McGuffey's Third Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition · Lesson XXXII · Part 4: Thinking hard and speaking kindly

32. The Soldier

Goal: Your child reads a poem and explains what kind of soldier the speaker decides to be.

⏱ About 20 minutes · 7 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 long list of words and a poem: a child longs to be a soldier, then decides to be a soldier for truth and love, not for blood and glory.

The lesson, step by step

  1. Warm up

    SayWhat does a soldier do? Can someone be a soldier without a gun?

  2. Words and meanings

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

    ranks glory arrayed weapons living clad armor victory contest battle blood enlist mustered longing warrior

    Read them together a few at a time. Clap the syllables of the long ones. The book prints these words without meanings.

    Explain a few: to enlist is to join up; clad means dressed; arrayed means set out in order.

  3. Read it aloud

    Your child reads. Read the first stanza with a marching beat.

    Here are two of its lines:

    A soldier! a soldier! I'm longing to be:

    The name and the life of a soldier for me!

    Then let your child reread a favorite part, more smoothly.

  4. Talk about it

    SayWhat does the speaker want at the start of the poem?

    SayWhat will this soldier NOT do?

    SayWhat does it mean to be "a warrior of Truth"?

    Then talk about the lesson of the reading:

    Fighting for truth and right is a better kind of soldiering.

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

  5. Tell it back

    SayTell me what kind of soldier the poem wants to be, and why.

  6. Copywork

    Your child copies this from the book in their best handwriting:

    A soldier! a soldier! I'm longing to be:

    The name and the life of a soldier for me!

    Check capitals and marks together.

  7. Spelling

    Say each word, use it in a sentence, and have your child spell it aloud, then write it: glory, battle, armor, victory, weapons.

    Check together and fix any mistakes right away. Keep missed words for tomorrow's warm-up.

Afterwards

Reread the poem on the next day or two; try to say one stanza by heart.

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