1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson XVII; About James Smith

Again, in this lesson there is no picture, so have the children draw a picture of Jame's house; as described in the story. Although Ann and James were poor, they still valued learning, love, and work. Talk about these things with your parents and discuss the values of being a child of God.

About James Smith

Ann Smith had but one child, and his name was James. Ann was poor, but she did her best to work hard, that she might pay for her house, and buy food and clothes. her house was small and stood near the road. There were two small rooms in it-one in which to sleep, and one in which to live. She made a bed in the room where she had to live. James slept in this bed. In this room she had one chair, one low stool for James to sit on, a few cups and plates, and some other things that she had bought. In the room where she slept, she had her own bed, and a box made of wood, in which she kept her clothes. James was so fond of her, that he would run to meet her, when she came home from work. When she left him to go to work, he would sit on a large stone near the house door of the house. He would look at her as long as he could see her, and then he would cry, and wish for her to come back to him. James went to school. He studied so much that in a few months he could read. Poor Ann Smith was glad of this. When she came home from work, James would read to her from a large book which a kind friend had given him. Some day I will tell you what was in that book, and i think you will love to hear it, and to read it, as James Smith did.

Vocabulary

food, room, child, Smith,
gone, come, night, things,
went, meet, slept, would,
hate, back, large, friend,
Ann, much, board, school,
poor, work, pains, clothes,
care, made, ready, bought,
had, stool, small, weight,
own, home, stood, James,
door, fond, crate, might,
then, wood, warm, house,
him, look, large, months,
hail, kind, plates, ground

Lessons in this series:

• First Reader:Lesson XVII
• First reader: Lesson XVI
• First Reader: Lesson XV
• First Reader: Lesson XIV
• First Reader: Lesson XIII
• First Reader: Lesson XII
• First Reader: Lesson XI
• First Reader: Lesson X
• Penmanship practice paper
• McGuffey's 1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson I
• First Reader: Lesson II
• First Reader: Lesson III
• First Reader: Lesson IV
• First Reader: Lesson V
• First Reader: Lesson VI
• First Reader: Lesson VII
• First Reader: Lesson VIII
• First Reader: Lesson IX

1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson XVIII; The Thick Shade.

For this lesson read the Twenty-third Psalm and compare it with this lesson. In the vocabulary the words doth (old form of does) and fool should be explained and discussed.

The Thick Shade

Come, let us go into thick shade. It is noonday, and the summer sun beats hot upon our heads. The shade is pleasant cool. The branches meet above our heads and shut out the sun like a green curtain. The grass is soft to our feet, and the clear brook washes the roots of the trees. The cattle can lie down to sleep in the cool shade, but we can do better. We can raise our voices to heaven. We can praise the great God who made us. He made the warm sun and the cool shade, the trees that grow upwards, and the brooks that run along. The plants and trees are made to give fruit to man. All that live get life from God. He made the poor man, as well as the rich man. He made the dark man, as well as the fair man. He made the fool, as well as he made the wise man. All that move on the land are His, and so all that swim in the sea. The ox and the worm are both the work of His hand. In Him, they live and move. He it is that doth give food to all of them, and when He says the word, they all must die.

Vocabulary

come, clear, sleep,
shade, down, heaven,
heads, voices, thick,
soft, pleasant, heat,
cattle, into, branches,
raise, day, upwards,
noon, cool, better,
trees, brook, summer

Lessons in this series:

• First Reader:Lesson XVII
• First reader: Lesson XVI
• First Reader: Lesson XV
• First Reader: Lesson XIV
• First Reader: Lesson XIII
• First Reader: Lesson XII
• First Reader: Lesson XI
• First Reader: Lesson X
• Penmanship practice paper
• McGuffey's 1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson I
• First Reader: Lesson II
• First Reader: Lesson III
• First Reader: Lesson IV
• First Reader: Lesson V
• First Reader: Lesson VI
• First Reader: Lesson VII
• First Reader: Lesson VIII
• First Reader: Lesson IX

1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson XVI - The Good Girl.

This is a great opportunity to work on some hand work. Talk about and explain what hemming, frill, and other sewing terms mean.

Lesson XVI

The Good Girl.

Mama, may I sew today? Yes, my child. What do you wish to sew? I wish to hem a frill for your cap. Is not this a new cap? You may make the frill for me. I shall like to wear a frill that you have made. Here is a bit of cloth which will make a nice frill. You must hem it. I will turn it down for you, but take care not to soil it. Wash you hands, and take care to wipe them dry. Now sit down on your low stool. Now you may go on. You will see best here by my side. You must join these two pieces with a seam. When you have sewn as far as this pin, bring it to me to see. Jane sat down upon her stool and sewed like a little lady. In a short time she said, Mama, i have sewn as far as you told me. Will you look at it? Yes, my child, it is well done. If you take pains, as you have done today, you will soon sew well. I wish to sew well, Mama. Then I can help you make caps, and frocks, and I hope to be of some help to you.

Vocabulary

pray, cloth, wipe, these,
sew, hands, dry, look,
hem, frill, pains, you,
new, clean, stood, hope,
bits, were, seam, told
frocks, bring, shirts, soil,
caps, child, side, low,
sat, down, upon, served,
like, little, lady, short,
time, wish, hope, care,
help

Lessons in this series:

• First Reader:Lesson XVII
• First reader: Lesson XVI
• First Reader: Lesson XV
• First Reader: Lesson XIV
• First Reader: Lesson XIII
• First Reader: Lesson XII
• First Reader: Lesson XI
• First Reader: Lesson X
• Penmanship practice paper
• McGuffey's 1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson I
• First Reader: Lesson II
• First Reader: Lesson III
• First Reader: Lesson IV
• First Reader: Lesson V
• First Reader: Lesson VI
• First Reader: Lesson VII
• First Reader: Lesson VIII
• First Reader: Lesson IX

1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson XV. - Little Henry

For this lesson write a short essay on the last book you read. Talk about the actions and results of James, John, and George.

Lesson XV

Little Henry.

Well, Henry, what have you read in your new book? I read of three boys who went to school. Each of them had a fine large cake. James ate so much that it made him sick. George kept his so long that it got dry, and was not fit to eat. John gave some of his cake to each of his school mates, and then took a piece himself. he gave the rest to an old blind man. The old man could not see to work for his food. So John gave him a share of his cake. How kind John was! I love kind boys and girls. We must be kind and good to the blind. If we were blind, we would be glad to meet with kind folks, who would give us something to eat. When I have read my book, Ann, I will lend it to you, and I will read to Jane. I dare say it is a nice one. I am sure you will take care of it. Aunt says, that no one but a bad girl will tear or soil a book. How glad I am to have a kind aunt and a good book.

Vocabulary

Henry, James, George, Ann,
book, poor, got, thing,
dry, blind, made, have,
long, more, then, that,
large, glad, kept, much,
took, good, girls, fine,
some, rest, was, went,
mates, piece, boys, see,
aunt, says, none, soil

Lessons in this series:

• First Reader:Lesson XVII
• First reader: Lesson XVI
• First Reader: Lesson XV
• First Reader: Lesson XIV
• First Reader: Lesson XIII
• First Reader: Lesson XII
• First Reader: Lesson XI
• First Reader: Lesson X
• Penmanship practice paper
• McGuffey's 1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson I
• First Reader: Lesson II
• First Reader: Lesson III
• First Reader: Lesson IV
• First Reader: Lesson V
• First Reader: Lesson VI
• First Reader: Lesson VII
• First Reader: Lesson VIII
• First Reader: Lesson IX

1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson XIV - The Lame Man

In this lesson study the Vocabulary; especially scarcely, hardly, and barely. make the children look these words up in the dictionary and find the difference in their meaning. Talk about nutrition and the importance of eating healthy. Also, talk about how our Lord Jesus Christ healed the lame and the sick.

The Lame man.

See that poor man. he is lame and has no hat on his head. John, will you give him your old hat? Yes, you will. You will be glad to help him. We must feel for the lame, and do all we can to help them. John, you are a kind boy, and I love you. Poor old man! He is sad-he is in want. Ah, see how pale he is! He is sick. Come in poor man, come in. We will give you a bit of cake to eat, and some milk. John will give you a hat. Look now at that sick boy. He is not sick for want of food. he had a cake sent to him and he was told not to eat to much of it, yet he did. The cake has made him sick. See how his face is pale and sad. If he had not done that, he would not be ill. Now he is so sick he can scarcely go out this fine day. he can not run, nor jump, nor play. I hope you will not act like this boy. Mind what is said. Do not eat more than is said. Do not eat more than is good for you, so that you will not look pale like him or feel sick as he does.

Vocabulary

that, poor, man, lame,
must, feel, help, them,
will, give, him, your,
told, none, sent, done,
come, cake, some, milk,
much, that, made, face,
hope, mind, what, said,
more, than, jump, may,
pale, good, been, does

Lessons in this series:

• First Reader:Lesson XVII
• First reader: Lesson XVI
• First Reader: Lesson XV
• First Reader: Lesson XIV
• First Reader: Lesson XIII
• First Reader: Lesson XII
• First Reader: Lesson XI
• First Reader: Lesson X
• Penmanship practice paper
• McGuffey's 1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson I
• First Reader: Lesson II
• First Reader: Lesson III
• First Reader: Lesson IV
• First Reader: Lesson V
• First Reader: Lesson VI
• First Reader: Lesson VII
• First Reader: Lesson VIII
• First Reader: Lesson IX

BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Spelling

1. Vowels, consonants and syllables

Words are built up from vowels (a, e, i, o, u) and consonants (b, c, d, f, g, h, j, k, l, m, n, p, q, r, s, t, v, w, x, y, z). Vowels and consonants are combined to make syllables, building blocks of sound, which is one unit of sound.

God has one syllable, God.
Jesus has two syllables, Je and sus.

2. Long and short vowels

Vowels have different sounds depending on the word they are in.

God, map and did all have short vowel sounds at the beginning – say the words. Do you hear how the o, a and i sound?

Jesus, made and life all have long vowel sounds at the beginning. Say these words. Do you hear the longer, more breathy sound of the e, a and i?

Double consonants

Vowels followed by twin consonants have a short sound and make words that have more than one syllable.

daddy, penny, witty, mommy, sunny

Long vowel sounds can be made by adding a magic e

Change the short vowel sound into a long vowel sound by adding a silent e to the end of the word. Silent final e makes the preceding vowel say its name.

kit –> kite
to-> toe
bath -> bathe

Silent final e ensures that we never end an English word with u or v.

Exceptions: love, give, have, true, blue, glue

Vowel Sounds

'eh' - as in 'let', 'ih' - as in 'hit', 'ee' - as in 'see', and 'ae'- as in 'cat'
'long ah' - as in 'car', 'short ah' - as in 'got'
'long uh' - as in 'put', 'short uh' - as in 'up', 'oo' - as in 'through'

3. Two vowels together are called diphthongs

Some words have two vowels together. When this happens, the vowels usually make one sound rather than two.

You can practice them HERE!

Note: The following diphthongs are pronounced differently in British and American English. British English drops the 'r' sound and pronounces a slight 'uh' - 'hair' becomes 'hehuh'. In American English the 'r' is strongly pronounced - 'hair' becomes 'hehrrr'.

Diphthong Sounds

'ay' - as in 'day', 'ai' - as in 'sky'

'ay' as in 'day'	'ai' as in 'die'
bay	buy
pay	pie
day	die
table	tie
gay	guy
cake	kite
say	sigh
zany	Zaire
shape	shy
Jake	jive
chase	child
hey!	hi

'ou' - as in 'home', 'ow' - as in 'mouse', 'oi' - as in 'boy'

'ou' as in 'home'	'ow' as in 'house'	'oi' as in 'boy'
bowl	bow	boy
Pope	pow-wow	poise
don't	Dow	doily
toe	towel	toy
go	gouge	goiter
cope	cow	coy
soap	sour	soy sauce
zone	zowie!	(none)
show	shower	(none)
Jones	jowl	join
chose	ciao!	choice
home	howl	hoist

'ieh(r)' - as in 'near', 'ehi(r)' - as in 'hair'

'ieh(r)' as in 'near'	'ehi(r)' as in 'hair'
beer	bear
peer	pear
dear	dare
tear (drop of water)	tear (rip)
gear	garish
clear	Claire
seer	snare
sheer	share
jeer	Jerry
cheer	chair
here	hair

Captain, taught, bead, weight, believe, boat, does, boil, sound, guess, build

When you find i and e together

"i before e, except after c"

i usually comes before e unless it follows c; if we say /ā/, we can also use ei.

Words that don’t have a c before the ie, it’s i before e:

believe, piece, niece

Words that have a c before the ei, it’s e before i:

receive, deceive, conceit, ceiling

/ā/: vein, neighbour

exception: Their has an ei but no c.

neither, foreign, sovereign, seized, leisure, either, weird, protein, heifer

/ur/ - Complex diphthong:

Five spellings for /ur/: er, ur, ir, wor, ear:
her, nurse, first, works, earth

4. Hard and soft consonants

c does not have it's own sound. Hard c sounds like k and soft c sounds like s

The letter c followed by e, i, or y says /s/:

cent, city, cycle

followed by another vowel c is said as /k/:

cat, cot, cut, scar, scotch, scuttle

Hard g and soft g

The letter g can also make a hard or a soft sound.

The g followed by e, i, or y usually sounds like /j/ but can say /g/:

gentle, giant, gypsum;

BUT exceptions: get, girl, give.

Followed by any other letter g says /g/: gap, God, gut

5. Plurals

A plural is more than one thing. Plurals can be tricky to spell, but there are some simple rules that will help you. It all depends what the word ends with.

For most nouns, the plural form includes the letter "s" at the end of the word:

dogs
trees
turtles

Nouns ending in s, z, ch, sh, and x
Nouns with these letters at the end call for an "es" in the plural form. This added syllable makes pronunciation easier.

beaches
foxes
wishes

Nouns ending in o
Some nouns ending in o are pluralized with an "s," while others call for "es." These words must be memorized, because there is no simple rule to explain the differences.

echoes	heroes	potatoes	vetoes
autos	memos	pimentos	pros

Source: Hodges' Harbrace Handbook, 13th edition

If a word ends in f, change the f to a v and add es.

half -> halves
leaf -> leaves
hoof -> hooves

Nouns ending in y
To form the plural of nouns ending in y, drop the y and add "ies."

Family becomes families
Story becomes stories
Baby becomes babies

But, if a word ends in ey, just add an s.

monkey -> monkeys

Some words are the same when they are singular (just one) and plural.

I’ve got one sheep.
I’ve got lots of sheep.

And some words change without an s:

child -> children
mouse -> mice

Irregular plural forms
There are several other irregularities in the plural forms of English nouns. Here are examples:

Man becomes men
Woman becomes women
Fungus becomes fungi
Thief becomes thieves (note that not all words ending in "f" follow this patttern: roof/roofs)
Species remains species
Medium becomes media
Person becomes people

6. Prefixes

A prefix is placed at the beginning of a word to modify or change its meaning. This is a list of the most common prefixes in English, together with their basic meaning and some examples.

Prefix		Meaning	Examples
a-	also an-	not, without	atheist, anaemic
a-		to, towards	aside, aback
		in the process of, in a particular state	a-hunting, aglow
a-		of	anew
		completely	abashed
ab-	also abs-	away, from	abdicate, abstract
ad-	also a-, ac-, af-, ag- al-, an-, ap-, at- as-, at-	movement to, change into, addition or increase	advance, adulterate, adjunct, ascend, affiliate, affirm, aggravate, alleviate, annotate, apprehend, arrive, assemble, attend
ante-		before, preceding	antecedent, ante-room
anti-	also ant-	opposing, against, the opposite	anti-aircraft, antibiotic, anticlimax, Antarctic
be-		all over, all around	bespatter, beset
		completely	bewitch, bemuse
		having, covered with	bejewelled
		affect with (added to nouns)	befog
		cause to be (added to adjectives)	becalm
com-	also co-, col-, con-, cor-	with, jointly, completely	combat, codriver, collude, confide, corrode
contra-		against, opposite	contraceptive
counter-		opposition, opposite direction	counter-attack, counteract
de-		down, away	descend, despair, depend, deduct
		completely	denude, denigrate
		removal, reversal	de-ice, decamp
dia-	also di-	through, across	diagonal
dis-	also di-	negation, removal, expulsion	disadvantage, dismount, disbud, disbar
en-	also em-	put into or on	engulf, enmesh
		bring into the condition of	enlighten, embitter
		intensification	entangle, enrage
ex-	also e-, ef-	out	exit, exclude, expand
		upward	exalt, extol
		completely	excruciate, exasperate
		previous	ex-wife
extra-		outside, beyond	extracurricular
hemi-		half	hemisphere
hyper-		beyond, more than, more than normal	hypersonic, hyperactive
hypo-		under	hypodermic, hypothermia
in-	also il-, im-	not, without	infertile, inappropriate, impossible
	also il-, im-, ir-	in, into, towards, inside	influence, influx, imbibe
infra-		below	infrared, infrastructure
inter-		between, among	interact, interchange
intra-		inside, within	intramural, intravenous
non-		absence, negation	non-smoker, non-alcoholic
ob-	also oc-, of-, op-	blocking, against, concealing	obstruct, occult, offend, oppose
out-		surpassing, exceeding	outperform
		external, away from	outbuilding, outboard
over-		excessively, completely	overconfident, overburdened, overjoyed
		upper, outer, over, above	overcoat, overcast
peri-		round, about	perimeter
post-		after in time or order	postpone
pre-		before in time, place, order or importance	pre-adolescent, prelude, precondition
pro-		favouring, in support of	pro-African
		acting for	proconsul
		motion forwards or away	propulsion
		before in time, place or order	prologue
re-		again	repaint, reappraise, reawake
semi-		half, partly	semicircle, semi-conscious
sub-	also suc-, suf-, sug-, sup-, sur-, sus-	at a lower position	submarine, subsoil
		lower in rank	sub-lieutenant
		nearly, approximately	sub-tropical
syn-	also sym-	in union, acting together	synchronize, symmetry
trans-		across, beyond	transnational, transatlantic
		into a different state	translate
ultra-		beyond	ultraviolet, ultrasonic
		extreme	ultramicroscopic
un-		not	unacceptable, unreal, unhappy, unmanned
		reversal or cancellation of action or state	unplug, unmask
under-		beneath, below	underarm, undercarriage
		lower in rank	undersecretary
		not enough	underdevelope

7. Suffixes

Suffixes are letters you can add to the end of words to change their meanings. For example, the suffix -less means without.

Suffix	used to make	meaning	example
-able, -ible, -ble	adjectives	possible to	acceptable, noticable, convertible, divisible, irresistible
-age	nouns	a process or state	shortage, storage
-al	adjectives	connected with	experimental, accidental, environmental
-ance, -ancy,	nouns	an action, process or state	appearance, performance, pregnancy, constancy
-ant, -ent	nouns	a person who does it	assistant, immigrant, student
-ation	nouns	a state or action	examination, imagination, organization
-ee	nouns	a person to whom something is done	employee, trainee
-en	verbs	to give something a particular quality, to make something more	to strengthen
-ence, -ency,	nouns	an action, process or state	coincidence, patience, potency, presidency
-er	nouns	a person who does something	rider, painter, baker, builder, teacher
-ese	adjectives	from a place	Japanese, Chinese, Viennese
-ess	nouns	a woman who does somthing as a job	waitress, actress
-ful	adjectives	having a particular quality	beautiful, helpful, useful, thankful
-hood	nouns	a state, often during a particular period of time	childhood, motherhood
-ian	nouns	a person who does something as a job or hobby	historian, comedian, politician
-ical	adjectives from nouns ending -y or -ics	connected with	economical, mathematical, physical
-ify	verbs	to produce a state or quality	beautify, simplify, purify
-ish	adjectives	1.describing nationality or language	English, Swedish, Polish
		2.like something	babyish, foolish
		3.rather, quite	longish, youngish, brownish
-ist	nouns	1.a person who has studied something or does something as a job	scientist, typist
		2.a person who believes in something or belongs to a particular group	capitalist, pacifist, feminist
-ion	nouns	a state or process	action, connection, exhibition
-ive	adjectives	to be able to, having a particular quality	active, effective
-ize, -ise	verbs	actions producing a particular state	to magnetize, to generalize, to modernise, to standardise
-less	adjectives	not having something	hopeless, friendless
-like	adjectives	similar to	childlike
-ly	adverbs	in a particular way	badly, beautifully, completely
-ment	nouns	a state, action or quality	development, arrangement, excitement, achievement
-ness	nouns	a state or quality	kindness, sadness, happiness, weakness
-ology	nouns	the study of a subject	biology, psychology, zoology
-or	nouns	a person who does something, often as a job	actor, conductor, sailor
-ous	adjectives	having a particular quality	dangerous, generous, religous
-ship	nouns	showing status	membership, citizenship, friendship
-wards	adverbs	in a particular direction	backwards, upwards
-wise	adverbs	in a particular way	anticlockwise
-y	adjectives	having the quality of the thing metioned	cloudy, rainy, fatty, thirsty, greeny

Worksheet Quiz

Lessons in this series:

• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Spelling
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Punctuation
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Language struc...
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Compound and c...
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Adjectives and...

BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Punctuation

English writing reading spelling grammar worksheets are coming.

English: Spelling and Grammar - Language structure

1. Phrases

A phrase is a group of words that could be replaced by a single part of speech – for example, a noun.

is a group of words that functions as a single unit of a sentence.

Examples:

the house at the end of the street (example 1) is a phrase. It acts like a noun.

It contains the phrase at the end of the street (example 2), a prepositional phrase which acts like an adjective.

Example 2 could be replaced by white, to make the phrase the white house.

Examples 1 and 2 contain the phrase the end of the street (example 3) which acts like a noun.

It could be replaced by the cross-roads to give the house at the cross-roads.

2. Sentences

A sentence is a grammatical unit of one or more words. A sentence has a capital letter at the beginning and ends with a full stop, a question mark or an exclamation mark. It must have a verb in it and make sense.

A simple sentence is called a clause. A clause consists of a subject and a verb.

The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.


A conjunction is a part of speech that connects two words, phrases or clauses together like: and, but, although, when, whenever and because.

3. Types of sentence

Different types of sentence do different jobs.

Statements
A statement is a sentence that simply tells the reader something.

The fox Jumps.

Questions

Why did the fox jump over the lazy dog?

Exclamations

The fox jumped high!

Wake up you lazy dog!

Commands
(Commands usually start with a verb.)

Catch the quick brown fox.

4. Paragraphs

A paragraph is a unit of sentences that are all about the same thing:

Begin with a topic sentence,

-states main point for this paragraph

Give details, reasons, and examples to support your topic,

-sentence

End with a closing sentence.

-Restate main point for this paragraph

example:

The fox jumped. The fox jumped high! Why did the fox jump over the dog? The dog was lazy. Wake up you lazy dog! The fox jumped over the lazy dog.

Do you see the indent?

Worksheet Quiz

Lessons in this series:

• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Spelling
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Punctuation
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Language struc...
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Compound and c...
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Adjectives and...

BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Compound and complex sentences

English writing reading spelling grammar worksheets are coming.

BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Adjectives and adverbs

1. Adjectives

What is an adjective?

An adjective is a word that describes a noun (the name of a thing or a place).

It was a terrible book.

The word terrible is an adjective. It tells us what the book (the noun) was like.

Where can I put an adjective?

Adjectives can come before or after the noun.

The book he read on holiday was terrible.

Try putting adjectives in different places in your sentences to make your writing more interesting.

Using more than one adjective

If you want to describe a noun in detail, you can use more than one adjective.

He had a mouldy, smelly, overpriced sandwich for lunch.

When you have a list of adjectives like this, separate them with commas.

2. Adverbs

What is an adverb?

An adverb is a word that describes a verb (an action or a doing word).

He ate his breakfast quickly.

The word quickly is an adverb – it tells us how he ate (the verb) his breakfast.

What’s an adverbial phrase?

Sometimes more than one word can do the adverb’s job. This is called an adverbial phrase.

He ate his lunch really quickly.

The words really quickly are an adverbial phrase. Words like very, more, really and extremely are often used to make an adverb even stronger.

Where can I put an adverb?

Adverbs and adverbial phrases don’t always come after the verb.

He quickly ate his lunch.

Try putting adverbs and adverbial phrases in different places in your sentences to make your writing more interesting.

Worksheet Quiz

Lessons in this series:

• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Spelling
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Punctuation
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Language struc...
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Compound and c...
• BBC English: Spelling and Grammar - Adjectives and...

1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson XIII - The Walk

There is no picture for this lesson, so have the children draw a picture of a place where they like to go for a walk. Talk about Creation and do a little science lesson on the sun, moon, and stars.

The Walk.

Come, Mary, get your bonnet, and we will take a walk. See, the sun is in the west. It is going to set. How large it looks. We may look at it now. It is not so bright now, as when it was up high in the sky. It will soon be out of sight. Now it is almost gone. How red the clouds are. We can see the moon, and all the pretty stars, when the sun sets. The moon is not so bright as the sun. See the pretty bright stars. Some of the stars are as large as the world. But they are so far away, that they look small. Papa, is the sun as large as the world? Yes, my son, and a great deal larger, but it is far away.

Vocabulary

hat, high, away, Mary,
walk, sky, small, pretty,
take, now, make, larger,
come, gone, sight, bonnet,
get, red, papa, going

Lessons in this series:

• First Reader:Lesson XVII
• First reader: Lesson XVI
• First Reader: Lesson XV
• First Reader: Lesson XIV
• First Reader: Lesson XIII
• First Reader: Lesson XII
• First Reader: Lesson XI
• First Reader: Lesson X
• Penmanship practice paper
• McGuffey's 1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson I
• First Reader: Lesson II
• First Reader: Lesson III
• First Reader: Lesson IV
• First Reader: Lesson V
• First Reader: Lesson VI
• First Reader: Lesson VII
• First Reader: Lesson VIII
• First Reader: Lesson IX

1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson XII - Robert and his Horse

In this lesson talk about the day that God created the land animals and do a science lesson on meat eating animals and non-meat eating animals; carnivores and herbivores.

Robert and his Horse.

Here is a fine horse. Has the horse been fed? Give him some hay and some oats. The horse lives on grain; he does not eat meat. men eat meat, bears eat meat. Horses, sheep, and cows do not eat meat. May I ride on the horse? No, you are to small. When you grow to be as big as John, you may ride.

Vocabulary

fed, fine, been, grain,
hay, oats, give, small,
too, ride, meat, sheep

Lessons in this series:

• First Reader:Lesson XVII
• First reader: Lesson XVI
• First Reader: Lesson XV
• First Reader: Lesson XIV
• First Reader: Lesson XIII
• First Reader: Lesson XII
• First Reader: Lesson XI
• First Reader: Lesson X
• Penmanship practice paper
• McGuffey's 1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson I
• First Reader: Lesson II
• First Reader: Lesson III
• First Reader: Lesson IV
• First Reader: Lesson V
• First Reader: Lesson VI
• First Reader: Lesson VII
• First Reader: Lesson VIII
• First Reader: Lesson IX

BBC English: Writing - Story planning

English writing reading spelling grammar worksheets are coming.

BBC English: Writing - Story beginnings and endings

Writing a story: Beginnings and endings

1. Beginnings

The beginning of a story is where you introduce your readers to your style, setting and characters. Often a writer will give his characters a problem to solve. This keeps the reader interested, as they’ll want to find out what happens.

Style

It’s important to get your style right from the beginning of a story, so readers get the feel of your story early on.

Whatever sort of story you are writing, use adjectives (words that describe nouns) and adverbs (words that describe verbs) to make your writing more interesting.

If you are writing a ghost story, for example, choose dark, scary adjectives to create a dark, scary atmosphere (feeling).

You can also choose whether your story will have lots of characters, dialogue (people talking) and action, or long, slow descriptive pieces of writing. Or all of those things!

Setting

Your setting is the place and time where your story takes place. Letting your readers know where and when your story is set will help them picture the scene.

By using descriptive language and the right words you can create the right atmosphere around your setting. Two stories can be set in exactly the same place, but feel completely different because of the words the writer chooses to use.

Characters

When you introduce characters (people) you need to describe them so that the reader gets a feeling for what they are like. Some authors, such as Dickens, give their characters names that help describe what they are like. For example Mr Slyme is a slimy character.

Also think about the words you give your characters to say (dialogue). Make sure the words they use and the way they say things suit the sort of people they are.

2. Endings

Don’t leave any questions unanswered at the end of the story and make sure your reader knows what happens to all your characters - unless you are planning a sequel (second part), in which case don’t tell the reader everything! Then they’ll want to read your next story to find out what happens.

BBC English: Writing - Letters or Emails

BBC English: Writing - Leaflets

BBC English: Writing - Instructions

BBC English: Writing - Comment

BBC English: Writing - Argument

BBC English: Reading - Poetry

Poetry

1. Some types of poetry

Narrative poems

Some poems tell stories. These poems tend to be quite long and often rhyme. Before writing and books were common, people used narrative poetry to tell stories. The rhymes and the rhythm made the stories easy to remember and pass on to other people.

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge is a good example of a narrative poem. It tells the story of a sailor left alone on a boat when the rest of the crew dies.

Poems that follow a fixed form (pattern)

Some types of poetry follow a particular pattern. Haiku, for example, is a form of Japanese poetry where there must be only three lines. The first line must have 5 syllables, the second 7 syllables and the third 5 syllables.

Revising English
Learning about poetry
Not all poems rhyme!

Shape (or concrete) poetry

Some poems are written in a shape that shows what the poem is about.

Nonsense poetry

Some poems use made-up words to describe things, or just to make a nice sound.

In the froogle
Did the Boogle
Make a grabjous cheep

Shushup right now
That squalky row
Is keeping me from sleep!

Lewis Carroll, Edward Lear and Spike Milligan are good authors to read if you like nonsense poetry.

2. Features of poetry

There are some particular types of language you can look out for in poetry.

Rhyme

This is where words with the same sound are used.

Shushup right now
That squalky row
Is keeping me from sleep!

Now and row rhyme.

Alliteration

This is when words start with the same sound. You’ll also find this used in advertising and newspaper headlines.

The slippery snake came sliding.

Similes

A simile describes something by comparing it to another thing using like or as.

The snake moved like a ripple on a pond.
It was as slippery as an eel.

Metaphor

A metaphor is a word or a phrase used to describe something as if it were something else.

A wave of terror washed over him.

The terror isn’t actually a wave, but a wave is a good way of describing the feeling.

Metaphors and similes make poetry more descriptive and interesting and are often used in other forms of writing.

Personification

Poets often give human feelings and actions to objects or ideas.

The friendly rain fell gently over the fields.

BBC English: Reading - Non-fiction

Non-fiction

1. Newspapers

Newspaper stories always start with a headline that catches your attention and tells you what the story is about. The first paragraph then summarises (sums up) the whole story briefly. The rest of the story gives the reader all the details.

Some newspapers are chatty and informal and use terrible puns (word-play) in their headlines.

2. Adverts and brochures

Adverts use persuasive writing to get you to buy things. Because people are trying to make their products sound good, you’ll hear lots of positive, persuasive words such as great, free, improved, new, brilliant and exclusive.

Although an advert should be factual (true), the writer probably won’t tell you what is bad about the thing they are selling.

Adverts and brochures often use glossy photographs of the things they are selling. When you see pictures of people in adverts, they are often smiling to show how happy they are with the product.

3. Reference books

Reference books usually focus on a particular subject (for example, plants, history or science) and should have a clear, straightforward style.

The information in reference books is organised to make things easy to find. The information in a dictionary, for example, is organised alphabetically.

Many reference books have an index. This is an alphabetical list of all the things you’ll find in the book, and tells you which page each thing is on.

Reference books are often illustrated to give the reader even more information about the subject. The pictures may also have labels that will give you even more information.

4. History books and biographies

People writing about history and people’s lives (biographies) will often use an informal style of writing to make the subject more interesting. You’ll find lots of descriptive language (adjectives and adverbs) in this sort of writing, and the writer may try to describe how people from the past felt, not just list what they did on a particular date.

Even if a non-fiction book is as descriptive and atmospheric as a novel (fictional story), it should be based on fact and not made up!

BBC English: Reading - Dictionaries

Dictionaries
1. Types of dictionaries

English Dictionaries

There are probably more than 250,000 English words. Pocket-sized dictionaries have only the most common words in them. Most English dictionaries will tell you what a word means and what class of word it is (for example, a noun, a verb or an adjective).

Foreign language dictionaries

These won’t tell you what a word means, but will tell you what word or phrase you would use in a foreign language to say the same thing.

Thesauruses

A thesaurus is a special kind of dictionary. It gives you a list of similar words that might be more suitable for what you are trying to say. For example, if you look up the word happy, a thesaurus may tell you that you could also use cheerful, content, thrilled or jumping for joy. A thesaurus is really useful if you find yourself using the same word over and over again, and when you want to find words that will make your writing more interesting.

Specialist dictionaries

Some dictionaries concentrate on a particular subject. For example you can get dictionaries of science, animals and history. These dictionaries have information on the words, phrases, people and things to do with just that one subject.

Illustrated dictionaries

Some dictionaries have illustrations in them to help show you what the words mean. Specialist dictionaries are often illustrated. For example, a dictionary of plants may be illustrated to show the reader what each plant looks like, and what the parts of the plants are called.

Electronic dictionaries

Lots of dictionaries are on CD-ROM or on the Internet. Unlike a book, you can use the computer to search the dictionary to find what you are looking for. And you may find films and sounds as well as text and images.

2. Using dictionaries

English Dictionaries

All dictionaries arrange their information alphabetically. Each piece of information is called an entry. So you’ll find words beginning with a at the front, and z at the back.

Because there are lots of words beginning with, for example, the letter a, all those words are arranged by which letter comes next, and so on.

So the word ant will come after the word ankle in a dictionary. The first two letters are the same, but the third letter is different, and t comes after k in the alphabet.

Finding a word

Searching in books
Because words are arranged alphabetically, it’s easy to find a word in a dictionary, just narrow down your search one letter at a time.

If you are looking for the word sunny in a dictionary, first find the section for the letter s, then narrow down your search by finding words starting with su, then the words starting with sun and finally look for sunny.

Searching in dictionaries on CD-ROMs or the Internet

Dictionaries you’ll find on a computer (electronic dictionaries) can be searched by typing the word you are looking for into a search box. The computer will then either show you the information on that word, or list the things it has found to do with that word.

Most electronic dictionaries will also let you browse through the entries just as you would if you were using a printed dictionary.

1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson XI - Boys at play

For this lesson give another vocabulary quiz. Talk about good manners and how to be polite. Take the Bible and read over the Fruits of the Spirit and the Fruits of the Sinful nature. Also, don't forget to talk about God's mercy and grace.

Boys at Play.

Can you fly a kite? See how the boy flies his kite. He holds the string tight, and the wind blows it up in the sky. Now it is high in the air, and look like a bird. When the wind blows hard, you must hold fast, or your kite will get away. Boys love to run and play. They must not be rude. Good boys do not play in a rude way, but they take care not to hurt any one. You must not lie. Bad boys lie, and swear, and steal. When boys are at play they must be kind, and not feel cross. If you are cross, good boys will not like to play with you. When you fall down, you must not cry, but get up, and run again. If you cry, the boys will call you a baby. Some boys use bad words when they are at play. The Bible says that you must not use bad words. You must mind what the Bible says, for it is God's book. You must not play with boys that speak bad words or tell lies.

Vocabulary

kite, holds, wind, high,
string, fast, blows, looks,
bird, when, boys, baby,
words, play, you, not,
speak, bad, book, but,
Bible, hurt, rude, take,
care, one, they, cry,
get, up, run, again,
kind, not, feel, cross,
must, mind, good, says,
boys, lie, swear, steal

Lessons in this series:

• First Reader:Lesson XVII
• First reader: Lesson XVI
• First Reader: Lesson XV
• First Reader: Lesson XIV
• First Reader: Lesson XIII
• First Reader: Lesson XII
• First Reader: Lesson XI
• First Reader: Lesson X
• Penmanship practice paper
• McGuffey's 1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson I
• First Reader: Lesson II
• First Reader: Lesson III
• First Reader: Lesson IV
• First Reader: Lesson V
• First Reader: Lesson VI
• First Reader: Lesson VII
• First Reader: Lesson VIII
• First Reader: Lesson IX

1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson X - The Sun is Up

Give a vocabulary quiz for this lesson and make the children create ten sentences using the words in the vocabulary list. Talk about the almighty and constant presence of God for this lesson and ask them what things make them think about God.

The Sun is Up.

See, the sun is up. The sun gives us light. It makes the trees and the grass grow. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west. When the sun rises, it is day. When the sun sets it is night. This little boy was up at five. He saw the sun rise, and heard the sweet songs of birds on every bush. Do you know who made the sun? God made it. God made the moon and all the stars. How good God is to us. He gives us all we have, and keeps us alive. We should love God. God sees and knows all things, for God is everywhere. He sees me when I rise from my bed, and when I go out to walk and play. When I lie down to sleep at night, He keeps me from harm. Though I do not see the wind, yet it blows around me on all sides. God is with me at all times, and yet I see Him not. If God is with me, and knows all that I do, He must hear what I say. Oh, let me not, speak bad words. If I do, God will not love my ways.

Vocabulary

sun, grass, should, must,
light, then, makes, hear,
birds, things, knows, east,
little, boy, all, five,
sweet, birds, every, bush,
God, sees, when, rise,
how, play, sides, sleep,
hear, though, times, say,
keeps, harm, speak, words

Lessons in this series:

• First Reader:Lesson XVII
• First reader: Lesson XVI
• First Reader: Lesson XV
• First Reader: Lesson XIV
• First Reader: Lesson XIII
• First Reader: Lesson XII
• First Reader: Lesson XI
• First Reader: Lesson X
• Penmanship practice paper
• McGuffey's 1836 First Eclectic Reader: Lesson I
• First Reader: Lesson II
• First Reader: Lesson III
• First Reader: Lesson IV
• First Reader: Lesson V
• First Reader: Lesson VI
• First Reader: Lesson VII
• First Reader: Lesson VIII
• First Reader: Lesson IX