upon himself as much as possible in learning to read; and marking words which his previous drill has enabled him to pronounce, would only cripple his judgment. The principal diacritical marks only are used-words not conforming to ordinary rules of pronunciation being introduced "by sight." This is believed to be a wiser course than to perplex little ones with diacritical marks that are seldom needed. The accent mark is given in all cases, except where the accent is on the first syllable. Spelling. A moment's thought will show us that the eye, not the ear, is the best guide to correct spelling. Children learn to spell in order to write correctly, and, therefore, need constant practice in writing words; for this reason they should copy the new words at the top of Lessons. If teachers wonder why the very easy words are given in the beginnings of the book, let them remember how like an oasis was an easy word in the dreaded spelling book of their own childhood. Further drill in spelling is given in the Slate-work Lessons arranged in the form of easy conversation or stories. These are accompanied by lists of words in the most approved form of script, which are to be copied when the words are needed in the story. These Slate Lessons should be considered as The Basis of Future Work, in which the child must express his own thoughts in writing. Pupils should be required to observe and to explain, in their own words, the use of capitals. They should also learn the use of the comma, period, question-mark, and exclamationpoint, and, after a while, the semicolon. This practical work will soon enable them to give the principal rules in the use of capitals and of punctuation, which is far better than to memorize the rules without realizing their application. In reviewing the book, the teacher may dictate these Slate Lessons at discretion. Preface. Spelling Made Easy. 5 Though one has to depend chiefly on the eye in learning to spell correctly, yet there are a few simple rules which are of great help, especially if one makes a practical use of them from the very outset. These rules are brought before the children through their Slate-work. It is better not to teach them arbitrarily before each lesson. Let the children. copy the list of words on a given page,-24, for instance,and discover for themselves the rule of spelling applied; then, they may read the note at the foot of that page. Continue the exercise in connection with pages 29, 39, 67, 84, etc. Teachers who wish longer lists of words are referred to Monroe's First Steps in Spelling. In order to apply the rules, it is necessary that the children should know the difference between Vowels and Consonants. The difference must be taught, simply and practically, so that the pupils can readily tell which letters of the alphabet are vowels, and which are consonants. It may be done in this way: Let the class repeat the alphabet. Then the teacher may say: "Children, there are, in the alphabet, five letters that are sounded more freely and fully than the others. Each of these five is a voice-letter; that is, you open your mouth and your voice alone makes the sound of the letter. In making the other letters your lips will touch each other, or your tongue will touch the roof of the mouth or the teeth. Listen, and see whether you can tell which the voice-letters are." Then the teacher repeats "A." If the class is wide awake, some one will say, "Voice-letter!" "You are right." Then, drawing a vertical line on the blackboard, the teacher will add, "I will put A on the right side of this line." Teacher continues, "B." No one speaks. "Is not B a voice-letter?" "No, ma'am !" "Why not?" 'Because the lips touch each other." "You are right. I will put B on the left of the line." In this way, the children will find out that a, e, i, o, u are voice-letters. Then they may be taught to use the terms "Vowels" and "Consonants." In conclusion, the teacher may state that y and w, before a vowel-sound in the same syllable are consonants; in other cases they are vowels. These two letters may, therefore, be put half on the left, half on the right, of the perpendicular line. Children Read Best what they Enjoy. When the little ones in the upper grade of Primary Schools are allowed to select, their own pieces to read, they almost always choose stories about dogs, cats, etc. For this reason a large proportion of the lessons in the present book are true stories about animals. Children that are taught to be kind to dumb animals will invariably show kindness to one another. It is hoped, therefore, that this little book may serve as a rill in swelling the tide of good-feeling toward all. In those golden moments, when the teacher calls forth the conversational powers of her pupils, by letting them relate some interesting incident of their own experience, it may be that they will have stories to tell about their own pets, as striking as those given in this book. The publishers are indebted to Mr. Wm. T. Adams, editor of "Our Little Ones" from which charming magazine two of the stories in this book have been selected; and to Mr. James O. Sargent, of Boston, publisher of those treasure-houses of childhood, "The Bound Nurseries." 'Eddy's Balloon" was taken, by permission, from "St. Nicholas." |