McGuffey's Fifth Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition · Lesson LVII · Part 6: Liberty and the voices of birds

63. About Quail, by W. P. Hawes

Goal: Your child retells what Hawes admires in the quail and notices how he writes about a bird like a friend.

⏱ About 30 minutes · 6 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

An essay praising the quail, or Bob White, as a bird that stays home all year and a devoted mother to her chicks. A note about William Post Hawes opens it; definitions and a note follow.

The lesson, step by step

  1. About the author

    The book says William Post Hawes was born in New York City, graduated from Columbia College, and wrote essays for newspapers and magazines.

    He was a lawyer by profession.

  2. Words and meanings

    Read some definitions:

    Aquatic, frequenting the water.

    Identified, united.

    Tussock, a tuft of grass or twigs.

    Devious, winding.

    The note says Boreas is the name the ancient Greeks gave to the north wind.

  3. Read aloud

    Take turns by paragraph.

    The quail is peculiarly a domestic bird, and is attached to his birthplace and the home of his forefathers.

    Where the farmer works, he lives, and loves, and whistles.

  4. Talk about it

    SayHow is the quail different from birds that fly south?

    SayWhat does the mother quail do when someone comes near her chicks?

    Say"The quail is the bird for me." Why does Hawes love it?

    SayHawes speaks right to the bird: "only thou, dear Bob White, wilt remain." Why write that way?

  5. Tell it back

    Your child tells what the quail does through the year and how the mother protects her young.

  6. Write (optional)

    Write a paragraph about an animal you admire, telling what you love about it.

Tip

If you can, listen to a recording of a bobwhite quail's call together.

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