McGuffey 2nd Reader Unit 17: Cheerful Courage
"A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels; . . .
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; but fools despise wisdom and instruction."
Proverbs 1: 5,7
"Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser; teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding."
Proverbs 9: 9-10
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; but fools despise wisdom and instruction."
Proverbs 1: 5,7
"Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser; teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding."
Proverbs 9: 9-10
Plan 2 weeks for this lesson - McGuffey Second Reader Lessons LVI and LVII
This unit allows children to consider how to show courage in their actions. At the beginning of this unit, encourage the children to ask themselves once a day for the next two weeks "What would a courageous person do?" At the end of two weeks, give the children an opportunity to Share what they learned.
Define rules and concepts:
Lesson LVI
Reading
Before reading this lesson, discuss the meaning of the following words:
Grammar
Review the apostrophe and how it is used to make a word possessive. What if the word already ends in s? Look at paragraph 11 for an example.
Turn to the Possessive Noun page in Section 1 of the Vocabulary Notebook. Write the possessive form of Jack and Charles in your notebook.
Lesson LVII
Determine meaning of words from context clues:
List the following words on the board and ask the students to watch for these words while they read:
Teaching Tip: "The best way to teach the meanings of these new words is in the context of the sentences they are in. For instance, talk about being 'unintimidated by the censure', of others (paragraph 19). Find the base, timid, and figure out that the word means 'not being made timid.' You can tell the children that censure means blaming or criticism. Thus, you would reword the sentence to say 'Learn to act for yourself and don't let criticism make you timid.' Reword several sentences this way. - Ruth Beechick
Reading
Read lesson LVII: Discuss the questions at the end of the lesson. Have the children write their reworded sentences. Then read the sentences again from the book. Use a dictionary once in a while, but most of the time just tell the children the meaning of the new words.
As adults, we like to ask those around us what something means, and if no one knows, then as a last resort we consult a dictionary. Children should have the same privilege; it is too discouraging to have to look up too many words. Intensive study of these words and sentences will help build your children's vocabularies. But remember, one meeting with a word is not enough in itself. Do not expect instant results, but keep daily word study in reading, writing, and spelling lessons.
Spelling
Several prefixes can be found in this lesson. For example: al-, in-, ex-, un-, be-, mis. Turn to the Prefixes page in Section 2 of your vocabulary notebook. Write the words with prefixes from the vocabulary list at the end of the lesson. Discuss with a parent or teacher how the prefix adds to the definition of the word.
This unit allows children to consider how to show courage in their actions. At the beginning of this unit, encourage the children to ask themselves once a day for the next two weeks "What would a courageous person do?" At the end of two weeks, give the children an opportunity to Share what they learned.
Define rules and concepts:
- Quality adjectives
- Demonstrative pronouns
Lesson LVI
Reading
Before reading this lesson, discuss the meaning of the following words:
- · landlord - a person who owns or runs a boarding house, inn, or similar establishment.
- · sprawling - sit, lie, or fall with one's arms and legs spread out in an ungainly or awkward way.
Grammar
Review the apostrophe and how it is used to make a word possessive. What if the word already ends in s? Look at paragraph 11 for an example.
Turn to the Possessive Noun page in Section 1 of the Vocabulary Notebook. Write the possessive form of Jack and Charles in your notebook.
Lesson LVII
Determine meaning of words from context clues:
List the following words on the board and ask the students to watch for these words while they read:
- amiable - paragraph 1
- moral - paragraph 2
- reputation - paragraph 10
- folly - paragraph 13
- persuade - paragraph 15
- involved - paragraph 17
- contempt - paragraph 17
- sever - paragraph 18
- integrity - paragraph 18
- unintimidated - paragraph 19
- censure - paragraph 19
Teaching Tip: "The best way to teach the meanings of these new words is in the context of the sentences they are in. For instance, talk about being 'unintimidated by the censure', of others (paragraph 19). Find the base, timid, and figure out that the word means 'not being made timid.' You can tell the children that censure means blaming or criticism. Thus, you would reword the sentence to say 'Learn to act for yourself and don't let criticism make you timid.' Reword several sentences this way. - Ruth Beechick
Reading
Read lesson LVII: Discuss the questions at the end of the lesson. Have the children write their reworded sentences. Then read the sentences again from the book. Use a dictionary once in a while, but most of the time just tell the children the meaning of the new words.
As adults, we like to ask those around us what something means, and if no one knows, then as a last resort we consult a dictionary. Children should have the same privilege; it is too discouraging to have to look up too many words. Intensive study of these words and sentences will help build your children's vocabularies. But remember, one meeting with a word is not enough in itself. Do not expect instant results, but keep daily word study in reading, writing, and spelling lessons.
Spelling
Several prefixes can be found in this lesson. For example: al-, in-, ex-, un-, be-, mis. Turn to the Prefixes page in Section 2 of your vocabulary notebook. Write the words with prefixes from the vocabulary list at the end of the lesson. Discuss with a parent or teacher how the prefix adds to the definition of the word.