Chapter III: Part 3

He tosses about in every bare tree,
As, if you look up, you may plainly see;
But how he will come, and whither he goes,
There’s never a scholar anywhere knows.

He will suddenly stop in a cunning nook,
And ring a sharp ’larum; but, if you should look,
There’s nothing to see but a cushion of snow,
Round as a pillow, and whiter than milk,
And softer than if it were covered with silk.

Sometimes he’ll hide in the cave of the rock,
Then whistle as shrill as a cuckoo clock.
Yet seek him--and what shall you find in his place?
Nothing but silence and empty space;
Save, in a corner, a heap of dry leaves,
That he’s left, for a bed, to beggars or thieves!

--_Dorothy Wordsworth_

_Friday_

Pupils write a list of the nouns in the poem, “Winter Evening.”

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Pupils write a list of the verbs in the poem, “Winter Evening.”

_Tuesday_

Write five sentences telling what the wind does.

_Wednesday_

Children find answers to the following questions, in any way they can:

What little children wear wooden shoes?

What little children wear moccasins?

What little children wear shoes of fur?

What children wear shoes of silk or satin?

What children wear shoes of leather?

_Thursday_

Write five sentences about the different kinds of shoes children wear.

_Friday_

Write five sentences about the shoes you have on.

FOURTH YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

To be committed to memory:

SONG OF THE BROOK

I come from haunts of coot and hern,
I make a sudden sally,
And sparkle out among the fern
To bicker down a valley.

By thirty hills I hurry down,
Or slip between the ridges,
By twenty thorps, a little town
And half a hundred bridges.

Till last by Philip’s farm I flow,
To join the brimming river,
For men may come and men may go,
But I go on forever.

I chatter over stony ways,
In little sharps and trebles,
I bubble into eddying bays,
I babble on the pebbles.

With many a curve my banks I fret
By many a field and fallow,
And many a fairy foreland set
With willow weed and mallow.

I chatter, chatter, as I flow
To join the brimming river;
For men may come and men may go,
But I go on forever.

I wind about, and in and out,
With here a blossom sailing,
And here and there a lusty trout,
And here and there a grayling.

And here and there a foamy flake
Upon me, as I travel,
With many a silvery water-break,
Above the golden gravel.

And draw them all along, and flow
To join the brimming river,
For men may come and men may go,
But I go on forever.

I steal by lawns and grassy plots,
I slide by hazel covers;
I move the sweet forget-me-nots
That grow for happy lovers.

I slip, I slide, I gloom, I glance
Among my skimming swallows;
I make the melted sunbeams glance
Against my sandy shallows.

I murmur under moon and stars
In brambly wildernesses;
I linger by my shingly bars--
I loiter round my cresses.

And out again I curve and flow
To join the brimming river,
For men may come and men may go,
But I go on forever.--_Alfred Tennyson_

Have the first six stanzas of the poem copied.

_Tuesday_

Have the rest of the poem copied.

_Wednesday_

Pupils commit to memory the first three stanzas of the poem.

_Thursday_

Commit to memory the second three stanzas of the poem.

_Friday_

Commit to memory the third three stanzas of the poem.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

Commit to memory the rest of the poem.

_Tuesday_

Recite the entire poem.

_Wednesday_

Study up the life of Alfred Tennyson.

_Thursday_

Answer the following questions:

Where does the brook come from?

What is a “coot”? (See dictionary.)

What is a “hern”? (See dictionary.)

What does the brook do among the ferns?

What is meant by the brook’s “bickering”?

How does the brook come down by thirty hills?

What is meant by the brook’s “slipping” between the ridges?

What is a “thorp”?

_Friday_

Answer the following questions:

What is meant by a “brimming river”?

How does the brook join the river?

How does the brook go on forever?

How does the brook get the water to keep on flowing forever?

What is meant by the brook’s “chattering”?

What causes the noises of the brook?

What are “sharps and trebles”?

What is an “eddying bay”? What is an eddy?

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

Answer the following questions:

What is the meaning of “fret”?

How does the brook fret the banks with its curves?

What is a “foreland”?

What is “willow-weed”?

What is “mallow”?

What makes the brook wind about?

How do blossoms happen to be sailing on the water?

Whereabouts in the brook do the trout stay?

What is a “grayling”?

_Tuesday_

Answer the following questions:

What is a “water-break”?

What is “gravel”?

Why is the gravel called golden?

What are some of the things that the brook carries along to the river?

What is meant by “hazel covers”?

Why are the forget-me-nots said to “grow for happy lovers”?

_Wednesday_

Answer the following questions:

How does the brook go?

What is meant by “skimming” swallows?

What makes the sunbeam in the woods “netted”?

What is a “shallow”?

How does the brook murmur?

What is a “bramble”?

What are “cresses”? Where do they grow?

_Thursday_

Write in a list all the verbs in the poem.

_Friday_

Write a list of all the adjectives in the poem.

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Write a composition on brooks.

_Tuesday_

Talk about brooks, rivers, and the ocean.

_Wednesday_

Write a rhyme of four lines about a river.

_Thursday_

Each pupil find and repeat in class a quotation about a brook, a river, or the ocean.

_Friday_

Play, “My ship came from China, and it brought to me.”

FEBRUARY

FIRST YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

Talk about the new month. What is this month? What was last month? What month follows February? What season is this? What are the three months of the winter season? What season follows winter? What are the three months of the spring season? What season follows spring? What season follows summer?

_Tuesday_

To be taught to the children:

Red, white, and blue is our country’s flag,
Flag of the brave and free;
Red, white and blue, where’er you go,
Is the flag for you and me.--_Selected_

_Wednesday_

Talk about the flag. How many colors has our flag? What are they? How many red stripes are there? How many white stripes? Where is the blue of the flag? What is there on the blue? Count the stars. How many stars are there?

_Thursday_

Tell the story of Betsy Ross, and the making of the first United States flag.

_Friday_

Have the children repeat to you the story of Betsy Ross and the flag. Have the flag salute given. In case the children are not familiar with it, here is the salute usually given:

“We give our heads, our hearts, and our hands to our country.
One country, one language, one flag.”

During the salute, the flag should be held, unfurled, by some one facing the class. The children point with the right hands to their heads and their hearts. At the words, “our hands,” both hands should be extended. At the words “one flag,” the right hand only is extended.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

Tell stories of the boyhood of Abraham Lincoln.

_Tuesday_

Talk about Lincoln’s boyhood, allowing the children to tell you the stories which they heard the day before.

_Wednesday_

Talk about St. Valentine’s Day. What do we give on that day? To whom do we give valentines? (To those we love.)

_Thursday_

Tell the story of good St. Valentine.

_Friday_

Have the children repeat to you the story of St. Valentine.

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

Tell the story of Washington and the hatchet. Remember that, old and stale as the story may be to you, it is new once to every child.

_Tuesday_

Play, as a game, Washington and his hatchet.

_Wednesday_

Tell the story of Washington as a general; how he led the armies that fought to make our country free. Tell about his birthday, February 22, and how we celebrate it, in memory of what he did for us.

_Thursday_

Write: _George Washington, the father of his country_.

_Friday_

Write: _We live in the United States._

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

To be taught to the children:

Rainy days and sunny days,
What difference makes the weather,
When little hearts are full of love,
And all are glad together.--_Selected_

_Tuesday_

Tell the children the story of “The Three Bears.”

_Wednesday_

Have the children tell you the story of “The Three Bears.”

_Thursday and Friday_

Play the story of “The Three Bears,” as a game.

SECOND YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

To be committed to memory:

THE SHORTEST MONTH

Will the winter never be over,
Will the dark days never go?
Must the buttercup and the clover
Be always under the snow?

Ah, lend me your little ear, love,
Hark! ’tis a beautiful thing;
The dreariest month of the year, love,
Is shortest and nearest to spring.

--_A. D. T. Whitney_

Have the poem copied.

_Tuesday_

Teach the poem to the children.

_Wednesday_

Supply words to fill the blank spaces in the following:

The Queen of ----,
She made some ----.
All on a summer’s ----.
The ---- of hearts,
He stole those ----,
And quickly ---- away.

_Thursday_

Story for reproduction:

LINCOLN’S FIRST DOLLAR

When Abraham Lincoln was a boy he went down the river in a boat to carry a load of truck to market. He stood by the river bank, after he had sold his bacon and vegetables. A steamboat was coming down the river.

Two men who wished to go on board the steamer asked Abraham to row them out. He did so, and as they climbed on board they left in his hand two half dollars.

It was the first money he had ever earned, and Abraham was a very proud, happy boy.

_Friday_

Children tell the story of Abraham Lincoln’s first money.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

Teach the following poem to the children:

NED’S CHOICE

She has not rosy cheeks,
Nor eyes that brightly shine,
Nor golden curls, nor teeth like pearls,
This Valentine of thine;
But, oh! she’s just the dearest,
The truest and the best,
And one more kind you will not find
In many a long day’s quest.

Her cheeks are faded now,
Her dear old eyes are dim;
Her hair’s like snow, her steps are slow,
Her figure isn’t trim;
But, oh! and, oh! I love her,
This grandmamma of mine;
I wish that she for years may be
My own dear Valentine.--_Selected_

_Tuesday_

Write three sentences about your grandmother if you have one; if not, about your mother.

_Wednesday_

Valentine verses, for the children to copy:

I wish I were the tiny cup,
From which you take your tea;
For every time you took a sip,
You’d give a kiss to me.

If you love me as I love you,
No knife can cut our love in two.

The rose is red,
The violet’s blue;
Pinks are pretty,
And so are you.

_Wednesday_

Write a letter, that might be sent to your mother as a valentine.

_Thursday_

For dictation:

’Twas a tortoise,
All yellow and black;
He walked away,
And never came back.--_Selected_

_Friday_

Play “The Queen of Hearts” as a game.

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

Write a list of words that rhyme with _queen_.

_Tuesday_

Tell the children the story of Washington and his colt.

_Wednesday_

Write five sentences about Washington.

_Thursday_

Tell the story of Washington crossing the Delaware.

_Friday_

Play, as a game, Washington and his colt, and also Washington crossing the Delaware.

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Write five sentences about playing in the snow.

_Tuesday_

Talk about what we eat. Who likes sweet things? Who likes pickles? Who likes meat? Who likes potatoes? Tell the children about foods that they need to eat to be well.

_Wednesday_

Write a list of things that we eat.

_Thursday_

Talk about clothing. Why we wear woolen clothing in cold weather; where the wool comes from; talk about sheep.

_Friday_

Write five sentences about clothing, and where the wool comes from.

THIRD YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

To be committed to memory:

OUR FLAG

There are many flags in many lands,
There are flags of every hue,
But there is no flag in any land,
Like our own Red, White, and Blue.

I know where the prettiest colors are,
I’m sure if I only knew
How to get them here, I could make a flag,
Of glorious Red, White, and Blue.

I could cut a piece from the evening sky,
Where the stars were shining through,
And use it just as it was on high,
For my Stars and field of Blue.

Then I’d want a piece of fleecy cloud,
And some from a rainbow bright,
And I’d put them together, side by side,
For my Stripes of Red and White.

Then “Hurrah for the Flag!” our country’s flag,
Its stripes, and white stars, too;
There is no flag in any land,
Like our own Red, White and Blue.--_Selected_

Have the poem copied.

_Tuesday_

Learn the first two stanzas of the poem.

_Wednesday_

Learn the rest of the poem.

_Thursday_

Recite the entire poem.

_Friday_

Write a list of the nouns, and another of the verbs, in the poem.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

Write a four-line verse suitable for a valentine.

_Tuesday_

Write the story of St. Valentine.

_Wednesday_

Talk about Lincoln.

_Thursday_

Write what you know about Lincoln.

_Friday_

For dictation:

Twilight and firelight,
Shadows come and go;
Merry chimes of sleighbells
Tinkling through the snow;
Mother knitting stockings
(Pussy’s got the ball)--
Don’t you think that winter’s
Pleasanter than all?--_Selected_

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

Write the story of Washington and the hatchet.

_Tuesday_

Write three sentences, telling why we should admire Washington.

_Wednesday_

Tell the story of Lafayette’s part in aiding our fight for freedom.

_Thursday_

Write what you know of Lafayette.

For dictation:

God make my life a little song,
That comforteth the sad;
That helpeth others to be strong,
And makes the singer glad.

--_Selected_

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Story for reproduction:

THE ROBIN’S RED BREAST

Long ago, in the far north, where it is very cold, there was only one fire.

An old man and his little son took care of this fire and kept it burning day and night.

They knew that if the fire went out all the people would freeze and that the white bear would have the northland all to himself.

But one day the old man became very sick so that his son had everything to do.

For many days and nights he bravely took care of his father and kept the fire burning.

But at last he got so tired and sleepy that he could no longer work.

Now the white bear was always watching the fire.

He longed for the time when he would have the northland all to himself.

And when he saw how tired and sleepy the little boy was, he stayed close to the fire and laughed to himself.

One night the poor little boy could endure no longer and fell fast asleep.

Then the white bear ran as fast as he could and jumped upon the fire with his wet feet and rolled upon it.

At last he thought it was all out and went happily away to his cave.

But a gray robin was flying near and saw what the white bear was doing.

She waited until the bear went away.

Then she flew down and searched with her sharp little eyes until she found a tiny live spark.

This she fanned patiently for a long time with her wings.

Her little breast was scorched red, but she did not give up.

After awhile a fine red blaze sprang up again.

Then she flew away to every hut in the northland.

And everywhere that she touched the ground a fire began to burn.

So that soon instead of one little fire the whole northland was lighted up.

And now all that the white bear could do was to go farther back into his cave and growl.

For now, indeed, he knew that the northland was not all for him.

And this is the reason why the people in the north country love the robin. And they are never tired of telling their children how it got its red breast.

_Tuesday_

Write the story of the Robin’s Red Breast.

_Wednesday_

Play, as a game, the story of Robin.

_Thursday_

Write five sentences about birds.

_Friday_

For dictation:

Two hands and only one mouth have you,
And it is worth while repeating,
That two are for the work you will have to do;
The one is enough for eating.--_Selected_

FOURTH YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

To be committed to memory:

“The Wreck of the Hesperus,” by Henry W. Longfellow.

Copy eleven stanzas of the poem.

_Tuesday_

Copy the rest of the poem.

_Wednesday_

Learn the first four stanzas of the poem.

_Thursday_

Learn the second four stanzas of the poem.

_Friday_

Learn the third four stanzas of the poem.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

Learn the fourth four stanzas of the poem.

_Tuesday_

Learn the fifth four stanzas of the poem.

_Wednesday_

Finish learning the poem, and recite it throughout.

_Thursday_

Recite the poem, and answer the following:

What is a “schooner”? (See dictionary.)

How does the sea in winter differ from a summer sea?

Who was the “skipper”?

Write a description of the captain’s daughter.

What is a “helm”?

What is meant by the “veering flaw?”

What did the changing positions of the wind indicate with regard to the weather?

_Friday_

Where was the “Spanish Main”?

What is a “port”?

What is a “hurricane”?

What does a golden ring around the moon indicate?

Did you ever see one?

What is a “whiff”?

What is a “gale”?

What is meant by the “brine”?

What is meant by “smote amain”?

How could a boat leap?

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

What is a “blast”? How could it sting?

What is a “spar”?

What is a “mast”?

What is a “fog-bell”?

What is meant by a “rock-bound coast”?

What guns could be heard?

Why was the sea “angry”?

Where is Norman’s Woe? Why is it so called?

_Tuesday_

What is a “gust”?

Why was the surf called “trampling”?

What is the bow of a boat?

What is a “wreck”?

Why were the frozen seamen like icicles?

_Wednesday_

Why did the waves look “fleecy”?

What is “carded wool”?

Why were the rocks called “cruel”?

What is a “shroud”?

What is meant by “went by the board”?

What became of the ship?

What is a “reef”?

_Thursday_

Look up the life of the poet Longfellow and talk about him.

_Friday_

Write the story of Longfellow’s life.

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Write the story of St. Valentine.

_Tuesday_

Write the story of Lincoln’s boyhood.

_Wednesday_

Write about what Washington did for our country.

_Thursday_

Talk about patriotism; what it means, and how we can best show our patriotism.

_Friday_

Write the story of the making of the first American flag.

MARCH

FIRST YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

Talk about the new month. What month is this? What was last month? What month follows March? What season is this? What are the three months of the spring season? What season follows spring? What season is just past? How many days has March? What is March sometimes called? (The windy month.)

_Tuesday_

Write the date. Write the word _March_.

_Wednesday_

Talk about the wind. Can we see the wind? How do we know when the wind is blowing? What does the wind do to the trees? What does it do to the clothes hanging on the line? What does it do to our faces? (Makes our cheeks rosy.)

_Thursday_

To be taught to the children:

WHO HAS SEEN THE WIND?

Who has seen the wind?
Neither I nor you;
But when the leaves hang trembling
The wind is passing through.

Who has seen the wind?
Neither you nor I,
But when the trees bow down their heads
The wind is passing by.

--_Christina Rossetti_

_Friday_

Teach the children the poem given above.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

Talk about wind-mills: How they are used; how they turn; Holland and the wind-mills of that country.

_Tuesday_

Write:

Who has seen the wind?
Neither you nor I.

_Wednesday_

Story to be told to the children:

THE WINDS

This is one of the stories that the fathers and mothers in Greece used to tell their children.

Æolus was the father of all the winds, great and small. He had six sons and six daughters.

When the children were old enough, they went out into the world to work. Often they were gone all day long.

They had to sweep and dust the whole world. They carried water from the sea to wash and scrub the earth.

They helped to move the great ships across the ocean. They scattered the seeds, and watered the flowers, and did many other helpful things.

And these things are what the winds do for us to-day.

Can you tell the names of the four great winds? (East, West, North, South.)

_Thursday_

Have the children tell you about Æolus and his winds.

_Friday_

Write: The four winds are East, West, North and South.

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

Talk about kites and kite-flying: How does a kite fly? How high will a kite fly? How do boys make kites?

Tell the children about the kites of Japan, and about kite-flying day in that country.

_Tuesday_

Have the children give as many words as they can that rhyme with _kite_. Write these on the blackboard, and use them for drill in phonics.

_Wednesday_

Talk about pussy willows. Who has seen pussy willows? Who has seen pussy willows this year? Where? How do we find the little pussies growing? What are they covered with? What for? (To protect the tiny buds from cold.)

_Thursday_

Write: Pussy willows have gray fur.

_Friday_

To be committed to memory:

Whatever way the wind doth blow,
Some heart is glad to have it so;
So blow it east, or blow it west,
The wind that blows--that wind is best.

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Tell the children about St. Patrick, the good old Irish saint, whose birthday comes in March.

_Tuesday_

Have the children tell you about St. Patrick.

_Wednesday_

Write: _Spring begins in March._

_Thursday_

Fill the blank spaces in the following:

The East Wind comes from the ----.
The West Wind comes from the ----.
The North Wind comes from the ----.
The South Wind comes from the ----.

_Friday_

Talk about the signs of Spring.

SECOND YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

To be committed to memory:

THE WIND

I saw you toss the kites on high,
And blow the birds about the sky,
And all around I heard you pass,
Like ladies’ skirts across the grass--
O wind, a-blowing all day long,
O wind, that sings so loud a song!

I saw the different things you did,
But always you yourself you hid.
I felt you push, I heard you call,
I could not see yourself at all--
O wind, a-blowing all day long,
O wind, that sings so loud a song!

O you that are so strong and cold;
O blower, are you young or old?
Are you a beast of field and tree,
Or just a stronger child than me?
O wind, a-blowing all day long?
O wind, that sings so loud a song?

--_Robert Louis Stevenson_

Children copy the first stanza of the poem, and commit it to memory.

_Tuesday_

Copy and learn the second stanza of the poem.

_Wednesday_

Copy and learn the third stanza of the poem.

_Thursday_

Recite the entire poem.

_Friday_

Write a list of the naming words (nouns) in the poem.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

For dictation:

Galloping, galloping, galloping in,
Into the world with a stir, and a din.
The north wind, the east wind, the west wind together,
In-bringing, in-bringing, the March’s wild weather.

_Tuesday_

Write five sentences, telling what the wind does.

_Wednesday_

Story for reproduction:

SPRING

It was spring.

The sun had melted the snow from the hill-tops; the grass blades were pushing their way through the brown earth, and the buds on the trees were beginning to break open and let the tiny green leaves peep out.

A bee, waked from the sleep in which he had lain all through the winter, rubbed his eyes, then opened the door, and looked out to see if the ice and snow and the north wind had gone away. Yes; there was warm, clear sunshine.

He slipped out of the hive, stretched his wings and flew away.

He went to the apple tree and asked, “Have you anything for a hungry bee, who has eaten nothing the whole winter long?”

The apple tree answered:

“No; you have come too early. My blossoms are still buds and so I have nothing for you. Go to the cherry tree.”

He flew to the cherry tree and said, “Dear cherry tree, have you any honey for a hungry bee?”

The cherry tree answered:

“Come again to-morrow; to-day my blossoms are shut up, but when they are open you are welcome to them.”

Then he flew to a bed of tulips nearby. They had large, beautiful flowers, but there was neither sweetness nor perfume in them and he could not find any honey.

Tired and hungry, the poor bee turned to seek his home, when a tiny dark blue flower, beside a hedge, caught his eye.

It was a violet that was all ready for the bee’s coming. The violet opened its cup of sweetness. The bee drank his fill, and carried some honey to the hive.

--_Selected and Adapted_

_Thursday_

Children retell, in their own words, the story of “Spring.”

_Friday_

Write five sentences about spring.

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

For dictation:

If a task is once begun,
Never leave it till it’s done;
Be the labor great or small
Do it well, or not at all.

_Tuesday_

Talk about signs of spring! Sky, bright sun, warmer days, return of birds, pussy willows, swelling buds.

_Wednesday_

Write five sentences about pussy willows.

_Thursday_

Write a letter to your sister or brother, telling about pussy willow.

_Friday_

Write a sentence containing the word _blue_; one with the word _green_; _pink_; _yellow_; _red_; _white_.

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Tell the children about St. Patrick.

_Tuesday_

Write three sentences about St. Patrick.

_Wednesday_

Write the names of all the members of the family, and your address.

_Thursday_

For dictation:

Under the snowdrifts the blossoms are sleeping,
Dreaming their dreams of sunshine and June.

_Friday_

Talk about the wind, and what it does.

THIRD YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

To be committed to memory:

THE VOICE OF THE GRASS

Here I come creeping, creeping, everywhere;
By the dusty roadside,
On the sunny hillside,
Close by the noisy brook,
In every shady nook,
I come creeping, creeping everywhere.

Here I come creeping, creeping everywhere.
All around the open door,
Where sit the aged poor;
Here where the children play,
In the bright and merry May,
I come creeping, creeping everywhere.

Here I come creeping, creeping everywhere;
In the noisy city street
My pleasant face you’ll meet,
Cheering the sick at heart.
Toiling his busy part--
Silently creeping, creeping everywhere.

Here I come creeping, creeping everywhere,
You cannot see me coming,
Nor hear my low sweet humming,
For in the starry night,
And the glad morning light,
I come quietly creeping, creeping everywhere.

Here I come creeping, creeping everywhere,
More welcome than the flowers
In summer’s pleasant hours;
The gentle cow is glad,
And the merry bird not sad,
To see me creeping, creeping everywhere.

* * * * *

Here I come creeping, creeping everywhere;
My humble song of praise
Most joyfully I raise
To Him at whose command
I beautify the land,
Creeping, silently creeping everywhere.

--_Sarah Roberts Boyle_

Copy the first half of the poem.

_Tuesday_

Copy the rest of the poem.

_Wednesday_

Commit to memory the first two stanzas of the poem.

_Thursday_

Commit to memory the second two stanzas of the poem.

_Friday_

Recite the entire poem.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

Write a list of the nouns in the poem.

_Tuesday_

Write a list of the verbs in the poem.

_Wednesday_

Write a list of adjectives in the poem.

_Thursday_

For dictation:

In her dress of silver gray,
Comes the Pussy Willow gay;
Like a little Eskimo,
Clad in fur from top to toe.

_Friday_

Write five sentences about pussy willows.

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

Write, to a classmate, a telegram of not more than ten words, saying that spring is coming.

_Tuesday_

Write a letter to a pussy willow.

_Wednesday_

Talk about the wind and what it does.

_Thursday_

Write five sentences telling what the wind does.

_Friday_

Write the story of St. Patrick.

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

For dictation:

Day after day, and year after year,
Little by little, the leaves appear;
And the slender branches far and wide,
Tell the mighty oak is the forest’s pride.

_Tuesday_

Write a list of at least ten objects beginning with _m_. Who can write the longest list?

_Wednesday_

Write a rhyme of four lines about the wind.

_Thursday_

Write a story about some pet that you have or that you know about.

_Friday_

Tell something that makes you happy.

Tell something that makes you sorry.

Tell something that you think it is right to do.

Tell something that you think it is wrong to do.

FOURTH YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

To be committed to memory:

THE FAIRIES

Up the airy mountain,
Down the rushy glen,
We daren’t go a-hunting,
For fear of little men;
Wee folk, good folk,
Trooping all together;
Green jacket, red cap,
And white owl’s feather.

Down along the rocky shore,
Some make their home;
They live on crispy pancakes
Of yellow tide-foam;
Some in the reeds
Of the black mountain lake,
With frogs for their watch-dogs,
All night awake.

High on the hilltop,
The old king sits;
He is now so old and gray
He’s nigh lost his wits.
By the craggy hillside,
Through the mosses bare,
They have planted thorn trees
For pleasure here and there.
Is any man so daring,
As dig one up in spite?
He shall find their sharpest thorns
In his bed at night.

Up the airy mountain,
Down the rushy glen,
We daren’t go a-hunting,
For fear of little men,
Wee folk, good folk,
Trooping all together;
Green jacket, red cap;
And white owl’s feather.

--_William Allingham_

Copy the poem.

_Tuesday_

Learn the first half of the poem.

_Wednesday_

Learn the rest of the poem.

_Thursday_

Answer the following questions:

What is meant by the “airy” mountain?

What is meant by the “rushy glen”? What is a glen?

Why are the fairies called “wee” folk?

What is meant by their “trooping”?

What are “crispy” pan-cakes?

What are “reeds”?

Why is a mountain lake called “black”?

_Friday_

What “old king sits”?

What are “wits”?

What is a “craggy hillside”?

Why are the, mosses called “bare”?

Write a description of a fairy as given in the poem.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

Talk about the following: What story, that you have read, do you like best? Why? What game do you like best? Why? What song do you like best? Why? What study do you like best? Why?

_Tuesday_

For dictation:

Lives of great men all remind us,
We can make our lives sublime;
And, departing, leave behind us,
Footprints on the sands of time.

_Wednesday_

Write about what the wind does.

_Thursday_

Write about the signs of spring that you have noticed.

_Friday_

Talk about what you saw on your way to school.

Third Week

_Monday_

Write a list of all the words you can think of that begin with _h_. Who can write the longest list?

_Tuesday_

For dictation:

In spring when stirs the wind, I know
That soon the crocus buds will blow;
For ’tis the wind who bids them wake
And into pretty blossoms break.

_Wednesday_

Write a description of the teacher’s desk.

_Thursday_

Write an informal invitation to a St. Patrick’s Day entertainment at the school.

_Friday_

Have a spelling match.

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Write seven verbs.

Write each in a different sentence.

Tuesday

For dictation:

To look up and not down,
To look forward and not back,
To look out and not in, and
To lend a hand.

_Wednesday_

Write a letter, if you are in the country, to some one in the city, telling what games you play at recess. If you live in the city, write to some one in the country.

_Thursday_

Write a description of some game you play.

_Friday_

Talk about the return of the birds.

APRIL

FIRST YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

Talk about the next month? What is the name of this month? What was last month? What will next month be? What season is this? What will the next season be? How many days in April? What other months have only thirty days?

_Tuesday_

Story to be told to the children:

THE MORNING-GLORY SEED

A little girl dropped a morning-glory seed into a small hole in the ground. As she did so she said, “Now, morning-glory seed, hurry and grow, grow, grow, until you are a tall vine, covered with pretty green leaves and lovely trumpet flowers.”

But the earth was very dry. There had been no rain for a long time, and the poor seed could not grow at all.

After it had lain in the ground for nine long days and nine long nights, the little seed said to the ground, “Oh, ground, please give me a few drops of water to soften my hard brown coat. Then my coat can burst open and set free my two green seed-leaves, and then I can begin to be a vine.”

But the ground said, “You must ask that of the rain.”

So the seed called to the rain. “Oh, rain,” it said, “please come down and wet the ground around me, so that it may give me a few drops of water, to soften my hard brown coat. Then my coat can burst open and set free my two green seed-leaves, and then I can begin to be a vine.”

“I cannot,” said the rain, “unless the clouds hang low.”

So the seed said to the clouds, “Oh, clouds, please hang low, and let the rain come down and wet the ground around me, so that it may give me a few drops of water to soften my hard brown coat. Then my coat can burst open and set free my two green seed-leaves, and then I can begin to be a vine.”

But the clouds said, “The sun must hide first.”

So the seed called to the sun. “Oh, sun, please hide for a little while. Then the clouds can hang low, and let the rain come down and wet the ground around me, so that it may give me a few drops of water, to soften my hard brown coat. Then my coat can burst open and set free my two green seed-leaves, and then I can begin to be a vine.”

“I will,” said the sun, and he hid at once.

Then the clouds hung low and lower. The rain began to fall fast and faster. The ground began to grow wet and wetter. The seed-coat began to grow soft and softer, until it burst open. Out came two bright green seed-leaves, and the morning-glory seed began to be a vine.--_Adapted_

_Wednesday_

Talk about the story of the morning-glory seed.

_Thursday_

Talk about the part the rain and the sunshine have in making plants grow.

_Friday_

Play as a game the story of the morning-glory seed.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

To be committed to memory:

SEVEN TIMES ONE

There’s no dew left on the daisies and clover,
There’s no rain left in heaven;
I’ve said my “seven times” over and over,
Seven times one are seven.

I am old, so old I can write a letter;
My birthday lessons are done;
The lambs play always, they know no better,
They are only one times one.

O moon! in the night I have seen you sailing,
And shining so round and low;
You were bright, ah, bright! but your light is failing--
You are nothing now but a bow.

You moon, have you done something wrong in heaven
That God has hidden your face?
I hope if you have, you will soon be forgiven,
And shine again in your place.

O velvet bee, you’re a dusty fellow;
You’ve powdered your legs with gold!
O brave marshmary buds, rich and yellow,
Give me your money to hold.

And show me your nest with the young ones in it--
I will not steal it away;
I am old! you may trust me, linnet, linnet--
I am seven years old to-day!--_Jean Ingelow_

Spend the rest of the week teaching the poem to the children. They always enjoy this poem, one generation of little folks after another. Did you not?

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

Talk about the rain: Why we need so much of it this month, when the plants are just starting to grow.

_Tuesday_

Have the children write: April is the rainy month.

_Wednesday_

For dictation:

Oh, where do you come from,
You little drops of rain?

_Thursday_

Read or recite the following poem to the children. Talk about where the rain comes from, and what becomes of the water. The children are old enough to understand and appreciate it all, if the explanation be made sufficiently simple.

THE RAIN DROPS’ RIDE

Some little drops of water,
Whose home was in the sea,
To go upon a journey
Once happened to agree.

A white cloud was their carriage;
Their horse, a playful breeze;
And over town and country
They rode along at ease.

But, O! there were so many,
At last the carriage broke,
And to the ground came tumbling
Those frightened little folk.

Among the grass and flowers
They then were forced to roam,
Until a brooklet found them,
And carried them all home.--_Selected_

_Friday_

Let the children play the rain as a game. They can come from one part of the room which may represent the sea. They can ride on a play cloud. Coming gently to a garden, on the floor, they may play scatter the drops quietly, like an April rain, from their finger tips. Then they may join the brook, and go with it to where it enters the river, then follow the river to the ocean once more.

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Tell the children the story of Paul Revere’s Ride.

_Tuesday_

Have the children tell back to you the story of Paul Revere’s Ride.

_Wednesday_

Read to the children Longfellow’s poem, “Paul Revere’s Ride.”

_Thursday_

Write three sentences about Paul Revere’s Ride.

_Friday_

Have the children play Paul Revere’s Ride as a game.

SECOND YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

A rainy morning. (If the morning is pleasant, use this exercise the first rainy day.) Why did you come to school this morning with rubbers and umbrella? Why does the rain run off an umbrella? Why is the roof of a house built on a slant? Why does rain sometimes fall straight down, and sometimes fall slanting? How does the rain tell us which way the wind blows? Why do rubbers keep our feet dry? Why do not our shoes keep our feet dry? What can you think of, besides overshoes, that is made of rubber?

_Tuesday_

Write five sentences about rain.

_Wednesday_

Poem to be committed to memory:

THE BLUEBIRD

I know the song the bluebird is singing,
Out in the apple tree where he is swinging,
Brave little fellow! the skies may be dreary--
Nothing cares he while his heart is so cheery.
Hark! how the music leaps from his throat!
Hark! was there ever so merry a note?

Listen a while, and you’ll hear what he’s saying,
Up in the apple tree swinging and swaying.
Dear little blossoms, down under the snow,
You must be weary of winter, I know;
Hark while I sing you a message of cheer:
Summer is coming, and springtime is here.

“Little white snowdrop, I pray you arise!
Bright yellow crocus, come open your eyes!
Sweet little violets, hid from the cold,
Put on your mantles of purple and gold!
Daffodils, daffodils! say, do you hear?
Summer is coming, and springtime is here.

--_Selected_

Have the poem copied.

_Thursday_

Learn the first and second stanzas of the poem.

_Friday_

Learn the rest of the poem.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

Write a list of the name words (nouns) in the poem, “The Bluebird.”

_Tuesday_

Write a list of the doing words (verbs) in the poem.

_Wednesday_

Show the children a book. Show that damage done to a book will remain. If you scratch your finger, the wound heals. If you scratch a book, what happens? Do not break the back of the book. Never mark a book with pencil and ink. Especially never write anything in a book not your own. Do not turn down the corners of the leaves. Always return a borrowed book. Show the children how to open a new book properly.

_Thursday_

For dictation:

Little bird upon the bough,
Sing a song of sweetness now;
Sing of roses in their bloom,
In the lovely month of June,
Little bird upon the bough.

_Friday_

Read the following poem to the children. Talk about the woodpecker, and how he gets his food.

HOW THE WOODPECKER KNOWS

How does he know where to dig his hole,
The woodpecker there, on the elm-tree bole?
How does he know what kind of a limb
To use for a drum or burrow in?
How does he find where the young grubs grow?
I’d like to know!

The woodpecker flew to a maple limb,
And drummed a tattoo that was fun for him;
“No breakfast here! it’s too hard for that!”
He said, as down on his tail he sat;
“Just listen to this, Rrrr-rat-tat-tat.”--_Selected_

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

Play “Animals”: Give to each child a card having on it the name of some animal, as cat, horse, pig, etc. Have the children in turn describe the animals they represent as:

I am covered with hair. I gnaw bones. I watch at night to see that no one gets into the house. I say, “Bow, wow, wow,” when I am happy. What am I?

_Tuesday_

For dictation:

He who plants a tree,
Plants a hope.

_Wednesday_

Talk about Arbor Day and Bird Day, and why we celebrate these special days. Why do they come in April rather than in January, or some other month?

_Thursday_

Write a list of all the trees you know about. Who can write the longest list?

_Friday_

Write a list of all the birds you know about. Who can write the longest list?

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Tell the children the story of Paul Revere’s Ride.

_Tuesday_

Have the children tell the story of Paul Revere’s Ride.

_Wednesday_

Write five sentences about Paul Revere’s Ride.

_Thursday_

Talk about the new parcel post. How are parcels sent? How heavy can parcels be sent? What can be sent by parcel post? How are letters sent? What does it cost to send a letter? A post card? How is the mail carried from place to place? How is the mail delivered in your town?

_Friday_

Write five sentences about the mails, and sending letters and parcels.

THIRD YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

Write a list of objects you can see from a school-room window.

_Tuesday_

Write as many “signs of Spring,” as you can think of.

_Wednesday_

For dictation:

All that’s great and good is done
Just by patient trying.

_Thursday_

Read the following poem to the children:

WILD FLOWERS

Out amid the green fields,
Free as air we grow,
Springing where it happens,
Never in a row;
Watered by the cloudlets
Passing overhead,
Warmed by lovely sunbeams,
Falling on our heads.
Wild flowers, wild flowers, by the meadow rills,
Wild flowers, wild flowers, on the woody hills,
Wild flowers, wild flowers, springing everywhere,
Joyful in the glad free air.--_Selected_

Talk about the coming of the wild flowers. What part have the rain and the sunshine in helping the flowers to grow? What wild flowers are in blossom now? What other flowers will blossom before the close of April?

_Friday_

Write eight sentences about wild flowers.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

Poem to be committed to memory: “The Owl and the Pussy Cat,” by Edward Lear.

Have the first half of the poem copied.

_Tuesday_

Have the rest of the poem copied.

_Wednesday_

Learn the first three stanzas of the poem.

_Thursday_

Learn the rest of the poem.

_Friday_

Allow the children to dramatize in their own way, “The Owl and the Pussy-cat.”

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

Write a list of the adjectives in “The Owl and the Pussycat.”

_Tuesday_

Answer in complete sentences, the following questions:

What is the color of your reader? What is the color of your pencil? What is the color of your hair?

_Wednesday_

Write a rhyme of four lines about a cat.

_Thursday_

Have the children read “Paul Revere’s Ride.”

_Friday_

Have the children tell you the story of “Paul Revere’s Ride.”

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Poem to be committed to memory:

WHAT DO WE PLANT?

What do we plant when we plant the tree?
We plant the ship, which will cross the sea,
We plant the mast to carry the sails;
We plant the plank to withstand the gales,
The keel, the keelson, and beam, and knee;
We plant the ship when we plant the tree.

What do we plant when we plant the tree?
We plant the houses for you and me;
We plant the rafters, the shingles, the floors;
We plant the studding, the lath, the doors,
The beams and siding, all parts that be;
We plant the house when we plant the tree.

What do we plant, when we plant the tree?
A thousand things that we daily see;
We plant the spire, that out-towers the crag;
We plant the staff for our country’s flag;
We plant the shade, from the hot sun free--
We plant all these, when we plant the tree.

--_Henry Abbey_

Copy the poem.

_Tuesday_

Learn the first two stanzas of the poem.

_Wednesday_

Recite the entire poem.

_Thursday_

Write a list of the things we plant when we plant a tree.

_Friday_

Talk about the purpose of Arbor Day, and especially about the meaning of the beautiful Arbor Day poem.

FOURTH YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

Story for reproduction:

THE CAT AND THE CHESTNUTS

A cat sat before an open fire where some chestnuts were roasting.

A monkey who was hungrily watching the chestnuts said to the cat, “Do you think you could pull a chestnut out of the fire? Your paws seem to be made just for that.”

The cat was flattered and she quickly pulled out a chestnut that had burst open.

“How do you do it?” asked the monkey. “It is wonderful. Can you reach that big one?”

“Yes, but see, I have burned my paw a little.”

“Oh, but what of that, when you are making yourself so useful?”

One after another the cat pulled the chestnuts from the fire. Then she found that the sly monkey had eaten them all. All she had was a pair of sore claws.

--_Æsop_

_Tuesday_

Write the story of the cat and the chestnuts.

_Wednesday_

Write ten sentences about the signs of spring.

_Thursday_

Write a list of the wild flowers that grow in your vicinity, so far as you know them.

_Friday_

Have each pupil draw on paper some kind of flower. Exchange papers, and each pupil write five sentences about the flower he thinks is intended by the drawing on the paper he receives.

SECOND WEEK

_Monday_

Poem to be committed to memory:

PLANT A TREE

He who plants a tree
Plants a hope.
Rootlets up through fibres blindly grope;
Leaves unfold into horizons free.
So man’s life must climb
From the clods of time
Unto heavens sublime.
Can’st thou prophesy, thou little tree,
What the glory of thy boughs shall be?

He who plants a tree
Plants a joy.
Plants a comfort that will never cloy.
Everyday a fresh reality,
Beautiful and strong,
To whose shelter throng
Creatures blithe with song.
If thou could’st but know, thou happy tree,
Of the bliss that shall inhabit thee!

He who plants a tree
He plants peace.
Under its green curtains jargons cease;
Leaf and zephyr murmur soothingly;
Shadows soft with sleep
Down tired eyelids creep,
Balm of slumber deep.
Never hast thou dreamed, thou blessed tree,
Of the benediction thou shalt be.

He who plants a tree
He plants youth;
Vigor won for centuries, in sooth;
Life of time, that hints eternity!
Boughs their strength uprear,
New shoots every year
On old growths appear.
Thou shalt teach the ages, sturdy tree,
Youth of soul is immortality.

He who plants a tree
He plants love;
Tents of coolness spreading out above
Wayfarers he may not live to see.
Gifts that grow are best;
Hands that bless are blest;
Plant: life does the rest!
Heaven and earth help him who plants a tree,
And his work its own reward shall be.--_Lucy Larcom_

Copy the poem.

_Tuesday_

Learn the first two stanzas of the poem.

_Wednesday_

Learn the second two stanzas of the poem.

_Thursday_

Learn the rest of the poem.

_Friday_

Talk about the meaning of the hope, joy, peace, youth, and love, as mentioned in the poem.

THIRD WEEK

_Monday_

Write a list of twenty articles made of wood.

_Tuesday_

Each pupil think of a tree. Each in turn tell about his tree, the other pupils to guess what it is. For instance:

I am tall and straight. I have many long needles, instead of leaves. When the wind blows through my branches it makes sweet music. What am I? (A pine tree.)

Or--I am a large tree, with great branches. My fruit is called an acorn. What am I? (An oak tree.)

_Wednesday_

Talk about Arbor Day--why it is celebrated, and why it is necessary that our trees be preserved.

_Thursday_

For dictation:

A song to the oak! the brave old oak!
Who hath ruled in the greenwood long;
Here’s health and renown to his broad green crown
And his fifty arms so strong.

FOURTH WEEK

_Monday_

Story for reproduction:

TRIFLES

A friend of the great artist, Michael Angelo, was once watching the last touches being made to a statue. Some time later he visited the studio again, and the artist was still at work upon the same statue. He exclaimed: “You have done nothing since the last time I was here. The statue was finished then.”

“Not at all,” was Michael Angelo’s reply. “I have softened this feature and brought out that muscle. I have given more expression to the lips and more energy to the eye.”

“Oh,” said the friend, “but these are trifles.”

“It may be so,” said the artist, “but trifles make perfection and perfection is no trifle.”

_Tuesday_

Write ten sentences, each containing _is_ or _are_.

_Wednesday_

Write sentences, each of which contains one of the following adjectives; little, yellow, moist, good, large, beautiful, swift, slow, useful, breakable.

_Thursday_

For dictation:

Tinkling down! shining down!
Golden sunbeams kiss the flowers.
Wake them up! wake them up!
Through the happy hours.

_Friday_

Play “What I am thinking of,” using objects in the school-room.

MAY

FIRST YEAR

FIRST WEEK

_Monday_

What is the name of this month? What is the name of the month just ended? What is the name of the month following May? What season is this? What season follows spring? How many days has May? What other months have thirty-one days?

_Tuesday_

Teach the proper method of salutation on the street. Have the boys put on their caps, and the girls their hats. Have a boy and a girl go to the front of the room, and from opposite sides of the room walk toward each other. As they meet, the girl nods her head politely, and the boy lifts his hat. After the simple ceremony the two children return to their seats, and their places are taken by other boys and girls, in turn, until all can make the proper salutation easily and gracefully.

_Wednesday_

Write a sentence about birds.

Write a sentence about the grass.

Write a sentence about May.

_Thursday_

Story for reproduction. (Let the children test the results of mixing colors, with their paint boxes, if they have paints.)

THE RAINBOW FAIRIES

One night three little fairies were playing under a tree. They were flower fairies. Each had on a dress of the same color as the flower for which it was named. Little Fairy Buttercup wore a bright yellow dress. Forget-me-not wore a blue dress. Geranium wore a red dress.

Not far from the three fairies in red, yellow and blue, were three other fairies. These fairies had on old, faded dresses. They stood and watched the gaily-dressed fairies dance in the moonlight.

“Come,” said Buttercup, “won’t you come and dance with us?”

“We cannot,” said the three. “We cannot dance, for we have on our old clothes. We have worked hard all day and are just going home, but we like to see you dance in your pretty clothes.”

Then Buttercup took the skirt of her yellow dress and dipped it into a lily cup filled with dew. The dew was quickly dyed yellow.