Beginners' Book in Language Part 18

=Oral Exercise.= 1. Point out the _not_-word in each of the eight sentences above. Are there any sentences there that need another _not_-word? Do you see that the second sentence is only another way of saying the first? Which sentence do you like better, the first or the second? The third or the fourth? The fifth or the sixth? The seventh or the eighth?

2. Say each of the following sentences in another way without changing the meaning:

1. I haven't any ink.

2. He has no book.

3. She hasn't any paper, and I haven't a pencil.

4. I have no ticket.

5. My father doesn't do any work on Sat.u.r.day.

6. My father does not play any kind of instrument.

7. Haven't you ever seen a circus?

8. I have no pocketknife.

9. I haven't seen a ball game this year.

10. He had no money to spend.

=Game.= A pupil, who may be called _John_, is sent from the room. The teacher gives a flower, a piece of colored paper, a thermometer, or some other object that is not usually found in pupils' desks, to a member of the cla.s.s. Then John is told that he may return.

TEACHER: John, some one in this room has a flower (or whatever the object may be) in his desk. Try to guess whose desk it is. You may ask any of your cla.s.smates whether they have it.

JOHN (to a cla.s.smate): Have you that flower in your desk?

THE CLa.s.sMATE (if he does not have it): I have no flower in my desk (or, I haven't any flower in my desk).

THE CLa.s.sMATE (if he has it): I have it in my desk. Here it is.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

=47. Telling Interesting Things=

=Oral Exercise.= 1. What kind of dog should you like to have for your pet? Stand in front of the cla.s.s and tell your cla.s.smates why you like that kind of dog and what you would do with him.

2. Dogs can do many useful things. Tell the cla.s.s of a remarkable thing you have seen a dog do. If you cannot do that, tell of some intelligent and brave deed which you have heard that a dog did. Perhaps the following list will help you:

1. Some dogs are faithful watchdogs. They may be trusted to guard a house, a small child, an automobile, or a flock of sheep.

2. Some dogs are used in hunting.

3. Some dogs are good rat catchers.

4. Some dogs are taught tricks. Such dogs are sometimes seen at the circus.

5. In some countries dogs are used to haul carts; in others they draw sleds.

6. The St. Bernard dog and the Newfoundland dog are famous as life-savers.

7. Dogs make good playmates for boys and girls.

3. Think of a dog you like. Without telling what kind of dog he is, make your cla.s.smates see exactly how he looks. There is no need of saying that the dog has four legs, two ears, two eyes, and a tail. Every dog has these. But tell what the cla.s.s must know in order to see the dog as you see him in your mind. Perhaps you will make the cla.s.s see a picture something like one of the following:

I

My dog has long hair but he himself is short. He looks like a white m.u.f.f. His bark and bite are sharp, but no one is afraid of him. He might just as well be a rabbit.

[Ill.u.s.tration: After a painting by Landseer]

II

The dog I am thinking about is nearly as tall as I am. He is so heavy that I cannot lift him off the ground. He is so strong that he can carry me. His beautiful brown and white hair is long and curly. He is a good dog, and I should feel safe with him anywhere on the darkest night.

=Group Exercise.=[54] 1. The cla.s.s will try to guess the kind of dog each pupil tells about. Then it will tell each speaker (1) what was good in his talk, and (2) where the talk might have been better.

2. Some of the talks should be given a second time. This time the teacher will write them on the board.[16] How can each of them be made better?

3. You and your cla.s.smates might make an interesting dog picture book.

After writing about each dog, you could draw his picture or cut it out of a magazine and paste it beside what you have written.[55]

=48. Study of a Picture Story=

I

=Oral Exercise.= 1. What is happening in the first picture on the next page? Does the dog want to go along? Why do the boys not take him?

2. Make believe that you are the boy on the back seat in the boat. Look at the dog as that boy looks at him. Hold up your finger as the boy does. What does that mean? Now, as your boat slowly moves from sh.o.r.e, talk to the dog. Are you sorry that he must stay? How do you show that?

Do you sternly warn him not to leave his post?

=Group Exercise.= 1. Some of your cla.s.smates will now play that they are talking to the dog. Each tries to show how it really happened.

2. The cla.s.s will tell what it likes in each pupil's talking and playing, and what it does not like. The following questions will help the cla.s.s:

1. Did the pupil talk as he really would talk to his dog if the cla.s.s were not there to hear him?

2. What was the best thing he said?