monday is wash day. 
 Tuesday is ironing day. 
 
 Let the teacher have questions on the board or on cards 
 for pupils to answer in all exercises, employing this 
 device as well as in those employing the next one. 
 
 6. Have pupils build sentences descriptive of them- 
 selves. 
 
 Example : 
 
 My name is Roy Brown. 
 I am six years old. 
 I live on Maple Street. 
 I go to the Maple School. 
 Miss Gray is my teacher. 
 
 7 . Have pupils build sentences of their own from words 
 representing the vocabulary of a certain subject familiar 
 to them. 
 
 Let the teacher include among the words a number of 
 articles, verbs, pronouns, and prepositions. 
 
 III. Alphabet Cards 
 
 No form of seat work is more misused than this. Let 
 the teacher always have a definite purpose in view when 
 employing it. Let the work increase in difficulty as 
 pupils develop. Do not repeat the same devices week 
 after week. 
 
 i . Have pupils match script and print letters on small 
 alphabet cards. 
 
 2. Have pupils place print letters corresponding to 
 script letters in two-inch squares hektographed on large 
 sheets.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 133 
 
 3. Have pupils build print words from script copies. 
 
 4. Have pupils reproduce known words found in their 
 readers beginning with certain letters. 
 
 5. Have pupils build appropriate words to fill blank 
 spaces left in sentences contained in envelopes. 
 
 During this exercise let the teacher have on the board a 
 list of words among which is one suitable to fill the blank. 
 Have pupils look and decide which it is before building, 
 and then in building copy this word. 
 
 6. Have pupils reproduce all the words that represent 
 names from a list written on the board. 
 
 7. Have pupils answer each of a series of questions 
 written on the board by building one word from the 
 alphabet cards. For example: 
 
 "What was our last reading lesson about?" 
 "Kitty." 
 
 "What must we feed kitty?" 
 "Milk." 
 See suggestion under "5" above. 
 
 8. Have pupils make complete forms of familiar words 
 written on the board with one letter missing. 
 
 For example: 
 
 b - y, g - rl. 
 
 At first, let the teacher place two lists on the board, 
 writing them in different order, one of which gives the 
 complete form of each word. Later, give only the'm- 
 complete list. 
 
 9. Have pupils make, from a list of three-letter 
 words, other words by changing one letter. 
 
 For example: 
 
 "cab" from "can"; "get" from "let"; "pin" from 
 "pan." See suggestion under "5" above. 
 
 10. Have pupils make all possible words from certain
 
 1 34 Five Messages 
 
 letters which the teacher writes on the board. For 
 example, a, m, s, e, b, c, o, k, 1, i, y, t, n, d. 
 
 During this exercise, have on the board a list of words 
 among which are those composed of these letters. 
 
 1 1 . Have pupils place the alphabet in proper sequence 
 upon desks; at first from copies written on cards, later 
 from memory, each using his copy for comparison only 
 after his own alphabet is complete. Two sets of alpha- 
 bets, one small and one capital, should be employed. 
 
 During the inspection of this work, let the teacher 
 occasionally have pupils point to and name the letters 
 in concert, thus fixing in their minds the proper sequence. 
 
 The same idea may be carried out with figures placed in the 
 form of a calendar, using the present month always and having 
 the first figure come on a definite day. 
 
 12. Have pupils make their names, name of school, 
 city, and teacher; at first from copy, later from memory, 
 using copy only to compare results. 
 
 13. Have pupils make days of the week, also days of 
 the month. 
 
 14. Have pupils duplicate any of the devices prac- 
 ticable for alphabet cards suggested under I and II 
 above, and under IV below. 
 
 IV. Phonics 
 
 1. Have pupils group words according to combina- 
 tions of initial sounds. For example: crawl, cry; spring, 
 spry. 
 
 2. Have pupils place words of the same family names 
 or riming words in groups, constantly using words that 
 represent the phonic knowledge of pupils up to date. 
 
 3. Have pupils combine family names and conso- 
 nants contained in envelopes into words; at first, single
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading ij$ 
 
 consonants, later, combinations; at first with copies, 
 later without. 
 
 4. Have pupils make phonic family names, using 
 alphabet cards; first from copies, later from memory. 
 
 5. Have pupils make combinations of consonants that 
 begin words (called "double first names"); at first from 
 cards or board, later from memory. For example: sp, 
 st, tr, fl, sh. 
 
 V. Reading 
 
 1. Have pupils read primers. 
 
 A set of easy primers of different titles, which can be 
 secured at comparatively slight cost, abundantly repays 
 all expenditure. Any teacher who feels unable to pur- 
 chase a set herself, may endeavor to procure one by en- 
 couraging each pupil to buy one primer from her list of 
 desirable titles and to loan it during the term to the 
 little "library" thus created, in return for the privilege 
 of reading all the other prirrc: 1 at different seat periods 
 during the term. 
 
 Teachers should take two or three minutes at the 
 close of each seat-reading exercise to have reports from 
 pupils concerning lessons read. In rural schools the 
 upper-grade pupils may hear these reports. 
 
 2. Have pupils read easy stories pasted on cardboard. 
 
 a. From old readers. 
 
 b. From story pages of teachers' magazines. 
 
 VI. Written Dictation 
 
 Dictation written on the blackboard or on individual cards. 
 
 Pupils develop more independence from individual 
 dictations than from the blackboard, because, with the 
 former, they find it impossible to copy from others.
 
 ij6 Five Messages 
 
 i. Have pupils do free-hand paper cutting. 
 Examples : 
 
 a. Cut some boys playing ball. 
 Cut some girls swinging. 
 Cut a garden party. 
 
 b. Cut a two-inch square. 
 Cut a three-inch square. 
 Cut a four-inch square. 
 Cut an oblong 2x4 inches. 
 Cut an oblong 1x3 inches. 
 
 At first let pupils use rulers in doing "6"; later, do free- 
 hand cutting and test with rulers. 
 
 2. Have pupils draw. 
 Examples : 
 
 a. Take a four-inch square, fold it into four squares, 
 draw pictures in them like this: 
 
 a rake 
 
 a spade 
 
 a hoe 
 
 a wheel 
 barrow 
 
 b. Write your name on your paper. 
 
 Draw Little Red Hen cutting the wheat. 
 Draw her threshing it. 
 Draw her taking it to mill. 
 Draw her making it into bread. 
 Draw her baking it. 
 Draw her eating it. 
 
 Turn your paper over. 
 
 Draw the pig. 
 
 Draw the rat. 
 
 Draw the cat. 
 
 Draw Little Red Hen asking them to help her.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 137 
 
 c. Illustrate such sentences as: 
 Scratch for worms, little chicks. 
 Ben and Willie like to play ball. 
 Pick some flowers for mother, Alice. 
 Run to school, children. 
 
 d. Draw a mother rabbit. 
 Draw three baby rabbits. 
 Draw a house for them. 
 
 Give them some carrots and beet tops to eat. 
 Give them some clover and lettuce, too. 
 Give them a pan of water. 
 Draw Fred feeding them. 
 
 e. Illustrate on separate sheets of paper such stories as 
 those suggested under "V, 2" above. 
 
 /. Illustrate such phrases as: 
 Running down the road. 
 Climbing a tree. 
 Playing with a ball. 
 Sitting on a fence. 
 Cracking a nut. 
 Give pupils only the suggestion, leaving them to decide 
 what to draw for "Running down the road," etc. 
 
 g. Measure and draw forms with rulers marked off 
 into inches. (Pasteboard rulers may be used; wooden 
 ones preferable.) 
 
 Draw a three-inch line. 
 
 Draw a five-inch line. 
 
 Draw a two-inch square. 
 
 Draw an oblong 3x6 inches. 
 
 Draw a seven-inch square. 
 
 Inside the seven-inch square draw a five-inch square. 
 
 Inside the five-inch square draw a three-inch square. 
 
 Inside the three-inch square, draw a one-inch square.
 
 ij8 Five Messages 
 
 Before pupils can do this exercise alone, they must 
 be taught how to place dots to mark the corners of one 
 square placed inside of another. 
 
 When inspecting drawing exercises (and all others 
 done on sheets of paper) teachers may add interest to 
 the work by stamping the word "good" on those papers 
 that deserve it. Rubber stamps may be obtained from 
 local stationery dealers. 
 
 The Brownie picture stamps, when used for this pur- 
 pose, delight pupils. Gilt stars pasted on good papers 
 may serve the same purpose. 
 
 3. Have pupils do stick laying. 
 
 a. Dictation for numbers up to twenty. 
 Examples : 
 
 Place ten blue sticks side by side. 
 Place twelve orange sticks end to end. 
 Put fifteen green sticks in a group. 
 
 b. Make oblongs like these: 
 
 (Teacher drawing horizontal and vertical oblongs on 
 the board.) 
 
 c. Make triangles like these: 
 
 (Teacher drawing rightangled triangles on the board, 
 placing the right angles in all possible positions.) 
 
 d. Take eight red sticks and make a square. 
 Take eight blue sticks and make an oblong. 
 Take nine orange sticks and make a triangle. 
 
 e. Make an orange oblong 1x5 inches. 
 Make a violet oblong 3x4 inches. 
 
 4. Have pupils do paper weaving on mats that take 
 twelve strips. 
 
 Instead of using words, let the teacher use horizontal
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading ijq 
 
 bars placed over and under the figures. For example, 
 let her indicate "over i, under 2" as follows: "1, 2." 
 
 The dictations given below are suggestive of many 
 more which teachers can work out for themselves. 
 
 iiiiii^iiiiii 
 
 L l L l l l l l l I L I 
 
 Let each pupil weave the above pattern six times, 
 thus filling his mat. 
 
 2 _2 2 _2 2 2 
 2 2 2_ 2 2 2 
 
 Weave above pattern six times. 
 
 2 3_ 2 3 2 
 23^32 
 
 Weave above pattern six times. 
 
 2 2_ 2 2_ 2 2 
 
 i_ 2 2_ 2 2 2 1 
 
 2_ 2 2_ 2 2 2 
 
 I 2^ 2 £ 2 _2 I 
 
 Weave above pattern three times.
 
 140 
 
 Five Messages 
 
 A T 1 
 
 3 i 3 1 
 
 3 3 3 3 
 
 3 3 3_ 3 
 
 Weave above pattern twice. 
 
 £ I £1311. II 
 
 I £ I ^ I 1 I 
 
 I i 6 i i_ 
 
 1 i 2 ^ 7 
 £ 2 2_ 2 2 
 
 2 2 2 2 2 
 
 (l) 
 
 (2) 
 (3) 
 
 (4) 
 (5) 
 (6) 
 
 Repeat above dictation, reading from the bottom up, 
 thus rilling the mat. 
 
 By having dictation rows numbered in all patterns of 
 any complexity, pupils can keep the place better and 
 teachers can more easily locate and call attention to 
 mistakes in weaving. 
 
 Vary the weaving exercise by giving each pupil a card 
 containing a different dictation, letting him work out his 
 individual pattern. 
 
 Occasionally, a pupil can create designs during the
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 141 
 
 last quarter of the first year, and write dictations on 
 cards to serve as guides to other pupils in weaving. 
 
 Cloth mats, made from window-shade material, may 
 be used instead of paper mats for weaving. Scraps of 
 such material may be obtained at little or no expense 
 from most furniture dealers. Two contrasting colors are 
 necessary — one for mats and one for weavers. 
 
 Teachers can easily prepare these mats and weavers 
 after securing the necessary material. 
 
 5. Have pupils do construction work. 
 
 Example 1 , a basket : 
 
 Take your square. 
 
 Fold it into sixteen squares. 
 
 Cut off four squares. 
 
 Make it look like this, (a) 
 
 Cut off three squares. 
 
 Make it look like this. (6) 
 
 Crease the corner squares. 
 
 Make them look like this, (c) 
 
 Cut on the creases. 
 
 Cross the corners. 
 
 Paste them. 
 
 Put on a handle. 
 
 Now, you have a little basket ! 
 
 The making of this basket should be supervised the 
 first time. 
 
 Example 2, a box: 
 
 Fold sixteen squares. 
 
 Cut off four squares. 
 
 Take a pencil. 
 
 Make the paper look like this. 
 
 Cut between 1 and 2. 
 
 \ 
 
 \ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 / 
 
 f\ 
 
 1 __4 
 
 2J |__ 5 
 
 3 I T~6
 
 142 Five Messages 
 
 Cut between 2 and 3. 
 Cut between 4 and 5. 
 Cut between 5 and 6. 
 Fold 1 and 3 together. 
 Fold 2 over them. 
 Make the edges even. 
 Paste them together. 
 Fold 4 and 6 together. 
 Fold 5 over them. 
 Paste them all together. 
 Now, you have a box ! 
 
 The making of this box should be supervised the first 
 time. 
 
 Boxes are used as foundation for other pieces of con- 
 struction work. This lesson, therefore, serves two 
 purposes: (1) to review past work; (2) to serve as a 
 beginning for chairs, tables, or other pieces of furniture 
 which must be finished under the supervision of the 
 teacher. 
 
 VII. Written Work 
 
 During the last quarter have pupils — 
 
 1. Copy from the board lists of words previously 
 visualized. Give them strips of paper, telling them to 
 look at each word, then to look away, trying to hold the 
 picture in mind; next, to write it; and, finally, to compare 
 their word with the copy on the board. 
 
 When the whole list has thus been written once, have 
 pupils fold the words back out of sight so as not to 
 copy them, and begin a new list, again studying from 
 the board. When the second list is complete, let 
 them compare the two lists on their paper and begin 
 a third.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 143 
 
 2. Copy tlieir names and addresses, using good copies; 
 also the name of their school. 
 
 3. Copy, occasionally, short sentences from the board 
 that have been visualized previously in class. 
 
 It should be noted that very little written work is here sug- 
 gested for seat occupation, and that suggested is of types which 
 do not lead to the formation of bad habits, either in spelling or 
 language. 
 
 CONCLUSION 
 
 Attention is here called to the following points: 
 
 1. No teacher should use any of the preceding devices 
 merely because they are suggested. Only those that 
 bring results should be continued. The success of seat 
 work in each particular school depends upon existing con- 
 ditions, thus making it important that each teacher 
 exercise her best judgment in making selections for this 
 work. Many of the exercises suggested above are too 
 difficult for immature pupils, and a number of them too 
 difficult for any but the most mature. 
 
 2. Some types of seat work should be given frequently 
 until outgrown, while others should be given only once 
 a week and kept interesting to pupils during several 
 months. The examples cited below are only a few of 
 those belonging to this latter type. 
 
 Describing the day, p. 130 (Example 3). 
 
 Answering questions with cards, p. 132 (Examples 
 5 and 6). 
 
 Placing the letters of the alphabet in proper sequence, 
 p. 134 (Example n). 
 
 Mat weaving, p. 138 (Example 4). 
 
 3. Devices must be selected in such sequence as to 
 develop ever increasing power on the part of pupils.
 
 144 Five Messages 
 
 By thus graduating the exercises, classes may often 
 be led to accomplish tasks otherwise quite impossible 
 for them. 
 
 4. In order that seat work may fulfill its truest pur- 
 pose, it is very necessary that teachers adapt devices so 
 as to keep them up to date with the subjects of other 
 school exercises. 
 
 5. Words involved in seat work should receive atten- 
 tion in word-study lessons each day. 
 
 6. The devices given above should suggest to teachers 
 an unlimited number of possible variations adapted to 
 their particular needs. 
 
 7. No form of school exercise needs more careful prep- 
 aration than does seat work. The attention given it 
 should be as constant and regular as that afforded to daily 
 recitations. Teachers who have acquired the habit of 
 working expeditiously can prepare it, daily or weekly, 
 without devoting an unreasonable amount of time to it.
 
 MESSAGE FIVE 
 
 OUTLINES OF SUBJECT MATTER l 
 
 CONDENSED OUTLINE 
 
 In order to give a "whole view" a condensed form is 
 here given preliminary to the expanded form which 
 follows it. Home and school ideas are made dominant 
 because the most vital interests of first-grade pupils 
 are found in topics pertaining to these subjects. 
 
 People and Pets of Home and School 
 
 I. The people of the home and what they do: 
 
 Mother; father; children. 
 II. Pets of home and school : 
 
 Cat; dog; rabbit; chicken. 
 
 III. What the people and pets need : 
 
 Food; clothing; shelter; training. 
 
 IV. Special days celebrated in home and school : 
 
 Hallowe'en; Thanksgiving; Christmas; New 
 Year; St. Valentine's Day; Washington's 
 Birthday; Arbor Day; Bird Day. 
 
 Surroundings of Home and School 
 
 I. Birds. 
 II. Flowers. 
 
 III. Trees. 
 
 IV. Landscape, sky, weather, seasons. 
 
 1 These outlines suggest conversational topics suitable for opening 
 exercises, for general lessons, and for supplementing the Primer 
 and First Reader. 
 
 10 
 
 1 45
 
 146 Five Messages 
 
 EXPANDED OUTLINE 
 
 The idea in presenting the following outline is to pro- 
 vide a unified, though flexible, scheme of work suggesting 
 to teachers an abundance of material upon which to base 
 thought lessons for all possible types and conditions of 
 first-grade pupils. It is, therefore, not intended that 
 any one class shall attempt too large a part of the work 
 suggested. Some classes should take more of it and 
 others less according to their ability. 
 
 No special'., attempt is made to present new or original 
 subject matter, the idea being simply to bring together 
 a body of material, old or new, from which each first- 
 grade teacher may select that which seems best suited 
 to her use. 
 
 Each subject is here given as a whole, not in parts, in 
 order that its thread of thought may be grasped the more 
 easily. Because of this fact teachers cannot start at 
 the beginning and present the work in the sequence found 
 on these pages, but must select the proper portion of each 
 subject for each month's lessons. The index for Message 
 Five in back of book will assist them in doing this. 
 
 PEOPLE AND PETS OF HOME AND SCHOOL 
 I. The People of the Home and What They Do 
 
 September 
 
 Mother; what she does: 
 This varies according to the different homes, but in 
 
 most of them she 
 Cares for the children. 
 Cares for the home. 
 Prepares the food. 
 Buys and cares for the clothing. 
 Trains the children.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 147 
 
 October 
 Father; what he does: 
 
 Helps care for and teach the children. 
 
 Provides money for home, food, clothing, and train- 
 ing. 
 
 September and October 
 
 The children; what they do: 
 Help in the house. 
 Do chores and errands. 
 Care for pets. 
 
 Take care of their clothing. 
 Try to do things that keep them well. 
 Keep clean and tidy. 
 Obey their parents. 
 Show kindness and courtesy to all. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 "How the Home was Built," Mother Stories. 
 "The Little Traveler," Mother Stories. 
 "The King's Birthday," Mother Stories. 
 "Little Deeds of Kindness," In the Child's World. 
 "The 'Wake-up' Story," In the Child's World. 
 "What Kept the New Chimney Waiting," For the 
 Children's Hour. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "Sleep, Baby, Sleep," Graded Memory Selections. 
 
 "The Baby," Graded Memory Selections. 
 
 "Morning Song," Graded Memory Selections. 
 
 "A Little Child," Songs of Tree Top and Meadow. 
 
 "Lullaby," Christina Rossetti. 
 
 "Whenever a Little Child is Born," Agnes L. Carter. 
 
 "Little Birdie," Tennyson. 
 
 "Rock-a-bye, Baby," Mother Goose Rhymes.
 
 148 Five Messages 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "This is the Mother," Songs for Little Children, Eleanor 
 
 Smith. 
 "The Little Housewife," Songs of the Child World, 
 
 Part I. 
 "All for Baby," Finger Plays. 
 
 "Baby's Lullaby," Songs and Games for Little Ones. 
 "Washing Day," Holiday Songs, E. Poulsson. 
 "Song of Home Work," Holiday Songs. 
 "Going to Market," Holiday Songs. 
 "Busy Children," Merry Songs and Games, Clara 
 
 Beeson Hubbard. 
 "Carpenter," Songs and Music of FroebeVs Mother 
 
 Plays. 
 "Blacksmith," Songs and Music of FroebeVs Mother 
 
 Plays. 
 "Johnny's Trade," Merry Songs and Games. 
 "Sawing Game," Merry Songs and Games. 
 "The Family," Songs and Games for Little Ones. 
 "Sprinkling the Clothes," Holiday Songs. 
 "Trade Game," Kindergarten Chimes. 
 
 II. Pets of Home and School 
 
 The cat, dog, rabbit, and chicken are here given as 
 being representative of home and school pets, and at 
 the same time most practicable for this purpose. The 
 leading thought is to cultivate in pupils an interest 
 in and sympathy for the animals that commonly live 
 in or about the home by making them familiar with 
 some of the common facts of their lives. At no point is 
 the teaching of mere scientific facts intended to enter 
 the work.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading iqg 
 
 THE CAT 
 September and October 
 
 Description of children's cats: 
 
 Size, coat, color, name. 
 What the cat needs: 
 Food: 
 
 Kinds of food she likes best. 
 (Pass lightly over the mousing habit.) 
 How often she should eat. 
 Traits of the cat: 
 
 How she tells when she is hungry. 
 How she keeps clean. 
 How she plays. 
 
 How she shows when she is pleased; when angry. 
 Fear of dogs. 
 
 How she cares for her little ones. 
 How children can care for cats: 
 Provide them with food and bed. 
 See that they are protected from cruelty. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 
 "Mrs. Tabby Gray," Mother Stories. 
 
 "A Story of a Mouse," Kindergarten Stories and Morn- 
 ing Talks. 
 
 "The Cat and the Mice," Scudder's Fables. 
 
 "Dick Whittington and His Cat," Scudder's Fables. 
 
 "Mrs. Chinchilla," The Story Hour. 
 
 "My Jet," In the Child's World. 
 
 " Spotty 's Family," In the Child's World. 
 
 "How it Happened," When First We Go to School, 
 Helen Beckwith. 
 
 "The Cat and the Mouse," For the Children's Hour. 
 
 "Kit-Cat-Kit," Wee Tales for Wee People.
 
 150 Five Messages 
 
 "I Love Little Pussy," Three Years with the Poets. 
 "I am the Family Cat," Songs of Tree Top and Meadow. 
 "Seven Little Pussy-Cats, " Mary Mapes Dodge. 
 "Pussy's Class," Mary Mapes Dodge. 
 "Cat Questions," Lucy Larcom. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "The Cat's Cradle," Finger Plays. 
 
 "Pussy," Songs of the Child World, Part II. 
 
 "Pussy Knows," First Reader, National Music Course. 
 
 "I Love Little Pussy," Small Songs for Small Singers. 
 
 "The Bad Pussy," Small Songs for Small Singers. 
 
 " Pussy-Cat, Pussy-Cat, " Music Primer, Eleanor Smith. 
 
 "Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat," Art Song Cycles, Book I. 
 
 "Cat and Mouse," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "Cat and Mouse," Songs, Roundels, and Games, Suder. 
 
 THE DOG 
 November and December 
 
 Description of children's dogs: 
 
 Size, coat, ears, legs, feet. 
 Food: 
 
 Not too much. 
 
 More after hearty exercise. 
 
 Heartier food in cold weather. 
 Home: 
 
 Where he stays in the daytime; at night. 
 Traits: 
 
 Intelligence and bravery. 
 
 Manner of talking. 
 
 Faithfulness to master. 
 
 Strength and -speed. 
 
 Plays and tricks. 
 
 Fondness for water; how he drinks.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 151 
 
 Signs of pleasure; of anger. 
 
 Dislike for strange cats. 
 
 How the mother cares for her little ones; how she 
 trains them. 
 Kinds of dogs and characteristics of each: 
 
 House dog: companionship. 
 
 Shepherd: care of sheep. 
 
 Newfoundland: protecting people from harm. 
 
 St. Bernard: rescuing people from snow. 
 
 Eskimo dog: beast of burder. 
 How children can care for dogs. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 "The Open Gate," Mother Stories. 
 "The Closing Door," Mother Stories. 
 "The Journey," Mother Stories. 
 "Dickey Smiley 's Birthday," The Story Hour. 
 "Moufflou," The Story Hour. 
 "How Frisk came Home," In the Child's World. 
 "How Nibs was Cured," Wee Tales for Wee People. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "My Dog," Mary Mapes Dodge. 
 
 "To Flush, My Dog," E. B. Browning. 
 
 "Little Dog under the Wagon," Songs and Rhymes for 
 
 Little Ones, Morrison. 
 "The Duel," Eugene Field. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "Barnyard Song," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "Jack," The Child's Song Book. 
 
 "The Kitten and the Bow-wow," Small Songs for 
 
 Small Singers. 
 "Quess," Small Songs for Small Singers.
 
 ij2 Five Messages 
 
 "Six Little Puppies," Small Songs for Small Singers. 
 "Hunter and Dog," Songs, Roundels, and Games. 
 
 THE RABBIT 
 January 
 
 Description, from memory, of rabbits children have 
 seen. 
 
 Size, color, ears, tail, food, traits. 
 Caring for and observing a pet rabbit kept in the 
 
 schoolroom. 
 What it needs: 
 Food: 
 
 From plants, not animals. 
 
 Roots: especially carrots, turnips, and parsnips; 
 leaves: lettuce, cabbage, parsley, tops of car- 
 rots, and some other leaves; stems and twigs; 
 fruits, especially apples; hay, especially clover; 
 grass; bread; water for drinking. 
 Cage with wire-netting front. 
 Sawdust over bottom of box. 
 Dish of water. 
 Fresh air. 
 Sufficient heat. 
 Traits: 
 
 How it breathes, eats, moves. 
 Postures it takes: asleep, awake. 
 How it uses its ears, eyes, and nose. 
 How it burrows. 
 How it keeps clean. 
 How it makes friends. 
 Brief study of the life of the wild rabbit. 
 Home: 
 
 A burrow dug in the grass, brush, or snow; nest 
 of the young lined with the fur which the mother 
 rabbit plucks from her own breast.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 153 
 
 Food: 
 
 Many plants (often destroying gardens in summer) . 
 
 Almost any green plant in winter, often bark of 
 trees (thus destroying them). 
 Enemies : 
 
 Dogs, cats, hawks, men. 
 Protection from enemies: 
 
 Keen sight and hearing. 
 
 Protective coloring. 
 
 Swiftness in running. 
 Night habits when enemies are not near to molest. 
 
 (Tracks in snow.) 
 Protection for winter: 
 
 Fur thicker and longer. 
 
 References 
 
 STORIES 
 
 "Brer Rabbit Stories," Nights with Uncle Remus. 
 "Peter Rabbit," Beatrice Potter. 
 "Raggylug," Ernest Thompson-Seton. 
 "China Rabbit Family," In the Child's World. 
 "The Hare and the Tortoise," JEsop's Fables. 
 "The Sheep and the Pig," For the Children's Hour. 
 "Trottino," Through the Farmyard Gate. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "Tracks in the Snow," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 "Hop, Little Rabbit," The Child's Song Book. 
 "The Bunny," Small Songs for Small Singers. 
 "Foot Prints," Small Songs for Small Singers. 
 "Hare in the Hollow," Children's Singing Games. 
 
 THE CHICKEN 
 March and April 
 
 Description by children of chickens kept at their homes 
 
 or at the homes of neighbors :
 
 1 54 Five Messages 
 
 Color, size, food, traits. 
 
 (If there are none near, the teacher should arrange 
 to have at least one hen kept where the children 
 may observe and help care for her.) 
 Food: 
 
 Table scraps, wheat, corn, corn meal, bugs, and 
 
 worms. 
 How much she needs at one time, and how often 
 
 she needs to be fed. 
 Water for drinking. 
 Traits: 
 
 Picking and scratching. 
 Fluttering in the dirt. 
 Taking sun baths. 
 Keeping clean. 
 Manner of drinking. 
 Going to bed early. 
 Manner of roosting. 
 Getting up early. 
 Cackling, clucking, "singing." 
 Hatching, caring for, and teaching her little ones. 
 Uses to man: 
 Giving him eggs. 
 Raising little ones. 
 Needs : 
 Have pupils care for a hen kept near the school or 
 in the school basement while she sits on her eggs 
 and hatches her brood. 
 Caring for the little chicks for a week after they 
 hatch. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 "The Little Rooster," Boston Collection of Kinder- 
 garten Stories.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 155 
 
 "The Hen Hawk," Boston Collection of Kindergarten 
 
 Stories. 
 "The Lost Chicken," In the Child's World. 
 "The Story of Speckle," In the Child's World. 
 "The Little Red Hen," The Teacher's Story Teller's 
 
 Book. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "The Chickens," Songs of Tre? Top and Meadow. 
 "Chicken's Mistake," Phcebe Cary. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "The Hen and the Chickens," Finger Plays. 
 
 "Little Red Hen," The Child's Song Book. 
 
 "Five Little Chickens," The Child's Song Book. 
 
 "Each Mother Loves Best," Song Stories for the Kinder- 
 garten. 
 
 "Mr. Rooster and Mrs. Hen," Songs of the Child 
 World, Part I. 
 
 "See the Chickens Round the Gate," Songs in Season, 
 Marian George. 
 
 III. What People and Pets Need 
 
 A general discussion should be had concerning the 
 things people must have to keep them alive and happy. 
 Pupils should be induced to observe and investigate at 
 home until they report the following (perhaps among 
 many irrelevant items) . Food, clothing, homes, and 
 training. In this manner four subjects may be opened 
 up which are to be continued in different phases through- 
 out the year. 
 
 FOOD 
 September, October, November 
 
 Kinds eaten commonly by the people of the home. 
 
 Kinds eaten commonly by the pets of the home.
 
 Jj6 Five Messages 
 
 Foods that grow in the garden; on trees; on vines; in 
 
 the ground. 
 Seeds that we eat: 
 
 Beans; peas; grains, including corn, nuts. 
 
 How these seeds grow : 
 
 In pods, husks, and shells, for protection. 
 Seeds that birds eat. 
 How seeds are prepared for food. 
 Fruits that we eat: 
 Collection of fruits by pupils. 
 Grouping fruits brought according to characteristics 
 
 of shape, stem, skin, pulp, and seeds. 
 Leading pupils to see how the different fruits protect 
 
 their seeds. 
 How different 'fruits grow: 
 
 On trees, vines. 
 How people keep fruit (and vegetables) for winter: 
 
 Canning; preserving; pickling; drying; storing, or 
 packing away fresh. 
 How different fruits (and vegetables) are harvested. 
 
 December and January 
 
 How foods are brought to our homes, and the various 
 
 ways we prepare and use them. 
 What foods are best for us. 
 How and when we should eat them. 
 (This is the beginning of temperance. See health 
 
 lessons, p. 174.) 
 Children who have to go hungry. 
 Our winter food compared with that of the Eskimo. 
 
 February 
 
 Foods given us by animals: 
 
 Milk, butter, cheese, meat, eggs. 
 Making butter.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 157 
 References 
 
 STORIES 
 
 'The Story Milk Told Me," In the Child's World. 
 
 'Nero at the Bakery," In the Child's World. 
 
 'The Sleeping Apple," In the Child's World. 
 
 'Milk, Butter and Cheese," Kindergarten Stories and 
 
 Morning Talks. 
 'The Little Cookie Boy," Kindergarten Stories and 
 
 Morning Talks. 
 'The Tomato Story," For the Children's Hour. 
 ' The Wonderful Porridge Pot," For the Children's Hour. 
 'The Gingerbread Boy," For the Children's Hour. 
 'The Two Little Cooks," For the Children's Hour. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 'The Johnny Cake," The Teacher's Story Teller's Book. 
 'An Autumn Riddle," Three Years with the Poets. 
 'The Story of a Seed," Songs of Tree Top and Meadow. 
 'The Gingerbread Man," For the Children's Hour. 
 'The Cow," A Child's Garden of Verses. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 'Making Butter," Finger Plays. 
 
 'Making Bread," Finger Plays. 
 
 'How the Corn Grew," Finger Plays. 
 
 'The Mill," Finger Plays. 
 
 'Pat-a-Cake," Merry Songs and Games. 
 
 'Leaves, Fruits, and Flowers," Holiday Songs. 
 
 'Song of the Loaf of Bread," Songs of the Child World, 
 
 Part I. 
 'The Windmill," Kindergarten Chimes, Kate Douglas 
 
 Wiggin. 
 'The Muffin Man," Children's Singing Games. 
 'The Farmer," Merry Songs and Games. 
 'Hasten to the Meadow," Merry Songs and Games.
 
 1 58 Five Messages 
 
 The Garden 
 March to June 
 
 Foods given us by plants. 
 
 Enumeration of these. 
 
 Garden making. 
 
 Raising a garden. 
 
 Examination of the list of garden foods reported in 
 
 October. 
 Which of these could be raised in the schoolroom before 
 
 the close of school in June? (Lettuce, radishes.) 
 What is necessary in order to raise these vegetables? 
 
 1. Seeds: 
 
 Find where to get them; when, where, and how to 
 plant them. 
 
 2. Soil: 
 
 What kind is best. Sample bottles of soil (one 
 of sand, one of clay, and one of vegetable mold) 
 taken home to parents to discuss as to suita- 
 bility for garden. Examination of good garden 
 soil, composed of sand, clay, and vegetable 
 mold followed by a comparison between it and 
 each of the sample bottles taken home. Why 
 each of the three kinds of soil is needed in the 
 garden. (Food, consistency, drainage.) 
 
 3. Water: 
 
 Observation of seeds kept in two different dishes, 
 
 one containing water, the other dry, to ascertain 
 
 the effect of water upon them. 
 Observation of growing plants, one watered, the 
 
 other neglected, to ascertain the effect of water 
 
 upon them. 
 Ascertaining what time of day and how often the 
 
 garden should be watered.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading ijq 
 
 Discussing possible sources of water for school 
 gardens: Rain; water brought from river, lake, 
 well, hydrant. 
 
 4. Heat: 
 
 Observation of seeds kept in two different dishes 
 of water, one in a warm place and the other in a 
 very cool place. Discussion as to effect of heat 
 upon them. 
 
 Possible sources of heat for gardens. 
 
 The sun for outdoor gardens ; stoves or furnace for 
 indoor gardens. 
 
 Discussion as to what effect Jack Frost would 
 have upon a new garden. 
 
 Garden not to be planted too early. 
 
 5. Light: 
 
 Observation of difference in color between plants 
 
 grown in darkness and those grown in light 
 
 (celery, potato sprouts), with the conclusion 
 
 that plants must have light to make them green. 
 
 Finding the part that grows, or the plantlet, of a soaked 
 
 bean; also the coats and store of food. 
 Planting beans, flax, peas, or other seeds in different 
 ways so as to observe growth of roots, stems, and 
 leaves: On wet blotting paper; in moist sponge, on 
 mosquito netting tied over the top of a glass of water; 
 in pine cones. 
 Choosing a garden spot that meets the above re- 
 quirements of soil, water, heat, and light. 
 
 An out-of-door garden is preferable to others, but, if 
 impossible, a window garden may be substituted for it. 
 Preparing the ground for the seeds: 
 
 Spading; pulverizing; marking off; making rows. 
 Planting the seeds according to information gained 
 through inquiry.
 
 160 Five Messages 
 
 Caring for the garden : 
 
 Watering, weeding, and keeping harmful insects out. 
 Parts of plants eaten: 
 
 Leaves of lettuce. 
 
 Roots of radishes and several fall vegetables. 
 
 Seeds. (See October outline.) 
 
 Fruits. (See November outline.) 
 
 Stems: celery, rhubarb, asparagus. 
 Serving the lettuce and radishes grown in the school 
 
 garden at a school party given to parents. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 "Lame Boy's Garden," When First We Go to School. 
 "Jimmy's Harvest," When First We Go to School. 
 "How the Beans Came Up," In the Child's World. 
 "The Farmer and the Birds," In the Child's World. 
 "Straw, Bean, and Coal," McMurry's Classic Stories. 
 "Ten Peas in a Pod," Boston Collection of Kindergarten 
 Stories. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "Mystery of the Seed," Lucy Larcom. 
 "The Gardener," Robert Louis Stevenson. 
 "Farewell to the Farm," Robert Louis Stevenson. 
 "In the Heart of a Seed," Songs of Tree Top and 
 
 Meadow. 
 "Hiawatha's Fasting" (Mondamin), Longfellow. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "Careful Gardener," Songs and Games for Little Ones, 
 
 Harriet S. Jenks. 
 "Little Gardens," Songs and Games for Little Ones. 
 "Garden Bed," Merry Songs and Games. 
 "Garden Gate," Merry Songs and Games. 
 "The Little Plant," Finger Plays.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 161 
 
 "The Garden," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "Let Us Make a Garden," Lilts and Lyrics, Gaynor. 
 
 "Oats, Peas, Beans, and Barley Grow," Children's Old 
 
 and New Singing Games. 
 " Garden Game," Children's Old and New SingingGames. 
 "The Farmer is Coming," Songs, Roundels, and Games. 
 "The Farmer's Daughter," A Book of Song Games and 
 
 Ball Games. 
 " The Gleaners," A Book of Song Games and Ball Games. 
 
 CLOTHING 
 October, November, January 
 Care of clothing : 
 
 How mother and maid care for it : 
 
 Washing, ironing, mending. 
 How children can help : 
 
 Keeping clothes clean. 
 
 Not tearing them. 
 How our clothing varies according to season. 
 How the covering of animals varies according to 
 
 season, thickening in autumn and being shed in 
 
 spring. 
 List of animals whose covering is thus affected. 
 Our clothing compared with the fur and skin clothing 
 
 worn by Eskimos. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 "A Visit to the Weaver," In the Child's World. 
 "Molly's Lamb," In the Child's World. 
 "Philip's Suit," The Four Wonders. 
 "The Field of Cotton," The Four Wonders. 
 "Linen," The Four Wonders. 
 "The Flax," In the Child's World. 
 11
 
 162 Five Messages 
 
 "The Calico's Story," For the Children's Hour. 
 
 " Missy and the Little Green Men," The Four Wonders. 
 
 "Cotton," The Four Wonders. 
 
 "The Cotton Fields," How We Are Clothed, Chamber- 
 lain. 
 
 "Wool," The Four Wonders. 
 
 "Woolen Cloth and Clothing," How We Are Clothed, 
 Chamberlain. 
 
 "Our Flax Field," The Four Wonders. 
 
 "A Field of Flax," How We Are Clothed, Chamberlain. 
 
 "Silk," The Four Wonders. 
 
 "The Work of the Silkworm," How We Are Clothed, 
 Chamberlain. 
 
 "How Faith Got a New Dress," The Four Wonders. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "The Flax Flower," In the Child's World. 
 "The Silkworm," In the Child's World. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "The Happy Lambkins," Songs of the Child World, 
 
 Part I. 
 " Song of the Shearer," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 "Spinning the Yarn," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 "The Silkworm," Music Primer, Eleanor Smith. 
 "To the Silkworm," The Four Wonders. 
 "The Shoemaker," Songs and Games for Little Ones. 
 "Spinning Song" (Flax), The Four Wonders. 
 "Spinning Song" (Wool), The Four Wonders. 
 "Mammy's Night Song" (Cotton), The Four Wonders. 
 
 SHELTER 
 
 December 
 
 Why people need homes : 
 
 To protect them from the cold of winter; the heat 
 of summer; the storms of the whole year.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading i6j 
 
 So that families may live together. 
 
 Enumeration of things people could not do without 
 
 homes. 
 A study of our homes : 
 
 Enumeration of things done in them. 
 
 Cooking, eating, sleeping, baching, washing and 
 ironing, sewing, reading, visiting, playing. 
 The rooms of our homes ; use and furnishings : 
 
 Kitchen: cooking. 
 
 Dining room : eating. 
 
 Pantry : storing food and dishes. 
 
 Cellar: storing food. 
 
 Bedrooms: sleeping. 
 
 Bathroom: bathing. 
 
 Laundry : washing and ironing. 
 
 Living room : family gatherings. 
 
 Library: reading. 
 
 Children's room : playing. 
 Telling of homes that have all these rooms ; also of 
 
 those having fewer, where one room serves more 
 
 than one of the purposes suggested above. 
 How the rooms of the school are different from those 
 
 of the home. 
 Why? 
 
 The Playhouse 
 January to May 
 
 Furnishing a playhouse. (A means of expressing the 
 study of the home.) 
 
 Suggestive plan for the house ' 
 
 A two-story house of four rooms: kitchen, dining 
 room, bedroom, living room. Each room eleven inches 
 wide, eleven inches long, and eight inches high. Ground 
 plan of house eleven inches deep and twenty-two inches 
 wide. Partitions, making two rooms on each floor.
 
 164 Five Messages 
 
 Ceiling of second story sixteen inches from ground floor. 
 Roof above of proper slant. 
 
 These dimensions may be increased or diminished to 
 suit the taste of the teacher, provided the proper propor- 
 tions are maintained. The house may be made in a very 
 crude way or in a more finished fashion. An orange box 
 may be remodeled very easily to suit the purpose, or a 
 real little house may be built of regulation materials. 
 Walls: 
 
 Papered with drawing paper, tinted by pupils with 
 a plain wash of water color, or decorated by some 
 simple design. 
 Floors : 
 
 Rugs, woven from woolen yarn, carpet warp, or 
 raffia, or braided from raffia or strips of cloth, 
 then sewed together. 
 Chairs, tables, bed, dresser, bookcase, stove, and 
 other things : 
 May be folded from paper, made from cardboard 
 covered with cloth, or made of thin wood sawed 
 out by means of a coping or cabinet saw. 
 Dishes and kitchen utensils: 
 
 Made from clay if they can be fired in kiln; if not, 
 provided from set of toys. 
 Hangings : 
 
 Window curtains: muslin or tissue paper. 
 Door hangings: fringe made of ravelings; or fine 
 strands of braided raffia; or strings of beads; or 
 very small paper chains. 
 Pictures : 
 Appropriate pictures for the different rooms chosen 
 from the half-penny Perry or Brown pictures. 
 Frames made by paper folding or made by 
 arranging small designs cut from wall paper in
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 165 
 
 the shape of frames and pasted on to cardboard ; 
 or made by winding raffia over a circular card- 
 board with center cut out. 
 Miscellaneous articles : 
 
 Clocks, pianos, telephones, and the like. 
 
 Heat 
 January 
 
 The necessity of heat in home and school : 
 To people, animals, plants. 
 Children whose homes are poorly heated. 
 For cooking. 
 
 List of foods that are usually or always cooked. 
 Ways of applying heat for cooking, boiling, baking, 
 frying; for washing, ironing, bathing, cleaning. 
 Sources of heat : 
 Artificial — 
 
 Stoves : different purposes. 
 Kinds: wood, coal, gas. 
 Fireplaces; how fed. 
 
 Furnaces; how fed; how the heat gets into the 
 rooms from the furnace. 
 Natural — 
 Sun; difference between temperature of day with 
 sun, and of night without it; cold of winter 
 caused by lack of heat from sun necessitating 
 artificial heat; severe cold of northland winter 
 caused by absence of sun. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 "How the Spark of Fire Was Saved," Nature Myths, 
 
 Flora J. Cooke. 
 "The Secret of Fire," Nature Myths, Flora J. Cooke. 
 "The Porcelain Stove," The Story Hour.
 
 i66 Five Messages 
 
 "How Beaver Stole Fire from the Pines," Alice Krack- 
 
 owizer. 
 " How Coal is Made," Kindergarten Stories and Morning 
 
 Talks. 
 "The Sunbeams," Boston Collection of Kindergarten 
 
 Stories. 
 "The Story of Phaeton," For the Children's Hour. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "Armies in the Fire," Robert Louis Stevenson. 
 "Autumn Fires," Robert Louis Stevenson. 
 "The Sun's Travels," Robert Louis Stevenson. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "The Firemen," Music Primer, Eleanor Smith. 
 "Sunbeams," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "Sing a Song of Iron," Songs oj the Child World, Part I. 
 "Fire Bells," First Reader, New Educational Music 
 
 Course. 
 "God Sends His Bright Spring Sun," Songs for Little 
 
 Children. 
 "God Sends His Bright Warm Summer Sun," Song 
 
 Stories for the Kindergarten. 
 
 Our homes and home life in winter may be compared 
 with the winter homes and home life of the Eskimos. 
 
 The following outline is given as a basis for such com- 
 parison: 
 
 Eskimo Winter Life 
 January 
 
 Igloo for home: 
 
 Made of big blocks of icy snow frozen together; 
 
 shape of large eggshell; small, low hole in the 
 
 side for a doorway; skin hung at this to serve as 
 
 door ; long tunnel for a hallway, through which the 
 
 Eskimos creep, taking the place of our storm door.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 167 
 
 One small room, usually without a window. Some- 
 times one window covered with skin. 
 Walls and floor of snow. 
 Furniture : 
 
 Chairs, tables, and beds all in one, consisting of a 
 bench made of snow packed against the wall and 
 made comfortable by skin covering. 
 Stove and lamp, consisting of a hollow stone or 
 shell that holds oil; wicks of dry moss found on 
 rocks under the snow; serves for cooking, melting 
 drinking water, heating, lighting, and drying. 
 Food: 
 
 Flesh and fat of animals hunted and killed by the 
 
 father. 
 Why no other food? 
 Occupations : 
 Father: 
 
 Builds igloo ; hunts animals and catches fish for food 
 to eat and for fat to burn; makes sleds and 
 drives dog team ; sits about the fire of the igloo. 
 Mother: 
 
 Keeps fire; hunts wicks on the rocks under the 
 snow; cooks food and melts snow for drinking; 
 scrapes skins of animals and prepares them for 
 clothing; makes clothing out of these skins; 
 cares for children; sits about the fire of the igloo. 
 Children : 
 
 No school; snowballing; racing; rolling down hill; 
 coasting games on ice; riding on sleds drawn 
 by dogs; sitting or playing about fire. 
 Sky and weather in Eskimo land: 
 
 Night time all winter; very cold in winter because 
 
 sun does not shine; many snowstorms. 
 Stars very bright when sky is clear.
 
 168 Five Messages 
 
 References 
 
 stories 
 "How Agoonack Made Her Doll," Eskimo Stories. 
 "The New Baby," Eskimo Stories. 
 "A Little Arctic Girl," Little Folks from Other Lands. 
 "Children of the Arctic," Mrs. Peary. 
 "The Ice Sleds," Eskimo Stories. 
 "Toolooah" (A Dog Story), Eskimo Stories. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "Foreign Children," Robert Louis Stevenson. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "The Happy Eskimo," Music Primer, Eleanor Smith. 
 "In Greenland," Art Song Cycles, Book I. 
 
 REFERENCE BOOKS 
 
 Eskimo Stories, Smith. 
 
 Hans the Eskimo, Scandlin. 
 
 Little People of the Snow, Muller. 
 
 The Children of the Cold, Schwatka. 
 
 Little Folks of Other Lands, Chance. 
 
 Child Life in Many Lands, Perdue and La Victoire. 
 
 Light 
 February 
 
 The necessity of light in home and school: 
 Light a necessity for seeing things. 
 Difficulties we would encounter without light. 
 The blessing of eyesight, and care of eyes. (See 
 
 health lessons, p. 177.) 
 Use of windows in daytime. 
 Natural lights: Sun, moon, stars. 
 The light of the sun used at school. 
 Days now getting longer, so more light from sun.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading i6q 
 
 Light of sun compared with that of moon and stars 
 as to intensity, time of shining, and consequent 
 usefulness. 
 
 Frequency of the visits of the sun to us compared 
 with that of its visits to Eskimo land. 
 Artificial lights: Lamps, gas, electricity, lanterns, 
 
 candles, firelight. 
 
 How lamps and lanterns are fed. 
 
 How gas and electricity are supplied. 
 
 How and of what candles are made. 
 
 Firelight best seen from fireplace. 
 
 What the first lights were; what the later ones were. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 
 "Linda and the Lights," In the Child's World. 
 
 "The Legend of the Great Dipper," Kindergarten 
 Stories. 
 
 "The Old Street Lamp," For the Children's Hour. 
 
 "The Candles," For the Children s Hour. 
 
 "The Sun's Sisters," For the Children's Hour. 
 
 "Bennie's Sunshine," Boston Collection of Kinder- 
 garten Stories. 
 
 "The Golden Windows," Laura Richards. 
 
 "The Child and the Stars," Christ Tales, Hofer. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "The Lamplighter," A Child's Garden of Verses. 
 "The Sun's Travels," A Child's Garden of Verses. 
 "Bed in Summer," A Child's Garden of Verses. 
 "My Shadow," A Child's Garden of Verses. 
 "Lady Moon," Songs of Tree Top and Meadow. 
 "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," Songs of Tree Top 
 and Meadow.
 
 170 Five Messages 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "The Electric Light," Songs of the Child World, Part II. 
 
 "The Moon is Playing Hide and Seek," Small Songs 
 
 for Small Singers. 
 
 "Light and Shadow," Song Stories. 
 
 "The Sunshine's Message," Song Stories. 
 
 "Good Morning, Merry Sunshine," Songs for Little 
 
 Children. 
 
 Air J 
 
 March 
 
 The necessity of fresh air in home and school. (See 
 health lessons, p. 175.) 
 How fresh air gets into our schoolrooms. 
 How fresh air gets into our homes. 
 
 Investigation of the ventilating system, finding cur- 
 rents of fresh air coming in and of impure air pass- 
 ing out. 
 
 Water 
 April 
 
 The necessity of water in home and school. 
 
 Needed to sustain life in people, plants, and animals. 
 
 A convenience in cooking. List of foods that are 
 boiled. 
 
 A necessity for bathing, washing clothes, and clean- 
 ing. 
 
 Emphasis upon the necessity for bathing regularly 
 face, hands, teeth, and whole body. (See health 
 lessons, p. 173.) 
 
 Usefulness of water for cleaning and beautifying 
 home and school. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 
 "Tom, the Water Baby," Kindergarten Stories and 
 Morning Talks.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 171 
 
 "The Crow and the Pitcher," Kindergarten Stories 
 
 and Morning Talks. 
 "The Vapor Family," Cat Tails and Other Tales, 
 
 Mary H. Howliston. 
 "The Little Hero of Harlem," In the Child's World. 
 "Aqua, the Water Baby," The Story Hour. 
 "The Brook and the Water Wheel," In the Child's 
 
 World. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "Where Go the Boats," A Child's Garden of Verses. 
 "The Runaway Brook," Three Years with the Poets. 
 "The Brook," Tennyson. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "Fishes at Play," Holiday Songs. 
 "The Sailor," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 "The River," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 "Boating Song," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 "The Sailor Boy," A Book of Song Games and Ball 
 Games. 
 
 TRAINING 
 September to June 
 
 The people of the school; who they are, what they 
 
 have and do: Teacher, pupils. Members of the 
 
 family who go to school. Why all do not go. 
 
 The idea here is to impress pupils with the thought 
 
 that they have other needs besides those of a material 
 
 nature; that they need many good habits if they are to 
 
 become useful men and women ; that these can be formed 
 
 only by means of long and steady effort. 
 
 These habits may be explained to pupils as those that 
 are good for their minds; their bodies; their behavior. 
 
 While it is expected that the home will do all it can 
 toward the formation of good habits in its children, it
 
 172 Five Messages 
 
 is the chief function of the school to impress these upon 
 its pupils. 
 
 School Exercises 
 
 Observations, reports, and discussions related to 
 
 subjects of study. 
 Reading and word study. 
 Seat work. 
 Games. 
 Songs. 
 Stories. 
 Poems. 
 Cutting. 
 Handwork. 
 
 Drawing and painting. 
 Sand-table modeling. 
 Taking walks. 
 Collecting specimens. 
 Celebrating holidays. 
 How all can help to make the schoolroom pleasant. 
 By keeping it clean: 
 
 Not tracking in mud. 
 
 Selecting committees for care of floor, boards, 
 and cloakroom; also for dusting and cleaning 
 erasers. 
 By keeping it in order: 
 
 Care of desks. 
 
 Clippings put into trays. 
 
 Seat work not dropped on floor. 
 
 Committees for arrangement of material; places 
 for erasers and other equipment. 
 By decoration: 
 
 Wild flowers of autumn and spring. 
 
 Autumn leaves.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 173 
 
 Window plants. 
 Putting up children's work. 
 Putting up pictures selected by children. 
 Teacher's drawings on board. 
 Simplicity is the keynote to artistic decoration. Use 
 good taste in arrangement. Decorations should always 
 be in keeping with the season and the subject or subjects 
 under discussion. 
 
 Avoid too many decorations. Avoid the use of colored 
 crayons; drawings in black and white are usually most 
 effective. 
 
 How each pupil helps to make a good school. 
 By coming every day and being on time. 
 By being clean and tidy. 
 By working, and obeying the teacher. 
 By being kind, courteous, and cheerful. 
 By being honest and truthful. 
 
 Physical Training 
 
 One phase of training too often neglected by teachers 
 is that which affects the physical welfare of pupils. 
 Because of this fact the following outline is inserted. 
 Being neat and clean: 
 Illustrations of canary birds, robins, ducks, and 
 
 kittens bathing. 
 Daily mention of those whose faces, hands, and hair 
 
 are neat and clean. 
 Uses of the hands and how cleanliness helps. 
 Care of the nails. 
 
 Necessity of daily attention. 
 
 Teaching the use of nail files, orange sticks, and 
 
 toothpicks. 
 Impressing bad effects upon stomach, teeth, and 
 hands of biting the nails.
 
 1J4 Five Messages 
 
 Care of the hair. 
 
 How to keep it soft and silky by brushing. 
 
 Pupils taught to have brushes of their own and to 
 
 brush their own hair. 
 How to wash the hair: On a warm day or in a 
 warm room; dry thoroughly. 
 A point made of neat and clean clothes. 
 
 Each child responsible for keeping his desk orderly 
 
 and the floor under it clean. 
 Cleanliness and neatness made a fashion. 
 Food: 
 
 Emphasizing the child's necessity for growth. 
 Recording the height of pupils (one or all) and keeping 
 a record of the same to compare with height after 
 they have grown more, the point being to impress 
 the fact of growth. Food necessary for growth 
 and strength. 
 Stories of children who have been fed well and of 
 
 those who have not. 
 Kinds of food that are best for children : Eggs, milk, 
 cereal foods; brown bread; nuts; fresh, ripe fruits; 
 vegetables; cocoa or chocolate; a little pure candy 
 eaten just after meals. 
 Let teachers use their influence for wholesome food and 
 against hot bread, rich cakes and pies, fancy puddings, 
 greasy meats and gravies, pickles, coffee and tea, and 
 much candy. 
 
 Here is another opportunity for temperance lessons. 
 The child who develops power to control his appetite for 
 such foods is very apt to find, in maturity, strength to 
 govern his appetite for stronger things. 
 
 When to eat : 
 Three times a day regularly ; not between meals.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 775 
 
 Why? Not when too tired. Harmful effects of cold 
 drinks when warm from exercise. 
 How to eat : 
 
 Politely; not in a hurry; chew well; not too much. 
 Temperance again. Very little drinking at meals; 
 none, better. 
 Light exercise after meals, not violent. 
 Foods should be discussed at school from general prin- 
 ciples, never from the home or personal standpoint. 
 
 Teachers should endeavor to investigate all cases where 
 there seems to be a lack of food in homes and report to 
 proper authorities. 
 
 Air: 
 
 Pupils watch the teacher blow up a toy balloon. 
 Take deep breaths of air to see if they can make their 
 
 chests swell up. 
 Fresh air needed in the lungs even more than food in 
 
 the stomach. 
 Effects of bad air : 
 Observation of two plants: one covered with 
 glass which shuts out air, and the other having 
 plenty of it. 
 Stories of poor children who do not have fresh air. 
 How we can get fresh air : 
 Exercising out of doors. 
 
 Keeping windows open at top and bottom, espec- 
 ially at night. 
 Forming the habit of deep breathing. 
 Special breathing exercises before going to bed at 
 night and after getting up in the morning; also 
 several times during the day. 
 Sunshine : 
 Needed to give color to leaves, flowers, and fruits.
 
 ij6 Five Messages 
 
 Needed to give rosy cheeks and sunny dispositions 
 to children. 
 
 Sleep : 
 
 "Early to bed, early to rise, 
 Makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise." 
 
 Necessity of having plenty of sleep if we are to keep 
 
 well and grow. 
 Stories of children who are strong and rosy because 
 they get plenty of sleep and of those who are weak 
 and pale because of lack of sleep. 
 Stories of children who learn their lessons easily 
 because of sleep, and of those who are stupid for 
 lack of it. 
 How to sleep well : 
 Clean bed; windows open, bed not in draft; day- 
 time clothing removed; hard mattress rather 
 than soft; not much bed clothing; circulation; 
 no bed clothes over head; pure air; very small 
 pillow — better breathing and circulation of 
 blood, avoiding round shoulders; not eating 
 heartily before going to bed — bad dreams; 
 sleeping alone, if possible. 
 Best time for sleep, night. 
 
 Amount of sleep needed; twelve hours if less than 
 eight years old. 
 How to get ready for bed : 
 
 Shake out underclothes and put them to air. 
 Put other clothes in order. 
 How to get up : 
 
 Close windows while dressing. 
 Open windows after dressing. 
 Put bedding to air. 
 Dramatization, using a doll for the actor and putting
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading iff 
 
 her to sleep in the bedroom of the playhouse, bringing 
 out and reviewing proper methods of going to bed and of 
 getting up. 
 
 Clothing : 
 
 Warm and light weight. 
 Evenly distributed over body. 
 Wraps always worn out of doors but not indoors. 
 Teeth: 
 
 The machinery which grinds the food so the stomach 
 
 can use it to make good healthy bodies, therefore, 
 
 necessity of keeping them sound. 
 Effects of having particles of food about the teeth. 
 Each child to have a toothbrush and to use it 
 
 twice a day. 
 Use of toothpicks in private. 
 Effects of candy upon teeth. 
 Effect of biting down on anything hard. 
 Eyes: 
 Pleasure that comes through the eyes, the windows 
 
 of the body. 
 Eyes to be kept bright by plenty of sleep and good 
 
 care. 
 Do not use them in poor light. 
 Keep fingers away from them. 
 
 Let teachers test the eyes of pupils, obtaining a test card 
 from some firm dealing in optical supplies. Let them 
 notify the parents of those pupils whose eyes do not stand 
 the test. 
 
 Arrange seats so as to accommodate weakest eyes to 
 the easiest angles. Remember to rest the eyes of pupils 
 frequently during the day. Never give fine work that 
 strains the eyes. Adjust school curtains so as to admit 
 the correct amount of light. 
 12
 
 178 Five Messages 
 
 A*> 
 
 Ears: 
 
 Ears, next to eyes, our most precious possession. 
 Language, music. 
 
 Talks to impress upon pupils the danger of blows upon 
 the ear, showing how easily a blow will break a 
 paper bag that is inflated. 
 
 Avoiding colds by proper eating, bathing, and sleep- 
 ing, for colds often cause deafness. 
 
 Necessity of breathing through the nose if we wish 
 to hear well. 
 
 Necessity of keeping the ears clean. 
 
 Nose: 
 Enjoyment of perfumes and sweet odors. 
 A help in avoiding bad air. 
 Necessity of breathing through the nose. 
 Necessity of always carrying a handkerchief and 
 using it when needed. 
 
 Necessity of habits of caution; taking care to avoid 
 harm from 
 
 Dangerous plays. 
 
 Overlifting and straining. 
 
 Too much running. 
 
 Whirling round. 
 
 Cracking the whip. 
 
 Throwing stones and other objects. 
 
 Dangers of the street and highways. 
 
 Automobiles and other vehicles, street cars, and 
 
 electric wires. 
 "Forgetting" about them. 
 Taking risks with them. 
 
 Reference 
 The Wonderful House that Jack Has, Macmillan Co., 
 New York.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading iyg 
 
 Ethical Training 
 
 It is probable that the most desultory training in the 
 ordinary schoolroom is that with reference to the subject 
 of behavior. Because ethical lessons cannot be impressed 
 by drill methods, many teachers seem never to attempt 
 them. 
 
 It is quite possible, however, to prepare conditions, 
 and then to improve opportunities thus afforded for 
 lessons that react wholesomely upon the behavior of 
 pupils. Teachers who neglect these things are failing in 
 an important part of their work. 
 
 The book entitled Character Building (given in the ref- 
 erence list on p. 212) is invaluable in its suggestions with 
 reference to this phase of training. 
 
 Supplementing Home Training 
 
 There is a phase of training, not covered in the above 
 outline, with which every first-grade teacher should be 
 thoroughly acquainted. It is the training of children 
 through the cooperation of parents. 
 
 Mothers naturally turn to the first teachers of their 
 little ones for advice concerning different phases of 
 development that must be relegated to the home. They 
 have a right to presuppose a knowledge of these things 
 on the part of teachers. But, too often, they are dis- 
 appointed to discover that teachers have only a super- 
 ficial understanding of the "all-round" needs of the 
 children intrusted to their care. 
 
 The book entitled Unconscious Childhood (given in 
 the reference list on p. 212) contains material which will 
 make first-grade teachers intelligent on this subject and 
 will enable them more nearly to occupy their true place 
 with reference to the mothers of their pupils.
 
 j8o Five Messages 
 
 IV. Special Days Celebrated in Home and 
 School 
 
 HALLOWE'EN l 
 October 
 
 A brief talk about Hallowe'en fairies: Who they are; 
 where they live; what they do. 
 
 How pupils may play they are Hallowe'en fairies: 
 Funny and mysterious games in school; a Jack-o' Lantern 
 exhibition with schoolroom curtains drawn; ducking for 
 apples in a tub of water; trying, without use of hands, to 
 bite into apples suspended by strings; rolling brownies 
 down an incline, the brownies made as follows: 
 
 How to Make a Brownie 
 
 From an old white stiff cuff cut an oblong four inches 
 by eight inches. Sew the edges together, making a 
 hollow cylinder two and a quarter inches in diameter and 
 four inches long. On each end of this cylinder sew a 
 little bag made by gathering the edge of a five-inch flannel 
 circle. Before sewing on the second bag, inclose a marble 
 about one and a half inches in diameter. Thus the 
 foundation for a capering brownie is made. 
 
 Before dressing, test it to see if it will roll end over end 
 down an incline. If not, the cuff may be too heavy, 
 the bags of too slippery material, the marble of too 
 light weight, or something may interfere with the free 
 movement of the marble, which should roll easily from 
 bag to bag. 
 
 When the foundation is in working order, dress to 
 represent a brownie as follows : 
 
 Select one bag for the cap and sew a bright tassel on 
 
 i Hallowe'en is not one of the important holidays and should not 
 be treated as such. It affords merely an opportunity for a few 
 especially enjoyable lessons. Two days is sufficient time to cover 
 all mention of the subject.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 181 
 
 it. Just under the cap draw a face in ink. Below the 
 face tie a necktie of bright baby ribbon. Below this fit a 
 cutaway long-tailed coat of some bright color. Sew on 
 arms and legs cut from old gloves, rubbers, or shoes. 
 
 This funny little object affords no end of delight to 
 the children as he turns somersaults down a long board 
 at their Hallowe'en exercises. 
 
 A Reading Lesson 
 
 When this little fellow is presented to a school which 
 is reading from the First Reader it is well to have him 
 accompanied by the following letter. The teacher should 
 copy it on the board, having pupils read and carry out 
 the directions it contains. 
 
 Dear Children: 
 
 I am Brownie Turn Over. 
 
 I can turn over and over. 
 
 Do you wish to see me? 
 
 Then you must help me. 
 
 Get a long board. 
 
 Put one end on a chair. 
 
 Put one end on the floor. 
 
 Put me at the top. 
 
 I will turn over and over for you. 
 
 Please do not let me fall off. 
 
 You must watch me. 
 
 Catch me if I start to fall. 
 
 Your little friend, 
 
 Brownie Turn Over. 
 
 Information concerning Brownies 
 
 In order that teachers may not be left to draw upon 
 their imagination concerning the place of Hallowe'en
 
 182 Five Messages 
 
 fairies and brownies in literature, the following sugges- 
 tions are given: 
 
 In olden times people believed in fairies, or tiny 
 invisible creatures having power over the lives of human 
 beings. 
 
 The fairies lived everywhere, and could hide in the 
 smallest crevices. There were good and bad fairies, and 
 their influence was good or bad accordingly. 
 
 The brownie was a household fairy among the Scotch. 
 His deeds were good or bad according to his moods. If 
 well treated, he was very obliging and willing to help 
 with the household work. This he did at night in most 
 mysterious ways while the family and servants slept. 
 He churned the butter, swept the floor, tidied the rooms, 
 and did all sorts of helpful things without making the 
 least noise. 
 
 There seems to be no good authority for stating that 
 brownies were more prevalent at Hallowe'en than were 
 other fairies. They were supposed simply to be numbered 
 among the throngs of fairies that assembled at that time 
 for the purpose of having a grand frolic and of taking 
 possession of the earth for one night. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 Adventures of a Brownie, Dinah Muloch Craik. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "The Brownies," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 "The Brownies," Lilts and Lyrics. 
 " The Brownies," Songs in Season. 
 "Hallowe'en," A Book of Song Games and Ball 
 Games.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 183 
 
 THANKSGIVING 1 
 November 
 
 Our Thanksgiving. 
 
 How we celebrate it : 
 
 Home gatherings. 
 
 Church gatherings. 
 Why we celebrate it : 
 
 Harvest time. 
 
 To continue the Pilgrim Thanksgiving. 
 
 The Pilgrims' Thanksgiving. 
 
 The landing : 
 This treated so as to give pupils a mental picture 
 of it. 
 The homes they built : 
 
 Class asked to reason concerning the materials 
 the Pilgrims must have used in building their 
 homes and where they obtained them ; how they 
 prepared and used them. 
 The crops they raised : 
 
 Class asked to reason concerning how they could 
 get food : 
 
 During the winter ; in the summer. 
 The planting and cultivating of crops. 
 The first harvest : 
 
 How they gathered it. 
 
 Safeguard against winter suffering. 
 
 How they felt about it. 
 
 iThe Thanksgiving work should not be allowed to fill the whole 
 month of November; but should cover about one week. All that 
 is important for pupils at this point may easily be taught during 
 this length of time. 
 
 Too much subject matter should not be attempted. First- 
 grade pupils should not begin the study of the Pilgrims until the 
 time of their landing at Plymouth Rock. Even then, they should 
 not be burdened with too many details concerning their experiences 
 in the new home.
 
 184 Five Messages 
 
 The first Thanksgiving : 
 The church service. 
 The feast. 
 
 What they probably had; where they got it; how 
 they prepared and served it; the guests present. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 
 "A Thanksgiving Story," Boston Collection of Kinder- 
 garten Stories. 
 
 "Peggy's Thanksgiving Visitor," Stories for Kinder- 
 garten and Home. 
 
 "How Patty Gave Thanks," In the Child's World. 
 
 "Thanksgiving Story," Kindergarten Stories and Morn- 
 ing Talks. 
 
 "The First Thanksgiving Day," The Story Hour. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "We Thank Thee," Ralph Waldo Emerson. 
 "Can a Little Child," Mary Mapes Dodge. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "Thanksgiving Day," Merry Songs and Games. 
 
 "On this Happy Feast Day," Holiday Songs. 
 
 " Thanksgiving Song," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 
 " Thanksgiving Joys," Songs in Season. 
 
 " Gleaners," A Book of Song Games and Ball Games. 
 
 CHRISTMAS » 
 December 
 
 Our Christmas. 
 
 How we celebrate it (emphasizing the spirit of giving 
 
 rather than of receiving). 
 
 lAlthough Christmas is our most important holiday, the prepa- 
 ration for it should not. monopolize too much of the school time 
 during December. One lesson daily throughout the month will do 
 entire justice to the subject.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 185 
 
 At home: 
 
 Gifts to family and friends. On trees; in stock- 
 ings; at table. 
 Family gatherings. 
 At school : 
 
 Stories, songs, dramatizations. 
 Making Christmas emblems and gifts. 
 Christmas exercises. 
 Tree or some other interesting plan. 
 How Santa Claus helps us celebrate. 
 The first Christmas. 
 
 The journey to Bethlehem. 
 
 The crowd at the inns. 
 
 The manger in the cave. 
 
 The birth of the little Child. 
 
 The Plain of Bethlehem. 
 
 The appearance of the angels ; their message. 
 
 The shepherds at the manger. 
 
 The wise men following the star; their gifts. 
 
 God's gift to the world : 
 
 A little child sent to love all people and make 
 them happy. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 "The Story of Christmas," The Story Hour. 
 " Piccola," The Story Hour. 
 "The Fir Tree," Hans Christian Andersen. 
 "The First Christmas Presents," Kindergarten Stories 
 
 and Morning Talks. 
 "The Story of Gretchen," Mother Stories. 
 "Mrs. Santa Claus," For the Children's Hour. 
 "Christmas in the Barn," In the Child's World. 
 "Why the Evergreen Trees Keep Their Leaves in 
 Winter," How to Tell Stories.
 
 186 Five Messages 
 
 POEMS 
 
 " Piccola," Celia Thaxter. 
 
 "The First Christmas," Emilie Poulsson. 
 
 "While Stars of Christmas Shine," Emilie Poulsson. 
 
 "Christmas Song," Eugene Field. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "Santa Claus," Finger Plays. 
 
 " The Legend of the Christmas Tree," Songs of the Child 
 
 World, Part I. 
 "Christmas Hymn," Kindergarten Chimes. 
 "The First Christmas," Songs and Games for Little 
 
 Ones. 
 "Waken, Little Children," Songs for Little Children. 
 "A Merry Christmas," A Book of Song Games and Ball 
 
 Games. 
 "The Christmas Wreath," Children's Old and New 
 
 Singing Games. 
 
 NEW YEAR 
 January 
 
 In the first grade, New Year calls for only passing 
 nention at school. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 "The Fairy's New Year," In the Child's World. 
 "An All the Year Round Story," In the Child's World. 
 
 poems 
 "New Year," Mary Mapes Dodge. 
 "How the New Year Came," Mary Mapes Dodge. 
 
 songs 
 "A New Year Greeting," Holiday Songs. 
 "January," Songs in Season.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 187 
 
 ST. VALENTINE'S DAY 1 
 February 
 
 How people celebrate the day. 
 
 By sending loving messages in valentines. 
 Why they celebrate it. 
 Story of St. Valentine : 
 
 A good priest who was loving and kind to all, 
 
 especially to the sick or needy. 
 When old, feeble, and unable to walk, he sent 
 
 loving letters to friends. 
 After his death people began to celebrate his birth- 
 day by sending kind messages as he had done. 
 How we may celebrate it at school. 
 
 Each pupil make two valentines, one for mother, 
 father, or baby, one for the school valentine box. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 
 "Stuart's Valentine," For the Children's Hour. 
 "Big Brother's Valentine," For the Children's Hour. 
 "Little Brown Valentine," Stories of Mother Goose 
 Village, Madge Bigham. 
 
 poems 
 "A Valentine," Eugene Field. 
 "Philip's Valentine," In the Child's World. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "The Valentine's Message," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "St. Valentine's Day," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "A Recipe for a Valentine," Songs of the Child World, 
 
 Part I. 
 "Valentine Day," Songs in Season. 
 
 1 Not more than two or three days can profitably be spent on 
 this subject.
 
 188 Five Messages 
 
 WASHINGTON'S BIRTHDAY > 
 February 
 
 Washington's boyhood • 
 His truthfulness. 
 
 Cherry tree. 
 His love for his mother as shown in his not becom- 
 ing a sailor. 
 His courage. 
 Washington's manhood. 
 As a warrior. 
 As a president. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 
 "Little George Washington," The Story Hour. 
 "A Story of George Washington," Baldwin's Second 
 Reader. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "Ode to Washington," Whittier. 
 
 "Washington's Birthday," Margaret E. Sangster. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "Washington's Birthday," Merry Songs and Games. 
 "Song for Washington's Birthday," Holiday Songs. 
 "Washington Song," Songs in Season. 
 "Soldier Boy," Children's Old and New Singing Games. 
 
 ARBOR DAY 
 April See suggestions, p. 203. 
 
 BIRD DAY 
 May See suggestions, p. 192. 
 
 1 Occasional lessons on Washington during one week only.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading i8q 
 
 SURROUNDINGS OF HOME AND SCHOOL 
 
 The study of birds, flowers, and trees is here approached 
 from the standpoint of their desirability as surroundings 
 of home and school. 
 
 The primary motive is to present these phases of nature 
 in such manner as to create in pupils a fondness for them, 
 resulting in a desire to increase the number of birds, 
 flowers, and trees in the neighborhood. Nature study 
 which thus appeals to the feelings of pupils and results 
 in some form of effort on their part is more genuine and 
 of more permanent value than that which appeals merely 
 to the intellect. 
 
 The material given under the heading "Landscape, 
 Sky, Weather, and Seasons" is intended to serve as a 
 basis for correlating the whole year's work, because every 
 subject given in the outline is influenced by conditions 
 attending weather and seasons. 
 
 I. Birds 
 September 
 
 How birds bring pleasure to a neighborhood : 
 
 Beauty of color, form, song; the company they 
 
 are for us ; also usefulness in eating many bugs 
 
 and worms that would otherwise harm plants and 
 
 trees. 
 Class observe neighborhood birds and report, if 
 
 possible, their color, form, size, movements, songs, 
 
 where they stay, how they fly, what they eat, 
 
 when they sing. 
 October 
 
 Class decide to make a special friend of some one 
 
 bird, choosing the robin after careful observations 
 
 and consideration.
 
 igo Five Messages 
 
 Reasons for choice given by children: 
 
 The robin is a beautiful bird; has several beau- 
 tiful songs; friendly, not wild; likes to stay 
 near our homes; is not cruel to other birds; 
 large enough to be seen easily. 
 Pupils study the robin so as to tell all that is pos- 
 sible about him as suggested above for birds in 
 general. 
 Class make canvass of the neighborhood to dis- 
 cover the places where robins may find plant food 
 (seeds, fruits, stems, leaves), and decide to use 
 their influence against having such food cut away. 
 
 November 
 
 How robins fly south for the winter when their food 
 is gone, and how they often stay all winter in 
 neighborhoods where they can get food. 
 
 Class decide to endeavor to delay the robin's depart- 
 ure by supplying food. 
 
 Migration of birds in general incidentally touched 
 upon. 
 
 Studying the robin's empty nest in autumn to dis- 
 cover materials and methods used; also other 
 nests that are found. 
 
 Making a canvass of the neighborhood to locate 
 all possible robin nests in order to get some idea 
 as to how many robin families were raised there 
 during the spring and summer. 
 
 December, January, February 
 Winter birds: 
 
 Observing and describing them, especially the 
 juncos, or snowbirds, and the chickadees. 
 Their food. 
 What they can get.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading igi 
 
 Snowbird's food. 
 Sometimes difficult to find because scarce or 
 
 under snow. Sometimes water frozen over. 
 Committee chosen to see that daily supply of 
 water, crumbs, seeds, and other foods is put in 
 suitable places — school window sills for one 
 place, with a view to taming the birds and 
 bringing them nearer, and suet hung from 
 branches of trees. 
 Observation and description of the different birds 
 
 that come to get food and drink. 
 How winter birds keep warm. 
 Seek sheltered places. 
 A new suit of warm winter feathers. 
 March to June 
 Spring birds: 
 
 Watching for the return of birds, especially the robins. 
 Discussions as to how to attract robinSb-and to 
 induce them to build their nests in the neighbor- 
 hood; class deciding to help furnish them pro- 
 tection, homes, and food. 
 Why they build nests. ^ 
 
 Materials they use. 
 Do they use the old nests? 
 
 Observation of robins while building to see if they 
 use the same kinds of material found in their 
 empty nests last autumn. 
 Do they return to the same trees? 
 Shall we have more robin families this year than 
 
 last? 
 Study of the robin continued through observations 
 
 and reports during nesting time. 
 Selecting the bluebird as another especially desir- 
 able bird friend.
 
 IQ2 ' Five Messages 
 
 Special study of this bird based on observations: 
 
 Colors; size; movements; songs; food; where he 
 
 stays ; how he flies ; what he eats ; when he sings ; 
 
 where he builds, and the material he uses. 
 
 Discussions as to how to induce bluebirds to live 
 
 near our schools and homes. 
 Compare bluebirds and robins as to points men- 
 tioned above ; also as to shyness. 
 Protecting all birds against — 
 Quick movements and disturbances. 
 Stoning or shooting. 
 Cats. 
 Putting up bird houses. 
 
 Making nooks and fence corners attractive for 
 
 nesting. 
 Placing building material in different places. 
 Planting food for birds and seeing that bird food is 
 
 not cut away from fence corners. 
 Keeping fresh water in pans or tubs. 
 Keeping food and fresh water near a mother bird 
 
 on the nest. 
 Feeding and caring for young birds that have fallen 
 
 from their nests or have lost their parents. 
 Work of mother bird and father bird. 
 What the baby birds need: 
 Food, shelter, training. 
 How they get these. 
 A fitting climax to the spring bird study is the selection 
 and observation of a "Bird Day," on which appropriate 
 exercises are held. The following outline suggests pos- 
 sibilities for such exercises: 
 
 Singing of bird songs by the school. 
 Recitation of bird poems by individual pupils or by 
 the school.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading iqj 
 
 Reports by different pupils as to kinds of birds seen 
 
 in the neighborhood during the spring. 
 Description and habits of each. 
 Description of their young. 
 Reports as to location of nests known to school; 
 
 great secrecy for fear of harm coming to the little 
 
 birds. 
 Reports concerning the experiences of pupils in 
 
 protecting young birds when learning to fly. 
 Reports concerning lessons pupils have seen parent 
 
 birds teaching their little ones. 
 Reports concerning the success of bird houses made 
 
 and put up by pupils. Discussion as to why some 
 
 did not attract birds. 
 An interesting bird story told by the teacher. 
 Playing of bird games by the school. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 
 "Coming and Going," Kindergarten Stories and Morn- 
 ing Talks. 
 
 "The Bird with No Name," McMurry's Classic Stories. 
 
 "The Lark and her Young Ones," Scudder's Fables. 
 
 "Fleet Wing and Sweet Voice," Mother Stories. 
 
 "The Birdie that Tried," Boston Collection of Kinder- 
 garten Stories. 
 
 "Jack and Jenny Sparrow," In the Child's World. 
 
 "The Red-headed Woodpecker," Nature Myths. 
 
 "How the Robin's Breast Became Red," Nature 
 Myths. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "The Bluebird's Song," Graded Memory Selections. 
 "What a Bird Thought," Boston Collection of Kinder- 
 garten Stories. 
 
 13
 
 IQ4 Five Messages 
 
 "The Snowbird," Three Years with the Poets. 
 "What Robin Told," Graded Memory Selections. 
 "The Little Brown Wren," Boy's Book of Rhyme, 
 Clinton Scollard. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "The Sparrows," Finger Plays. 
 
 " The Swallow," Merry Songs and Games. 
 
 "What Do Birdies Dream?" Merry Songs and Games. 
 
 "The Bird Band," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "Bird's Joy," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "The Cradle Nest," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "All the Birds Have Come Again," Songs and Games for 
 
 Little Ones. 
 "Bird Game," Kindergarten Chimes. 
 "Birds Must Fly," Merry Songs and Games. 
 "Flying Birds," Merry Songs and Games. 
 "Five Little Chickadees," Songs and Games for Little 
 
 Ones. 
 "My Pigeon House," Songs and Games for Little Ones. 
 "Fly, Little Birds," Holiday Songs. 
 "Awakening," Songs of the Child World, Part II. 
 
 II. Flowers 
 September and October 
 Autumn flowers: 
 
 Discussion as to how to make the schoolroom pleas- 
 ant, leading to a decision to keep it supplied with 
 flowers, wild or cultivated. 
 Discussion as to the care these flowers will need to 
 keep them fresh : Water, air, proper temperature. 
 Why flowers make the schoolroom pleasant : Beauty 
 
 of the colored part: fragrance. 
 With closed eyes name flowers by their fragrance.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading IQ5 
 
 Grouping the flowers brought according to color, 
 fragrance, size, general beauty, length and strength 
 of stem, robustness or delicacy. 
 Visiting the places where the wild flowers grow and 
 describing them as sunny or shady; moist or 
 dry; sheltered or windy; woodland, field, road- 
 side, or beside a stream. 
 How the surroundings of each plant help it to grow. 
 Who besides people like flowers: 
 
 Visiting cultivated and wild flowers to answer 
 this question, probably discovering bees, butter- 
 flies, and other insects; why these visit the 
 flowers; nectar. 
 Examination of white clover blossoms to see where 
 the bees put their tongues when they sip the 
 sweet. 
 Description by those who have seen humming 
 birds get nectar as to how they do it. Class 
 decide to watch for them about flowers. 
 Observation to decide which flowers bees like best, 
 which the butterflies, which the humming birds. 
 The objects of the autumn flower lessons are (1) to 
 help children appreciate the beauty of flowers and, conse- 
 quently, to love them; (2) to teach through observation 
 the work of the flowers, namely, to produce seeds. The 
 suggestions given above are intended to help accomplish 
 the first aim; those below, the second. 
 
 Questioning pupils as to what use flowers are to 
 plants, requiring them to get their answers first 
 hand through observation and investigation. 
 Emphasizing the necessity of some sort of protection 
 for growing seeds, and discussing the consequences 
 that would follow if they were not protected by 
 some means.
 
 iq6 Five Messages 
 
 Studying different garden and wild flowers to dis- 
 cover how their seeds are protected until ripe: 
 Pods, husks, heads, shells, burrs. 
 
 How seeds are scattered: By wings, hooks, sails; 
 how the wind helps; how water: how animals; 
 how people. 
 
 Collecting seeds and putting them into boxes, bottles 
 or on charts, according to the different ways in 
 which they are scattered. 
 
 Considering Nature's way of scattering them in 
 every direction in autumn and ours of planting 
 them in certain places in spring. 
 
 Necessity for our gathering seeds in autumn if we 
 wish to plant them in the spring. 
 
 Special consideration of some one common wild 
 flower of autumn, enumerating its different uses 
 to people, animals, and plants; how its seeds are 
 protected until ripe, then scattered. 
 October to March 
 Winter flowers for the schoolroom: 
 
 Flowers raised from bulbs where conditions of climate 
 or temperature permit. 
 
 Planting bulbs by October i , so as to have blossoms 
 at Christmas. Paper narcissus best. 
 
 Bulbs brought by pupils or secured at seed store or 
 from florist. 
 
 Information as to soil ingredients and methods of 
 planting, also details of culture obtained from 
 florist. 
 
 Planted bulb put away in dark until about Thanks- 
 giving time, to let roots grow, then brought to 
 light and kept watered and warm in order to 
 bring out blossoms. 
 
 Class visit the florist to see bulbs in bloom.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading igy 
 
 Dutch hyacinths and tulips may be brought out in 
 the same way for Easter. 
 May to June 
 Spring flowers : 
 
 Flowers mentioned among the signs of spring. 
 Pupils watching for the arrival of both wild and 
 
 garden flowers. 
 Decoration of schoolroom with spring flowers. 
 Grouping flowers brought, as to their general beauty, 
 color, fragrance, size, length and strength of stems, 
 robustness, delicacy, and time of arriving. 
 Recording arrival of spring flowers: Board or chart 
 record of the day when each new flower is brought 
 to school together with the name of the child who 
 brings it. 
 Class electing a flower committee to see that flowers 
 are sent from the school to sick friends. 
 Teachers should ascertain the common names of the 
 wild flowers in order to make children familiar with those 
 most common. 
 
 Study of certain wild flowers of spring in their out- 
 of-door surroundings : What helps them to grow — 
 sun, rain, soil, air; description of the places in 
 which they grow. 
 Garden flowers: What they need to make them 
 grow; how their care differs from that of wild 
 flowers. 
 Treatment of flowers : 
 
 Emphasizing the beauty of growing flowers; the pity 
 
 of picking them unless they are to serve some real 
 
 purpose. 
 
 How to care for flowers when once they are picked. 
 
 Stems not crushed; kept in fresh water and in 
 
 cool place.
 
 iq8 Five Messages 
 
 Arrangement in vases. 
 Space given to show grace of stems, also to show 
 individual flowers; some attention to artistic 
 combinations of colors and varieties. 
 Teaching pupils to spare the roots and stems of a 
 
 plant when they pick its flowers. 
 Helping pupils to realize that they can enjoy a few 
 flowers well cared for better than a great many 
 neglected flowers. 
 Encouraging pupils to visit growing wild and culti- 
 vated flowers in order to know them, discovering, 
 among other things, that some close up, or go to 
 sleep, either at night or during the day. Which 
 ones? 
 Planting dwarf nasturtium seeds, or others if pre- 
 ferred, in the schoolroom window garden, having 
 pupils observe the development from seed to 
 flower. 
 Encouraging pupils to plant at home the seeds they 
 gathered from their gardens in the autumn and 
 to raise flowers for home and schoolroom decora- 
 tion. 
 If the study of flowers has been properly conducted up 
 to this time, pupils will have such an appreciation of them 
 that they will be eager to plant and raise them, thus 
 making the surroundings of home and school more 
 pleasant. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 
 "Clytie," Nature Myths. 
 
 "Golden Rod and Aster," Nature Myths. 
 
 "Narcissus," Nature Myths. 
 
 "The Pea Blossom," Hans Christian Andersen.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading iqq 
 
 "A Story of the Morning Glory Seed," Boston Collection 
 of Kindergarten Stories. 
 
 "A Story of a Cowslip," Boston Collection of Kinder- 
 garten Stories. 
 
 "The Daisy," For the Children's Hour. 
 
 " The Legend of the Arbutus," For the Children's Hour. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "How the Violets Came," Songs of Tree Top and 
 
 Meadow. 
 "Buttercup," Songs of Tree Top and Meadow. 
 "Clovers," Songs of Tree Top and Meadow. 
 " Dandelions," Graded Memory Selections. 
 "Wild Rose," Graded Memory Selections. 
 "The Double Sunflower," Celia Thaxter. 
 
 "The Baby Seed Song," Songs in Season. 
 
 "Lilies Sweet," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "Daffydowndilly," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 
 "The Dandelion," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 
 "Violet," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 
 "Pansies," Merry Songs and Games. 
 
 "Buttercups and Daisies," Merry Songs and Games. 
 
 III. Trees 
 September to November 
 
 During the season of autumn foliage and fruitage: 
 Introductory talks considering the beauty of the 
 trees, also their value in providing shade, shelter, 
 and food to man and beast. 
 Pupils observe trees of the home and neighborhood 
 and report at school how they are useful to and 
 enjoyed by people and animals.
 
 200 Five Messages 
 
 Open-air trips by class to visit neighborhood trees, 
 
 comparing them as to beauty and usefulness; 
 
 making a special canvass to find all possible birds' 
 
 nests, and deciding which trees are best for these. 
 
 Class select, under the guidance of the teacher, four 
 
 or five trees to visit frequently during the year 
 
 and to be known as the "class trees." 
 
 Let it be remembered that the object is not to have 
 
 pupils memorize particular scientific facts about trees, 
 
 but in a larger way to help them become familiar with 
 
 some of the significant phases of tree life to the end that 
 
 they may develop a love for trees and become possessed 
 
 of a permanent desire to increase their number in the 
 
 neighborhood. 
 
 Among the trees selected for such study should be 
 one that ripens its seeds in the autumn, one that ripens 
 its seeds in the spring, and, besides these, a fruit tree and 
 a nut tree. 
 
 Small trees are better than large ones for the little 
 people. 
 
 Visiting the class trees to find seeds; comparing the 
 different seeds as to: 
 
 Kind of protection; mode of distribution; time 
 of ripening. 
 Fruits considered as the "seed boxes": 
 Which of the class-tree fruits ripen in autumn? 
 
 Which ripen before? 
 Which fruits are useful as food for people, birds, or 
 squirrels? Which of these are eaten fresh; which 
 can be stored for winter without cooking? How? 
 Value of fruits that can be stored. 
 Advisability and ease of planting nut trees, thus 
 increasing the winter store. 
 Seeds and fruits are here taken up before autumn
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 201 
 
 leaves, because the falling of leaves represents the last 
 active work of the tree for the season. 
 
 Leaves of the different class trees compared as to color, 
 size, time of falling. 
 
 Leaves falling because trees no longer need them; 
 
 touched by Jack Frost ; carried away by the wind. 
 
 Further work of leaves: 
 
 Covering seeds and plants and keeping them 
 
 warm; making a leafy home for insects that 
 
 live upon the ground; finally, turning into soil 
 
 for other plants. Class take trip to the woods 
 
 to examine soil under the trees and look for 
 
 leaf mold from leaves of former years. 
 
 December to March 
 
 During leafless season: 
 
 Observations and discussion of class trees after 
 leaves have fallen. 
 
 Canvass of trees to find more birds' nests. 
 
 Can we see how much the trees have grown this 
 year? 
 
 Examine twigs, and measure the new growth. Com- 
 pare growth of different trees. Little brown 
 lumps, buds, found on twigs tucked away in the 
 stems of the old leaves; objects for observation 
 at each future visit to the trees. 
 
 Comparison of the different leafless class trees as 
 to their general outline when leafless. 
 
 Observation and comparison of bark as to (1) color 
 on trunk, branches, twigs; (2) smoothness or 
 roughness; (3) how it cracks. 
 
 Are the tree trunks and branches scarred, or have 
 they had good care? 
 
 Place emphasis upon care of trees.
 
 202 Five Messages 
 
 Class examine into the condition of trees along the 
 streets and think of ways by which they may be 
 shielded from future harm. 
 The Christmas tree: 
 
 Observe a small evergreen tree, preferably a fir, 
 and compare it with the class trees as to: 
 General outline. 
 
 Manner of branching from the trunk. 
 Manner of re-branching (terminal growth). 
 Leaves — needles, never leaving the tree bare. 
 Seeds — cones. 
 Which kind of Christmas tree helps birds most 
 in winter? 
 March to June 
 
 During the season of spring foliage, blossoms, and 
 fruitage : 
 
 Preparing the class for the out-of-door awakening 
 by having them observe the development of willow, 
 lilac, or horse-chestnut buds on twigs kept in 
 water in the warm schoolroom. This to be begun 
 about one month before the trees send forth their 
 leaves, teacher telling class nothing, merely making 
 suggestions that stimulate curiosity and lead to 
 closer observation. For example — 
 Where are the buds? Single or in pairs? Where 
 largest? Color, shape, size? How are scales 
 held together? Why did n't buds freeze? Into 
 what will the buds change? Anything beneath 
 buds? Scars: what are they? 
 Out-of-door spring study of class trees: 
 
 Observation of the development of twigs, buds, 
 leaves, flowers, and fruits. 
 An atmosphere of delight in nature's awakening should 
 pervade all this spring study.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 203 
 
 Observation of the green color of the twigs. Class 
 visit a maple tree while the sap is running. Slight 
 explanation and discussion as to the use of the 
 sap and cause of twigs turning green; buds of 
 the different trees compared as to position, ar- 
 rangement, size, color, shape, time of opening; 
 leaves discussed as being needed by the trees in 
 getting air so they may grow; flowers compared 
 as to color, beauty, fragrance, size, time of blos- 
 soming, manner of growth, use to be discovered 
 by children through observation; insect visitors; 
 a word against harming trees by wasteful picking 
 of the blossoms; fruits observed from their first 
 stages, and discovered to be the development of 
 blossoms. 
 Probably the class fruit tree will not mature its fruit 
 until fall, but the fruit can be easily recognized in its 
 green state before the close of school. 
 
 Necessity of propping overladen fruit trees and 
 protecting them against mutilation when fruit 
 is picked. 
 Arbor Day exercises in which the class transplant the 
 seedlings planted in the school bed the previous 
 autumn, or during the spring. The planting should 
 be preceded by a consideration of all that helps 
 trees to grow, in order that these trees may be prop- 
 erly planted and cared for: 
 Conditions of soil, water, light, and heat. 
 It should be accompanied by appropriate songs 
 and poems. 
 The Arbor Day exercises represent the climax of all 
 true tree study for little ones, namely, an attempt to 
 increase the number of desirable trees in the neighbor- 
 hood, and may be so conducted as to awaken a genuine
 
 204 Five Messages 
 
 and lasting enthusiasm for the cause. Encourage pupils 
 to plant and care for trees at home. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 "Rhcecus," Nature Stories. 
 "Daphne," Nature Stories. 
 "Philemon and Baucis," Nature Stories. 
 "The Poplar Tree," Nature Stories. 
 "The Unhappy Pine Tree," McMurry's Classic Stories. 
 "Wait and See," In the Child's World. 
 "The Kind Old Oak," In the Child's World. 
 "The Four Apple Trees," In the Child's World. 
 "A Boy Who Hated Trees," When First We Go to 
 School. 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "Pine Needles," McMurry's Classic Stories. 
 
 "The Little Fir Trees," McMurry's Classic Stories. 
 
 "The Tree," Bjornsen. 
 
 "How the Leaves Came Down," Graded Poetry. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "A Song of the Trees," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "Our Fir Tree," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "The Planting of the Apple Trees," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "The Tree's Friends," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 
 "The Leaves' Party," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 
 "The Apple Tree," Music Primer, Eleanor Smith. 
 
 "The Trees," Kindergarten Chimes. 
 
 IV. Landscape, Sky, Weather, and Seasons 
 September to fune 
 
 Describing weathei as 
 Sunny, cloudy, foggy, rainy, frosty, or snowy. 
 Calm or windy. 
 Warm, chilly, or cold.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 205 
 
 Recording weather by means of 
 Blackboard reading lessons. 
 Blackboard calendar. 
 Weather flags. 
 Teacher recording the weather daily on a blackboard 
 
 calendar according to directions from pupils. 
 A convenient calendar is one twenty-eight inches 
 wide by twenty inches high, marked off into four-inch 
 squares, thus giving spaces for the seven days of the 
 week, written crosswise at the top of the calendar, and 
 for the four or five weeks of the month written at the 
 left. On sunny days the teacher may draw yellow semi- 
 circles in the upper left-hand corners with yellow radiat- 
 ing rays; rainy days, slanting lines; cloudy days, closed 
 umbrellas; snowy days, semicircles of white in upper 
 right-hand corner; special days, anything suggestive; 
 foggy days, "f"; frosty days, "fr"; windy days, "w." 
 Effect of different kinds of weather upon different 
 
 plants, animals, and people. 
 Signs of seasons observed, discussed, and recorded as 
 they appear throughout the year. 
 
 Autumn 
 September 
 
 Early autumn: 
 
 Ripening of seeds and fruits. 
 
 Autumn flowers. 
 
 Insects seen and their songs heard. 
 
 Seeds flying and sailing. 
 
 Landscape green, yet touched with red and yellow, 
 
 enlivened by birds and insects. 
 
 Garden foods used now. 
 
 November 
 
 Late autumn: 
 
 Days growing shorter and colder.
 
 206 Five Messages 
 
 Jack Frost — action of the frost. 
 
 People getting warmer clothing; providing winter 
 homes and storing food for animals; what ones? 
 
 Some animals getting thicker coats. What about 
 cats and dogs? 
 
 Falling leaves. 
 
 Harvest time. 
 
 Grass and leaves turning brown. 
 
 Birds going south. 
 
 Frogs and toads going to sleep underground. 
 
 Squirrels gathering nuts and storing them in hollow 
 trees. 
 
 Insects making cocoons — process observed in school- 
 room. 
 
 Wind scattering leaves and seeds. 
 
 How autumn "looks" and "sounds." 
 
 Winter 
 December, January, February 
 Winter : 
 
 Days short and cold — Jack Frost. 
 Artificial heat at home and at school. 
 Flowers gone and plants sleeping. 
 Food from cellar or grocer instead of garden. 
 Trees sleeping. 
 Landscape bare. 
 Few birds left. 
 
 Frogs and toads and insects sleeping. 
 Squirrels not seen so often. 
 Snow on ground. 
 
 How winter "looks" and "sounds." 
 Snow: 
 Watching for snow. 
 
 What winds bring snow; appearance of clouds 
 before a storm.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 207 
 
 Observing a snowstorm. 
 
 From whence snow comes : Sky. 
 
 How it comes down. 
 Discussion after snowfall. 
 
 Beauty. 
 
 Sleighing. 
 
 Snow a protecting blanket to roots and seeds that 
 might otherwise freeze. 
 Tracks in the snow: Finding them; trying to dis- 
 cover what made them, especially watching for 
 
 rabbit and bird tracks. 
 Drifting snow: Cause, effect. 
 Crust : Caused by freezing after the top of the snow 
 
 has been melted. 
 The land of snow, or Eskimo land. (See outline for 
 
 study of the Eskimos, p. 166.) 
 
 Referencesi 
 stories 
 "Snowflakes," In the Child's World. 
 "Jack Frost and his Work," In the Child's World. 
 "The North Wind at Play," In the Child's World. 
 "The Snow Man," For the Children's Hour. 
 "Grandfather's Penny," For the Children's Hour. 
 
 poems 
 "Little Ships in the Air," Love joy's Nature in Verse. 
 "Little Snowflakes," Love joy's Nature in Verse. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "Weather Song," Songs and Games for Little Ones. 
 "Jack Frost," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 "Falling Snow," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "In the Snowing and the Blowing," Songs for Little 
 Children. 
 
 lSee autumn references under "Birds," "Flowers," and "Trees."
 
 208 Five Messages 
 
 " Jacky Frost," Music Primer, Eleanor Smith. 
 "The Seasons," Songs, Roundels, and Games. 
 
 Spring 
 March 
 
 Early spring : 
 
 Signs of early spring. 
 
 Days growing longer. 
 
 Wind. 
 
 Observation to discover direction from which it 
 
 comes, pupils naming the signs by which they 
 
 decide: Clothes, grass, smoke. 
 
 Observation to discover kinds : 
 
 Warm, cold, gentle, rough. 
 
 From which direction the^warm winds ; from which 
 
 the cold winds; from which the gentle; from 
 
 which the rough. 
 
 How the winds effect plants, animals, and people. 
 
 Winds of autumn : 
 
 Scatter seeds and leaves. 
 
 Winds of winter: 
 
 Bring snow; make snowdrifts; freeze things but 
 
 make air pure. 
 
 Winds of spring : 
 
 Dry ground and help prepare it for the planting 
 
 of seeds; bring rain; sail kites. 
 
 References 
 stories 
 "The Wind and the Sun," Scudder's Fables. 
 "The Wind's Work," Mother Stories. 
 "Spring and her Helpers," In the Child's World. 
 " The Meeting of the Winds," In the Child's World. 
 "The Little Half Chick," The Teacher's Story Teller's 
 Book.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 209 
 
 POEMS 
 
 "The Wind," Robert Louis Stevenson. 
 "Windy Nights," Robert Louis Stevenson. 
 "The Wind," Christina Rossetti. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 " The Song of the Wind," Holiday Songs. 
 "The Wind," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 " The Windmill," Songs of the Child World, Part I. 
 "A Little Wind," Songs in Season. 
 "Wind Song," Songs for Little Children. 
 April 
 
 Later spring : 
 Signs of spring as observed — 
 In plants. 
 In animals. 
 
 Birds returning and nesting. 
 Insects appearing. 
 
 Frogs, turtles, and other animals coming back. 
 Frogs' eggs developed in school. 
 Some animals shedding winter coats. 
 In people. 
 
 Fires less necessary in houses. 
 Thinner clothing. 
 Planting gardens and fields. 
 Slight study of the sun as to its different manifes- 
 tations and influences at this time of year. 
 Days growing longer and warmer make the rain 
 
 warm. 
 Effect on plants and animals. 
 Rain: 
 A sign of spring; a necessity to the awakening of 
 plants. 
 
 14
 
 210 Five Messages 
 
 From whence it comes: Sky. 
 
 How it comes down. 
 
 What it does for plants ; for animals. 
 
 What it does for people. 
 
 Rainbow. 
 
 References 
 
 stories 
 
 " Iris Bridge," Nature Myths. 
 
 "How We First Came to Have Umbrellas," For the 
 Children's Hour. 
 
 "Who Likes the Rain," Songs of Tree Top and 
 
 Meadow. 
 "The Rain," Songs of Tree Top and Meadow. 
 "The Rainy Day," Longfellow. 
 "The Rainbow," Hiawatha. 
 
 SONGS AND GAMES 
 
 "The Raindrops," Holiday Songs. 
 
 "Rainbow Song," Songs and Games for Little Ones. 
 
 "See Millions of Bright Diamonds," Songs and Games 
 
 for Little Ones. 
 "Raindrops," Songs in Season. 
 "Dance of the Rainbow Fairies," Songs of the Child 
 
 World, Part I. 
 
 Summer 
 June 
 
 Early summer: 
 
 How summer "looks" and "sounds." 
 
 Landscape fresh and green, brightened by flowers 
 
 and alive with insects and birds. 
 
 Vacation— play time.
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 211 
 
 A paragraph given at the beginning is here repeated. 
 It reads as follows: 
 
 "The idea in presenting this outline is to provide a 
 unified, though flexible, ft heme of work, suggesting to 
 teachers an abundance of material upon which to base 
 thought lessons for all possible types and conditions 
 of first-grade pupils. It is, therefore, not intended 
 that any one class shall attempt too large a part of the 
 work suggested."
 
 REFERENCE BOOKS 
 
 Every first-grade teacher should possess a reference library, 
 however small, consisting of some of the best books for supple- 
 menting her general plan of work. For the convenience of those 
 who may wish suggestions with reference to the selection of a small 
 library containing material adapted to the methods described in 
 this volume, a list of books is here inserted. Many of the stories, 
 poems, songs, and games suggested in Message Five are contained 
 in these books. 
 
 I. Informational Subject Matter 
 
 In the Child's World, Emilie Poulsson. Milton Bradley Co., 
 
 Springfield, Mass. $2.00. 
 Outlines for Primary and Kindergarten Classes, Cannell and Wise. 
 
 E. L. Kellogg & Co., New York. 75 cents. 
 A Year Book for Primary Grades, Graves and Watkins. Milton 
 
 Bradley Co., Springfield, Mass. $1.25. 
 Kindergarten Stories and Morning Talks, Sara E. Wiltse. Ginn & 
 
 Co., Boston. 75 cents. 
 Character Building in School, Jane Brownlee. Houghton, Mifflin 
 
 & Co., Boston. $1.00. 
 Unconscious Childhood, Ellen Creelman. A child-study book. 
 
 (In preparation.) 
 Primary Handwork Problems Based on Related Interests, Clara P. 
 
 Reynolds. (In preparation.) 
 Primary Manual Work, Ledyard and Brechenfeld. Milton 
 
 Bradley Co., Springfield, Mass. 
 
 II. Stories 
 
 For the Children's Hour, Bailey and Lewis. Milton Bradley Co., 
 
 Springfield, Mass. $1.50. 
 Boston Collection of Kindergarten Stories. J. L. Hammett Co., 
 
 Boston. 60 cents. 
 Mother Stories and More Mother Stories, Maude Lindsay. Milton 
 
 Bradley Co., Springfield, Mass. $1.00 each. 
 The Golden Windows, Laura E. Richards. Little, Brown & Co., 
 
 Boston. $1.00. 
 
 212
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 213 
 
 Through the Barnyard Gate, Emilie Poulsson. Lothrop, Lee & 
 
 Shepard, Boston. $1.25. 
 The Story Hour, Kate Douglas Wiggin. Houghton, Mifflin & 
 
 Co., Boston. $1.00. 
 Eskimo Stories, Mary E. Smith. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago. 
 
 40 cents. 
 Classic Stories, Lida B. McMurry. Public School Publishing 
 
 Co., Bloomington, 111. 40 cents. 
 The Four Wonders: Cotton, Wool, Linen, Silk, Elnora Shillig. Rand 
 
 McNally & Co., Chicago. 50 cents. 
 Nature Myths, Flora J. Cooke. A. Flanagan, Chicago. 35 
 
 cents. 
 In Story Land, Elizabeth Harrison. Sigma Publishing Co., 
 
 St. Louis, Mo. $1.25. 
 Wee Tales for Wee People, Gertrude Wheeler. A series of booklets, 
 
 each containing from one to three stories. R. M. Wheeler, 
 
 Portland, Ore. 20 cents each. 
 The Teacher's Story Teller's Book, Alice O'Grady and Frances 
 
 Throop. Rand McNally & Co., Chicago. $1.00. 
 Story Telling: What to Tell and How to Tell It, Edna Lyman. 
 
 McClurg, Chicago. 75 cents. 
 How to Tell Stories to Children, Sara Cone Bryant. Houghton, 
 
 Mifflin & Co., Boston. $1.00. 
 The Five Senses, Angela M. Keyes. Moffat, Yard & Co., New 
 
 York. $1.00. 
 Stories and Story-klling, Angela M. Keyes. D. Appleton & Co., 
 
 New York. $1.25. 
 Literature in the Elementary School, Porter Lander MacClintock. 
 
 University of Chicago Press, Chicago. $1.00. 
 
 III. Poems 
 Songs of Tree Top and Meadow, McMurry and Cook. Public 
 
 School Publishing Co., Bloomington, 111. 35 cents. 
 Little Rhymes for Little Readers, Wilhelmina Seegmiller. Rand 
 
 McNally & Co., Chicago. 50 cents. 
 Graded Memory Selections. Educational Publishing Co., Chicago. 
 
 35 cents. 
 A Child's Garden of Verses, Robert Louis Stevenson. Rand 
 
 McNally & Co., Chicago. 50 cents. 
 Three Years with the Poets, Hazard. Houghton, Mifflin & Co., 
 
 Boston. 50 cents.
 
 214 Five Messages 
 
 The Posy Ring, Kate Douglas Wiggin. McClure, Phillips & 
 Co., New York. $1.25. 
 
 IV. Songs and Games 
 
 Finger Plays, Emilie Poulsson. Lothrop Publishing Co., Boston. 
 
 $1.25. 
 Alys Bentley Primer (Teacher's edition.) A. S. Barnes & Co., 
 
 New York. $1.00. 
 Alys Bentley Song Series, Book I. A. S. Barnes & Co., New York. 
 
 35 cents. 
 Song Stories for the Kindergarten, Mildred and Patty Hill. Clayton 
 
 Summy Co., Chicago. $1.00. 
 Modern Music Primer, Silver, Burdett & Co., New York. 25 
 
 cents. 
 A Primer on Voice and Singing, W. H. Neidlinger. Rand Mc- 
 
 Nally & Co., Chicago. 75 cents. 
 Songs and Music of Froebel's Mother Plays, Susan E. Blow. 
 
 D. Appleton & Co., New York. $1.50. 
 Small Songs for Small Singers, W. H. Neidlinger. G. Schirmer, 
 
 New York. $2.00. 
 Nature Songs and Lullabies, Anna Badlam and Carrie Bullard. 
 
 Clayton Summy Co., Chicago. 50 cents. 
 Child Song Book, Howliston. American Book Co., New York. 
 
 25 cents. 
 Songs of the Child World, Part I, Jessie L. Gaynor. John Church 
 
 Co., Cincinnati, Ohio. $1.00. 
 Children's Old and New Singing Games, Mari R. Hofer. 
 
 A. Flanagan, Chicago. 50 cents. 
 A Book of Song Games and Ball Games, Kate F. Bremmer. Geo. 
 
 Philip, Son and Nephew, Liverpool, England. (McClurg, Chi- 
 cago.) $1.25. 
 Art Song Cycles, Books I and II, Meissner and Fox. Silver, 
 
 Burdett & Co., New York. 25 cents each. 
 Graded Games and Rhythmic Exercises, Marion Newton. 
 
 A. S. Barnes & Co., New York. $1.25. 
 A Book of Plays and Games, Bella R. Parsons. A. S. Barnes & 
 
 Co., New York. $1.50. 
 Folk Dances and Singing Games, Elizabeth Burchenal. 
 
 G. Schirmer, New York. $1.50.
 
 INDEX 
 
 PAGE 
 
 An Opening Word 9 
 
 MESSAGE ONE 
 
 BLACKBOARD LESSONS 
 
 Introduction 11 
 
 Series I of Model Lessons 
 
 First Lesson 13 
 
 Discussion of First Lesson 14 
 
 Second Lesson 15 
 
 Discussion of Second Lesson 16 
 
 Third Lesson 17 
 
 Discussion of Third Lesson 18 
 
 Fourth Lesson 19 
 
 Discussion of Fourth Lesson 20 
 
 Fifth Lesson 21 
 
 Discussion of Fifth Lesson 22 
 
 Survey at Close of Series I 22 
 
 Series II of Model Lessons 
 
 First Lesson 25 
 
 Discussion of First Lesson 26 
 
 Second Lessen 26 
 
 Discussion of Second Lesson 27 
 
 Third Lesson 30 
 
 Discussion of Third Lesson 31 
 
 Fourth Lesson 32 
 
 Discussion of Fouth Lesson 34 
 
 Fifth Lesson 36 
 
 Discussion of Fifth Lesson 37 
 
 Survey at Close of Series II 39 
 
 Types of Lessons Omitted from this Scheme .... 41 
 
 MESSAGE TWO 
 TEACHING THE PRIMER AND THE FIRST READER 
 Presenting the Books 
 
 Introducing the Primer 44 
 
 Transition from Script to Print 44 
 
 215
 
 216 Five Messages 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Phases in the Development of a Lesson 45 
 
 Planning the Work 50 
 
 Habits Which First-Grade Pupils Should Form in Reading . 51 
 
 Review of Past Lessons 56 
 
 Practices in Book Lessons for Teachers to Guard Against . 57 
 Supplementing the Books 
 
 Opening Exercises 59 
 
 Help from Parents 60 
 
 Songs and Games 60 
 
 Dramatization 61 
 
 Stories 61 
 
 Poems 64 
 
 MESSAGE THREE 
 WORD STUDY 
 
 Introduction 65 
 
 Words as Wholes * 
 
 First Quarter 68 
 
 Second Quarter 74 
 
 Third and Fourth Quarters 80 
 
 Phonics 
 
 Foreword 86 
 
 First and Second Quarters 91 
 
 Third and Fourth Quarters 98 
 
 Spelling 107 
 
 MESSAGE FOUR 
 SEAT WORK 
 
 Introduction no 
 
 First and Second Quarters 
 
 Words as Wholes .118 
 
 Sentences 121 
 
 Phonics 122 
 
 Reading 123 
 
 Written Dictation 124 
 
 Third and Fourth Quarters 
 
 Words as Wholes 127 
 
 Sentences 128 
 
 Alphabet Cards 132 
 
 Phonics 134
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 217 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Reading 135 
 
 Written Dictation 135 
 
 Written Work 142 
 
 Conclusion 143 
 
 MESSAGE FIVE 
 
 OUTLINES OF SUBJECT MATTER 
 
 September 
 People 
 
 Mother 146 
 
 Children 147 
 
 Pets — Cat 149 
 
 Needs of People and Pets 
 
 Food 155 
 
 Training 171 
 
 Birds 189 
 
 Flowers 194 
 
 Trees 199 
 
 Landscape 205 
 
 October 
 People 
 
 Father - 147 
 
 Children 147 
 
 Pets — Cat 149 
 
 Needs of People and Pets 
 
 Food 155 
 
 Clothing 161 
 
 Training 171 
 
 Special Days — Hallowe'en 180 
 
 Birds 189 
 
 Flowers 194 
 
 Trees 199 
 
 Landscape 205 
 
 November 
 
 Pets — Dog 150 
 
 Needs of People and Pets 
 
 Food 155 
 
 Clothing 161 
 
 Training 171 
 
 Special Days — Thanksgiving 183
 
 218 Five Messages 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Birds 190 
 
 Flowers 196 
 
 Trees 199 
 
 Landscape 205 
 
 December 
 
 Pets — Dog 150 
 
 Needs of People and Pets 
 
 Food 156 
 
 Shelter 162 
 
 Training 171 
 
 Special Days — Christmas 184 
 
 Birds 190 
 
 Flowers 196 
 
 Trees 201 
 
 Landscape 206 
 
 January 
 
 Pets — Rabbit 152 
 
 Needs of People and Pets 
 
 Food 156 
 
 Clothing 161 
 
 Shelter 163 
 
 Heat 165 
 
 Training 171 
 
 Special Days — New Year 186 
 
 Birds 190 
 
 Trees 201 
 
 Landscape 206 
 
 February 
 
 Needs of People and Pets 
 
 Food 156 
 
 Light 168 
 
 Training 171 
 
 Special Days 
 
 St. Valentine's Day 187 
 
 Washington's Birthday 188 
 
 Birds 190 
 
 Trees 201 
 
 Landscape 206 
 
 March 
 
 Pets — Chicken 153
 
 To Teachers of Primary Reading 2ig 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Needs of People and Pets 
 
 Food 158 
 
 Air 170 
 
 Training 171 
 
 Birds 191 
 
 Flowers 196 
 
 Trees 202 
 
 Landscape 208 
 
 April 
 
 Pets — Chicken 153 
 
 Needs of People and Pets 
 
 Food 158 
 
 Water 170 
 
 Training 171 
 
 Special Days — Arbor Day 188 
 
 Birds 191 
 
 Flowers 197 
 
 Trees 202 
 
 Landscape 209 
 
 May 
 
 Needs of People and Pets 
 
 Food 158 
 
 Shelter 163 
 
 Training 171 
 
 Special Days — Bird Day 188 
 
 Birds 191 
 
 Flowers 197 
 
 Trees 202 
 
 Landscape 209 
 
 June 
 
 Completion of Unfinished Subjects.
 
 The Effective Teacher 
 
 "The moment a man ceases to be a systematic student, 
 he ceases to be an effective teacher." — /. G. Fitch. 
 
 Take heed, therefore. Never let your interest flag, your 
 faith waver. Seek new sources of thought and inspiration. 
 Try books like these — they embody a lifetime of experience. 
 
 READING CIRCLE BOOKS 
 
 Common Sense Didactics; Henry Sabin, formerly 
 Superintendent of Public Instruction for the State of Iowa. 
 Cloth, 343 pages $1.00 
 
 The Child: His Thinking, Feeling and Doing. 
 
 Amy Eliza Tanner, Clark University, Worcester, Massa- 
 chusetts. 
 
 Cloth, 430 pages $1.25 
 
 Growing a Life. Charles A. Evans, B.Sc, M.A., 
 President of State Normal School, Edmond, Oklahoma. 
 Cloth, 214 pages $1.00 
 
 Ideals and Democracy. Arthur Henry Chamberlain, 
 Formerly Dean of Throop Polytechnic Institute. Editor 
 of Sierra Educational News, San Francisco, California. 
 Cloth, 173 pages $1.00 
 
 The Teaching of Geography in Elementary 
 Schools. By Richard Elwood Dodge, Professor of 
 Geography, Teachers College, Columbia University, and 
 Clara B. Kirchwey, Instructor in Geography, Horace 
 Mann School and Teachers College, Columbia University, 
 New York. 
 
 Cloth, 248 pages $1.00 
 
 Send for full list of Teachers' Books 
 
 Rand McNally & Company 
 
 CHICAGO NEW YORK
 
 UCLA-Young Research Library 
 
 LB1525 .S27 
 V 
 
 L 009 593 997 1 
 
 UNIVERSITY of CALIFORNIA 
 BRARY