Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1897-04-01
TEACHING READING.
Written and mad Ivy Miss Nellie Il. Carroll
ct southwest ilarhor. at q teachers meeting ut
Wmterport Muiee, aud published by request


To read well /, an important and desir-
able sccomplis hment to everybody, aud
yet We meet comparatively few persons
who can read paragraph aloud from the
ordinary newspaper or magazine, so that
their audience will fully understand it.
In ancient (?) days, the pronunciation
of the words in the reading lesson was
considered teaching how to read, -
but the present generation has happily
awakened from that idea. II the true
modern teacher among the primaries is
teaching them to recognize the word
"cat, she also teaches them to pronounce
The wcrd cat as it should be, without
droning it out to two syllables of uncer-
tain length. There are many different
ways of expressing even that word.
Our text books are but teri books, and
We should take care to prepare fresh and
interesting sermons from them.
Punctuation should be thoroughly
laugh in the primary room, but we find
many above that grade who may know
some of the Uses of the period, comma
and question mark, but beyond them ig
norance prevails. Then the diacritical
marks should be part of the reading
lesson. Children will be delighted to
mark he vowels in their own names so
that they viii indicate the correct sounds.
The plural forms of words and different
lenses can be taught with the reading
lesson much more successfully than at
any other time. The simple figures of
speech can be taught very Interestingly,
even to children in the third reader.
They will soon eagerly hunt for Smiles,
and will be glad to know that they are
always sure of finding those beautiful
figures in writings of their beloved Long
fellow. And, by the way, every child
over eight years old should be familiar
with his poet, and able to repeat some of
the gems of thought and description
which he has left for us
Teach them to find word pictures in
their reading lesson. l sometimes divide
my class into sections, giving one division
the task of finding "word picture of
person, another of landscape and the
bird takes home scene. For instance:
one produced a description of Mrs.
Stoves "Cncle Tom, another had
"Topsy', third described "Wamba'' in
Ivanhoe and others gave" Ic habod Crane,
"Evangeline" and other good ones.
They often have to rewrite whole page
or more to select only what bears upon
their subject, so it is an exercise in com
pos tion, as well as opening to their
minds the beauty and riches of good lit
erature.
Suppose the class is to read "The Cham
bered Nautilus" which is to be found in
many reading books. Every child can
find picture OF the nautilus in the die
tionary and the best artist of the class
will be glad to put an outline drawing on
t he board. 1t may be very rude one, but
imagination will supply many defects, if
they all have the object in their minds.
You can explain the yearly growth of the
spiral, If you think it beyond them.
Let each child be prepared to tell some
thing a bout the author-another beloved
poet w hose name should be we'll known
to all children because of the love he bore
them and their youth. 1t adds to the in
terest much, if the teacher can show the
class picture OF the poet-good ones can
be found in book catalogues sent out by
all large publishing houses. Tell them Of
some of the many fascinating stories of
his old home at Cambridge, and waken
An interest in the author before you
begin to read. Let each child, after the
reading, tell which lines he likes best or
thinks most beautiful, and see how many
of even the youngest will be quick to
grasp the poetical beauty of the third and
last stanzas.
Always be sure that the class is pre-
pared to give the definitions of the new
words, also the different ways of using
them. l have always followed the plan OF
having the class commit poems to mem
ory The mind retains in after years the
impressions of childhood much more
readily than those acquired in later life,
and maybe the choice quotation of gems
of poetry learned in childhood, even be-
fore the mind could grasp the meaning,
may have an elevating influence in some
hour when it is sorely needed.
My pupils have blank books into which
they carefully copy the poems from the
board as part of the writing lesson, and
they learn few lines each day In this
way they learn several selections every
term, and find it an excellent waking
up" exercise, if things get bit dull in the
schoolroom las they occasionally Will), to
have poem repeated in concert, or each
pupil supplying a line promptly enough
TO insure a smooth rendering of the
piece. Before beginning to learn it, we
always study the author as before sug-
gested.
The poems of Eugene Field, that poet
with The wonderful insight into the world
of childhood, are especially beautiful for
memorizing. The sweet and pathetic
story of Little Boy Blue" appeals to the
hearts of old and Vonnp Intimate