McGuffey's Fourth Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition · Lesson X · Part 2: Perseverance, fairy tales and kindness
14. The Good Son
Goal: Your child reads a short story and explains why the son would not wake his father.
You'll need
- The book, open to this lesson
- A notebook or lined paper and a pencil
What's in the book
A short story: Jewish elders come to buy diamonds from a jeweler for the high priest's ephod, but he will not wake his sleeping father to get the key. Definitions and Exercises follow.
The lesson, step by step
Words and meanings
The new words are at the end of the lesson, under Definitions. The small number in front of each word is the paragraph or verse where it is used. Read them together before the lesson. A few of them:
Jeweler, one who buys and sells precious stones.
Noted, well known.
Ephod, part of the dress of a Jewish priest,
The definition of ephod goes on to describe it: two pieces covering the chest and the back, joined by a girdle (belt). Read it all together.
Read it aloud
Your child reads the story aloud. It begins:
There was once a jeweler, noted for many virtues.
Talk about it
SayWhy couldn't the jeweler show the elders the diamonds right away?
SayThe elders offered more and more. Why did he take only the first price?
SayWhat did the elders say to him when they heard his reason?
Let your child look back at the page to find answers.
Tell it back
Close the book. Your child tells the story of the jeweler and his diamonds, as the book's Exercise asks.
Copywork
This is part of the elders' blessing. Your child copies it exactly. (Thy and thee are old words for your and you.)
and thy children shall one day pay thee the same respect and love thou hast shown to thy father.
Words to learn
Learn: jeweler, noted, elder, ephod, diamonds, humor, close. Spell each aloud, then write it with its meaning.