McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition · Lesson XLV · Part 5: Leaves, hawks and wintry fun

45. Mary's Story

Goal: Your child reads Mary's story and tells it back in order.

⏱ About 15 minutes · 7 steps

Open it at the Internet Archive ↗

You'll need

  • The book, open to this lesson
  • A slate, small whiteboard or lined paper and a pencil

What's in the book

A short word list, then Mary's own story of a day at the beach with her father, Charles and Lucy.

The lesson, step by step

  1. Warm up

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

    Jessie played a good joke on her mamma.

    Praise smooth reading and help with any word that sticks.

  2. New words

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

    purple plumes pail happened coat shallow waded Charles nap yesterday

    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:

    Father, and Charles, and Lucy, and I went to the beach yesterday.

    We took our dinner, and stayed all day.

    Read it a second time, more smoothly.

  4. Talk about it

    SayWho went to the beach?

    SayWhat did father and Charles do? What did the girls do?

    SayWhat happened to Lucy?

    SayWhat did father do after dinner?

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

  5. Tell it back

    Close the book.

    SayPretend you are Mary. Tell me about your day at the beach.

    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:

    We took our dinner, and stayed all day.

    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: pail, coat, nap, shallow.

    Check together and fix any mistakes right away.

Afterwards

Reread this lesson aloud the next day before starting a new one. Read the new words in any order until they come quickly.

Tip

Mary tells the story herself, with "I" and "we". Have your child tell about a day of their own the same way.

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