McGuffey's Third Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition · Lesson XLVIII · Part 5: Kites, sticks and kind deeds

48. Who Made the Stars?

Goal: Your child reads a question-and-answer poem between a child and mother and tells what the mother answers.

⏱ About 20 minutes · 7 steps

Open it at the Internet Archive ↗

You'll need

  • The book, open to this lesson
  • A notebook or lined paper and a pencil

What's in the book

A poem in which a child asks, "Mother, who made the stars?" and the mother answers that God made the stars, the flowers and the child. Definitions at the end.

The lesson, step by step

  1. Warm up

    Go outside on a clear evening if you can, or look at a picture of the night sky.

    SayWhat questions do you have about the stars?

  2. Words and meanings

    This lesson's definitions are printed at the end, after the reading. Read a few of them together before you start:

    Prattling, talking lightly like a child.

    Perfume, delightful odor.

    Clime, climate, region.

    Then find each word in the lesson.

    SayCan you use one of these words in a sentence of your own?

  3. Read it aloud

    Read the child's question yourself, then your child reads the mother's answer. Then swap.

    Here are two of its lines:

    Mother, who made the stars, which light

    The beautiful blue sky?

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

  4. Talk about it

    SayWhat does the child ask?

    SayWhat else does the mother say God made?

    SayWhat does "Our Father and our Friend" mean in the last stanza?

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

  5. Tell it back or write it

    SayTell me the child's question and the mother's answer in your own words.

    An older child can write two or three sentences instead.

  6. Copywork

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

    Mother, who made the stars, which light

    The beautiful blue sky?

    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: stars, perfume, various, glorious.

    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.

@teddyrookbook GitHub