McGuffey's First Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition · Lesson XXIV · Part 3: Kate, John and friends

24. Bess and Robert in the woods

Goal: Your child reads words of two syllables by clapping the parts, and reads the story.

⏱ About 15 minutes · 7 steps

Open it at the Internet Archive ↗

You'll need

  • The book, open to this lesson
  • A slate, small whiteboard or lined paper and a pencil

What's in the book

Twelve new words, some with two parts marked by an accent, a picture, and a story about a family day in the woods.

The lesson, step by step

  1. Warm up

    Have your child reread a few lines of Lesson XXIII, for example:

    Here comes the band!

    Praise smooth reading and help with any word that sticks.

  2. New words

    Point to the new words at the top of the page:

    Bess happy make cart tent woods little very bed Robert gone draw

    Say each word and have your child say it after you. Sound out the short ones together, then point to words in any order and let your child read them.

    For longer words, clap the parts together, then say the whole word.

  3. Read the lesson aloud

    Look at the picture together first, and ask what your child sees. Then your child reads the lesson aloud, one sentence at a time. Help with any word by pointing to it in the word list.

    Here are two lines from it:

    Bess and Robert are very happy; papa and mamma have gone to the woods with them.

    Jip is with them.

    Read it a second time, more smoothly.

  4. Talk about it

    SayWho went to the woods with Bess and Robert?

    SayWhat did Robert and Bess bring?

    SayWhat will Jip do?

    Let your child look back at the page to find answers.

  5. Copywork

    Write this line from the lesson for your child to copy, or let them copy it straight from the book:

    Jip is with them.

    Check for a capital letter at the start and the mark at the end.

  6. Spelling

    Say each word, use it in a short sentence, and have your child spell it aloud, then write it on the slate: tent, cart, bed, make, Bess.

    Check together and fix any mistakes right away.

  7. Tell it back

    Close the book.

    SayTell me the story in your own words.

    Help with "What happened first? Then what?" if your child gets stuck.

Afterwards

Reread this lesson aloud on the next day before starting a new one. Read the new words from the list in any order until they come quickly.

Tip

Words like hap'py and lit'tle have two parts. Clap once for each part, then say the whole word.

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