27. The Sparrow

The lesson, step by step

1. Warm up

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

   Little Patty lives in a log house near a great forest.

   Praise smooth reading and help with any word that sticks.

2. New words

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

   frightened intend wheat Thomas complains plums choose shocking sparrow ripest robbing breakfast plenty share treat tales wait

   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 page together first. Then your child reads the poem aloud, a line at a time. Pause a little at the end of each line.

   Here are a few lines from it:

   Glad to see you, little bird;

   'Twas your little chirp I heard:

   Read it a second time, more smoothly.

4. Talk about it

   SayWhat season is it in the poem? How do you know?

   SayWhat bad tales has the speaker heard about the sparrow?

   SayWhat does the speaker decide to do anyway?

   SayListen for rhymes: bird and heard. Can you find more?

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

5. Tell it back

   Close the book.

   SayTell me what the speaker said to the sparrow.

   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:

   Glad to see you, little bird;

   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: wheat, plums, share, plenty, wait.

   Check together and fix any mistakes right away.