McGuffey's First Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition · Lesson LXIII · Part 7: Birds, a whistle and Chippy

63. The last lesson

Goal: Your child reads the last lesson and celebrates finishing the First Reader.

⏱ 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

Eleven new words and a short goodbye to the First Reader, with advice about keeping books and slates neat and trying to learn.

The lesson, step by step

  1. Warm up

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

    "I never saw such children," said the old hen.

    Praise smooth reading and help with any word that sticks.

  2. New words

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

    last slates write waste neat taken clean learn reader parents second

    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

    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:

    We have come to the last lesson in this book.

    We have finished the First Reader.

    Read it a second time, more smoothly.

  4. Talk about it

    SayHow should we take care of our books and slates?

    SayWhat does the lesson say will please your parents?

    SayWhat book comes next?

    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:

    We have finished the First Reader.

    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: last, neat, clean, learn.

    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

Make this a celebration. Let your child pick a favorite lesson from the whole book to read aloud to the family.

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