To add still more interest, these different groups of words may be gathered together into booklets; an even stronger appeal is made if pictures are added.

The day's lesson for the primary grades should not be long. It may have 10 words, but 6 of the 10 words are review words; two more should not present difficulties, leaving only two requiring study. If spelling books for written spelling are used the following plan may be of use:

Instead of crossing or erasing the misspelled words, colored "spelling stickers" are quickly placed over them, then the correct form of the word is written on the face of the sticker. This keeps a neat book; it also shows at a glance which words were misspelled and need careful study, and, best of all, it keeps before the child only correct form.

The aim has been to make this course represent minimum rather than maximum requirements. This leaves abundant room for the employment of resource and ingenuity upon the part of the teacher to enrich and amplify the central thought.

A great deal of the development of mechanics of language is to be taught with oral exercises, but not more than two written language lessons per week should be given.

The experience and observation in pupil gardens will afford much familiar basic material for use in connection with language work. The teacher should develop memory material, memory gems, etc., in addition to those hereafter suggested.

FIRST GRADE.

Almost all of the English work for the first grade should be conversational and other oral exercises and reading.

I. Conversational and Other Oral Exercises.

(a) The personal experience and observation of the child should be the basis of conversational exercise. The teacher may arouse much interest by asking questions and requesting observations about plants, animals, birds, insects, the care of the pupil's own body, climatic conditions, seasons, and about gardening, farming, and different industrial activities of the home, school, and community, especially these last.

(b) Conversation lessons based on pictures.

(c) Reproduction of stories read by the pupils in their books and stories told by the teacher.

(d) Dramatization of stories told or read.

II. Reading and Written Exercises.

(a) Teach new words by object method, action method, and teach new words in sentences by the combination of both methods.

(b) After the pupils have been taught to speak the words, show the words in their written form on the blackboard and on pieces of cardboard. (Make and use drill cards.)

(c) Read from the blackboard sentences used in conversation between the teacher and pupils. These sentences should be written by the teacher.

(d) Read from strips of cardboard the same and similar sentences. (e) Continue making sentences from words taught, reading them from blackboard and cardboard.

(f) Read from cardboard and the blackboard sentences taken from the first pages of the first book to be used.

(g) Supplement readings from cardboard with sentences arising from the various school activities.

(h) Copy sentences from the blackboard the latter part of the

year.

(i) Complete the basic primer and a supplementary primer.

(j) Complete the essential parts of a good number primer. (k) Complete the basic first reader.

(7) Boys and girls love rhythm; have them recite from memory nursery rhymes and simple poems for rhythm, articulation, enunciation, and good expression, such as "Mother Goose" and other common rhymes.

(m) Drill on initial and final consonants.

(n) Teach the position of the tongue, lips, and the lower jaw in producing the different sounds, by having the pupils observe the teacher's mouth in producing the sound.

(0) Copy sentences from the blackboard composed by the children. (p) Teach the use of capitals in writing their own names. (9) Teach the use of capitals at the beginning of sentences.

(r) Teach the use of the period at the close of a sentence. (The use of capitals and the period should be taught incidentally in connection with their other work.)

(s) Each teacher should master some one definite method of teaching phonics and use phonograms to assist in developing the pupil's vocabulary.

(t) Teach the pupils to spell the words used in their lessons; do this during the last half of the first grade.

(u) In teaching a child to spell attention should be given to syllabication by having the pupils, in oral spelling, make a short pause between each syllable of a word. Dividing a word into sylla

bles puts it in shape to be mastered part by part and greatly assists in enunciation and pronunciation.

(v) As phonic work is introduced it is necessary to learn the names of the letters. Have the alphabet written at the top of the blackboard or on slips of cardboard in large letters. Place these slips at the top of the blackboard. The children will be able in a very short time not only to name each individual letter, but they will be able to name them in their order.

(w) Teach use of "a" and "an" before vowels.

(x) Teach use of "is," "are," "was," and "were."

(y) Teach use of contractions and abbreviations found in the reader.

(z) Give drills in rapid recognition of words, short sentences, and phrases. (Avoid the pointing and hesitating habits in reading.)

III. Seat Work.

(a) Word building with letter cards.

(b) Sentence building with word cards.

(c) Copying lists of words beginning with the same letter. (d) Picture puzzles.

(e) Stick laying.

(f) Block building.

(g) Copying and drawing what certain words and certain selected sentences say.

(h) Arranging the letters of the alphabet in their order.

(i) Arranging figures in their order to 50.

(j) Using small grains or seeds in forming letter and word building.

IV. How to Measure the Success of First-Grade Work in English.

(a) Has each pupil acquired a reading vocabulary from 250 to 500 different words?

(b) Has each pupil acquired a speaking and hearing vocabulary from 500 to 1,000 different words?

(c) Does the child recognize the words in the reading vocabulary readily, and is the child able to read short sentences without pointing to the different words or hesitating on account of not being able to grasp short sentences as a whole?

(d) Can the pupil copy words and easy sentences from the blackboard?

(e) Do pupils reply to question in short, complete sentences? (f) Can the pupils write their own names?

NOTE. Have I accomplished this work during the child's first year, or one and one-half years in school?

SECOND GRADE.

I. Conversation and Other Oral Exercises.

(a) Continue conversational lessons of first grade and broaden the field of subjects by giving more attention to observation naturestudy lessons on plants, trees, animals, insects, etc., and to gardening, agriculture, home industries, health, manners, right conduct, kindness to one another and to animals, etc.

(b) Review some of the stories told in the first grade and continue work with pictures and stories. Stories of Columbus, Franklin, and Lincoln should be used in this work along with others.

(c) Give oral exercises to develop the imagination.

(d) Continue dramatization.

(e) Commit and recite easy poems and memory gems.

(f) Correct use of "there," "their," "has," "had," "have," "see," "saw," "seen," etc.

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(g) Correct use of "this," "that," "these," and "those." (h) Correct use of words, as "quickly," "slowly," etc.

(i) Use of "to," "too," and "two."

(j) Correct forms of pronouns after "is," "are," "was," and

were." Give special drills frequently, using dialogue form.

(k) Teach sentences illustrating use of "when," "where," "how," and "why.”

II. Reading and Written Exercises.

(a) Continue script reading from slips of cardboard and blackboard.

(b) Read from supplementary first readers.

(c) Complete the basic second reader.

(d) Continue phonic drills to give skill in recognition and mastery of new words.

(e) Give drills in rapid recognition of words, phrases, and sentences, thus facilitating rapid silent reading and fluent oral reading. (Avoid the pointing and hesitating habits in reading.)

(f) Reading of written directions for work and study.

(g) Read sentences resulting from conversational lessons.

(h) Have pupils draw with pencil or crayon pictures which certain selected sentences suggest.

(i) Use sand board, if available, for picture formation, thus causing the children to get thought clearly through words in order to make the picture in sand.

(j) Have children play or act the different parts in their reading lessons.

(k) Give special attention to thought-getting in silent reading and to thought-giving in oral reading.

(7) Give a good working knowledge of phonics and continue wordbuilding exercises from phonograms.

(m) Continue work in syllabication in spelling.

(n) Teach "long" and "short" sounds of vowels.

(0) Write words used in their lessons and from basic speller.

(p) Write easy sentences from dictation, using paper and pencil and blackboard.

(q) Continue work in abbreviations and contractions met with in their work.

(r) Compose and write simple sentences used in connection with work in school.

(s) Reproduce short stories in writing, for which pupils contributed

sentences.

(t) Extend knowledge of use of capitals in beginning sentences, names of persons and places, first word of each line of poetry, names of the days of the week, months of the year, and initials.

(u) Teach the use of question mark and call attention to quotation marks when found in their lessons.

(v) Teach punctuation used with initials and abbreviations. (w) Teach use of comma in a series of words.

III. Seat Work.

(a) Continue work of first year that has not lost its interest to the pupils.

(b) Arrange lists of words according to phonograms, as "dig," "pig," etc.; "man," "can," " fan," etc.

(c) Letter writing: Copy letters written on the blackboard, on cardboard, and those found in their books.

(d) Draw envelope froni model, and copy the address upon it. (e) Write answers to questions about their lessons which are written on the blackboard or on slips of cardboard.

(f) Write answers to questions found in their books.

(g) Draw map of schoolroom, school yard, and local section of country or village.

(h) Draw land and water forms, as island, cape, gulf, strait, etc.

IV. How to Measure the Success of Second-Grade Work in English. (a) In the basic second reader can pupils read with some degree of readiness and fluency?

(b) Can they read new material of the same degree of easiness as basic reader, with a fair degree of readiness, after a few minutes silent reading?

(c) Are they forming correct habits in reading?

(d) Is their oral reading thought-giving?

(e) Are they making satisfactory progress in phonics?