McGuffey's Fifth Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition · Lesson XXVII · Part 4: Lost Lucy, the Town Pump and the bobolink

33. Lucy Forrester, by John Wilson

Goal: Your child follows a suspenseful story of a lost child and her return, and talks about how the author builds suspense.

⏱ About 40 minutes · 7 steps

Open it at the Internet Archive ↗

You'll need

  • The book, open to this lesson
  • A notebook and pencil

What's in the book

A story set in Scotland about six-year-old Lucy, who goes missing on the way to a neighbor's house; the whole countryside searches, bloodstained clothes are found, and at last Lucy comes home. A note about John Wilson opens it; definitions and a note close it.

The lesson, step by step

  1. Words and meanings

    Read some definitions and the note:

    Brae, shelving ground, a declivity or slope of a hill.

    Heather, an evergreen shrub bearing beautiful flowers, used in Great Britain for making brooms, etc.

    Plaid, a striped or checked overgarment worn by the Scotch.

    Scour, to pass over swiftly and thoroughly.

    The note says the story takes place in Scotland, and words like brae and plaid are little used elsewhere.

  2. About the author

    The book says John Wilson, better known as "Christopher North," was born at Paisley, Scotland, studied at Glasgow and Oxford, lived among the "Lake School" poets, and was Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh. This selection is adapted from "The Foresters," a tale of Scottish life.

  3. Read aloud

    This lesson is long. Read it over two days.

    Lucy was only six years old, but bold as a fairy;

    The crowd quietly dispersed, and horse and foot began to scour the country.

    Near the end:

    The eyes of all then looked, and yet feared to look, toward the door.

  4. Talk about it

    SayWhy did Lucy's parents let her walk alone?

    SayWhat did the searchers find, and why did her mother Isabel not believe Lucy was dead?

    SayWhat news did Jacob Mayne bring about a gypsy?

    SayWhere does the author make you most anxious? How does he do it?

  5. Tell it back

    Your child narrates the story, day one's part after the first reading and the whole story after the second.

  6. Copywork

    Copy:

    The eyes of all then looked, and yet feared to look, toward the door.

  7. Write (optional)

    Write a paragraph of suspense: someone waiting for news, without telling the ending.

Afterwards

Begin the second day by having your child tell what happened so far.

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