The Mother Tongue, Book I: Lessons in Speaking, Reading and Writing English · Secs. 180–182 · Part 1: Part First
53. The Pet Bird, and writing a conversation
Goal: Your child studies a picture and writes a short conversation with correct quotation marks.
You'll need
- The book, open to this lesson
- Paper and pencil (a notebook kept just for this book works well)
What's in the book
Section 180 is Meyer von Bremen's picture "The Pet Bird", showing children with a canary, with questions about the children and the room. Sections 181 and 182 ask for a written conversation: buying a canary in a bird store, or buying a sled in a toy shop.
The lesson, step by step
Study the picture
Look at "The Pet Bird" on page 142. The book says the artist means to show more than the canary.
Your child tells all they can about the children, then about the room and its furniture.
Then and now
The book says the children and the house are German, from long ago. Ask: Do you see anything in their dress or furniture that is unlike ours?
Act it out first
Choose the bird store (Section 181) or the toy shop (Section 182). Act out the conversation: your child is the buyer, you are the shopkeeper. What do you need to ask? How much does it cost?
Write the conversation
Your child writes the conversation, 6 to 10 lines. Each new speaker starts a new line, with quotation marks around the spoken words and "said" or "asked" to show who speaks.
Check it gently
Check quotation marks first: one pair around each person's words. Then capitals at the start of each quotation. Fix one or two.
What a good result looks like
Example (written for this guide, not from the book):
"Good morning," said the shopkeeper. "What can I do for you?"
"I would like a sled," I answered. "Do you have one with red runners?"
"Here is a fine one," he said. "It costs two dollars."