FIFTH GRADE BY J. W. SEARSON PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH, UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA GEORGE E. MARTIN PRESIDENT STATE TEACHERS' COLLEGE, THE UNIVERSITY Lincoln, Chicago, Dallas, New York City 1923 MEMORIAL LIBRARY 500 N. DUNTON ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, ILL. 60004 TEXT. 372.4 STOS UNPUB 1922 5 PREFACE READING with appreciation is a fine art. It is not too much to expect those who read to grow in their love for reading and good literature. Children love those selections which they have heard their fathers and mothers read over and over again. They love the new selections which carry similar truths. This volume contains a carefully selected group of prose and poetry selections intended to increase in the pupil an abiding taste for good reading. A definite plan of work invites the pupil to study his reading lesson with the same relish as that with which he studies any other lesson. The brief introduction to each selection leads the child to study the selection in the right attitude of mind. He then tries the selection in the right mood and a mere trial usually invites him to study it. The exercises following each study outlines for him a definite program of work. This program should be varied as the needs of the child and the judgment of the teacher dictate. Helpful notes explain difficult points or suggest interesting supplementary exercises. By means of additional readings, the pupil broadens and deepens the impressions already gained in the study of a single selection. Special emphasis should be placed upon teaching the pupil how to use the dictionary intelligently. Word lists are given in each study. Other words and phrases should be added as the needs of the class demand. The intelligent use of the dictionary enables the child to become independent in enlarging his own vocabulary. Careful attention to correct pronunciation and distinct articulation is emphasized by means of pronunciation and articulation drills taken directly from each reading lesson. The authors desire to acknowledge their indebtedness to the teachers who have already proved the worth of these studies in schoolroom practice. Especial thanks are due to President J. W. Crabtree of the Wisconsin State Normal School at River Falls; to Superintendent A. H. Waterhouse of the Public Schools of Fremont, Nebraska; to Superintendent Alice Florer of York County, Nebraska, for practical suggestions and helpful criticisms; and to former State Superintendent W. K. Fowler of Nebraska, for expert care, criticism, and corrections in the preparation of this volume. J. W. SEARSON. G. E. MARTIN. |