STORIES OF ROBIN HOOD

The Modern Reader's Bible, twenty-one volumes (Richard Moulton). The Macmillan Co.Children's Series. Old Testament and New Testament Stories. In two volumes. The Macmillan Co.Stories from the Bible (Church). The Macmillan Co.Story of the Chosen People (Guerber). The American Book Co.The Literary Study of the Bible (Moulton). D. C. Heath & Co.

In the latter part of third grade or beginning of fourth, the stories of Robin Hood are likely to prove exhilarating to children.

These stories of the bold, manly, good-natured outlaw, with his band of trusty men in Sherwood Forest, have been famous throughout England these five hundred years, and the stories themselves, and the ballads accompanying them, are a genuine part of the treasures of the older English literature. They have been worked by Howard Pyle into the stout, hearty English style which is so appropriate to the rendering of the deeds of this sturdy English yeoman and his band.

Their careless life and woodland sports under theGreenwood Tree, and their merry adventures and shooting matches, have been the delight of many a generation of English children. But even their woodland sports were a severe and rugged training in hardy endurance and manly spirit. Pyle says well in his preface: "For honest purposes manfully followed and hard knocks courageously endured must always interest the wholesome boy; while nature is so closely akin to man in the golden days of his green youth that tales of the Greenwood, where the leaves rustle and the birds sing, and all the air is full of sweet savors of growing things, must ever have a potent charm for the fresh imagination of childhood."

One phase of this training, as manifested in the stories, is not only the ability to take hard knocks and keep a stiff upper lip, as the old saying goes, but to master chagrin and anger and endure fun and gibes at one's own expense; indeed, even with aching bones and buzzing ears, to join in the merriment over one's own discomfiture. This is an unusual accompaniment of even good stories, which makes them truly wholesome. The fun of the stories also is of a light and rollicking sort which children should have a chance to thoroughly enjoy. In fact it is excellent material upon which to cultivate their early sense of the comic and humorous. The literature used in early school years has, unfortunately, too little of the sportive and laughable, and the RobinHood adventures will help in no small degree to remedy this defect.

It is interesting to note, also, that brute strength is not at a premium, but skill and quick-wittedness. Not the least attractive and forcible part of Robin Hood's character is the shrewd-witted versatility and boldness with which he plays any part which circumstances require him to assume. His foes are circumvented by his shrewdness and keen wit even as much as by his unfailing skill in archery or dexterous strength in personal contest.

Robin Hood's relation to the British government was known as that of the outlaw, although the visit of King Richard to him in Sherwood Forest and his service under that prince and others gave him a certain legal status. He has always been regarded as a popular hero representing the rights of the common people.

After describing Robin Hood's first adventure with the foresters and his outlawry, Howard Pyle says: "But Robin Hood lay hidden in Sherwood Forest for one year, and in that time there gathered around him many others like himself, outlawed for this cause and for that.

"So, in all that year, five score or more good, stout yeomen joined themselves to him, and chose him to be their leader and chief. Then they vowed that even as they themselves had been despoiled they would despoil their oppressors, whether baron, abbot,knight, or squire, and that from each they would take that which had been wrung from the poor by unjust taxes, or land rents, or in wrongful fines; but to the poor folk they would give a helping hand in need and trouble, and would return to them that which had been unjustly taken from them. Besides this, they swore never to harm a child, nor to wrong a woman, be she maid, wife, or widow; so that, after a while, when the people began to find that no harm was meant to them, but that money or food came in time of want to many a poor family, they came to praise Robin and his merry men, and to tell many tales of him and of his doings in Sherwood Forest, for they felt him to be one of themselves."

When we consider the stories which tradition has handed down relative to the exploits of Robin Hood, the Old-English ballads which celebrate them in song, the stories of King Richard's visit to him in Sherwood, and Robin's visit to the court of Eleanor and King Henry at London town, to share in the great shooting-match, and the story of Locksley in Scott's "Ivanhoe"—we might almost say that Robin Hood would bear favorable comparison with any Englishman of his time. At any rate it would be difficult to find among the kings and great lords of that age one who had so much regard for justice and fair dealing among men, to say nothing of his kindness to the poor and needy.

He stands distinctly for those rights of the common people which were constantly violated by the powerful and influential in that half-barbarous age of feudalism. It is from this instinct for popular rights that the body of English liberties has gradually developed, and it is not strange that Robin Hood has always been regarded as a hero among a people who have preserved this instinct for liberty and justice.

The foresters of Robin Hood's band were lovers of forest and glade; the song of the bird and fragrance of wild flowers were sweet to them. In Pyle's introductory chapter is this description of their retreat under the Greenwood. "So turning their backs upon the stream, they plunged into the forest once more, through which they traced their steps till they reached the spot where they dwelt in the depths of the woodland. There had they built huts of bark and branches of trees, and made couches of sweet rushes spread over with skins of fallow deer. Here stood a great oak tree with branches spreading broadly around, beneath which was a seat of green moss where Robin Hood was wont to sit at feast and at merrymaking, with his stout men about him. Here they found the rest of the band, some of whom had come in with a brace of fat does. Then they built great fires, and after the feast was ready they all sat down, but Robin Hood placed Little John at his right hand, for he was henceforth to be the second in the band."

Little John's bout with the tanner of Blyth is introduced thus:—

"One fine day, not long after Little John had left abiding with the Sheriff and had come back to the merry Greenwood, Robin Hood and a few chosen fellows of his band lay upon the soft sward beneath the Greenwood Tree where they dwelt. The day was warm and sultry, so that whilst most of the band were scattered through the forest upon this mission and upon that, these few stout fellows lay lazily beneath the shade of the tree, in the soft afternoon, passing jests among themselves and telling merry stories, with laughter and mirth.

"All the air was laden with the bitter fragrance of the May, and all the bosky shades of the woodlands beyond rang with the sweet song of birds,—the throstle-cock, the cuckoo, and the wood-pigeon,—and with the song of birds mingled the cool sound of the gurgling brook that leaped out of the forest shades, and ran fretting amid its rough gray stones across the sunlit open glade before the trysting-tree."

This delight in the beauty and music of all nature about them is a sort of atmosphere which gives tone to all the stories of this group.

The language in which the stories are narrated is rich in the quaint and vigorous phrases of Old English, reminding one of the times of Shakespeare and before. One could hardly give the children a better introduction to the riches of our mother tongue.

The description of English customs, the popular festivities, the booths of the market town, the parade of feudal lords and retainers, the constraints placed upon hunting by kings and lords, and the hardships of the poor are touched upon in significant ways. The stories give an insight into the English character, their love of rude sports, their ballad literature, and their respect for honesty and courage and shrewdness.

The ballads associated with the Robin Hood legends are often beautiful and striking expressions of the English spirit, and have a special charm for children. They should be read in connection with the later reading of the stories in the third and fourth school years.

The bearing of these tales upon early feudal history and the general literature of that age is of importance. This is well illustrated in "Ivanhoe" in the use by Richard of Robin Hood and his archers in the attack upon Torquilstone, and in various exploits of the men of the Greenwood when brought in contact with knights on horseback. There is also a kinship in these narratives with some of the best stories and novels of early English history, as Scott's "Tales of a Grandfather," Kingsley's "Hereward the Wake," Jane Andrew's "Gilbert the Page," and a number of Scott's novels.

In the oral treatment of the stories in the third or fourth school year, the teacher will find her powersof presentation taxed in a peculiar way. The quaint language and humorous tone, the occasional witty conceits, will need to be appreciated and enjoyed, and the mode of presentation suited to the thought. Let the teacher first of all thoroughly enjoy the stories and in rendering them to children in the classroom lose herself in the tone and spirit of the account. It requires great freedom and flexibility of body and mind to do this well, but that is what a teacher most of all needs. The humorous part, especially, will require a certain unbending of the stiff manners of a teacher, but no harm is done in this.

The large volume of Robin Hood stories by Pyle should be in the hands of the teacher, if possible, although it is an expensive book. It is much fuller in the special details of the stories needed by the teacher, though the smaller book is far better adapted as a reading book for schools.

To illustrate the place which the Robin Hood legends hold in English history and literature, the following selections, quoted from Tennyson's "The Foresters" and one of the old ballads, are given. They are taken from "English History told by English Poets," published by The Macmillan Company, where the passage from "The Foresters" is given at greater length.

Robin Hood and Maid Marian, Friar Tuck and George-a-Green, Will Scarlet, Midge the Miller's Son, Little John, and the rest are legendary characters loved and sung from the fourteenth century to modern times. The charm of these light-hearted highwaymen was felt by Shakespeare himself: "They say he is already in the forest of Arden, and a many merry men with him: and there they live like the old Robin Hood of England; they say many young gentlemen flock to him every day, and fleet the time carelessly, as they did in the golden world."—("As You Like It," I,I.) Tennyson adopts the tradition that the generous outlaws dwelt in Sherwood Forest in Cumberlandshire, and that their leader, Robin Hood, was the banished Earl of Huntingdon. The plot of the "The Foresters" turns upon the sudden return of Richard from his Austrian captivity and the consequent collapse of the intrigues conducted by his crafty and cruel brother John.

Robin Hood.Am I worse or better?I am outlaw'd. I am none the worse for thatI held for Richard and I hated John.I am a thief, ay, and a king of thieves.Ay! but we rob the robber, wrong the wronger,And what we wring from them we give the poor.I am none the worse for that, and all the betterFor this free forest-life, for while I satAmong my thralls in my baronial hallThe groining hid the heavens; but since I breathed,A houseless head beneath the sun and stars,The soul of the woods hath stricken thro' my blood,The love of freedom, the desire of God,The hope of larger life hereafter, moreTenfold than under roof.True, were I takenThey would prick out my sight. A price is setOn this poor head; but I believe there livesNo man who truly loves and truly rulesHis following, but can keep his followers true.I am one with mine. Traitors are rarely bredSave under traitor kings. Our vice-king John,True king of vice—true play on words—our John,By his Norman arrogance and dissoluteness,Hath made me king of all the discontentOf England up thro' all the forest landNorth to the Tyne: being outlaw'd in a landWhere law lies dead, we make ourselves the law.King Richard(toRobin). My good friend Robin, Earl of Huntingdon,For Earl thou art again, hast thou no fettersFor those of thine own band who would betray thee?Robin.I have; but these were never worn as yet,I never found one traitor in my band.

True, were I takenThey would prick out my sight. A price is setOn this poor head; but I believe there livesNo man who truly loves and truly rulesHis following, but can keep his followers true.I am one with mine. Traitors are rarely bredSave under traitor kings. Our vice-king John,True king of vice—true play on words—our John,By his Norman arrogance and dissoluteness,Hath made me king of all the discontentOf England up thro' all the forest landNorth to the Tyne: being outlaw'd in a landWhere law lies dead, we make ourselves the law.

King Richard(toRobin). My good friend Robin, Earl of Huntingdon,For Earl thou art again, hast thou no fettersFor those of thine own band who would betray thee?

Robin.I have; but these were never worn as yet,I never found one traitor in my band.

Our forest games are ended, our free life,And we must hence to the King's court. I trustWe shall return to the wood. Meanwhile, farewellOld friends, old patriarch oaks. A thousand wintersWill strip you bare as death, a thousand summersRobe you life-green again. You seem, as it were,Immortal, and we mortal. How few JunesWill heat our pulses quicker! How few frostsWill chill the hearts that beat for Robin Hood!Marian.And yet I think these oaks at dawn and even,Or in the balmy breathings of the night,Will whisper evermore of Robin Hood.We leave but happy memories to the forest.We dealt in the wild justice of the woods.All those poor serfs whom we have served will bless us,All those pale mouths which we have fed will praise us—All widows we have holpen pray for us,Our Lady's blessed shrines throughout the landBe all the richer for us. You, good friar,You Much, you Scarlet, you dear Little John,Your names will cling like ivy to the wood.And here perhaps a hundred years awaySome hunter in day-dreams or half asleepWill hear our arrows whizzing overhead,And catch the winding of a phantom horn.Robin.And surely these old oaks will murmur theeMarian along with Robin. I am most happy—Art thou not mine?—and happy that our KingIs here again, never I trust to roamSo far again, but dwell among his own.Strike up a stave, my masters, all is well.

Marian.And yet I think these oaks at dawn and even,Or in the balmy breathings of the night,Will whisper evermore of Robin Hood.We leave but happy memories to the forest.We dealt in the wild justice of the woods.All those poor serfs whom we have served will bless us,All those pale mouths which we have fed will praise us—All widows we have holpen pray for us,Our Lady's blessed shrines throughout the landBe all the richer for us. You, good friar,You Much, you Scarlet, you dear Little John,Your names will cling like ivy to the wood.And here perhaps a hundred years awaySome hunter in day-dreams or half asleepWill hear our arrows whizzing overhead,And catch the winding of a phantom horn.

Robin.And surely these old oaks will murmur theeMarian along with Robin. I am most happy—Art thou not mine?—and happy that our KingIs here again, never I trust to roamSo far again, but dwell among his own.Strike up a stave, my masters, all is well.

Robin Hood and his followers were bandits and outlaws, but the people loved them because they defied the hateful forest laws and made light of the sheriff. The king's officers were responsible for the maintenance of order, but in these lawless times they often used their power for their own advantage, imposing heavy fines and penalties on the poor, and extorting bribes from the rich. The following isone of the oldest and rudest of the many Robin Hood ballads:—

There are twelve months in all the year,As I hear many say,But the merriest month in all the yearIs the merry month of May.Now Robin Hood is to Nottingham gone,With a link a down and a day,And there he met a silly[7]old woman,Was weeping on the way."What news? what news, thou silly old woman?What news hast thou for me?"Said she, "There's my three sons in Nottingham townTo-day condemned to die.""O, have they parishes burnt?" he said,"Or have they ministers slain?Or have they robbed any virgin?Or other men's wives have ta'en?""They have no parishes burnt, good sir,Nor yet have ministers slain,Nor have they robbed any virgin,Nor other men's wives have ta'en.""O, what have they done?" said Robin Hood,"I pray thee tell to me.""It's for slaying of the king's fallow-deer,Bearing their long bows with thee.""Dost thou not mind, old woman," he said,"How thou madest me sup and dine?By the truth of my body," quoth bold Robin Hood,"You could not tell it in better time."Now Robin Hood is to Nottingham gone,With a link a down and a day,And there he met with a silly old palmer,Was walking along the highway."What news? what news, thou silly old man?What news, I do thee pray?"Said he, "Three squires in Nottingham townAre condemned to die this day.""Come change thy apparel with me, old man,Come change thy apparel for mine;Here is forty shillings in good silver,Go drink it in beer or wine."Now Robin Hood is to Nottingham gone,With a link a down and a down.And there he met with the proud sheriff,Was walking along the town."O Christ you save, O sheriff!" he said;"O Christ you save and see;And what will you give to a silly old manTo-day will your hangman be?""Some suits, some suits," the sheriff he said,"Some suits I'll give to thee;Some suits, some suits, and pence thirteen,To-day's a hangman's fee."Then Robin he turns him round about,And jumps from stock to stone:"By the truth of my body," the sheriff he said,"That's well jumpt, thou nimble old man.""I was ne'er a hangman in all my life,Nor yet intends to trade;But curst be he," said bold Robin,"That first a hangman was made!"I've a bag for meal, and a bag for malt,And a bag for barley and corn;A bag for bread, and a bag for beef,And a bag for my little small horn."I have a horn in my pocket,I got it from Robin Hood,And still when I set it to my mouth,For thee it blows little good.""O, wind thy horn, thou proud fellow,Of thee I have no doubt.I wish that thou give such a blast,Till both thy eyes fall out."The first loud blast that he did blow,He blew both loud and shrill;A hundred and fifty of Robin Hood's menCame riding over the hill.The next loud blast that he did give,He blew both loud and amain.And quickly sixty of Robin Hood's menCame shining over the plain."O, who are these," the sheriff he said,"Come tripping over the lea?""They're my attendants," brave Robin did say;"They'll pay a visit to thee."They took the gallows from the slack,They set it in the glen.They hanged the proud sheriff on that,Released their own three men.

There are twelve months in all the year,As I hear many say,But the merriest month in all the yearIs the merry month of May.

Now Robin Hood is to Nottingham gone,With a link a down and a day,And there he met a silly[7]old woman,Was weeping on the way.

"What news? what news, thou silly old woman?What news hast thou for me?"Said she, "There's my three sons in Nottingham townTo-day condemned to die."

"O, have they parishes burnt?" he said,"Or have they ministers slain?Or have they robbed any virgin?Or other men's wives have ta'en?"

"They have no parishes burnt, good sir,Nor yet have ministers slain,Nor have they robbed any virgin,Nor other men's wives have ta'en."

"O, what have they done?" said Robin Hood,"I pray thee tell to me.""It's for slaying of the king's fallow-deer,Bearing their long bows with thee."

"Dost thou not mind, old woman," he said,"How thou madest me sup and dine?By the truth of my body," quoth bold Robin Hood,"You could not tell it in better time."

Now Robin Hood is to Nottingham gone,With a link a down and a day,And there he met with a silly old palmer,Was walking along the highway.

"What news? what news, thou silly old man?What news, I do thee pray?"Said he, "Three squires in Nottingham townAre condemned to die this day."

"Come change thy apparel with me, old man,Come change thy apparel for mine;Here is forty shillings in good silver,Go drink it in beer or wine."

Now Robin Hood is to Nottingham gone,With a link a down and a down.And there he met with the proud sheriff,Was walking along the town.

"O Christ you save, O sheriff!" he said;"O Christ you save and see;And what will you give to a silly old manTo-day will your hangman be?"

"Some suits, some suits," the sheriff he said,"Some suits I'll give to thee;Some suits, some suits, and pence thirteen,To-day's a hangman's fee."

Then Robin he turns him round about,And jumps from stock to stone:"By the truth of my body," the sheriff he said,"That's well jumpt, thou nimble old man."

"I was ne'er a hangman in all my life,Nor yet intends to trade;But curst be he," said bold Robin,"That first a hangman was made!

"I've a bag for meal, and a bag for malt,And a bag for barley and corn;A bag for bread, and a bag for beef,And a bag for my little small horn.

"I have a horn in my pocket,I got it from Robin Hood,And still when I set it to my mouth,For thee it blows little good."

"O, wind thy horn, thou proud fellow,Of thee I have no doubt.I wish that thou give such a blast,Till both thy eyes fall out."

The first loud blast that he did blow,He blew both loud and shrill;A hundred and fifty of Robin Hood's menCame riding over the hill.

The next loud blast that he did give,He blew both loud and amain.And quickly sixty of Robin Hood's menCame shining over the plain.

"O, who are these," the sheriff he said,"Come tripping over the lea?""They're my attendants," brave Robin did say;"They'll pay a visit to thee."

They took the gallows from the slack,They set it in the glen.They hanged the proud sheriff on that,Released their own three men.

The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood (Howard Pyle). Finely illustrated, $3.00. Scribner's Sons.Some Adventures of Robin Hood (Pyle). Small school edition, illustrated; Scribner's Sons.Tennyson's The Foresters.The Robin Hood ballads are found in many of the ballad books.Ivanhoe contains several scenes from the life of Robin Hood (Locksley).

Before entering upon the discussion of the usual methods of introducing children to the art of reading we will give a treatment of the incidental opportunities offered by the other studies, by school movements and games in primary classes, for introducing children to the written and printed forms.

It is assumed that the more closely the written or printed words and sentences are related to the children's activities, or the more dependent these activities are made upon a knowledge of the word-forms, the quicker and more natural will be their mastery. To put it briefly, the teacher abstains from the use of oral speech to a considerable extent and substitutes the written forms of the words on the blackboard in giving directions, in games, and in treating topics in literature and science. The following chapter is taken wholly from the lessons given by Mrs. Lida B. McMurry in the first grade. Many other similar lessons were worked out, but these are probably sufficient to fully illustrate the plan.

The teacher's aim in the beginning reading is to lead the child to look to the lesson, either word or sentence or paragraph, to find what it has to say to him—to present the lesson in such a way that the child shall quicken into life in its presence—shall reach forward to grasp this much-desired thing. The attention of the child is centred on the thought; he grasps the symbols because he must reach, through them, the thought.

Much of the early reading can be taught in a purely incidental way—in the general exercises of the school and in the literature and nature-study recitations.

(a)In the General Management of the School.The directions which are at first given to children orally,e.g.,rise,turn,pass,sit,skip,fly,march,run,walk,pass to the front,pass to the back, are later written upon the board. When the children seem to have become familiar with the written direction, the order in which the directions are given is sometimes changed, as a test,e.g., the following directions are usually given in this order—turn,rise,pass. Instead of writingturnfirst, the teacher writespass. If the children understand, they will rise at once and pass without waiting to turn.

The names of the children, instead of being spoken, are often written; in this way the children becomefamiliar with the names of all the children in the school. The teacher, writingClarenceupon the board, says, "I would like this boy to erase the boards to-night." The first time it is written the teacher speaks the name as she writes it. It may be necessary to do this several times. The teacher does not look at Clarence as she writes his name. If he does not recognize his name after it has appeared repeatedly, his eyesight may well be tested. If heedlessness is the cause of the failure, another name is written at the board, and Clarence loses the opportunity to do the service. No drill should be given on these names. The repetition incident to the frequent calling upon the child is all that is necessary to fix the name.

The names of the songs and of the poems which the children are memorizing are written upon the board as needed. The teacher says, "We will sing this song this morning." If the children do not recognize its title as the teacher points to it, she gives it. After a while the children will recognize the names of all the songs and the poems which are in use in the room.

The children become familiar with the written form of the smaller numbers in this way—the number of absent children is reported at each session and written on the board. On Friday the teacher records upon the board some facts of the week, or of the month, which the children learnedfrom their weather charts—viz., the number of sunny and the number of cloudy days. The number of children in each row is ascertained and written at the board that the monitors may know how many pairs of scissors, pieces of clay, or pencils to select.

The poems, after being partially committed to memory, are written upon the board; when the pupils falter, reference is made to the line in question as it appears upon the board.

The teacher sometimes writes her morning greeting or evening farewell at the board—thus: "Good morning, children," or, "Good-by for to-day." The children read silently and respond with, "Good morning, Miss Eades," or, "Good night, Miss Farr."

Often she communicates facts of interest at the board. If the pupils are unable to interpret what she has written, she reads for them,e.g., the teacher writes, "We have vacation to-morrow." Quite likely some child, unable to read at all, will say, "We havesomething, but I can't tell what it is." (These same words will occur again, when needed to express a thought, and it is a waste of energy to drill upon them.) When the children have interpreted the above sentence at the board, the teacher writes, "Do you know why?" The children read the question silently and give the answer audibly, and say, "It is Decoration Day." We too often allow children to treat a question in their reading as if its end were reached in the asking. To lead the children to forma habit of answering questions asked in writing or in print, such questions as the following are, from time to time, written at the board: "Did you see the rainbow last night?" "What color was it?" "Did you see any birds on Saturday?" "What ones?" "Have you been to the woods?" "What did you find there?"

(b)In Connection with the Literature.The name of the story which the teacher is about to tell is placed upon the board. At the first writing the teacher tells the pupils what it is, if necessary,e.g., the teacher says, "We shall have a story about 'The Three Bears,'" pointing to the title upon the board. The next day she says, "I would like you to tell me all you can about this story"—writing its name upon the board.

In the final reproduction of the story the teacher assigns topics,e.g.: Chauncey may tell me about this (writing at the board):Silver-Hair going to the woods. Eva may tell about this:Silver-Hair going into the kitchen. Jennie may tell about this:Silver-Hair going into the sitting room. Willie may tell about this:Silver-Hair going upstairs. Should the child go beyond the limited topic, the teacher points to the board and asks about what he was to tell.

At the close of each story that can be dramatized, the teacher assigns at the board the part which each is to take, thus: After the story of "The Old Woman and the Pig" is learned, the teacher writes in a column each child's name opposite the animal or thing which he is to represent, in this way.

Agnes—the old woman.Glenn—the pig.Sadie—the dog, etc.

(c)In Connection with the Nature Study.In the spring the children are looking for the return of the birds, the first spring blossoms, and the opening of the tree buds. The teacher often makes her own discoveries known through writing, upon the board,e.g., "I saw a robin this morning," or "I found a blue violet yesterday," or "I saw some elm blossoms last night."

The class, by the aid of the teacher, make a bird, a flower, and a tree-bud calendar, on which are recorded the name and date of the first seen of each. These names are put on the calendars in the presence of the children, and they frequently "name their treasures o'er."

The mode of travelling is written beside the name of each familiar bird as the children make the discoveries, thus:—

Robinhops.runs.flies.Crowwalks.flies.

Questions arise during the recitation which the children will answer later from observation. That the children may not forget them they are placed high up on the board where they can be preserved.Frequent reference is made to them to see if the pupils are prepared to answer them. When a question is answered it is erased, making room for another.

For the early reading, Games, Literature, and Nature Study may form the basis.

(I)Games as a Basis for the Reading.The child enters school from a life of play. It is our purpose, so far as possible, to make use of this natural bent of the child to insure interest in his reading, as well as to give him the free exercise, which he needs, of his muscles. It may be urged as an argument against the use of the games, that they are too noisy and attract the attention of the children who are busy at their seats. Often it would be a good thing for these children to watch the younger ones at their games. It would rest them and put them into closer sympathy with the little ones. In a short time they will not care so much to watch them. The little children should be thoughtful of the older ones and move about as quietly as is possible.

The following are some of the games which we have used in our primary school. They are given in the way of suggestion only. They are played at first by following spoken directions. When the children are perfectly familiar with the oral direction, the written direction is gradually substituted. The children do not stay long enough on one game to become tired ofit. Two or three or even more are played at a single recitation. It is not the plan to drill the pupils upon the written directions, but by frequent repetitions to familiarize them with them. The games are most suitable for the very earliest reading lessons. The plan for teaching one of them, the first one given here, will be written out quite fully. The others will be given with less detail.

Material.—Six celluloid rings, red, white, blue, yellow, green, and black. Surcingle rings can be painted the colors desired.

Directions.—

Take the red ring, Jennie.Take the blue ring, Eva.Take the yellow ring, Wallace.Take the green ring, Chauncey.Take the black ring, Gregory.Take the white ring, Lloyd.

When the children are ready to hide the rings this direction is given to the remainder of the class:—

Close your eyes.

This to the pupils who hold the rings:—

Hide the rings.

When the children have all the rings hid they announce it by lightly clapping their hands, upon whichthe children open their eyes. Directions are then given to those who did not hide rings, for finding the rings,e.g.:—

Find the red ring.Find the blue ring, etc.

No notice is taken of any ring but the one called for. A limited time is given for the finding of each. At the close of that time, if the ring is not discovered, the one who hid it gets it. When the written directions are first used the whole sentence need not be put upon the board,e.g., the teacher need write only—the red ring. She says to the child, "findthis"—pointing to the board; orred, alone, may be written, in which case the teacher points to the word, saying, "You may findthis ring." There is considerable rivalry to see who will find the most rings.

When the children seem to know the written directions perfectly, a test is made of their ability, actually, to read them; thus, instead of writing, "Takethe red ring," the teacher writes, "Findthe red ring." She writes "Hide the rings," before she writes, "Close your eyes." If the children recognize what is written they will set the teacher right.

Material.—Small, soft rubber balls with short rubber cords attached. The cords have a loop for the finger.

Ball in right hand.Toss up.Hold.Toss down.Hold.Toss to the right.Hold.Toss to the left.Hold.Ball in left hand.Toss up, etc.

In this and succeeding games it is left to the discretion of the teacher as to when the written directions shall be introduced.

Material.—A soft rubber ball.

Form a circle.Take the ball, Roy.Toss the ball.Roll the ball.Bounce the ball.Throw the ball.Give the ball to Sadie.

In this game one of the children takes the ball to the circle. Each, as the ball is tossed to him, tosses it to another. At the direction of the teacher the game oftossing the ballis changed to one ofrollingthe ball, the pupils squatting on the floor; this in turn is changed later as the directions indicate. Care must be taken that all children are treated alike in this game. The children themselves will look out for this if properly directed at the outset of the game.

Material.—Violets scattered about the room.

Find a blue violet, Glenn.Find a violet bud, Edith.Find a yellow violet, Lloyd.Find a violet leaf, Sadie.Find a white violet, Jennie.Find a purple violet, Rudolph.Sing to the violets.

Children sing softly:—

"Oh, violets, pretty violets,I pray you tell to meWhy are you the first flowersThat bloom upon the lea?" etc.

Material.—Leaves of the different trees with which the children are familiar.

Glenn may be a maple tree.Choose your leaf.Wallace may be an elm tree.Choose your leaf.Chauncey may be a birch tree.Choose your leaf, etc.Make a little forest.Toss in the wind.

(The leaves are pinned upon the children as each chooses his leaf, and they dance lightly about as if tossed by the wind.)

Material.—Wooden or paper animals. A portion of the table is marked off by a chalk line for the farmyard.

Drive in a pig, Willie.Lead in a horse, Gregory.Drive in a sheep, Sadie.Lead in a cow, Roy, etc.

They are driven in at night, then driven out in the morning. Sometimes they are hurried in because of the approach of a storm.

Material.—Penny dolls or larger ones.

Take a doll.Rock the baby.Pat the baby.Sing the baby to sleep.Put the baby to bed.Take up the baby.Wash its face.Comb its hair.Feed it bread and milk.Take it for a walk.

At the direction, "Sing the baby to sleep," the children sing very softly:—

"Rock-a-bye Baby,"—or some other lullaby.

The bed is the chair on which the child is sitting. All stand and turn about together to put the babies to bed. They go through the movements only of washing the face and hands and combing the hair, and of feeding bread and milk. They perform these acts in unison.

Material.—Large bows of tissue paper with streamers, of the various colors mentioned.

Eva may be a yellow fairy.Roy may be a blue fairy.Edith may be a green fairy.Louise may be a red fairy.Lloyd may be an orange fairy.Sadie may be a violet fairy.The others may be trees.Join hands, fairies.Dance about the trees.

As the first direction is given Eva steps to the table and takes a yellow bow which is pinned to her left shoulder: the others follow as called upon.

Material.—A leaf of one of several colors pinned on each child. The wind calls:—

Come yellow leaf.Come red leaf.Come green leaves, etc.Dance in the wind.

At the last direction the children fly over a small area, hither and thither; some one way, some another, passing and repassing one another, simulating the leaves in a storm.

All the children are little birds.

Fly to the fields.Pick up seeds.Take a drink.Bathe in the creek.Preen your feathers.Fly home.Perch on a twig.Sing.

Fly to the fields.Pick up seeds.Take a drink.Bathe in the creek.Preen your feathers.Fly home.Perch on a twig.

Sing.

They sing:—

"We are little birdies,Happy we, happy we.We are little birdiesSinging in a tree."

Material.—Colored pictures of birds common to the locality in which the game is used.

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