Write sentences, using these expressions.

your sentences to the class.

75

SPEAKING WORDS CORRECTLY

WISH

Read

The vowel sound in wish is i, and we call it short i. Speak the following words containing the sound ǎ.

In the following sentences mark the short i in each word in which it occurs.

Read the sentences carefully, pronouncing the vowels correctly.

1. A misty day is a fine day for fishing. 2. I wish that I might go fishing to-day.

3. We spent the morning fishing and had a dish of fried bass for our dinner.

Write other sentences containing the word wish. Read your sentences aloud, giving the correct sound of L.

76

A WISHING GAME

Choose a girl from the class to play the part of the Fairy-Who-Makes-Wishes-Come-True.

Several members of the class may, in turn, visit the fairy and tell her their wishes.

Each one must say, "O Fairy-Who-Makes-WishesCome-True, I wish."

The fairy answers, "Speak the magic word wish three times. But beware! For if you speak it incorrectly, your wish will never come true!"

Then the pupil speaks the word wish three times. The speeches of the fairy and the speeches addressed to the fairy may be changed to make the game more interesting, but every speech must contain the word wish at least once.

77

A STORY TO FINISH

"Clear the track!" was the cry, as the boys started down the hill on their sleds. But one boy did not

Continue the story, sentence by sentence, around the class. Make every sentence carry the story forward. Be sure that the last sentence makes a good ending.

78

USING THE DICTIONARY

LONG SOUNDS

Look up in the dictionary quickly the following words: late, here, line, bone, use. You will see a mark like this - over the a of late, the first e of here, the i of line, and the u of use. Pronounce these words one after the other. The mark - tells you to pronounce the letters ā, ē, ī, ō, ū just as you do when you say them in reciting your a, b, c's. This mark - indicates the long sound of these letters. called vowels.

These letters a, e, i, o, u are

Turn back to any lesson in your book and find words containing long vowels.

Each pupil, in turn, may give a word.

Write some of the words on the blackboard, placing the mark over the long vowels.

79

USING THE DICTIONARY

SHORT SOUNDS

Sometimes the vowels are pronounced with a different sound; for instance, in the following words: at, let, lip, on, and up. Look in the dictionary for these

words. This time, you will see this mark over the letters ă, ě, ĭ, ŏ, and ũ. This sign

Imeans that you are to pronounce the vowel shortly and quickly. It indicates the short sound.

Find in your book other words containing short vowel sounds.

Write several of them on the blackboard, placing ~ over the short vowel.

80

USING THE DICTIONARY

ITALIAN a

Find in the dictionary the words calf, half, laugh ̧ palm, salve.

What mark do you notice over the letter a in these words?

Write the words on the blackboard, marking the letter a.

Your teacher will tell you how to pronounce it. Practice saying these words aloud. Do not exaggerate this sound.

81

A STORY TO FINISH

One night, the pencil, which Tom had forgotten to put back in his pencil box, had an interesting talk with the fountain pen, which Jim had left uncapped. "You have no idea how hard I have worked to-day." he began. "My point is worn

Continue the conversation, each pupil, in turn, supplying a sentence.

Make up a conversation that might take place between:

1. The doll and the Teddy bear that Helen left sitting on the floor when she went to bed.

2. The spoon and the frying pan that the cook left unwashed on the kitchen table.

3. The top and the baseball that Dick had laid on the shelf.

4. The cat and the dog sitting together by the fire. 5. A pair of muddy shoes that Tom had forgotten to clean after a long tramp in the country.

82

WRITING THE POSSESSIVE FORM
"Then the little Hiawatha

Learned of every bird its language,
Learned their names and all their secrets,
How they built their nests in summer,
Where they hid themselves in winter,
Talked with them whene'er he met them,
Called them Hiawatha's chickens."

Whose chickens were the birds?

-Longfellow.

Notice that the apostrophe is placed between the word Hiawatha and the letter s which is added to it. The apostrophe shows that the chickens belong to Hiawatha. We call it the sign of possession.

Instead of saying, "the language of the bird,' we can use the sign of possession and say, "the bird's language."