24. Sheep-shearing

The lesson, step by step

1. Warm up

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

   Mary Armstrong was a pretty little girl, but she was heedless about some things.

   Praise smooth reading and help with any word that sticks.

2. New words

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

   thoroughly month dried dyed cuts shearer sheep those spun dirt otherwise woven cloth wool rub

   Say each word and have your child say it after you. Clap the parts of long words. Then point to words in any order and let your child read them.

3. Read it aloud

   Look at the picture together first, if there is one. Then your child reads the lesson aloud, one paragraph at a time. Help with any word by pointing to it in the word list.

   Here are a few lines from it:

   Sheep are washed and sheared some time in the month of June.

   It is fine sport for those who look on, but not much fun for the sheep.

   Read it a second time, more smoothly.

4. Talk about it

   SayWhen are sheep sheared?

   SayWhy is it good for the sheep to have the wool taken off?

   SayWhat is done with the wool after it is cut?

   SayDoes the wool grow back? When?

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

5. Tell it back

   Close the book.

   SayTell me how wool gets from a sheep to a piece of cloth.

   Let your child talk without stopping them. Afterward, help with anything left out by asking "What happened next?"

6. Copywork

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

   Sheep are washed and sheared some time in the month of June.

   Check capital letters, commas and the mark at the end.

7. Spelling

   Say each word, use it in a short sentence, and have your child spell it aloud, then write it: wool, sheep, month, cloth, dirt.

   Check together and fix any mistakes right away.