Chapter 13

FORM I: SENIOR GRADE

THE WIND AND THE LEAVES

(First Reader, page 49)

It is the aim of this lesson to help the pupils to appreciate imaginative descriptions of some natural phenomena. This lesson will be best appreciated if taken some day in autumn when the leaves are falling. If the pupils have recently noticed the wind rushing through the trees, scattering the many-coloured leaves and driving them before it along the ground, they will be in the best mood to enter into the spirit of the poem.

What is the time of the year that the poem speaks about? The autumn.

Select all the things that tell you this. The leaves have "dresses of red and gold"; "summer is gone"; "the days grow cold"; the leaves come "fluttering" down; the "fields" are "brown".

What did the wind mean by "Come o'er the meadows with me, and play"? It meant that they should come down from the trees and be blown away by the wind across the fields.

What does it mean by "Put on your dresses of red and gold"? Before they fall, the leaves have many beautiful colours.

What was the colour of their dresses in summer? When do they begin to change colour very quickly?

What leaves show the most beautiful colours? What different colours have you noticed that leaves have?

When does the wind call? When it blows loudly or whistles.

Do you know what the wind says when it calls? Why not? We do not understand the language that it speaks.

How did the leaves show that they understood? They obeyed at once and came down from the trees.

What is meant by "fluttering" down? They came down slowly, moving from side to side, and turning over and over as they fell. (This could be shown in the class-room quite easily.)

Which line in the first stanza corresponds in meaning with the third line of the second? The second line.

What makes the fields "brown"? It is the end of the summer, and the grass and the plants have dried up.

What colours have the fields at other seasons of the year? Green in the spring, golden in the summer, white in the winter.

What are "the soft little songs" of the leaves? The rustling sounds they make as they are blown about by the wind.

Why do we not understand their songs? For the same reason that we do not understand the call of the wind--their language is not ours.

"Winter had called them." What is the voice of winter? The cold winds that roar and whistle.

What is meant by "content"? The leaves were quite glad to answer the call.

Why were they content? The work that they had been doing all summer long was done; they were tired and sleepy and glad to go to bed.

When may it be said that the leaves are "fast asleep"? When they lie quietly on the ground, no longer blown about by the wind.

How were they kept warm during their long sleep? The snow came and covered them up warmly, like a "blanket".

What does the whole lesson describe? The falling of the leaves.

What does the first stanza speak of? The call of the wind.

The second? The answer of the leaves.

The third? The leaves asleep.

Tell the story of the poem in your own words.

PIPING DOWN THE VALLEYS WILD

(First Reader, page 52)

AIM

To enable the pupils to appreciate the pretty pictures and the music, and to learn how their pretty songs were written.

PREPARATION

In far-away countries there are many sheep, and they require shepherds. These shepherds, as they can rest while their sheep feed, sometimes amuse themselves by cutting oat straws and making them into little flutes. They cut holes in the straws, just as you see holes in flutes or in tin whistles. They learn to play very pretty tunes. David, king of Israel, was, in his youth, a shepherd boy, and he learned to play beautiful music while he watched his sheep. The Psalms that you find in the Bible were composed by him.

PRESENTATION

Now let us read about a shepherd who was playing music. (The teacher reads the poem.) While he was playing, what did he see? He saw a little child sitting on a cloud.

What was the child doing? He was laughing.

Why? He liked the music.

What kind of music was it? It was pleasant, full of joy.

Where was the shepherd? In a valley.

Tell what the valley was like. It was wild. It had big rocks and hills on each side, and a cloud was over the valley.

What did the child ask him to do? To play "a song about a Lamb".

Why did he do that? Because the sheep were pretty and he thought he should like to hear pretty music about them.

How did the child like it? He asked the shepherd to play the tune again, and it was such beautiful music that the keen enjoyment of it made the tears come to his eyes.

What did the child next ask? He wished to have the music put into words, so he asked the shepherd to "sing" it.

How did the child enjoy it? It was so lovely that he "wept with joy".

What did he ask the shepherd to do? To "write" it down.

Why? The child thought it was so lovely that he wanted other children to hear it, too.

Yes, that is the way that we come to have all these pretty poems in our books. If they were only played or sung, not so many children could have the opportunity of enjoying them.

What do you need when you write? We need pens, and paper, and ink.

The shepherd had not steel pens, and white paper, and black ink. He may have used the bark of trees to write on.

How did he get a pen? He "plucked a hollow reed", and he "made a rural pen".

What does that mean? He took a hollow stalk, such as an oat straw or a weed, and cut it in the form of a pen.

What is a "rural pen"? "Rural" means belonging to the country. The pen was not made as ours are. The shepherd wrote about sheep and other things belonging to country life.

How did he get any ink? He took "water" from the stream and "stained" it so that it would leave a mark something like our ink.

Yes, the paper, the pen, and the ink would not be so good as at present, but they would serve as a beginning.

REPRODUCTION

1. Where was the musician?

2. What kind of instrument was he playing?

3. Where was the child?

4. What was the child's second request?

5. What was his third request?

6. How was the shepherd able to write?

7. Why did the child wish him to write?

(The pupils may not understand "rural", "valley", "pipes", so the teacher should give such further explanation as the different cases demand.)

THE BABY SWALLOW

(First Reader, page 103)

The aim of this lesson is to teach, by means of a story, the moral of trusting in God and trying to do one's best.

The teacher should introduce the lesson by inquiring of the pupils if they have ever watched a young bird learning to fly. Its timidity and the anxiety of the mother-bird should be especially emphasized. A brief reference to the swallow might also be in place, though this is not essential, as the poet has selected it merely as a type of birds in general, and almost any other bird would answer his purpose as well. The rapidity and grace of the swallow's flight, and its habit of constructing its nest of mud under the eaves and in other sheltered places about buildings, are the main points to be noted.

What is the lesson about? About a baby swallow learning to fly.

What do the first four stanzas tell us? His fears.

And the last three? The success of his effort.

What do you see in the picture? A tower with a bell in it.

What name is given here for tower? Turret ("Turret" means a little tower.)

From its sound, what do you think "belfry" means? The place where the bell is.

What, then, is a "belfry turret"? A tower where a bell is hung.

On what part of the tower had the bird its nest? The front.

What word does the poet use to express that? "Breast".

What has been beating against the tower for years? The wind, sun, rain, snow.

What one word would stand for all these? Weather.

Explain "weather-beaten".

In perching on its nest, what does the baby swallow seem ready to do? To fly.

What other words might the Mother-Bird use instead of "courage"? "Don't be afraid."

How many wings are meant by "either wing"?

In this stanza, what is the "Mother-Bird" doing? Giving the little bird instructions in the way to begin flying.

Describe how he is to begin.

How does the baby feel about it? He feels afraid.

What word tells you this? "Pauses."

What does he think is deep? The distance between the tower and the ground.

Why is the bird afraid to attempt to fly? It is so far to the ground and his "wings" seem very "small".

Why is the "Mother" not afraid to let her baby try? She knows that God will carry him safely.

How does she know this? Because "He" had "carried" her.

When? When she was as small as the baby swallow is now.

Why does the "Mother" tell him this? To encourage him to make the attempt.

How does the baby swallow make his start? He "spreads out his wings" as far as he can and "springs" out.

Which stanza has almost the same form as this? The second.

What is he surprised to find? That he is able to fly.

How does he feel after that about flying? He is no longer afraid.

PREPARATION

What is he able to do well? To steer.

What does this mean? To fly in any direction he wishes.

How does the "Mother" feel over her baby's success? She feels glad.

To whom does she give thanks? To God.

How does she do so? By singing a song of thankfulness.

What can we learn from this story? That, if we really try to do a difficult thing, we can usually succeed; that sometimes a thing that looks hard is really very easy when we try to do it.

Tell this story in your own words. Tell any similar story you know.

THE BROOK

(First Reader, page 110)

PREPARATION

You stood on the bridge and looked at the stream. What did you see? I saw some little fishes. I saw my image. I saw some bright stones.

It is no wonder you looked at the stream when it shows you so many things. What were the fishes doing? They were swimming. They would dart after some crumbs that we dropped into the water.

Why were the fishes there? That is their home.

Yes, they like to live in the clear water. Mary says she saw her image. What have you at home that shows you your image? The mirror.

Yes, the brook is somewhat like the mirror. Did you see images of any other things? Yes, I saw images of the trees, and some stones, and I saw the images of the ducks that were swimming.

Willie says that he saw some pretty pebbles. Does the brook make any noise? Yes, it seems to sing when it runs over the pebbles, but in the deep places it does not make a noise.

PRESENTATION

Now I shall read you a little poem about a brook. (Read with emphasis, even with slight exaggeration.) Now, where did this brook begin? In "a fountain".

What is that? A spring of water.

Where was the fountain? "In a mountain".

What is that? A high hill.

Was it very large where it started? No, the lesson says it was only "Drops of water" and it trickled "through the grasses".

What does it mean by "Trickling through the grasses"? It means that there was so little of it that the blades of grass seemed almost to check its source.

Did it run very fast at first? No, the lesson says that it "started" "Slow".

Did it run any faster after that? Yes, "Soon it darted", and it was "Hurrying".

What caused it to dart and hurry? The ground was steeper, and it had to run more quickly.

Where was it running? Down "to the sea", where it would be lost in the other water.

Did it grow any larger before it came to the sea? Yes, it grew "Swift and strong", and it widened "very fast".

What caused it to widen? Other little brooks ran into it and made it wider.

Now, the brook is said to be like a person. Can you point out any words that make you think it was like a person? Yes, it hurries just as children hurry.

In the next stanza, the lesson says it was "Glad". Why was it glad? It was glad that the "Children" came to play on its banks.

Yes, it felt just as you feel when your friends come over to your house to play. Do you see any other words that make you think it is like a person? Yes, it is "Swift and strong and happy". It rushes and it sings.

What is it like now? It is like a big, strong, happy boy.

Why did the children come to play on its banks? They came to pick the flowers.

What line shows you that? "Blossoms floating." The children picked the flowers and threw some on the stream to watch the current carry them away.

What else were the children doing? They were sailing toy boats in the water.

What words show you that? "Mimic boating."

What else did the children enjoy? They liked to see the "Fishes darting past" them. The fishes were timid.

The brook makes some very pleasant sounds. What words show you that? "Rippling", "Bubbling", "singing", "ringing".

When does the water make these sounds? When it is running "over pebbles" or down the steep places.

You must fancy you hear the brook make its gentle music when it is running over the pebbles. What does the water look like when it ripples? It is not smooth; it has tiny waves upon it.

You have heard the water bubble and gurgle, and then, when the stream grows large and runs faster, you can hear it "singing" and "ringing" in the distance. The poet tells us some pretty things about the brook. Tell me some of them. It was "Cool and clear and free".

Why was it "Cool"? It had flowed among the grasses and had come from a spring in a mountain.

Why was it "clear"? It was such pure water that you could see the stones at the bottom of the brook.

Why does the poet say it was "free"? There were no logs nor big stones to stop its course. It ran freely on its way.

Do you see any other words that describe its appearance? It is "Flecked with shade and sun".

Now "Flecked" is a hard word. It means _spotted_ or _striped_. Can you tell me what that means? Sometimes the brook is bright and shining and, in some places, it is shaded by the trees or by the clouds. You can see bright patches on the water.

Now you have told me many wonderful things about this brook; where it began and where it ended, how it grew, how it sang, how glad it was to see the children, and how the children played with it, and how it looked. What does it tell us at first? It tells us where it began.

In the next stanza? It runs a little faster.

In the next? It was glad to see the children.

In the next? The children were playing with it.

In the next? It ran bubbling and singing into the sea.

MEMORIZATION

Now we shall learn the words of this pretty lesson, taking the first stanza to-day. Let us take the first three lines. Now all the lines. Let each one be ready to repeat it. See whether you can say the first stanza to-morrow, and then we shall learn some more.