Harvey's Elementary Grammar and Composition · Lesson 1–2 · Part 1: Part I: The elementary course

1. The senses, objects and words

Goal: Your child can name the five senses, say what an object is, and explain that a word stands for a thought.

⏱ About 25 minutes · 7 steps

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You'll need

  • The book, open to this lesson
  • Paper and a pencil (or a slate)

What's in the book

Lesson 1 talks about the five senses, things we perceive and things we are only conscious of, and defines an object. Lesson 2 defines a word, language, grammar and English grammar, with review questions.

The lesson, step by step

  1. Start with the senses

    Hand your child something to explore, like an orange. Ask how they can tell what it is: by looking, touching, smelling, tasting, even listening as you tap it.

    SayGrammar starts with something simple: how we know things at all.

    The book begins the same way:

    We have five senses: seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting, and smelling.

  2. Perceive or be conscious of

    Read this line together:

    When we see, feel, taste, or smell things, or hear sounds, we are said to perceive them.

    Then talk about things we know without the senses. The book says we are conscious of love, hatred, joy and sorrow, but cannot perceive them.

    SayCan you see happiness? No, but you know when you feel it.

  3. What an object is

    Read the book's definition slowly:

    An Object is any thing we can perceive, or of which we may be conscious.

    Take turns naming objects. Include some you can touch (a chair) and some you can't (a dream, a fear). Both count.

  4. Words and language

    Turn to Lesson 2 and read:

    A Word is a syllable, or a combination of syllables, used in the expression of thought.

    Language is the expression of thought by means of words.

    SaySpoken language uses the voice. Written language uses letters on paper. Which one are we using now?

  5. Grammar

    Read the last two definitions:

    English Grammar teaches how to speak and write the English language correctly.

    SayThat is what this book is for. We'll learn one small idea at a time.

  6. Answer the book's questions

    Ask the review questions from the page out loud, for example: How many senses have we? Name some things that we can perceive. What is an object? What is a word?

    Let your child answer in full sentences: "We have five senses."

  7. Use it today

    At a meal or on a walk, ask your child to name one thing they perceive with each sense. Then ask for one thing they are conscious of but cannot see or touch.

Afterwards

Over the next day or two, ask your child to say the definitions of an object and a word in their own words, then in the book's words.

Tip

Older books like this one ask children to learn definitions by heart. Understanding comes first; memorizing the exact words is a bonus, not the goal.

Answers to the book's problems

Five senses: seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting and smelling. Things we can perceive: anything we can see, hear, touch, taste or smell (a bell, a rose, an apple). Things we cannot perceive but are conscious of: love, hatred, joy, sorrow, the force that pulls a dropped book down. For the definitions, see the book's own wording on the page.

Worked out for this site from the scan. If a number in your copy differs, trust the book.

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