80. Rivermouth Theater, by T. B. Aldrich

The lesson, step by step

1. 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:

   Conclave, a private meeting.

   Injunction, a command.

   Attributed, assigned, charged.

   Maelstrom, a whirlpool.

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

2. About the author

   The book's note says Thomas Bailey Aldrich was born at Portsmouth, N. H., in 1836. When he was quite young his family moved to Louisiana, but he was sent back to New England to be educated, and he later settled in New York. He is a well-known writer of both prose and poetry.

3. Read it aloud

   Your child reads it aloud. It is told with a twinkle, so enjoy the jokes. Here is the theater's price:

   The price of admission to the "Rivermouth Theater" was twenty pins.

4. Talk about it

   SayHow did the boys set up their theater?

   SayWho played all the main parts? Why?

   SayWhat happened when the narrator shot at the apple?

   SayWhose fault does the narrator say it was? Is he serious?

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

5. Tell it back

   Close the book. Your child tells the story of the William Tell performance, as the narrator might tell it years later.

6. Copywork

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

   I can see poor little Pepper now, as he stood without flinching, waiting for me to perform my great feat.

7. Words to learn

   Learn: conclave, managerial, deducting, career, audience, execution, injunction, attributed, maelstrom. Spell each aloud, then write it with its meaning.