McGuffey's Fourth Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition · Lesson I · Part 2: Perseverance, fairy tales and kindness

5. Perseverance, by Charlotte Elizabeth

Goal: Your child reads a story aloud with expression, explains what perseverance means, and tells the story back in order.

⏱ About 30 minutes · 8 steps

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You'll need

  • The book, open to this lesson
  • A notebook or lined paper and a pencil

What's in the book

A story about an aunt helping her nephew John and niece Lucy fly a kite, with a picture. The Definitions and Exercises are at the end. The contents name Charlotte Elizabeth as the author.

The lesson, step by step

  1. Warm up

    This is the first lesson of a new book, and the book does things a little differently. Show your child the parts of a lesson: the title, the numbered paragraphs, and the Definitions and Exercises at the end.

  2. 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:

    Entangled, twisted in, disordered.

    Disengaged, cleared, set free.

    Perseverance, continuance in any thing once begun.

    Motto, a short sentence or a word full of meaning.

    Ask your child to find two of these words in the lesson and read the sentence each one is in.

  3. Read it aloud

    Look at the picture first. Then your child reads the story aloud, a paragraph at a time. There is a lot of talking, so help your child make the voices sound like real people: cross, then sulky, then delighted. It begins:

    "Will you give my kite a lift?" said my little nephew to his sister,

  4. Talk about it

    SayWhat went wrong the first time? The second time? The third time?

    SayWhose fault was it, really? Did blaming each other help?

    SayWhy did John want to give up? What did his aunt say?

    SayCan you think of something you nearly gave up on, and then did?

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

  5. The book's questions

    The book has its own Exercises at the end. Ask them too:

    What may we learn from this?

    What should be our motto if we expect to be successful?

  6. Tell it back

    Close the book.

    SayTell me the story of the kite, every try, in order.

    Then your child tells it again from Lucy's side.

  7. Copywork

    Your child copies this from the book, slowly and neatly, minding every capital letter and mark of punctuation:

    Whenever you fail in your attempts to do any good thing, let your motto be, try again.

  8. Words to learn

    Learn to spell and give the meaning of: entangled, assistance, dignity, disappointments, discourage, perseverance. Say each word, have your child spell it aloud, then write it and its meaning.

Afterwards

Reread the story the next day. Then have your child write the word motto at the top of a page, with "Try again" under it.

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