The Mother Tongue, Book I: Lessons in Speaking, Reading and Writing English · Secs. 344–349 · Part 2: Part Second
98. Words which show relation: prepositions
Goal: Your child knows that a preposition shows how a noun or pronoun is related to another word.
You'll need
- The book, open to this lesson
- Paper and pencil (a notebook kept just for this book works well)
- A small toy and a box
What's in the book
Section 344 shows "Henry sat near the boat", "behind the boat", "upon", "in", and explains words that show relation. Sections 345 to 347 give words to use, sentences to change, and the definition of the preposition. Section 348 has blanks to fill; Section 349 asks about objects in the schoolroom.
The lesson, step by step
Where is the toy?
Put a toy in, on, under, beside, behind and near a box. Each time your child says where it is: "The bear is under the box."
Read Section 344
Henry sat in the boat.
Ask: Without "in", what is missing? (How Henry and the boat are related.)
The definition (Sections 346 and 347)
A Preposition is a word placed before a noun or pronoun, to show its relation to some other part of the sentence.
Read the five sentences in Section 346. Your child changes each preposition and says how the meaning changes.
Fill the blanks (Section 348)
Do the nine sentences aloud with prepositions, then try a different one in each.
Write (Sections 345 and 349)
Your child writes eight sentences about things in the room, each with a preposition from the list in Section 345, and underlines the preposition and the noun after it.
Check it gently
Check the underlining: is the preposition right before its noun or pronoun? Fix one or two.
What a good result looks like
Example (written for this guide, not from the book):
The book is on the table.
The cat hid under the bed.
I walked to the store with my brother.
The prepositions are on, under, to and with.
Answers to the book's problems
Section 347: 1. upon (table). 2. near (table). 3. to (father). 4. in (vase). 5. toward (him). Section 348, possible answers: 1. into (or in). 2. near (or over, beside). 3. under (or on). 4. to (or at). 5. on. 6. over (or around, through). 7. toward (or past, over). 8. in (or under). 9. under (or on, beside).
Worked out for this site from the scan. If a number in your copy differs, trust the book.