I.
Preparation.
A story of a little girl and her mother who had nothing to eat. Talk of possible reasons for the child and mother’s having nothing to eat.
Narration.
There was once a little girl who was very, very poor. When noon came there was little dinner on the table for her, and at night the poor child went hungry to bed.
In the morning, when she awoke, she was still hungry. She went to the pantry, but there was nothing to eat in it. She went to the kitchen and found nothing there but empty pots and pans.
Then the little girl went to her mother. “O mother,” she said, “I am so hungry.” But the poor mother was sick in bed and could not get anything for herself or for her child.
When the mother was well she worked hard. She picked up wood in the forest. She washed clothes and scrubbed floors. With the money she earned she bought food for her little daughter and herself. But now the mother was sick. She lay in bed all day, and both she and her daughter were hungry.
Now, do you think the little girl fretted and cried? No, she did not, because she knew that if she cried her sick mother would feel so sorry and sad that she would be worse. This little girl was patient and kind. She found at last one little piece of bread. She took it to her mother and said, “Here, dear mother, is a piece of bread for you. Eat it; it may make you stronger.”
Suggestions.
Recall “The Stardollars” story. Bring out this child’s patience and unselfishness.
Recall “The Stardollars” story. Bring out this child’s patience and unselfishness.
II.
Preparation.
An old woman gave the child something of great use. What could it be?
Narration.
The little girl thought, “Is there not something I can do to help my sick mother?” She did not sit down with her hands in her lap and wait for something to eat to come to her. She said to herself, “I must work. What can I do? I am too small to wash clothes. I am too small to scrub floors. But I can go out into the woods. I will find herbs there and berries. I can gather them and sell them. Then I will buy bread, and we need not be hungry any more.”
So the little girl went out into the woods. There she found ripe berries. She began to pick them and put them into her little basket. An old, old woman saw her. She stood and watched the child. She saw her poor, thin little face, and that the child did not jump about and laugh and sing as other children did when they came to the woods. She saw, too, that this child did not eat even the smallest berry. As fast as she picked them she dropped them into her small basket.
The old woman’s heart was full of pity for the poor little child. She said, “My child, I will help you.” Then she gave her a little earthen pot. It seemed a queer thing to give to this child who had so many empty pots at home. But this was a wonderful pot. The old woman told the child all about it. She said, “My child, this little pot will cook very sweet andgood rice porridge for you, and you need not put anything into it at all. Just say, “Little Pot, Cook!” and it will begin to cook the sweet rice porridge. When you have enough say, “Little Pot, Stop!” and it will stop.” The little girl thanked the kind old woman and ran home with the wonderful pot.
Suggestions.
Rice, its uses, preparation for food. Where obtained. Explainearthen pot.Pottery.Helping one’s self. Children tell of ways in which they can help themselves.
Rice, its uses, preparation for food. Where obtained. Explainearthen pot.Pottery.
Helping one’s self. Children tell of ways in which they can help themselves.
III.
Preparation.
The child carries the pot home. Recall the old woman’s directions.
Narration.
The little girl ran home as fast as she could run. “O dear mother,” she said, “see what a good old woman gave me. It is such a wonderful pot. All we need do is to say, ‘Little Pot, Cook!’ and it will cook rice porridge for us. When we have enough, we must say, ‘Little Pot, Stop!’ and it will stop cooking.”
Then the little girl set the pot on the hearthstone. The mother called out. “Little Pot. Cook!” Her voice was weak,but the little pot heard and began to cook. Soon it was full up to the very top with rice porridge. Then the mother called out, “Little Pot, Stop!” and the wonderful little pot stopped.
Oh, how quickly the little girl ran to the cupboard! She brought out plates and spoons, and soon she and the poor sick mother were eating sweet rice.
Suggestions.
Different kinds of berries. Where they grow.Explainself-help.
Different kinds of berries. Where they grow.
Explainself-help.
IV.
Preparation.
One day the wonderful pot did not stop. The children imagine a cause.
Narration.
The mother was soon so well and strong that she could go to her work again. Every day she and her daughter had rice porridge for breakfast. When they had eaten their breakfast the mother always put the pot away on a shelf and said, “Now, little daughter, be a good girl. Take care of the house and do not touch the little pot while I am gone. When I come home we shall have some more of the porridge you like so much.”
And the little girl kissed her mother and promised to obey her. This happened for many days. But one day the little girl said to herself, “Dear me, I am very hungry. How good some of that rice porridge would taste. I am sure I wouldn’t break the little pot. I would be so very careful.”
She said this many times to herself. At last she stood upon a chair and reached up to the high shelf where her mother had put the little pot. She took it down and set it on the hearthstone. Then she said, “Little Pot, Cook!” The little pot heard and began to cook. The little girl got a plate and spoon and taking some rice sat down to eat.
But she forgot all about speaking to the little pot and it went on cooking. The child was so busy eating that she never noticed what was happening. The wonderful pot was still cooking and the rice porridge began running over. When the little girl saw it, she called out, “Here, that is enough!” But the little pot did not stop and the rice porridge poured out over the floor.
The little girl was frightened. She called out very loud, “That is enough! Cook no more! Halt! Halt!” It was all of no use. She had forgotten the right words to say and the little pot kept on cooking. The rice porridge was still pouring out into the room. Soon the chairs and the table were standing in it. The little girl was more frightened than ever.She opened the door and ran out into the yard and rice porridge came streaming out after her.
How the other children of the neighborhood laughed and shouted when they saw the stream of rice porridge! They came running with spoons in their hands and began to eat it. All the older people laughed and wondered, too.
But soon the people became anxious. They said, “This rice porridge will get into our houses and we shall all be drowned in it.” So the people and their children ran into their houses and shut all the doors and windows to keep out the rice porridge. The streets were full of it. It rose up higher and higher. It covered up the windows so that their houses were as dark as night.
Suggestions.
Who else was disobedient in the stories we have had? What trouble did they have?
Who else was disobedient in the stories we have had? What trouble did they have?
V.
Preparation.
The valley in which this child lived filled up.
Narration.
The little girl’s home was down in a valley. High up on the mountain there stood a beautiful house. Rich personslived there, and the little girl’s mother often went to work for them. This very day, when the little girl had been so disobedient, her mother was working in the house away up on the mountain.
When the little girl saw the rice porridge streaming out into the streets and filling up the valley, she ran up the mountain’s side as fast as she could to tell her mother all that had happened. As soon as she saw her mother, she called out, “O mother, I took down the little pot and told it to cook. When I wanted it to stop I forgot what to say. It won’t stop cooking, and the whole valley is full of rice porridge.”
The mother called out softly “Little Pot, Stop!” and the little pot heard her and stopped. But still the whole valley was full of rice porridge. It covered the houses. It was up even to the church steeple.
When the milkmen came in the morning they saw it. They called out, “What is this?” The people shouted back, “It is rice porridge. If you want to come to us, you must dig your way through.” And it was so. Whoever wanted to go into that valley had to dig his way through the sweet rice porridge that filled it.
For many days the people were busy eating rice porridge. As for the little girl who had caused all this trouble, she felt very sorry and ashamed, and I am sure was never disobedient again.
Suggestions.
Recall mention of mountains in other stories. Talk about mountains and valleys. Illustrate by pictures or, if possible, by moulding in clay or sand.Emphasize the thought of obedience. Compare with previous stories.
Recall mention of mountains in other stories. Talk about mountains and valleys. Illustrate by pictures or, if possible, by moulding in clay or sand.
Emphasize the thought of obedience. Compare with previous stories.