Class _LB_i£_13 
 Book_,__ 
 
 COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2011 with funding from 
 The Library of Congress 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/silentoralreadinOOston 
 
RIVERSIDE TEXTBOOKS 
 IN EDUCATION 
 
 EDITED BY ELLWOOD P. CUBBERLEY 
 
 PROFESSOR OF EDUCATION 
 LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY + 
 
 DIVISION OF SECONDARY EDUCATION 
 
 UNDER THE EDITORIAL DIRECTION 
 
 OF ALEXANDER INGLIS 
 
 PROFESSOR OF EDUCATION 
 HARVARD UNIVERSITY 
 
SILENT AND ORAL 
 READING 
 
 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF METHODS 
 
 BASED ON THE MOST RECENT 
 
 SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATIONS 
 
 BY 
 
 CLARENCE R. STONE 
 
 PRINCIPAL OF THE GARDENVILLE SCHOOL, ST. LOUIS 
 INSTRUCTOR IN THE PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF READING 
 ' HARRIS TEACHERS COLLEGE, ST. LOUIS 
 
 HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY 
 
 BOSTON NEW YORK CHICAGO SAN FRANCISCO 
 
 ($be tttoer£ibe press Cambridge 
 
u 
 
 
 COPYRIGHT, I922, BY CLARENCE R. STONE 
 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 
 
 X*C Q 
 
 Wit a&ftjerjffoe £re*tf 
 
 CAMBRIDGE i MASSACHUSETTS 
 PRINTED XN THE U.S.A. 
 
 MAR -6 I922 
 §)CLA654839 
 
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION 
 
 The study in teaching method in one of the fundamental 
 elementary-school subjects, represented by the present vol- 
 ume in this series of textbooks, is a product of the new sci- 
 entific study of education which in the past decade has begun 
 a complete reorganization of our teaching procedure. It rep- 
 resents a new type of procedure in teaching method, the 
 emphasis being shifted from theorizing about the teaching 
 of reading to accurate determination of progress in the differ- 
 ent elements that enter into the acquiring of the fundamental 
 and rathe? difficult art of learning to read, and to use reading 
 as a tool. The emphasis, too, is placed on training for in- 
 telligent silent-reading and the analysis and comprehension 
 of what is read rather than on oral and expressive reading, 
 though directions as to this latter are not left out. 
 
 The author has set forth, in simple language and free from 
 technical terminology, the essential results obtained from 
 the scientific laboratory studies of reading which psychol- 
 ogists have in recent years been making, and which throw 
 such a flood of light over teaching procedure in reading work. 
 With these studies and results from the new pedagogical 
 tests as a basis, the author has set forth in the chapters 
 which follow the essentials of sound reading method, both 
 for beginning and upper-grade work; has explained and 
 illustrated how to train pupils for good work in silent read- 
 ing, and set forth its importance in the process of learning to 
 read; has shown how teachers and principals may test and 
 measure reading progress, by means of the new scientific 
 tests which have recently been evolved; and has made clear, 
 from actual classroom results, how much the teaching of 
 
vi EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION 
 
 reading is an individual and special problem, frequently 
 calling for individual diagnosis and remedial treatment. 
 
 The contents of this volume ought to be the common 
 property of all elementary-school principals and supervisory 
 school officers who have supervisory oversight of elemen- 
 tary-school work, and be used by them as a basis for their 
 supervision of the elementary-school work in reading. It 
 ought also to be used by students in normal schools and 
 teacher-training institutions in connection with the work 
 in teaching methods and training-school practice. It would 
 also form a very profitable study for teachers in service in 
 connection with Reading-Circle study. Its simple style, 
 absence of technical procedure, and very practical appli- 
 cation to schoolroom procedure all combine to make it an 
 unusually useful book for the classroom teacher to read and 
 to follow. 
 
 Ellwood P. Cubberly 
 
PREFACE 
 
 About ten years ago, during my early experience as a 
 supervising principal, I became convinced that the methods 
 in common use in the teaching of reading in the middle and 
 upper grades were much less effective than the methods in 
 common use in the other subjects. Ever since, I have been 
 specially interested in making a careful study of methods in 
 reading and in devising and trying out a variety of plans. 
 My interest in the development of the technique of handling 
 silent-readiug lessons was aroused by writings and lectures 
 of Dr. Charles H. Judd, to whom I desire to make acknowl- 
 edgment. 
 
 I wish to acknowledge a debt of gratitude to the St. Louis 
 teachers who have so faithfully cooperated with me in the 
 development of methods and devices. Miss Mary Coogan, 
 Miss Jane Gilbert, Miss Lucile Murphy, Miss Annette 
 Buehrmann, and Miss Agness Dunsford should be specially 
 mentioned. Teachers do not readily realize that their 
 supervisors and principals are continually learning from 
 them. I am also grateful to Mr. Charles Collins for impor- 
 tant suggestions for the improvement of the vocabulary 
 and phrasing in the early chapters, to Miss Helen DeWer- 
 thern for helpful suggestions on the section on the primary 
 grades, and to my wife, Mrs. Anne Lotter Stone, who has 
 given encouragement and helpful criticisms throughout the 
 preparation of the manuscript. Acknowledgment is given 
 in the text to the authors and publishers for permission to 
 reproduce excerpts and illustrations. 
 
 Clarence R. Stone 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER I. Problems in Reading Instruction . . 1 
 The present situation — The outlook — Oral and silent reading 
 — Specific aims — Testing — Content — Motivation — Vocab- 
 ulary — Appreciation and application. 
 Suggestive exercises. 
 
 CHAPTER II. Practical Contributions to the Reading 
 Problem from Psychological and Edu- 
 cational Research 6 
 
 Questions for consideration — Sources for conclusions. 
 
 1. Studies as to Eye-Movement. 
 
 Importance of eye-movements — Good and poor eye-move- 
 ments contrasted — Regressive movements and periods of con- 
 fusion — Longer units per eye-pause — The eye-voice span. > 
 
 2. Rate and Comprehension. 
 
 Rapidity and comprehension — A simple experiment — Con- 
 clusions as to rate and comprehension — O'Brien's conclusions 
 as to the effect of increased speed upon the comprehension. 
 S. Other Factors affecting Silent Reading. 
 
 The rate of silent reading — Factors in the development of 
 speed — Standards in rate of reading — A comparison of the 
 O'Brien, Gray, Courtis, and Starch rate norms — Oral and si- 
 lent reading — Vocalizing and inner speech — Articulation and 
 comprehension — Articulation and rate — Visual perception 
 in reading — Subjective and objective readers. 
 
 Some facts you should know — Problems for study and dis- 
 cussion. 
 
 CHAPTER HI. Teaching Reading in the Primary 
 
 Grades 33 
 
 1. General Statement as to Aims and Methods. 
 
 Relative value of oral and silent reading — Importance of oral 
 reading in the lower grades — Oral reading and poetry — So- 
 cial values of oral reading — Minor values of oral reading — 
 General statement of aims and outcomes. 
 
x CONTENTS 
 
 2. Problems of the Beginning Stage. 
 
 Early primer methods — The simple-story primer — Other 
 slow-approach primers — Blackboard steps — Difficulty with 
 the slow-approach type of primer — The Mother-Goose type of 
 primer — The nursery-rhyme type of primer — Summary of 
 conclusions regarding primers — Relating introductory reading 
 matter to the children's environment — Sample primary read- 
 ing lessons — Pupil initiative in beginning reading — Phonics. 
 
 3. The Oral-Reading Stage. 
 
 The primary stage an oral-reading stage — Rate in oral read- 
 ing — Errors in oral reading — Expression of the meaning — 
 The main problems of the second and third grades — Two 
 types of oral reading — Phrase-flashing — Audience reading. 
 
 4. Silent Reading. 
 
 1 First grade — Second grade — Extensive reading in the sec- 
 ond and third grades — Emphasize comprehension — The too- 
 slow group — Increasingly larger thought units — Vocabulary. 
 Problems for study and discussion. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. Teaching Reading in the Intermediate 
 
 and Upper Grades 64 
 
 1. In the Intermediate Grades. 
 
 Radical change in method — Emphasis on content and 
 major values — Word-study — Extensive reading — Training 
 in silent reading and study — Individual differences — 
 Reclassification on basis of individual needs — Oral read- 
 ing — Summary on intermediate-grade work in teaching 
 reading. 
 T 2. In the Upper Grades. 
 
 Speed development in the upper grades — Variability in read- 
 ing attainment within upper-grade classes — Extensive silent 
 reading — What shall be the criterion for choosing literary 
 units? — The problems of difficulty and amount — Readings 
 in community and national life — Oral reading — Summary 
 on upper-grade work in teaching reading. 
 Problems for study and discussion. 
 
 CHAPTER V. Appreciation and Memorization ... 80 
 
 1. Developing Appreciation. 
 
 Why we have failed in awakening appreciation — The na- 
 ture of appreciation — Appreciation of social values — Ap- 
 preciation of aesthetic values — Appreciation of the humor- 
 ous — Appreciation of nature — General method for the 
 appreciation lesson — General suggestions as to developing 
 appreciation — Cautions. 
 
CONTENTS xi 
 
 2. The Teaching of Poetry. 
 
 A perspective view of the whole — Study by parts — A new 
 experience of the whole. 
 
 8. Memorization. 
 
 Method in a memorization lesson — Close association of 
 meanings — The method of the whole superior to the method 
 by parts — Combining the two methods — Memorizing a se- 
 lection — Recall as a factor in memorizing and retaining — 
 What to memorize — Lists of poems by grades, for memory 
 work — Caution in selecting poems — The number of poems 
 required to be memorized. 
 
 Problems for study and discussion. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. Securing the Audience Situation in 
 
 Oral Reading 99 
 
 Types of oral reading. 
 
 Types of Audience Reading. 
 
 Miscellaneous audience reading — Group-to-group audience 
 reading — Conducting the group-to-group recitation — Suitable 
 books to use for such reading — Dramatic reading — Topical 
 audience reading — The "cut-up story" — Illustrated audi- 
 ence reading — Reading to the pupils. 
 
 Problems for study and discussion. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. Content Silent-Reading Lessons .112 
 
 1. Need for Change in Reading-Recitation Procedure. 
 
 A poor type of reading-lesson procedure — Why beginning 
 teachers fall into such practices — Over-emphasis of oral 
 reading. 
 
 2. Oral vs. Silent Reading. 
 
 What proportion of the reading time in each grade shall 
 be given to silent reading — Essential differences between the 
 oral- and the silent-reading lesson — The silent-reading 
 method is more than training exercises — When to use the oral- 
 I and when the silent-reading method — Silent-reading lessons 
 classified. 
 
 8. Planning the Silent-Reading Lesson. 
 
 Stress the larger values — The problem method — Character- 
 istics of good problems — Assignments — Definite assign- 
 ments — Formulation of problems by the pupils — Impor- 
 tance of problem formulation. 
 
 4. Illustrative Silent-Reading Lessons.* 
 
 A fourth-grade silent-reading lesson — Another fourth-grade 
 lesson — A series of fifth-grade silent-reading lessons on 
 
xii CONTENTS 
 
 Some Merry Adventures of Robin Hood — A poor way to pro- 
 ceed — Silent reading and study — A seventh-grade silent- 
 reading lesson — Statement of the problem — Solution of the 
 problem — Value of such a lesson — A series of five eighth- 
 grade recitations on The Man Without a Country — Provide 
 an abundance of red-blooded silent-reading material. 
 
 5. Lists of Books suitable foe Use. 
 
 Books as interesting as a dime novel — Lists of books suitable 
 for class use, by grades — Silent-reading selections, by grades. 
 
 6. Problems of Illustrative Representation. 
 
 Types of illustrations — Purposes — Correlation with drawing 
 
 — Lesson steps — Illustrating Rip Van Winkle — Units suit- 
 able for illustration. 
 
 7. Problems relating to Dramatization. 
 
 An example of such work — Value of dramatization — What 
 not to dramatize. 
 
 8. Plans for Individual and Group Reading. 
 
 Group work in silent reading — Special plans for grouping — 
 Individual silent reading — A fourth-grade individual silent- 
 reading lesson — Use of the room library. 
 Problems for study and discussion. 
 
 CHAPTER VEH. Training Lessons in Silent Reading . 161 
 
 Content and training lessons contrasted. 
 
 1. Devices for increasing Rate. 
 
 , Phrase-flashing — Reading under a time limit — Timing the 
 pupil's reading — Time records on reading outside of recitation 
 
 — Re-reading for increase of rate — Skimming — O'Brien's 
 three types of training for speed. 
 
 2. Plans for improving Comprehension. 
 
 Action sentences and directions — Silent reading and repro- 
 duction — Three main forms of reading for comprehension. 
 
 A. Reading to answer factual questions. 
 
 In connection with the cumulative story — In connection 
 with informational material — An experiment in factual 
 comprehension. 
 
 B. Reading to answer relational or problem questions. 
 Training in relational thinking — Proper statement of re- 
 lational questions — Considering meaning of words — Ver- 
 ifying answers by careful re-reading — Improving the abil- 
 
 ' ity to think logically in reading and study — A training 
 exercise using the geography — A silent-reading exercise 
 with a history text — Substituting silent for oral reading 
 
 / in grammar exercises. 
 
 C. Training in comprehension of the organization of what is read. 
 
CONTENTS xiii 
 
 Summing up paragraphs of exposition in study recitation 
 
 — Making a topical outline of a selection — Grouping 
 paragraphs — An eighth-grade lesson in outlining — Mak- 
 ing running notes — Making and matching paragraph 
 headings; group work — Training in reading headings 
 in texts and newspapers — Analyzing short and long nar- 
 rative units — Training in quickly grasping the central 
 thought or the essential total meaning of a unit. 
 
 3. Plans for Vocabulary Training. 
 
 How we enlarge our vocabulary — Vocabulary-problem les- 
 sons. 
 
 I. A vocabulary lesson on " The Bells" by Poe; seventh grade. 
 II. A sixth-grade vocabulary-problem lesson. 
 Systematic word-study — Vocabulary exercises in the Lewis 
 and Roland Silent Readers. 
 
 4. The Latest Types of Silent-Reading Exercises. 
 
 A. Motivated drill work in third-grade silent reading. 
 
 B. Exercises developed at Detroit for making reading function. 
 
 C. Silent-reading exercises developed at Cedar Rapids and Iowa 
 City. 
 
 D. Types of remedial training work reported by C. J. Anderson 
 and Elda Merton. 
 
 Listing words according to ten phonetic rules — Drilling 
 on phrases — Flashing of phrases — Building up meaning 
 vocabularies — Using paragraph cards with specific ques- 
 tions on the back. 
 
 Some points to remember — Problems for study and dis- 
 cussion, i 
 
 CHAPTER IX. Reading Tests and theib Use in Im- 
 proving Reading 217 
 
 1. Oral-Reading Tests. 
 
 Gray's oral-reading test — Advantages of this test — Limita- 
 tions of the test — The Jones vocabulary test. 
 
 2. Hearing-Reading Tests. 
 
 How to test the listening powers. 
 
 3. Testing Silent Reading. 
 
 A. Factors to consider in selecting reading test. 
 Necessity of using several tests. 
 
 B. The Monroe Standardized General Survey Silent-Reading 
 Tests. 
 
 The content and the type of response in the Monroe tests 
 
 — The rate and comprehension scores — Possible crit- 
 icisms of the Monroe tests — Evaluation of the Monroe 
 tests. 
 
xiv CONTENTS 
 
 C. Scale for Measuring Ability in Silent Reading, by May Ayers 
 Burgess. 
 
 Similarities to the Monroe tests — Essential characteristics 
 of the Burgess tests — The Burgess theory of measurement 
 
 — The pupil's score — What the Burgess scoring plan does 
 not reveal — Evaluation of the Burgess tests. 
 
 D. The Gray Silent-Reading Tests. 
 
 The content of the tests — How the rate is tested — 
 Gray's measure of comprehension — The Gray tests, 
 individual tests. 
 
 E. The Courtis Silent-Reading Test. 
 
 The content — The rate test — The comprehension test 
 
 — Comments on the Courtis test. 
 
 F. The Thorndike and the Thorndike-McCatt Scale for Measur- 
 ing the Understanding of Sentences. 
 
 The Thorndike scale — Evaluation of the scale. 
 
 G. The Haggerty Reading Examinations. 1 
 
 The test for the primary grades — The'Haggerty reading 
 examinations for the intermediate and upper grades. 
 
 4. Vocabulaet Tests. 
 
 The Thorndike Visual Vocabulary Scales — The Holley Sen- 
 tence Vocabulary Scale — The Pressey-Skeel group test for 
 measuring reading vocabulary in the first grade — The value 
 of a group- vocabulary test in the primary grades. 
 An adequate equipment of reading tests. 
 
 5. How Results are improved through the Use of Tests. 
 Reading tests as used in one school — The test repeated a 
 year later — Conclusions from this study. 
 
 6. Tests with Material at hand. 
 
 Testing neglected — An improvised second-grade silent-read- 
 ing test — Tests provided for in readers — The Bolenius Read- 
 ers tests — Evaluation of the Bolenius tests — Difficulties 
 in testing problematical thinking in reading. 
 /. A fourth-grade silent-reading test. 
 
 Questions and answers — Criticism of the test and ques- 
 tions — A better test by the same teacher on the same 
 selection — Score values of questions in reading tests. 
 II. A fifth-grade silent-reading test of both rate and comprehen- 
 sion. 
 
 Measuring the rate — Measuring the comprehension — 
 Comprehension questions on The Magic Mask. 
 ** Summary of conclusions regarding testing in reading. 
 
 7. Use of Reading Tests in Rural Schools. 
 
 Factual questions — Problems for study and discussion. 
 
CONTENTS ] xv 
 
 CHAPTER X. Individual Differences, and Special 
 
 Individual and Group Instruction . 282 
 
 Individual differences in reading ability. 
 
 1. Individual Differences among Eighty Sixth-Grade 
 Pupils. 
 
 A study of variability — What these tables show — Special 
 classification for reading. ' 
 
 2. Special Grouping within a Room. 
 Individual differences in rooms. 
 
 /. Two seventh-grade classes regrouped for reading. 
 Classwork after regrouping. 
 II. Two fourth-grade classes regrouped for reading. , 
 ■■ Needed treatment of the problem presented. 
 III. How to handle the reading in a specially regrouped second' 
 grade room. 
 
 Using reading tests — The reading work of the upper 
 group — The work of the slow group. 
 
 3. The Reading Problem in the Special or Ungraded Room. 
 Remedial instruction — Individual differences in rural schools. 
 
 Problems for study and discussion. 
 
 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 297 
 
 INDEX 299 
 
LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES, AND PLATES 
 
 FIGURES IN THE TEXT 
 
 1. Eye-pauses in oral and in silent reading of a sixth-grade 
 pupil 7 
 
 2. Silent reading by a good reader in the seventh grade . 10 
 
 3. Silent reading by a poor reader in the seventh grade . 11 
 
 4. Silent reading by a slow reader in the fourth grade with a 
 poor quality record 12 
 
 5. Eye-voice span of a poor second-grade reader. Eye- 
 voice span of a good second-grade reader .... 13 
 
 6. Per cent of 1831 Cleveland pupils found in each of nine 
 speed and quality groups in silent reading .... 17 
 
 7. Rate standards in silent reading 22 
 
 8. The average rate for pupils after training in rapid read- 
 ing, as compared with norms reported by Courtis and 
 Gray for ordinary readers 23 
 
 9. Improvement in rate of articulation and in rate of rec- 
 ognition of printed words in successive grades ... 25 
 
 10. Diagrams illustrating connection between oral symbols, 
 visual symbols, and meaning 34 
 
 11. O'Brien's graphs showing the average gain in rate for 
 grades IV to VIII, as determined by the Courtis Silent- 
 Reading Test 73 
 
 12. Comparison of the amount of oral and silent reading ad- 
 visable in the various grades 116 
 
 13. Directions for recording errors in the Gray Oral-Reading 
 Test 221 
 
 14. Samples of the Monroe Silent-Reading Tests — I . . 226 
 
 15. Samples of the Monroe Silent-Reading Test — II . . 227 
 
 16. A sample unit of the Burgess Silent-Reading Scale . . 230 
 
 17. An exact reproduction of the first part of the Courtis 
 Silent-Reading Test 237 
 
 18. Sample exercises of the Thorndike Reading Tests . . 241 
 
 19. Samples of the Haggerty-Noonan Reading Examina- 
 tion ' 243,244 
 
xviii LIST OF FIGURES 
 
 80. The Thorndike Visual Vocabulary Scale .... 247 
 
 21. The Holley Sentence Vocabulary Scale . . 250, 251 
 
 22. Graphs for the Monroe Silent-Reading Test . . . 256 
 
 TABLES 
 
 I. Standards in rate of silent reading 21 
 
 II. Comparison of the Monroe and Gray rate standards . 229 
 
 III. Credit corresponding to each number of paragraphs 
 marked in each grade ........ 233 
 
 IV. Showing records of sixth-grade classes in Monroe-Silent 
 Reading Tests, May, 1920 283 
 
 V. Data for regrouping two seventh-grade classes in read- 
 ing . 286 
 
 VI. Data for regrouping two fourth-grade classes . . 289 
 VII. Record of poor readers in an ungraded room . . . 292 
 
 PLATES 
 
 I. Eye-pauses of six different individuals in reading . . 8 
 
 II. Sample blackboard lessons 40 
 
 HE, IV. How a story may be illustrated .... 150, 151 
 
SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 • 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 PROBLEMS IN READING INSTRUCTION 
 
 The present situation. School people are generally- 
 agreed that the results in reading in the primary grades are 
 much more satisfactory than the results in the middle and 
 upper grades. There has been a definite end in view in the 
 primary grades. The child enters school able to speak and 
 understand a considerable vocabulary. The problem of the 
 primary teachers is to train him to read this vocabulary. 
 It is generally agreed that this has been fairly well done. 
 However, it is being seriously questioned whether the pri- 
 mary grades are doing all that they should in training for 
 efficient silent reading. Above the primary grades there 
 has not been a very definite understanding as to what spe- 
 cific values, aims, and outcomes should be realized from the 
 reading instruction. There has been a vague attempt to 
 develop appreciation of literature, but there is a rather 
 general agreement that this has not been very successful. 
 For over a decade the psychologists have been pointing out 
 the dangers of over-emphasizing oral-reading and neglecting 
 silent-reading instruction. Yet, by far the most common 
 type of reading instruction found in the schools to-day in the 
 middle and upper grades is the stereotyped oral-reading 
 lesson. 
 
 The outlook. The scientific studies in education in the 
 last decade and the reports of progressive teachers and 
 supervisors give promise of a gradual modification of the 
 manner of conducting reading recitations in the middle an<J 
 
2 SILENT AND OKAL READING 
 
 upper grades. In lectures and writings the importance of 
 silent reading is being emphasized. But teachers have been 
 so accustomed to the oral-reading method that they are at 
 a loss, as a general rule, to know how to conduct a silent- 
 reading lesson. It is the purpose of this chapter to set forth 
 some of the problems facing the teachers in securing better 
 results in reading instruction. 
 
 Oral and silent reading. One of the problems perplexing 
 teachers is how to conduct effectively the silent-reading 
 lessons. Some even advocate that we should abandon the 
 commonly used plan of having the pupils of a class all read 
 the same material, and suggest that the reading should be 
 placed upon an individual basis rather than upon a class 
 basis. However, very little in the way of specific sugges- 
 tions as to the handling of this type of reading instruction 
 has been published. The teacher is also confronted with 
 the problem as to which particular units of reading material 
 available are adapted to the silent-reading method and 
 which to the oral-reading method. Or, to state the problem 
 in another form, we find the teacher confronted with the 
 question as to whether she should use the oral or silent 
 method in teaching a particular unit of subject-matter. We 
 are told, as a result of our school surveys, that a large por- 
 tion of our middle- and upper-grade pupils read too slowly, 
 and that they do not adequately understand what they 
 read. The problem of increasing the rate of reading of 
 many of the pupils and improving their comprehension is a 
 serious one for our schools, and the teacher needs specific 
 technique in aiding her to conduct effectively silent-reading 
 exercises for training purposes. As to just what the pri- 
 mary grades should do in regard to silent reading is also 
 important. 
 
 It is also essential that we consider what the legitimate 
 values and outcomes of oral reading are. We need to know. 
 
PROBLEMS IN READING INSTRUCTION 3 
 
 the relation of oral reading to silent-reading habits. Teach- 
 ers are also asking what should be the proper division of 
 time between oral and silent reading. The usual plan of 
 oral reading is to have one pupil read aloud while the others 
 read the same material silently. Some have advocated that 
 this plan should be abandoned because it furnishes little 
 opportunity for an audience situation. It is proposed that 
 the oral reader have a real audience without the text in 
 hand. We need to evaluate carefully both methods. 
 Teachers need devices for conducting audience reading. 
 
 Specific aims. It is generally recognized that there are 
 three rather distinct stages of development in the first nine 
 grades, the primary, the intermediate, and the upper grade 
 or Junior High School stage. It is important that there 
 should be a clear and detailed statement of the specific aims 
 to be realized in each of these stages in reading instruction, 
 that there be a definite understanding as to the function of 
 oral- and of silent-reading methods in relation to these aims, 
 and that there be an abundance of concrete illustrations of 
 recitation procedure in both oral and silent reading for each 
 of the three stages of growth in reading ability. 
 
 Testing. Finally there is the problem of testing the 
 abilities and attainments of the pupils in both oral and 
 silent reading. A number of scientific standardized tests 
 have been devised and used. Their use has resulted in 
 valuable suggestions for improving the reading work. The 
 teacher needs to have the advantage of the light that has 
 been shed through these studies. She also needs to be able 
 to devise tests of reading ability and attainment using the 
 material at hand. 
 
 Content. While the content for the primary grades has 
 been fairly well agreed upon and standardized, opinions 
 differ widely as to the proper content for the middle and 
 upper grades. Shall the content be a distinctly literary one 
 
4 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 with little or no informational material, or shall there be 
 rather large amounts of informational material and a mini- 
 mum amount of classical literature? TcLwhat extent shall 
 poetry be a part of the content? To what degree shall we 
 use semi-literary material for extensive reading to provide 
 vicarious experiences? To what extent shall we use the 
 short unit, to what extent the medium-length unit, and to 
 what extent the long unit such as the complete book? Shall 
 textbooks in reading above the primary grades be discarded? 
 All of these problems must be considered in the light of the 
 definite aims which we accept and in relation to the methods 
 and devices that are helpful in realizing these aims. 
 
 Motivation. The problem of securing interest that re- 
 sults in effort of a thoroughgoing sort is always a real one to 
 the teacher. How shall we motivate the reading lessons so 
 that they will be experiences of real and vital worth to the 
 pupils, and at the same time develop the reading abilities, 
 attitudes, interests, and appreciations which are to be the 
 outcomes of the reading instruction? The child upon enter- 
 ing school is intensely interested in learning to read, and 
 enjoys the oral-reading methods. But in the^ middle grades 
 the children are no longer interested in doing the type of 
 work that was done in the primary grades. The continua- 
 tion of the primary oral-reading method into the middle 
 grades has resulted oftentimes in a desultory type of read- 
 ing recitation, with the larger emphasis upon pronunciation, 
 definition of isolated words, and discussion of minor detail. 
 The natural result has been inefficient reading and study 
 habits on the part of a large percentage of the pupils, be- 
 cause of a lack of motive in the form of definite study 
 problems that require vigorous thinking. Securing effective 
 and worthy motives for the oral and for the silent reading is 
 an important problem for the teacher and supervisor. 
 
 Vocabulary. There are many different problems that 
 
PROBLEMS IN READING INSTRUCTION 5 
 
 arise in regard to reading vocabulary. How important is 
 oral reading as a means of increasing one's vocabulary? 
 Some pupils have great difficulty in pronouncing the words 
 of their reading selections. What are the best means for 
 developing facility in correct pronunciation? In some 
 cases the pupil's facility in pronouncing words far outstrips 
 his ability to grasp the meanings of words. What are the 
 best means of developing a sense of word meanings essential 
 to a good quality of comprehension? 
 
 Appreciation and application. How shall we bring the 
 pupils to appreciate literature so that they will have a liking 
 for the best in classical prose and poetry, and form the habit 
 of extensive reading for recreation? How shall we lead the 
 pupils to the application of their reading abilities "to the 
 problems of occupational, recreational, and community life? 
 The problem of teaching children how to study has occupied 
 the foreground of attention for a number of years. It is 
 recognized that there is a close relation between the reading 
 process and effective study. Is it the business of reading 
 instruction to aid in training the pupil to apply his reading 
 ability to the problem of learning how to study? If so, 
 what are the detailed methods and devices by which this 
 shall be accomplished? 
 
 The average teacher is in need of guidance, and is asking 
 for help in connection with these and many other problems 
 involved in teaching reading. It is the purpose of this book 
 to render assistance in two ways: (1) by giving the principles 
 underlying the solution of these problems, and (2) by giving 
 an abundance of illustrations, including descriptions of 
 recitations and lessons that will relate these illustrations 
 closely to the principles. 
 
 SUGGESTIVE EXERCISES 
 
 1. Make a list of five major and five minor problems in the reading 
 r " v instruction for your grade. 
 
 2. Select the five questions in the chapter that interest you most. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 PRACTICAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE READING PROBLEM 
 FROM PSYCHOLOGICAL AND EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH 
 
 Some questions to consider before reading the chapter 
 1. Does the recognition of words or groups of words take place 
 
 as the eye moves, or during the pause of the eye? 
 S. As a rule which gets the thought better, the rapid reader or 
 
 the slow reader? 
 
 3. About how many words a minute do you read? 
 
 4. Will one comprehend better by reading aloud, or by reading 
 silently? 
 
 Sources for conclusions. Previous to the decade just 
 ended considerable progress had been made by educational 
 psychologists, as Huey, 1 for example, in studies of the read- 
 ing process. During the last decade a large number of 
 scientific studies have been reported. 2 Most prominent 
 among these are the studies made in the School of Educa- 
 tion of the University of Chicago under the leadership of 
 Dr. Charles H. Judd and Dr. C. W. Gray. In addition to 
 the data obtained through the psychological laboratories, 
 there has come into existence a large body of statistical data 
 and accompanying interpretation, chiefly in connection with 
 school surveys. It is the purpose of this chapter to give a 
 brief summary of the practical contributions of these 
 scientific studies to the problems of reading instruction. 
 
 1. Studies as to Eye-Movements 
 
 Importance of eye-movements. The study of eye-move- 
 ments has occupied an important place in psychological 
 
 1 Huey, Edmund B. The Psychology and Pedagogy of Reading. The 
 Macmillan Company, 1908. 
 
 2 See references, page 50, Eighteenth Yearbook of the National Society for 
 the Study of Education, part n. 
 

 *l 
 
 a 
 
 • § 
 
 
 
 • 1 
 
 2 
 
 • 
 
 d 
 
 
 
 
 • .5 
 
 p 
 
 
 
 fc 
 
 V 
 
 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 •-a 
 
 • c3 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 • -d 
 
 ••1 
 
 
 e 
 
 
 -4-> 
 
 
 
 
 *.a 
 
 B 
 
 a 
 
 
 £ 
 
 
 
 
 1. 
 
 
 ^. § 
 
 -8 
 
 rf 
 
 
 § 
 
 
 2 
 
 a 
 o 
 
 -d 
 H 
 
 01 
 
 • 8 
 ■8 
 
 .1 
 
 
 ■i 
 
 60 
 
 d 
 
 1 
 
 4} 
 
 • 1 
 
 •a 
 1 
 
 
 2 
 o 
 
 c53 
 
 
 60 
 
 a 
 
 -d 
 
 • 60 
 
 a 
 
 i 
 
 
 .1 
 
 •J 
 
 • J3 
 
 "8 
 
 
 5 
 
 J 
 
 ••a 
 I 
 
 J 
 
 09 
 
 IS 
 
 DO 
 
 o 
 
 •1 
 
 CO 
 
 I 
 
 • 
 
 1 
 
 j 
 
 1 
 
 V 
 
 V 
 
 •a 
 •i 
 
 o 
 
 • £ 
 
 V 
 
 1 
 
 •8 
 
 > 
 
 •1 
 
 -a 
 
 1 
 
 •M 
 
 I 
 
 H 
 
 1 
 
 a 
 
 8 
 I 
 
 © 
 
 1 
 1 
 
 "3 
 
 09 
 60 
 
 a 
 
 .8 
 I 
 
 1 
 
 § 
 
 •o 
 
 1 
 
 T3 
 
 •a 
 
 to 
 
 ■8 
 
 '&■ 
 
 .2 
 
 -d 
 
 S 5 
 
 d 
 
 ■§ 
 
 ■! 
 
 09 
 
 1 
 
 0) 
 
 •5 
 o 
 
 s 
 1 
 
 a 
 
 CO 
 
 i 
 
 s 
 
 • s 
 
 a 
 o 
 
 g 
 
 o 
 
 • § 
 
 p 
 
 £ 
 
 • o 
 
 •1 
 
 •1 
 
 *d 
 • "£ 
 
 m 
 
 s 
 
 .2 
 
 -a 
 
 1 
 
 e3 
 a> 
 
 to 
 
 •8 
 
 -a 
 
 o 
 d 
 
 • 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 8 
 
 I 
 
 H 
 
 1 
 
 (5 
 < 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
8 SILENT AND ORAL READING ? 
 
 studies of the reading process from the earliest investiga- 
 tions to the present time. In reading, the eye makes a 
 series of quick movements with very brief intervening 
 pauses. The actual reading takes place only during the 
 eye-pause or act of fixation. The number of eye-pauses per 
 line varies according to the maturity and efficiency of the 
 reader. A good reader in the upper grades will make some- 
 thing like four pauses per line, while a poor reader may 
 make as many as fifteen. The better readers not only make 
 fewer pauses, but the eye-movements are of a more rhythmi- 
 cal character. The development of the proper eye-move- 
 ment habits is one of the most important problems in read- 
 ing instruction. 
 
 Fig. 1 (see page 7) illustrates the eye-movements of the 
 same pupil in the two forms of reading, oral and silent. 
 
 The dots represent the eye-pauses in each case. This 
 pupil is a fairly efficient sixth-grade reader. A larger num- 
 ber of pauses per line are made in the oral reading than in 
 the silent reading. The duration of the pause in oral read- 
 ing is generally longer than in silent reading. Consequently 
 oral reading is a slower process. 
 
 Good and poor eye-movements contrasted. In technical 
 articles by psychological experimenters, there are now 
 available photographs showing the motor behavior of the 
 eye in reading. In Plate I x are photographs of the eye- 
 movements of different types of readers. 
 
 No. 1 is the photographic reproduction of the eye-move- 
 ment of an adult silent reader of moderate speed. The 
 Roman numerals indicate the line number and the Arabic 
 numerals indicate the number of eye-pauses in each line. 
 The vertical lines at A, B, C, and D show the sweep of the 
 
 x The photographic reproductions in Plate I are taken from vol. n, 
 no. 1. Supplementary Educational Monographs; An Experimental Study 
 in the Psychology of Reading, by William Anton Schmidt, published by the 
 University of Chicago, 1919. 
 
H 
 
 Q 
 
 a 
 
 < 
 
 £ 
 
 
 
 H 
 
 w 
 
 £ 
 
 H 
 
 P3 
 
 J 
 
 K 
 
 m 
 
 
 H 
 
 f— < 
 
 •< 
 
 Q 
 
 
 X 
 
 w 
 
 X 
 
 H 
 
 fe 
 
 fi 
 
 C 
 
 a 
 
 cc 
 
 
 
 H 
 
 
 
 X 
 
 O 
 
 
 < 
 
 < 
 
 6 
 
 H 
 
 
 5* 
 
 
 H 
 
 
 o 
 
 
 £ 
 
 
 
 
 E 
 
 
 c 
 
 
 W 
 
 
 x 
 
 
 M 
 
 
 m 
 
 
 & 
 
 
 < 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 z- 
 
RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS ON READING 9 
 
 eye from the end of one line to the beginning of the next. 
 The average number of pauses per line is seven. 
 
 No. 2 shows the eye-movement of a rapid adult reader 
 who makes only three or four pauses per line in reading easy 
 material. Note the rhythmical character of the movement 
 of both of these. 
 
 No. 3 shows the eye-movement of a poor third-grade 
 reader, nine years old. He makes a large number of pauses 
 per line. Irregularities are characteristic of this reader. 
 Consequently his eye-movement lacks rhythm. His oral 
 reading is characterized by a lack of ease, smoothness, and 
 fluency. 
 
 Numbers 5 and 6 show the eye-movements of a good 
 second-grade silent reader and a good fifth-grade silent 
 reader respectively. The record of the fifth-grade pupil 
 shows considerable progress over that of the third-grade 
 pupil in the number of pauses per line and in the rhythmical 
 character of the movement. He made a considerably 
 better record than the average of forty-five adults tested. 
 His comprehension grade was ninety per cent. 
 
 The main problems in the development of the proper 
 eye-movements in reading are to decrease the number of 
 pauses per line and to develop a rhythmical movement. 
 
 Regressive movements and periods of confusion. In the 
 case of failure of recognition, the eye tends to go back, thus 
 making what is known as a " regressive movement." In 
 the case of continued failure there may be a period of con- 
 fusion. Poor readers have many pauses per line, w^th the 
 rhythmical character of the eye-movements broken up by 
 regressive movements and periods of confusion. These 
 statements are illustrated by Figs. 2, 3, and 4, which are 
 taken from Reading: Its Nature and Development, by 
 Charles H. Judd. The vertical line in each chart represents 
 an eye-pause. The number represents first, second, or third 
 pause in the line. 
 
10 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 In Figures 2, 3, and 4, the vertical lines represent eye- 
 pauses or fixation points. The numbers at the top of the 
 
 / Z 3 
 
 I matched a ci tlass from tt e pile, and some one 
 
 at th same time s latching ano 
 
 her, gave me a cut 
 
 aero s the knucl les which I hare 
 
 iyfelt I dished 
 
 Fig. 2. Silent Reading by a Good Reader in the 
 Seventh Grade. (Judd.) 
 
 lines show the order of the pauses. For instance, 1 means 
 the first pause of the line and 2 the second pause. Note that 
 the good reader in the seventh grade (Fig. 2) makes only 4 
 pauses to the line, and has an even distribution which con- 
 tributes to the rhythmical character of the movement as a 
 whole; while the poor reader (Fig. 3) makes 10 pauses to the 
 line, and has an irregular distribution and regressive move- 
 ments which destroy the rhythmical character of the total 
 eye-movement. The good reader reads 29 words in 12 eye- 
 pauses, while the poor reader reads only 19 words in 20 eye- 
 pauses. The eye-movement of the good reader is smooth, 
 
RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS ON READING 11 
 
 rhythmical, and rapid; the eye-movement of the poor 
 reader is slow, uncertain, and irregular. 
 
 76 
 
 across 
 
 the 
 
 knuckles 
 
 r hic! 1 
 
 I hardly felt. 
 
 das >ed 
 
 nut of thedenr In Jo the 
 
 clear £ 
 
 unlight. 
 
 Someone 
 
 Fig. 3. Silent Reading by a Poor Reader in the 
 Seventh Grade. (Jtjdd.) 
 
 Fig. 4, toward the end of line 2, shows a case of extreme 
 confusion. The child is evidently making the greatest 
 effort to recognize the words, especially the word " re- 
 minded." The eye moves back and forth, making six 
 pauses and involving one forward and two backward move- 
 ments of the eye. It is clear, of course, that during a period 
 of confusion like this the continuity of thought is seriously 
 interrupted, and the mechanical side of word-recognition 
 occupies the center of attention. An important problem 
 for the teacher of every grade is how to prevent and over- 
 come habits of slow, laborious reading of this type. 
 
 Longer units per eye-pause. The rate of the eye-move- 
 ment may be increased either by lessening the duration of 
 the pause, or by reducing the number of pauses. The smaller 
 number of fixations the eye makes in reading a line, the 
 longer will be the span of recognition or the scope of atten- 
 tion. That is, the fewer eye-pauses to a line the more words 
 
12 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 recognized per eye-pause. It has been found, as a rule, that 
 the rapid readers who have few eye-pauses to a line, or a 
 larger number of words to the fixation, comprehend the 
 meaning better than the rapid readers who make a larger 
 number of eye-pauses, but of shorter duration. In other 
 
 9 a 
 
 The mc on I md < lisapp earec , and snow < ras 
 
 fallin 
 
 T f 
 
 (Vapidly, an< th » sound o 
 
 5, 4 7 9 6 8 lift 
 
 I 
 
 distant chi 
 
 rues 
 
 ndei 
 
 562 3 7» 8 911 10 12 13 14-^ 
 
 Davyth;! 
 
 nr ustb ;past nid i 
 
 ght 
 
 IS tfifildj 
 
 andthatC hr s 
 
 Fig. 4. Silent Reading by a Slow Reader in the 
 Fourth Grade with a Poor Quality Record. 
 (Judd.) 
 
 words, the most efficient reading is done by those who make 
 few pauses and use longer periods of assimilation. The 
 important thing, then, is to develop the ability to recognize 
 longer and longer units of reading matter within a single 
 eye-pause. Specific means for doing this are suggested in 
 later chapters. 
 The eye-voice span. In oral reading the eye travels 
 
RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS ON READING 13 
 
 somewhat ahead of the voice. The distance between the 
 point of the eye-fixation and the point of articulation at the 
 same instant, is called the eye-voice span. This distance 
 varies greatly in different individuals. 
 
 Fig. 5 shows the contrast between the eye- voice span of a 
 
 tie 
 
 vr- 
 
 i 
 if 
 
 I 1 
 
 is 
 
 she drew! them to the edge of 
 
 Vr- 
 
 i 
 * i f 
 
 the bo: 
 
 t 
 
 V, iB 
 
 t * 
 
 'At 
 
 ast 
 
 7 S 
 
 she 
 
 p<U 
 
 * fi 
 
 >l i6 m 17 >s 
 
 Ed 
 
 lier I ho 
 
 \ it 
 
 l? 
 
 through the 
 
 Fig. 5. Eye-Voice Span of a Poor Second-Grade Reader. Eye-Voice 
 Span of a Good Second-Grade Reader x 
 
 1 Buswell, Guy Thomas. An Experimental Study of the Eye-Voice Span in Reading, pp. 
 20-21. Supplementary Educational Monograph No. 17, Department of Education, Uni- 
 versity of Chicago, December, 1920. 
 
 poor second-grade reader and the eye- voice span of a good 
 second-grade reader. The following are the important 
 conclusions of Dr. Guy T. Buswell resulting from an exten- 
 sive experimental study of the eye-voice span. 
 
14 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 ( Summary op Analysis of Eye-Voice Span 
 
 The relations of the eye-voice span to other factors of reading as 
 described in this chapter may be summarized as follows: 
 
 1. There is a positive correlation between a wide eye-voice span 
 and mature reading. The average span for good readers is 
 greater than that of poor readers in every school grade. 
 
 2. The development of the eye-voice span through the school 
 period does not show a consistent increase from grade to 
 grade, but is very irregular. The average span for the high 
 school is greater than that of the elementary school. The 
 average span of the adult subjects is greater than that of 
 those from the high school. But some good readers from the 
 elementary school have a span greater than most of the high- 
 school subjects. 
 
 8. The width of the eye- voice span shows little correlation with 
 position in the line, except that the span at the end of a line 
 is slightly narrower. A high correlation is shown between 
 eye-voice span and position in the sentence. The average 
 width of the span at the beginning of a sentence is greater 
 than at the end of the sentence by 46 per cent, while the 
 average within the sentence is greater than that at the end 
 by 23 per cent. These percentages are for all fifty-four sub- 
 jects including both good and poor readers. 
 
 4. A comparison of reading rate with eye-voice span shows that 
 rate of reading and width of eye-voice span increase together. 
 There is a high positive correlation between these two factors 
 of reading. 
 
 5. A negative correlation exists between the eye-voice span and 
 the number of fixations per line. As the span increases in 
 width the number of fixations per line decreases. 
 
 6. Little correlation is evident between eye- voice span and the 
 number of regressive movements per line. However, if the 
 regressive movements are analyzed into their various types, 
 a positive correlation is shown between eye-voice span and 
 that type of regressive movements caused by too long a for- 
 ward sweep of the eye. As the width of the eye-voice span 
 
 increases, the percentage of regressive movements caused by 
 this habit of attempting a long forward movement increases. 
 This type of regressive movements must be considered as a 
 characteristic of mature reading. 
 
RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS ON READING 15 
 
 This study shows that a wide eye-voice span occurs in common 
 with good quality of reading, rapid rate of reading, a small number 
 of fixations per line, and a certain type of regressive movements. 
 All of these qualities may be described as characteristic of a mature 
 reader. It is also evident from the data shown that a narrow eye- 
 voice span occurs with a poor quality of reading, a slow rate, a large 
 number of fixations per line, and a larger percentage of a type of 
 regressive movements which are not characteristic of good reading. 
 These qualities may be considered as characteristic of persons 
 whose reading habits are immature. 
 
 The results of the preceding analysis make it very clear that the 
 development of a wide eye-voice span is a significant element in 
 oral reading. As will be shown later, in silent reading a similar 
 meaning-recognition span exists which appears to be closely related, 
 in its development, to the eye-voice span. Since the width of eye- 
 voice span is a factor of mature reading it should receive very 
 definite attention in methods of teaching reading. However, it is 
 difficult to find any allusion to the subject in any of the method 
 texts or manuals. No evidence can be found that elementary 
 teachers in the public schools give any attention to the problem in 
 their teaching, probably because no specific methods are available 
 for dealing with it. Expert teachers of primary reading have 
 worked out a few devices, based upon rapid scanning of phrases 
 and the use of familiar material, which they use in their own classes, 
 but they say that there is nothing available in the literature of 
 reading methods which deals specifically with training for a wider 
 eye- voice span. It is not the function of this investigation to devise 
 methods of teaching, but it is in place to state that here is a signifi- 
 cant factor of reading which is in need of specific training methods. 
 The problem is to devise methods which will develop a habit of 
 pushing the eye farther ahead of the voice in order that there may 
 be an interpretation of meaning in larger units. 
 
 In discussing the relationship between oral and silent 
 reading Dr. Buswell says: 
 
 The development of the reading process may therefore be traced 
 through three stages. First, the most primitive or immature stage 
 of oral reading where the eye, the voice, and the meaning are all 
 focused at the same point. Secondly, the more mature stage of 
 oral Teading where there is a considerable span between the eye 
 
16 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 and the voice, with the recognition of meaning occurring at a point 
 nearer to the position of the eye. Thirdly, the stage of silent read- 
 ing where the reader is entirely relieved of any attention to the 
 voice and where the entire attention can be given to the eye and 
 the meaning, making possible the development of a much higher 
 degree of proficiency. 
 
 2. Rate and Comprehension 
 
 Rapidity and comprehension. Over ten years ago, Huey, 
 in summarizing the scientific studies in relation to reading, 
 found that, as a rule, the more rapid readers were the better 
 ones with reference to the comprehension or understanding 
 of the matter read. Since that time there have been a 
 number of studies which show that, as a rule, the more rapid 
 reader reproduces most completely what he reads. The 
 diagram (Fig. 6) on the next page is taken from one of the 
 volumes of the Cleveland School Survey: l 
 
 From Fig. 6 we see that only four per cent of the pupils 
 have rapid speed and poor quality, while ten per cent have 
 rapid speed and good quality. As the Survey points out, 
 " These figures serve to emphasize the fact that good 
 readers are usually not slow, and poor readers are usually 
 not fast." A similar diagram is given in the Report of the 
 St. Louis School Survey, with the following comment: 
 
 The average teacher in St. Louis is confronted with pupils who 
 might fall in any one or all nine of the classes mentioned. There 
 are good readers who are rapid and there are good readers who are 
 slow. There are rapid readers who retain much of what they read 
 and there are rapid readers who retain little. The diagram gives 
 emphasis to the view that instruction to be effective must be 
 planned to meet the needs of pupils of various types in regard to 
 speed and quality. Some pupils should emphasize speed, some 
 quality, and some pupils are weak in both. 
 
 A simple experiment. The following simple experiment 
 1 Judd, Charles H. Measuring the Work of the Public Schools, p. 155. 
 
, 
 
 RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS ON READING 17 
 
 is suggested for the classroom teacher as a means of observ- 
 ing the relation between speed in silent reading and quality 
 
 
 
 Rapid speed and 
 good quality 
 
 
 
 Medium speed 
 and good quality 
 
 © 
 
 Slew speed and 
 Kood quality 
 
 
 
 Rapid speed and 
 medium quality 
 
 O 
 
 Medium speed aad 
 medium quality 
 
 0. 
 
 Slow speed and 
 medium quality 
 
 
 
 Rapid speed and 
 poor quality 
 
 
 
 Medium speed 
 and poor quality 
 
 
 
 Slow speed aad 
 poor quality 
 
 Fig. 6. Per Cent of 1831 Cleveland Pupils found in 
 Each of Nine Speed and Quality Groups in Silent 
 Reading. (Judd.) 
 
 of comprehension. Select a unit of ten to twenty pages in 
 one of the reading books to be read by the class silently 
 during the reading recitation. Prepare some questions 
 upon the first few pages. Ask the pupils to read the selec- 
 tion to themselves, and without giving them any further 
 suggestions or directions, observe the pupils carefully as 
 they read. When the first pupil finishes reading the selec- 
 tion, ask all the pupils to stop reading, and report the num- 
 ber of pages read. Then ask the class the questions which 
 you prepared upon the first few pages of the reading matter, 
 
18 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 and observe how the pupils who read the largest number of 
 pages compare in their ability to answer questions with 
 those who read the smallest number of pages. The writer 
 once asked an extension class of teachers to try this experi- 
 ment, and they all reported that their rapid readers were 
 better able to answer questions than the slow readers. 
 
 Conclusions as to rate and comprehension. The teacher 
 should be cautioned, however, against concluding that her 
 problem is merely one of getting her pupils to read faster. 
 While higher rate and good comprehension are commonly 
 related, there are many individual exceptions. The large 
 individual differences, in rate of reading noted in all the 
 investigations, in each grade, probably means that there is 
 a speed for each individual above which he cannot read 
 without decreasing his comprehension, unless at the same 
 time his power of comprehension is increased. If the pupil 
 is a rapid reader, but retains little of what he reads, the 
 comprehension phase needs emphasis. If, on the other 
 hand, he is a slow reader and comprehends well, he should 
 be encouraged to read faster. The ideal situation is to 
 have the rate and comprehension advance together. While 
 the emphasis is being placed upon one, the other should not 
 be neglected. The timeliness of these suggestions is well 
 substantiated by data in the Report of the St. Louis ScJwol 
 Survey. A certain school which had been emphasizing rate 
 of reading stood relatively high in rate, but low in compreT 
 hension, while another school which had given no particular 
 thought to rate, but had followed the usual intensive oral 
 type of reading throughout the grades, stood low in rate 
 and medium in comprehension. 
 
 O'Brien's conclusions as to the effect of increased speed 
 upon comprehension. A very valuable study of the devel- 
 opment of speed has been recently reported by Dr. John A. 
 O'Brien. With reference to the possibilities of training in 
 
RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS ON READING 19 
 
 speed, and its effect upon comprehension, he lists the follow- 
 ing conclusions : 1 
 
 The present average rates in silent reading in Grades III to VIII 
 are needlessly slow and inefficient. 
 
 These rates can be greatly increased by systematic training over 
 a period of two months. 
 
 The improvement effected in the first month is considerably 
 greater than in the second month of training. 
 
 Marked increase in speed of reading may be effected without 
 any impairment of comprehension. 
 
 The setting up of habits of rapid reading does not per se increase 
 the accuracy of comprehension. 
 
 To secure marked improvement in accuracy of comprehension, 
 special stress must be placed upon training designed specifically to 
 secure that effect. 
 
 Marked improvement in comprehension, as measured by the 
 number of questions correctly answered, resulted from training in 
 rapid silent reading. 
 
 The marked gain in the number of questions correctly answered 
 demonstrates the persistence of the improvement in reading rate 
 in a changed situation involving a different mental attitude; i. e., 
 in careful reading, and in reading to answer written questions. 
 
 3. Other Factors affecting Silent Reading 
 
 The rate of silent reading. A number of different factors 
 have been found to affect the rate of reading of a particular 
 individual. One's rate will vary according to the character 
 of the material. For instance, easy narrative material is 
 likely to be read more rapidly than exposition or than poetry. 
 The familiarity of the material will also affect the rate. 
 A physician will read medical books and journals much 
 more rapidly than a treatise on law. In the mechanical 
 make-up of the reading material the length of the line, the 
 size of the print, and the leading or distance between the 
 
 1 O'Brien, John A. "The Development of Speed in Silent Reading"; 
 in the Twentieth Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Educa- 
 tion, part n. Public School Publishing Co., Bloomington, 111., 1921. 
 
SO SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 lines, are the more important factors affecting rate. A 
 long line retards the rate. A line a little longer than -that 
 of the ordinary newspaper column has been found to be the 
 most advantageous for speed in reading. Medium-sized 
 print is read somewhat faster than large print. If the lines 
 of print are too close together the rate is retarded. 
 
 Factors in the development of speed. Dr. John A. 
 O'Brien, in the study previously referred to, gives the 
 following factors in the development of speed: 
 
 1. Practice in rapid silent reading. 
 
 %. The decrease of vocalization in silent reading. 
 
 3. Training in perception by means of short exposure exercises, 
 combined with practice in rapid reading. 
 
 4. Familiarity with subject-matter. 
 
 5. Habits of regular, uniform, rhythmical eye-movements. 
 
 6. Purpose for which the subject-matter is read. 
 
 7. Concentration of attention. 
 
 8. Ability to grasp the meaning of contents. 
 
 9. Recognition of the value of the habit of rapid silent reading 
 combined with the determination to acquire this habit. 
 
 10. The pressure of a time control. 
 
 11. Individual graph and class chart. 
 
 Standards in rate of reading. A number of investigators 
 have reported standards in the rate of silent reading for the 
 different grades in terms of the number of words read in a 
 minute. These rates are based upon reading material that 
 for the most part is narrative in type and adapted in con- 
 tent and vocabulary to the grades in which the tests are 
 given. They represent the median 1 rate of a very large num- 
 ber of pupils of each grade. 
 
 Table I should be read as follows: Gray's standard for 
 
 1 The median is about the same as the average, and means the middle 
 point in a series. For an explanation of the term "median" and how to 
 calculate it, see Measuring the Results of Teaching, by Walter S. Monroe, 
 pp. 29 and 102. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1918. 
 
RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS ON READING 21 
 
 silent reading for the second grade is 90 words per minute, 
 138 for the third, 180 for the fourth, etc. 
 
 Table I. Table of Standards in Rate of Silent Reading — 
 Words per Minute * 
 
 Grape 
 
 2 
 
 8 
 
 4 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 7 
 
 8 
 
 Starch 
 
 108 
 
 126 
 
 144 
 
 168 
 
 192 
 
 216 
 
 240 
 
 Gray 
 
 90 
 
 138 
 
 180 
 
 204 
 
 216 
 
 228 
 
 240 
 
 Courtis 
 
 84 
 
 113 
 
 145 
 
 168 
 
 191 
 
 
 
 The standards given in Table I are shown in graphic 
 form in Fig. 7. Note that the three sets of standards 
 worked out by these three different investigators are in 
 fairly close agreement. The Starch Standards and the 
 Courtis Standards show a regularity of increase in rate from 
 grade to grade. For instance, in the Starch Standards, the 
 increase in rate from the fourth to the fifth grade is the same 
 as from the seventh to the eighth. But in the Gray Stand- 
 ards, the increase in rate from grade to grade is considerably 
 greater up to the fifth grade than it is above the fifth grade. 
 In other words, Gray's studies tend to show that the inter- 
 mediate grades are more significant in the development of 
 an efficient reading rate than are the upper grades. 
 
 A comparison of the O'Brien, Gray, Courtis, and Starch 
 rate norms. It has already been noted that the rate ac- 
 cording to the Courtis and Starch norms increases gradually 
 from grade to grade, while the rate according to the Gray 
 norm increases much more rapidly below the fifth grade 
 than above the fifth grade. The O'Brien norm shows an 
 
 1 Copied from the Class Record Sheet for the Courtis Silent-Reading 
 Test. 
 
22 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 240' 
 230 
 220 
 210 
 200 
 190 
 180 
 170 
 160 
 150 
 140 
 130 
 120 
 110 
 100 
 90 
 80 
 
 Grades 
 5 
 
 increase in rate above the fourth grade more nearly like those 
 of Courtis and Starch than like that of Gray. The main 
 difference between the O'Brien rate of increase from grade 
 
 to grade and those of 
 the other norms, as 
 shown in Figs. 7 and 8, 
 is that the O'Brien norm 
 shows a much more 
 rapid increase from the 
 seventh to the eighth 
 grade than the other 
 norms show. Gray's con- 
 clusion l that the rate of 
 silent reading tends to 
 become fixed above the 
 fifth grade does not 
 seem to be justified in 
 the light of the findings 
 of these other investi- 
 gators. O'Brien's care- 
 ful experiments seem to 
 bear out the conclusion 
 that there is quite as 
 great, if not even greater 
 possibility of increase in rate in the seventh and eighth 
 grades than in the intermediate grades. 
 
 At least, this conclusion appears to be true regarding 
 easy narrative material. Account should be taken, how- 
 ever, of the fact that O'Brien's conclusions are based upon 
 the comparative results of giving the Courtis Silent Reading 
 Test, Form I, before training, and Form III after training. 
 
 1 Gray, William S. "Growth Periods in the Development of Reading 
 Ability in Reading"; in the Eighteenth Yearbook of the National Society 
 for the Study of Education, part n. Public School Publishing Company, 
 Bloomington, 111., 1919. - 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 st 
 
 ■ 
 
 
 
 
 ^,4 
 
 </ 
 
 - 
 
 
 
 .,'' 
 
 / 
 
 / 
 
 - 
 
 
 / 
 
 * 
 
 / 
 
 
 - 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 - 
 
 i 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 " 
 
 / 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 / 
 
 / 
 
 f I 
 
 f 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■*/ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 '1 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 -1/ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1/ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ——-Gray 
 
 • Courtis 
 
 Starch 
 
 Fig. 7. Rate Standards in Silent 
 Reading 
 
400 
 
 J 90 
 3 30 
 3 70 
 360 
 350 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 O' Brier 
 Courtis 
 
 ?— — 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 Qr^u — — 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 320 
 310 
 300 
 290 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 2 70 
 260 
 «>Z50 
 g240 
 C 230 
 <? 2 20 
 ^210 
 f-t 200 
 
 «80 
 
 tO 170 
 
 e ,fe0 
 i§ l5 ° 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 x 
 
 r" 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 * 
 
 
 
 
 * 
 
 • 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 -^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 • 
 
 x 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 » 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 •< 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 S" 
 
 s>^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 £ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 + 
 
 S 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 .— 
 
 — * 
 
 <rv 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 • 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 .** 
 
 
 
 
 
 s 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 «• 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 no 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 80 
 70 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 50 
 40 
 30 
 20 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 o 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 W Y YL YH TO 
 
 Fig. 8. The Average Rate for Pupils after Training in Rapid 
 Reading, as compared with Norms reported by Courtis and 
 Gray for Ordinary Readers 
 
M SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 \ 
 
 Each test consists of a simple story of about third- or fourth- 
 grade level. A sample may be seen on page 237. The 
 Gray Silent-Reading Tests for the middle and upper grades 
 consist of material more difficult than the material of the 
 Courtis Tests, especially so in the seventh and eighth 
 grades. Whether results similar to O'Brien's in the devel- 
 opment of speed in reading material on a seventh- and 
 eighth-grade level will result from training needs to be de- 
 termined by additional experiments. 
 
 Oral and silent reading. Oral reading is a slower process 
 than silent reading, as is illustrated in Fig. 1. The rate of 
 oral reading is necessarily limited by the muscular activities 
 involved in articulating and pronouncing, while silent read- 
 ing has no such limitations. In the primary grades the rate 
 at which the pupil can interpret the meaning of the symbols 
 is not greater, and sometimes even less, than the rate of 
 vocalization in oral reading. But some place in the develop- 
 ment of the child's reading ability, probably about the end 
 of the third grade with the average pupil, the rate at which 
 the pupil can comprehend in silent reading exceeds his 
 articulation rate in oral reading. These facts are illustrated 
 by Fig. 9. 
 
 Note that the rate of recognition of printed words be- 
 comes higher than the rate of articulation at the beginning 
 of the fourth grade. In the seventh grade the average pupil 
 recognizes words nearly twice as rapidly as he can pro- 
 nounce them. Above the third grade, if oral reading is 
 over-emphasized at the expense of opportunity for consider- 
 able amounts of extensive silent reading, the normal de- 
 velopment of the silent-reading rate may be retarded. The 
 great majority of scientific students of the reading problem 
 regard the oral-reading method as the appropriate and 
 indispensable method in the primary reading lessons. They 
 also regard its common predominance above the primary 
 
RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS ON READING 25 
 
 grades to be without justification. Silent reading is the 
 form most largely used in life, and the responsibility of the 
 school to give the pupils specific training for the develop- 
 ment of greater ability in this form of reading is coming 
 more and more to be realized. 
 
 It has been found that in the main the pupils who do well 
 in oral reading do well in silent reading. This probably 
 means that the devel- 
 opment of smooth, flu- 
 ent oral reading in the 
 primary grades is an 
 important aid in the 
 development of the 
 proper eye-movement 
 habits in silent read- 
 ing. It is important 
 for teachers to realize 
 the relation of oral 
 reading to silent read- 
 ing in the primary stage 
 of learning to read. It 
 is also important for 
 teachers to realize the 
 limitations and dangers 
 of oral reading beyond 
 the primary grades. A 
 teacher once advised a 
 pupil who had some 
 difficulty in getting her 
 history lesson to read 
 
 aloud during her home study. The advice was given, of 
 course, in accordance with a common idea that one com- 
 prehends better reading aloud than reading silently. How- 
 ever, in so far as scientific studies have been made, the 
 
 250 
 200 
 150 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 / 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 / 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 inn 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 50 
 
 
 / 
 / 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 I E I E Y I I 
 
 Fig. 9. Improvement in Rate of Articu- 
 lation and in Rate of Recognition of 
 Printed Words in Successive Grades 
 
 The full-drawn line represents the rate of articula- 
 tion. The broken line represents the rate of recog- 
 nition of words. (Judd.) 1 
 
 1 From Reading; lis Natme and Development, by 
 Charles H. Judd, p. 145. 
 
26 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 evidence tends to show that one comprehends better read- 
 ing silently than reading aloud. 1 
 
 Vocalization and inner speech. The natural tendency 
 of the beginner in reading and of the unpractised reader is 
 toward vocalization. This takes the form of reading to 
 one's self in a whisper, or in a suppressed tone. It is not 
 uncommon to observe young children reading with lip 
 movement and slight vocalization when they are studying 
 or reading to themselves. Freeman 2 says : 
 
 Even though a practiced reader does not give these outward 
 signs of pronunciation, yet it has been shown by experiment that 
 the vocal cords and the tongue make very slight movements which 
 correspond to the words which are being read. Not only are the 
 words reproduced in some form of inner pronunciation, accom- 
 panied by the imagination of the sound of the words or of the 
 feeling which is produced in pronouncing them, but we also have 
 imagery which corresponds to the relationships of the words of the 
 sentence. Although one may, when he has acquired the habit of 
 rapid silent reading, slur over the articulation of the individual 
 words, yet this modulation of the voice remains, and is repre- 
 sented in the imagination or in actual changes in the vocal cords or 
 in other organs of speech which correspond to such modulation. 
 These tendencies to inner speech are somewhat different from 
 those which complete themselves when one is speaking, as is shown 
 by the fact that they may take place during inspiration of breath 
 as well as during expiration; but, though they are thus modified 
 in silent reading, they have an important connection with the 
 apprehension of meaning. 
 
 Articulation and comprehension. From the studies thus 
 far made, it is not clear to what extent, in training for rapid 
 
 1 Mead, C. D. " Silent Reading versus Oral Reading with one hundred 
 Sixth-Grade Pupils"; in Journal of Educational Psychology, June, 1915, 
 vol. vi, pp. 345-58. 
 
 Pintner, R. "Oral and Silent Reading of Fourth-Grade Children"; 
 in Journal of Educational Psychology, June, 1913, vol. iv, pp. 333-37. 
 
 2 Freeman, Frank N. Psychology of the Common Branches, p. 84. 
 Houghton Mifflin Company, 1916. 
 
RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS ON READING 27 
 
 silent reading, we may decrease this inner articulation with- 
 out also decreasing the quality of the comprehension of the 
 meaning. It would appear that this would depend upon 
 the purpose of the reader. In reading poetry, wherein the 
 appreciation depends upon realizing auditory values in the 
 rhythm, the melody, the alliteration, or other sound charac- 
 teristics, it is necessary to read in such a way that one has 
 time to get a clear experience of these characteristics. The 
 same thing is true, but in a smaller degree, in reading 
 literary prose, especially such as the oration or poetic prose. 
 But in reading purely informational material, or in reading 
 to get a specific fact, it would appear that decrease in the 
 amount of inner articulation through increase in the speed 
 of reading would not affect the comprehension. Even in 
 this type of reading, though, it remains for further investi- 
 gation to determine the extent to which it is advisable to 
 decrease the inner speech. 
 
 Articulation and rate. Too great an emphasis upon 
 phonics and oral reading, without due attention to train- 
 ing in the rapid recognition of words and phrases, may 
 seriously retard the development of an efficient rate of silent 
 reading. Habits of lip movement and pronounced inner 
 speech in silent reading are retarding factors in the de- 
 velopment of an efficient rate of reading. Efficient silent 
 reading involves «a speed greater than permits of anything 
 like clear evidence of vocalization. 
 
 Visual perception in reading. How does visual percep- 
 tion take place in reading? Do we recognize words by 
 seeing them letter by letter? Do we recognize groups of 
 words or sentences by seeing word by word? What are 
 the factors that make recognition easier and more rapid? 
 What practices in school retard or aid facility in recognition, 
 which is the foundation for the proper rate in reading? For 
 a full discussion of these problems the reader is referred to 
 
28 . SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Chapters IV and V in Edmund B. Huey's Psychology and 
 Pedagogy of Reading, and Chapter III in Reading in the 
 Primary Grades, by Frances Jenkins. Only a brief summary 
 can be given in this treatment. 
 
 Huey says, "There seem to be very great individual 
 differences, and these depend partly, though never wholly, 
 on the methods by which the reader has learned to read." 
 The alphabet method of teaching reading presumed that 
 visual perception takes place letter by letter. The slow, 
 laborious readers often produced by that method would 
 indicate that the alphabet method of beginning reading 
 tended to hold the pupil to a very inefficient type of recogni- 
 tion. Huey summarizes by saying, " We are brought back 
 to the conclusion of Goldschneider and Mueller that we 
 read by phrases, words, or letters as we may serve our pur- 
 pose best." The psychology of reading indicates that it is 
 best to assume that the child in beginning reading is able to 
 perceive visually in word- wholes, and " that the reader's 
 requirement of ease and power in reading comes through 
 increasing ability to read in larger units." Studies of eye- 
 pauses show that it is rare for a pupil in the first two grades 
 to be able to recognize more than a single word at a single 
 eye-pause. 
 
 The necessity for the child to acquire a means by which 
 he may work out the recognition of new words makes it 
 necessary for the school, at the appropriate times beyond 
 the beginning stage of learning to read, to bring to his con- 
 sciousness such details making up the word as letters, 
 phonetic elements, syllables, prefixes, suffixes, a word-part 
 within a word, etc. Any one of these may be a unit of 
 recognition under a particular circumstance. Studies of 
 eye-movements show that it is not infrequent for adults, as 
 well as children, to make more than one eye-pause in the 
 recognition of a single word. But the most rapid, efficient 
 
RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS ON READING 29 
 
 readers are able to recognize considerably more than a single 
 word in a single eye-fixation. The problem of the teacher 
 is to know what practices will develop an ability to recog- 
 nize increasingly longer units. 
 
 The recognition of a word through visual perception, as a 
 rule, does not take place through a detailed seeing of the 
 letters or other parts of the word. After we become familiar 
 with a word, its recognition is " set off " by " cues." These 
 cues are dominant parts of the word. The consonants are 
 more important than the vowels, especially the parts that 
 extend prominently above or below the line. The upper 
 half of the word is more important in setting off recognition 
 than the lower half. " The first half of the word is of con- 
 siderably greater importance for perception than is the 
 latter half." 
 
 It was found that during a reading-pause there is first an impres- 
 sion of the whole word, as lively, stiff, etc.; for example, a feeling- 
 reaction to the total word-appearance. This may alone suffice to 
 set off the recognition of the word; usually, however, with objective 
 readers at any rate, there follows a successive coming to conscious- 
 ness of first the high dominant letters, then the low and indifferent 
 ones. Small letters adjoining a dominant letter may, by their 
 proximity, help in forming a total configuration, and may thus 
 come to consciousness as a part of a dominant complex. With 
 some readers, however, and perhaps with all of us for many words, 
 the total word-form, word-length, etc., seem to characterize the 
 word and are apparently the first factors in its recognition. In 
 these cases the stimulations from all parts and points which 
 signalize this total form, and this general outline, rather than a few 
 particular dominant letter-shapes, is the aspect of which we are apt 
 to be most conscious in the total recognition. In such cases the 
 recognition could be set off by a skeleton drawing of the word 
 showing no particular letter-forms, and might well occur at dis- 
 tances at which particular letters were no longer recognizable as 
 such. 
 
 Subjective and objective readers. The experiments indicated 
 that readers may be either of a subjective or objective type. The 
 
30 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 subjective type is characterized by a wandering attention which 
 travels far from the fixation-point, by a large associative contribu- 
 tion in perceiving, and by slight fidelity to the outward object. 
 Readers of this type apperceive words from the total character 
 of the word-form rather than from the dominating parts, these 
 latter not differentiating from the whole. The objective readers, 
 with characteristics which are the opposite from the above, 
 recognize the dominating parts first, and the effect of the total 
 form ,is minor. They read a smaller amount at a glance than do 
 the subjective readers, but are less liable to error. 
 
 The visual recognition of a familiar phrase, as a phrase, is but a 
 repetition of the process described above, the recognition of con- 
 stituent words as well as of letters in this case being partially 
 inhibited in favor of the total recognition of a larger unit. Larger 
 and larger unitary reactions are set off as familiarity makes this 
 possible, the same excitations coming to serve as cues for the larger 
 recognitions instead of for the smaller, while the earlier processes 
 or recognition habits, even when they do atrophy, are performed 
 automatically, consciousness ever tending to leave them for higher 
 levels. 1 
 
 There has been little published giving the results of ex- 
 perimental teaching to determine the effectiveness of devices 
 or practices in applying the psychological conclusions given 
 in this section. C. T. Gray, after extensive experiments in 
 training for improvement in reading, reports as follows: 
 " In the light of these facts it may be repeated here that 
 without doubt the type of training which is given in primary 
 work by means of flash-cards is a very important element in 
 the early training in reading." 2 
 
 There are given valuable suggestions in Chapter III of 
 Reading in the Primary Grades, by Frances Jenkins, 3 apply- 
 
 1 The preceding quotations in this section are from Psychology and 
 Pedagogy of Reading, chap, ni, by Edmund B. Huey. The Macmillan 
 Company. 
 
 2 Gray, C. T. Types of Reading Ability as exhibited through Tests and 
 Laboratory Experiments, p. 159. University of Chicago Press, 1917. 
 
 3 Jenkins, Frances. Reading in the Primary Grades. Houghton Mifflin 
 Company, 1915. 
 
RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS ON READING 31 
 
 ing to practice the findings of experimental psychology. 
 She gives very suggestive details on types of word and 
 phrase drills, and types of speed drills. 
 
 SOME FACTS YOU SHOULD KNOW 
 
 1. At what rate in silent reading should the pupils in your grade read? 
 
 2. Are you a slow, a medium, or a fast reader? 
 
 3. What is meant by eye-pause? By span of recognition? By inner 
 speech? By regressive movements? 
 
 4. For the average pupil, about when does the rate of recognition begin 
 to exceed his rate of articulation? 
 
 5. What quality in oral reading is an evidence of good eye-movement? 
 
 6. Repeating in oral reading is an evidence of what type of eye-move- 
 ment? 
 
 7. What effect will a decrease in the number of eye-pauses per line have 
 upon the rate of reading? 
 
 8. Does the slow, the medium, or the fast reader, as a rule, excel in 
 comprehension ? 
 
 9. What length of line is most favorable to speed in reading? 
 
 10. Which is the more important final outcome of reading instruction, 
 oral reading or silent reding? 
 
 11. Name three retarding habits in silent reading which pupils tend to 
 acquire. 
 
 12. As a rule, are words recognized letter by letter or by the total impres- 
 sion of the word? 
 
 PROBLEMS FOR STUDY AND DISCUSSION 
 
 1. For your grade, which is the more important, the oral reading or the 
 silent reading? 
 
 2. Is rate in oral reading of consequence? WTiy? 
 
 3. What advice would you give to a pupil who tends to read orally word 
 by word? 
 
 4. What methods and devices could be used for increasing rate in silent 
 reading? 
 
 5. What effect would proper phrasing in oral reading have upon the 
 rate of oral reading? Upon the eye-movement? 
 
 6. About how many times as fast does your fastest reader read silently 
 as compared to your slowest reader? 
 
 7. Why discourage pointing with the finger, lip movement, and vocali- 
 zation? 
 
 8. Which do you think the more accurate set of rate standards, the 
 Courtis, the Gray, or the O'Brien standards? 
 
32 SILENT AND ORAL BLADING 
 
 9. Examine a copy of the Courtis Silent-Reading Tests. What factors 
 in the mechanical make-up of the page would tend to retard the rate? 
 
 10. From a psychological standpoint, which is the better method for 
 beginning reading — the alphabet, the word, or the sentence method? 
 
 11. Why is there more danger of over-emphasizing oral reading in the 
 intermediate grades than in the lower grades? 
 
 12. Compare the reading content of the Courtis Reading Tests and the 
 Gray Silent-Reading Test and report essential differences that might 
 partially account for the O'Brien rate norms being so much higher 
 than the Gray norms. 
 
 13. Discuss devices for increasing the eye-voice span. 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 TEACHING READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 
 1. General Statement as to Aims and Methods 
 
 Exercises to do before reading the chapter 
 
 1. Write one reason why the oral-reading procedure has been so 
 universally used by teachers in all grades with all types of 
 reading matter. 
 
 2. List what you consider to be the main values of oral reading. 
 Which of these values are common to all the grades and 
 which are peculiar to a certain grade or group of grades? 
 
 3. List the two primary methods you think the best. 
 
 4. Do you favor having reading textbooks in all the grades? 
 
 5. Write the name of the series of Readers that you think to be 
 the best one. 
 
 Relative value of oral and silent reading. Outside of the 
 schoolroom most individuals use oral reading very little. 
 On the other hand, most persons use silent reading daily. 
 Therefore, the ultimate training outcome of reading in- 
 struction is the development of efficient silent readers rather 
 than oral readers. Facil ty in silent reading is of first im- 
 portance, while training in oral reading as an end in itself is 
 of only secondary importance. 
 
 There are occasional situations in life when most indi- 
 viduals need to be able to convey thought or feeling to 
 an audience of one or more persons through oral reading. 
 Training in ability to convey meaning to others through 
 oral reading is therefore an important aim of the reading 
 instruction. In this respect oral reading has a value as an 
 end in itself. 
 
 Importance of oral reading in the lower grades. The 
 other values of oral reading may be considered as values of 
 
34 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 means. The psychological reason why oral reading is more 
 valuable in the lower grades than in the later stages is well 
 stated by Professor Suzzallo: 1 
 
 Fig. 10. Diagrams illustrating Connection between Oral Symbols 
 Visual Symbols, and Meaning 
 
 These show how oral reading of the vocabulary previously experienced through oral 
 speech or through hearing aids in attaching meaning to the unknown visual symbols. 
 
 Reading is an attempt to establish connections between three 
 factors, the oral symbol, the visual symbol, and the meaning. The 
 young child beginning to learn to read orally attaches meaning to 
 the visual symbol through the oral symbol in the direction indi- 
 cated in diagram (a). 
 
 Oral reading is absolutely essential and basic in the, first two 
 grades (roughly), or as long as mechanics are a major difficulty, 
 or as long as the child's reading vocabulary is still smaller than his 
 speaking or understanding vocabularies. Its function is to con- 
 nect the meaning and the printed symbol through the intermedi- 
 ary of sound or pronunciation. Before the child can read, he 
 already has a connection between the oral symbol and the meaning 
 for any word he understands orally, as illustrated in (b). Phonetic 
 work aids him to tie the visual symbol to the oral symbol. The 
 overlapping of the speech symbol and the oral symbol (derived 
 through phonetics from the printed symbol) results in suggesting 
 meaning for the printed symbol. This process is illustrated by (c) 
 in which v represents the visual (printed or written) symbol. The 
 upper o represents the sound element in phonetic analysis or pro- 
 nunciation. The m represents the meaning, and the o connected 
 with it represents the oral symbol which the child has already con- 
 nected with the meaning gained through experience in hearing the 
 word. As one oral symbol identifies itself with the other through 
 overlapping, the connection between the visual symbol and the 
 meaning is made. 
 
 1 Quoted from a letter of March, 1915, in answer to a questionnaire, 
 and with the permission of Professor Suzzallo. 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 35 
 
 As long as this method is followed, all primer reading must speak 
 of things within the child's experience through words within the 
 child's vocabulary. Otherwise, meaning must be developed as well 
 as pronunciation and form recognition. 
 
 The phonetic method grows less and less useful (1) as one can- 
 not count on common experiences and common oral vocabularies 
 among children, and (2) the more one's basal text presents new 
 experiences and new words — often desirable for interest. Thus 
 the tendency to drop the emphasis on the phonetic methods and 
 develop all three factors in the class period with all three con- 
 nections, instead of two factors and two connections as hitherto, 
 as in (d). 
 
 Speedy silent reading makes a short cut by making the connec- 
 tion directly between the visual symbol and the meaning as indi- 
 cated in (e). 
 
 In the primary stage of reading development, oral reading 
 has an important value in addition to its value as an inter- 
 mediary in attaching meaning to printed or written sym- 
 bols. It has been pointed out that the development of good 
 eye-movement habits is fundamental to efficiency in reading. 
 Until the pupil's rate of articulation overtakes his rate of 
 recognition of printed words, the pupil's oral reading is a 
 good index to his eye-movement habits. If he has a habit 
 of repeating, or if he is a slow oral reader, a word-by-word 
 reader, he has not yet developed good eye-movements. 
 The development of fluency in oral reading means the de- 
 velopment of the ability to recognize in larger units per eye- 
 pause and the absence of serious regressive movements or 
 periods of confusion. It has been the writer's experience 
 that there are pupils in most every intermediate-grade class 
 and even some in the higher grades who are still in the pri- 
 mary stage of reading development. For the great majority 
 of these, oral reading will be of value. There will probably 
 be exceptions, especially those having speech defects such as 
 stammering and stuttering. 
 
 Oral reading and poetry. Oral reading has an important 
 
36 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 function in connection with the teaching of poetry and other 
 distinctly literary types of reading matter. Poetry should 
 be taught by the oral-reading method because the values 
 are distinctly auditory, and can be fully appreciated only 
 through the ear. But the oral reading here again is mainly 
 a means to a more important end. 
 
 Social value of oral reading. Some place great weight on 
 the social value of oral reading. In the St. Louis Course of 
 Study in Reading we find the following statements in sup- 
 port of the social value of oral reading under the plan of a 
 reader and a reading audience with the same material: 
 
 There are elements of inspiration in community of attention; 
 there is a peculiar intensity hi community of interest; new facts 
 are added to the individual's insight by his being a part of a new 
 mind-of-the-group. To both the reader and the reading audience 
 a fuller conception of meaning results from the cooperation of the 
 eye and the ear. 
 
 An incalculable value, from the standpoint of social adjustment 
 and constructive social progress, accrues to the group from any 
 series of common experiences, especially those that enlarge the 
 area of mutual understanding and sympathy, and that tend to 
 establish a general acceptance of common standards of quality in 
 thought and motive. . . . The opportunity for intimate participa- 
 tion that is afforded to a class in reading meetings may therefore 
 be made to serve a significant social purpose, for the group and 
 for every individual in it, in strengthening their sense of harmony 
 and interrelation of thought and feeling, — an essential factor of 
 democracy. 
 
 The question arises as to whether these social values, de- 
 rived through community of attention, community of inter- 
 est, the new mind-of-the-group, intimate participation, etc., 
 are dependent upon oral reading. There are no doubt 
 situations in the reading instruction under which oral read- 
 ing may be a valuable means of realizing these social values. 
 However, we know that there is a great deal of reading 
 instruction under the oral-reading method wherein these 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 87 
 
 social values are not noticeable. The writer has also seen 
 silent-reading lessons in which these social values were very 
 obviously being realized. The social value of oral reading 
 depends upon the use made of oral reading, just as the social 
 value of any school activity depends upon the way in which 
 that activity is managed. Group audience reading has 
 large possibilities for socialized study and recitation periods. 
 Minor values of oral reading. Other values of oral read- 
 ing are its importance in the development of oral expression, 
 correct enunciation and pronunciation, in testing compre- 
 hension, in vocabulary development, and in developing 
 facility in, and improvement of the use of the voice. These 
 values are more important in the primary grades than else- 
 where. Oral reading is an important factor in developing 
 a silent-reading vocabulary as long as the pupil's spoken or 
 hearing vocabulary is greater than his reading vocabulary. 
 But for words which the individual meets for the first time 
 in reading, the experience of hearing these words in class 
 discussion or in separate vocabulary exercises, is^ a more 
 important one. The relation of oral reading to vocabulary 
 growth is further elaborated in Chapter VIII, in the section 
 dealing with vocabulary training. 
 
 General statement of aims and outcomes. The general 
 aims of reading instruction in the elementary school may be 
 summarized as follows: 
 
 1. To develop an ability to read the common types of 
 reading matter silently, at a fair rate and with a rea- 
 sonable quality of comprehension. Beading is pri- 
 marily a thought process, and from the very beginning 
 it should be done for the purpose of getting meanings. 
 The development of efficiency in reading involves the 
 development of the ability to grasp meanings in in- 
 creasingly larger units, the development of the ability 
 to read with a feeling of meaning and an appreciation of 
 values, and the development of discriminative reading. 
 
38 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 2. To develop an ability to convey meaning or feeling to 
 another person through oral reading. This is done 
 partly through the usual plan of oral reading in which 
 all the pupils of the class have before them the material 
 being read aloud consecutively, pupil by pupil. But 
 this aim cannot be adequately realized without a con- 
 siderable amount of audience reading. 
 
 3. To develop a taste for, and an interest in the best 
 types of reading material, and to develop a real appre- 
 ciation of literature suitable to the age of the pupil. 
 The highest ideals and aspirations of the race are given 
 best expression in the form of our classical literature. 
 Pupils should gradually be led to an interest in the best 
 in classical literature, as well as in the best of other 
 types of literature. 
 
 4. To provide an extensive vicarious reading experience 
 for all pupils, with provision for individual differences 
 in ability and tastes. This reading experience should 
 be in the nature of excursions into various fields of 
 interest, such as nature, history, biography, current 
 events, vocations, sports, etc. 
 
 5. To bring the pupils into contact, through reading, with 
 the great ethical ideals of behavior, such as persever- 
 ance, patriotism, honesty, love, beauty, etc. This is 
 not meant to involve the use of much didactic material. 
 The growth of ideals comes through experience. Read- 
 ing is an avenue through which the individual may 
 experience the highest aspirations and the deepest 
 struggles of the soul, in the past and in the present. 
 
 %. Problems op the Beginning Stage 
 
 By the age of six most children have reached the stage 
 where they desire to learn to read for themselves, but this 
 natural desire to learn to read may be crushed through dis- 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 39 
 
 appointment if the method of learning to read becomes 
 drudgery to the child. The old method of beginning with 
 the letters of the alphabet and meaningless combinations of 
 symbols was a laborious, slow process, resulting, in many 
 instances, in stultifying the pupils' natural enthusiasm to 
 learn to read and in forming very poor reading habits. One 
 of the main problems of the beginning stage is how to keep 
 the necessary attention to the mechanics of reading from 
 seriously interfering with thought-getting or interest in the 
 content. 
 
 Early primer methods. A great variety of beginning 
 methods have been used in primers. There are two leading 
 points to consider in selecting a method for the beginning 
 reading lessons. Shall we begin with the word method or 
 with the sentence method? What shall be the content of 
 the beginning lessons? Some primers begin with nursery 
 rhymes, others with a story or cumulative tale, while the 
 beginning lessons of other primers are about the objects, 
 activities, -and experiences in the child's immediate sur- 
 roundings. 
 
 Ten to fifteen years ago the beginning lessons in most 
 primers related to the child's immediate surroundings. 
 The lessons were about the dog, the cat, mamma, the baby, 
 or actions such as to run, jump, fly, and sing. Some of the 
 primers began with the single word, some with a phrase 
 expression, such as " Good-morning," and some began with 
 sentences of four or five words in length. The chief fault 
 of most of these primers was a mechanical repetition of 
 words in succeeding sentences, such as the following: 
 
 The kitty sees me. 
 Can you see the kitty? 
 The kitty can see the dog. 
 I like the kitty. 
 
 In many instances the reading lessons were of uninter- 
 
40 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 esting content, because of a lack of natural sequence of 
 thought from sentence to sentence and lesson to lesson. 
 There was unnatural repetition of words in a thought-set- 
 ting that was scrappy. 
 
 The next step in the development of primers was to begin 
 with some simple experience or activity in the child's imme- 
 diate surroundings, and, from a very simple beginning, to 
 develop a theme of interest running through a series of 
 lessons. The Riverside Primer begins with some very easy 
 reading of phrases in connection with a picture story of 
 finding a bird's nest. A series of lessons follows, developing 
 the story and activities of these birds. A much more natural 
 repetition of words and expressions is thus secured. Other 
 primers follow similar plans. 
 
 The simple-story primer. During the past ten years a 
 number of primers have been produced upon the theory 
 that the primer should contain only good literature, and 
 that interest will be more easily sustained through the use 
 of the simple folk-tale for the beginning lessons. The Read- 
 ing-Literature Primer is a very good one of this type. It 
 begins with " The Little Red Hen." The title of the story, 
 with an illustration of the hen, occupies the first page. The 
 story proper consists of eight pages, with an attractive illus- 
 tration toward the top of each. The final page is a review 
 lesson on the story. The preface to the Primer says: 
 
 Experience proves that all children are interested in and enjoy 
 the simple folk-tales. . . . Avoiding the long struggle through forced 
 interest, and devious byways of artificial methods, we start the 
 child at once into the realm of good, appropriate literature. 
 
 The test of this theory is whether the difficulty of the 
 reading is so great, and the progress in getting the story so 
 slow, that the children struggle in a laborious effort to 
 recognize the words and sentences and lose interest in the 
 story. It is interesting to note that in the Teacher's Manual 
 
ke. Hen Tou.nd ! 
 
 Tke Hen iouvicl a bap of <lour 
 
 Hen "fou.n< 
 
 Hen baQ ... U. 
 
 ba$ Hen • . b 
 
 found H en 
 
 1. The First Two Steps 
 
 - 
 
 
 
 p 
 
 baQ 
 
 \ound 
 
 ba.Q 
 
 To u. n d 
 
 lou.nd 
 
 ■ Hen 
 
 Tound 
 
 kaq 
 
 Hen 
 
 bi9 
 
 Hen 
 
 H<^, 
 
 , 'ound 
 
 Ken 
 
 ^39 
 
 Tound 
 
 2. The Third Step 
 
 The Hen to an J i ba^- 
 
 Ske Tound 1 ba $• 
 Sh-e+ried to carrv| il koTnC 
 Ske tried to Ciryy it ketselT- 
 Ske kernel i tried to car*^ it. 
 Tke Hen tried to ca^ it.' 
 Tke Hen Tried "to C^rrvj "tke. ba<6. 
 Tke Hen "tried to CdTtvj tke -flour. 
 TkeHentried to cirru W Inerserr 
 
 3. The Fourth and Final Step 
 PLATE IT. SAMPLE BLACKBOARD LESSONS 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 41 
 
 for this Primer a very slow procedure is outlined in detail. 
 By the end of the tenth lesson the pupils progress only to 
 the end of page five of the story. The teacher is left to de- 
 termine how many lessons to use to finish it. Imagine the 
 intense interest (?) the children would have in this story, 
 after laboring through it, sentence by sentence, for a period 
 of two or three weeks. 
 
 Other slow-approach primers. Other beginning books 
 constructed upon the same theory provide an equally slow 
 method in the Teacher's Manuals. The plan of work given 
 for the beginning lessons in Progressive Road to Reading is 
 as follows: 
 
 Order of Development 
 
 /. Oral Work: Development of Content. 
 
 (a) Telling of the story by the teacher. 
 (6) Conversation on the subject-matter of the story, 
 (c) Oral reproduction of the story by the pupil. 
 II. Blackboard Work: Establishing of Relations. 
 
 (a) Presentation and formal reading of the first sentence as 
 
 a whole. 
 
 (b) Recognition of words by position in the sentence. 
 
 (c) Recognition of words by comparison. 
 
 (d) Independent recognition of words. 
 
 (e) Drill in rearrangement of words. 
 
 III. Book Work: Reading of the Story as a Whole. 
 
 Blackboard steps in the Progressive Road to Reading plan. 
 The blackboard steps are illustrated in the three sample 
 blackboard lessons shown in Plate II. 
 
 Following the discussion of the blackboard work, the 
 Manual says : 
 
 When the child has gone over the entire story, sentence by sen- 
 tence, in the manner indicated, the book should be placed in his 
 hands so that he may read the story as a whole. 
 
 Imagine the relish with which the pupil would attack this 
 
42 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 story in the book after he has been given it piecemeal in 
 drill doses, a sentence to the lesson ! The plan for the Story 
 Hour Primer, somewhat similarly, provides for the reading 
 of three short stories in five weeks. , 
 
 Difficulty with the slow-approach type of primer. While 
 an occasional teacher may succeed in using the folk-tale for 
 the first series of reading lessons, it appears that the unit is 
 too long and the difficulties too many for the majority of 
 teachers to attempt to use this type of primer for the be- 
 ginning work. All three of the primers mentioned are very 
 good for use after the class has gained some facility in read- 
 ing, so the pupils can read the stories fairly rapidly without 
 preliminary rehearsal and drill. Appreciative reading of a 
 story or tale means a rather rapid reading of it. 
 
 The Mother-Goose type of primer. There is another 
 class of primers which use the Mother-Goose rhymes for 
 beginning material. The preface to the Natural Method 
 Primer, one of this type, contains the following statements : 
 
 This book consists almost entirely of nursery rhymes and of 
 sentences in which the words of these rhymes occur. 
 
 Nursery rhymes lend themselves admirably to work in the early 
 stages. Mother-Goose jingles and rhymes constitute the child's 
 introduction to .literature, and are the natural means by which the 
 child may be taught to read. 
 
 The following headings, taken from the first few pages of 
 the Manual, give an idea of the method to be followed in 
 using this book: 
 
 Lesson 1, Pages 1-4 
 
 A. B. C. 
 
 Tumble down D 
 
 The cat is in the cupboard, 
 
 And can't see me. 
 
 1. Recitation of the complete rhyme by the teacher. 
 
 2. Telling the story by the pupils. 
 
 3. Dramatization by the pupils. 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 43 
 
 4. Questioning to develop content. 
 
 5. Writing story on blackboard. 
 
 6. Recognition of new words. 
 
 7. Pupils read the story. 
 
 It will be seen that the short length of this unit gives it a , 
 distinct advantage for the beginning stage over the longer 
 folk-tales used in the primers previously mentioned. 
 
 A nursery-rhyme type of primer. The Merrill Primer, 
 another primer of this general type, begins with the follow- 
 ing rhyme: 
 
 See-saw! See-saw! 
 Here we go up and down. 
 See-saw! See-saw! 
 This is the way to town. 
 
 The two succeeding pages contain repetitions of the phrases 
 and sentences within the rhyme. The following are the 
 headings given in the Manual in the detailed discussion of 
 the beginning work: 
 
 Blackboaed Study of the First Group 
 
 Playing See-saw 
 
 The use of Picture and conversation; Learning the First Rhyme. 
 
 Playing the rhyme. 
 
 Learning the phrases. 
 
 Learning the words. 
 
 Sentences based on the rhyme. 
 
 Reviews; the vocabulary of Group I 
 
 After about forty words and phrases have been taught in 
 rhyme and story by using the blackboard, reading in the 
 book is begun. " The reading at first is merely the repeti- 
 tion of the rhyme with eyes following the printed words." 
 The following is the statement of the plan for lessons on the 
 two pages following the rhyme: 
 
 The teacher may, for variety, write a phrase or a word on the 
 
44 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 board and have the pupils find it on the printed page. Pages 6 and 
 7 (really 2 and 3 of the reading lessons), where the same phrases 
 and words are found, may be used in this way. On these pages, the 
 children may tell how many times they can find Here we go. How 
 many times they can find up and down. How many times they can 
 find down, etc. 
 
 Do not hurry over this work in the early lessons. Take time 
 enough to have the children comfortably sure that they can find lines, 
 phrases, and words on these early pages. Experience has shown that 
 the transition from blackboard work to the printed book is com- 
 paratively easy if the first lessons in the book are not hurried. 
 Children will enjoy going back and re-reading the stories several 
 times, because they enjoy their mastery of the printed page. 
 
 Take care that the children read by phrases and not by single 
 words, and that they read smoothly. Make no special effort at 
 expression in reading at this time. If the thought is clear to the 
 child he will express it sufficiently well. 
 
 Summary of conclusions regarding primers. We have 
 pointed out the change in character of the introductory- 
 reading matter that has taken place in primers for children, 
 and have shown that the general tendency of present-day 
 primers is to begin with either the folk-tale or the nursery 
 rhyme. The writer believes that the latter furnishes much 
 the better plan because of the shortness of the unit, and 
 because the children do not tire of the natural repetitions in 
 connection with the rhyme. 
 
 It is seen that in this plan the problem as to whether we 
 shall use the word or the sentence method has been solved 
 upon a middle ground. Professor Freeman, in discussing 
 this problem, says: l " We may therefore conclude that his 
 reading, as his speaking, should begin with words which form 
 the core of a sentence or an expression of thought." This is 
 substantially what is done in the Merrill Primer. The same 
 principle is followed in The Riverside Primer, which does not 
 
 1 Freeman, F. N. The Psychology of the Common Branches, pp. 73-74* 
 Houghton Mifflin Company, 1916. 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 45 
 
 begin with the rhymes, but begins with phrases in relation 
 to a story about three birds. The Summers Primer follows 
 the same principle, but begins with action words and 
 phrases such as, sing, run, jump; hop, run and jump; jump 
 and run, etc. In all three primers the repetition is a natural 
 one. The best practice will involve the use of all three 
 types of primers during the first few months, and the intro- 
 duction of the primers beginning with the folk-tales after the 
 pupils are able to read the first fifteen to thirty pages of 
 these three types of primers. 
 
 Relating introductory reading matter to the child's 
 environment. The tendency of present-day primers to use 
 rhymes and stories almost exclusively may lead to an in- 
 sufficient use of reading material relating to the child's 
 social environment. Recently a number of commendable 
 efforts have been made to supply the defect. The Nine- 
 teenth Yearbook (1920) of the National Society for the Study 
 of Education contains a number of such efforts, from among 
 which the following selections have been taken for repro- 
 duction here: 
 
 Reading Exercises based on Children's Experiences 
 1. Supplied by Miss Abbie A. Atwood, of Janesville, Wisconsin 
 
 (The Rock County Fair was held just previous to the opening of school. 
 The school utilized the children's experience in language exercises for two 
 weeks, including telling, dramatizing, and constructing. The result of 
 all this work was the reading material.) 
 
 THE FAIR 
 
 1. We went to the fair. 
 We saw some cattle. 
 We saw some kewpie dolls. 
 We threw balls to get them. 
 We saw an aeroplane. 
 It did tricks up in the sky. 
 
46 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 ICE CREAM CONES 
 
 2. We saw some ice cream cones. 
 A man sold them. 
 We bought some. 
 They cost ten cents. 
 Ice cream cones are good. 
 We like them. 
 
 THE HAND ORGAN 
 
 3. We saw a man and a monkey. 
 The man had a hand organ. 
 It made music. 
 The monkey danced. 
 We gave the monkey a penny. 
 He put it in his pocket. 
 He made us laugh. 
 
 THINGS WE UKED AT THE FAIR 
 
 I liked the Merry-go-round, 
 George liked the races. 
 Helen liked the kewpie dolls. 
 Teddy liked the whips. 
 Louie liked the ice cream cones, 
 Dorothy liked the band. 
 Roger liked the policeman. 
 
 Supplied by Miss Elisabeth M. Heil and Miss Clara A. Crawder 
 
 St. Louis 
 
 THE BALLOON RACE 
 
 We saw many balloons. 
 
 Some of them were up high. 
 
 Some of them were down low. 
 
 Some of them were far away. 
 
 Some of them were close. 
 
 They threw out sand to go up high 
 
 They let out gas to come down low. 
 
BEADING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 47 
 
 FIRE PREVENTION DAY 
 
 A fireman talked to us to-day. 
 He talked about fires. 
 He said fires burn many people. 
 He said fires burn sheds and houses. 
 He said not to play with matches. 
 He asked us to be careful. 
 
 3. A lesson following a presentation of a flag to a room 
 
 We see a flag. 
 
 It is red, white, and blue. 
 
 It is our flag. 
 
 It has red and white stripes. 
 
 It has white stars. 
 
 We love our flag. 
 
 It will wave and wave and wave. 
 
 4. Primary exercises from Lakewood, Ohio 
 
 LEAVES 
 
 We found some leaves this morning. 
 
 We found some maple leaves. 
 
 We found some oak leaves. 
 
 We found some catalpa leaves. 
 
 We made a book of leaves. 
 
 It is fun to make a book of leaves, 
 
 THE FARM 
 
 We played we went to the farm. 
 We saw some ducks. 
 We saw some chickens. 
 We saw some cows. 
 We saw some pigs. 
 (Nine other similar sentences) 
 The fanner's pets talked to us. 
 The duck said, "Quack, Quack." 
 The hen said, "Cluck, Cluck." 
 etc. 
 
48 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 BUBBLES 
 
 I like to blow bubbles. 
 
 The bubbles are round. 
 
 I blow bubbles with a pipe. 
 
 I dip the pipe in soapy water. 
 
 Then I blow a bubble. 
 
 I toss it into the air. 
 
 It flies away and bursts, j 
 
 OUR FAMILY 
 
 This is the mother. 
 
 This is the father. 
 
 This is the brother tall. 
 
 This is the sister. 
 
 This is the baby. 
 
 Oh, how we love them all. 
 
 Pupil initiative in beginning reading. The school often 
 fails to provide properly for the pupils' initiative in begin- 
 ning reading. A. E. Moore has given an account of an inter- 
 esting experiment in the use of children's initiative. 1 The 
 experiment was carried on with a small class in the kinder- 
 garten. The following is an outline of the reading activities 
 carried on: 
 
 1. Reading children's names in print on cards on back of kinder- 
 garten chairs and on lockers. 
 
 2. Reading names of colors on crayola boxes. 
 
 3. Matching names and colors. Similar puzzle matching involv- 
 ing recognition of words, phrases, and sentences. 
 
 4. Making and using signs in correlation with building projects 
 such as — For Rent, Bank, Keep Out. 
 
 5. Reading signs and notices — Rush, Please keep off the grass, 
 Cars stop here. 
 
 6. Printing by pupils of signs with small type-sets of price and 
 sign markers. 
 
 1 Moore, A. E. "Use of Children's Initiative in Beginning Reading"; 
 in Teachers College Record, vol. 17, pp. 330-43. 1916. 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 49 
 
 7. Making individual books, and matching pictures with phrases. 
 
 8. Matching Mother-Goose rhymes with picture illustrations. 
 
 9. Use of Mother-Goose books, especially the Greenaway Mothei 
 Goose. 
 
 10. Making Mother-Goose books, and matching pictures and 
 titles. 
 
 11. Beginning phonics by matching initials and names or titles. 
 
 In addition to the objective results in terms of the num- 
 ber of words learned, the value of the exercise of initiative, 
 the value of the recognition of the purpose of reading, and 
 the social value, are emphasized. The article offers a num- 
 ber of suggestions capable of use by beginning teachers to 
 utilize child initiative in a helpful manner. 
 
 Phonics. A summary of the best thought and practice 
 with reference to phonics is given in the Eighteenth Year- 
 book of the National Society for the Study of Education, and is 
 reproduced here by special permission: l 
 
 Independence in the recognition of words should be developed in 
 the early grades by means of word-study and phonetic analysis. The 
 practice is followed almost universally of conductifig~driirexercises 
 in which the basic words which have been presented in reading 
 exercises are learned to the point of instant recognition. Various 
 devices, such as flash-card exercises, finding given words in sen- 
 tences, phonetic analysis of words, etc., are employed. This pro- 
 cedure finds justification in the results of investigations which 
 have been made of the problem. Judd secured photographic 
 records of children's readings and made an analysis of the records 
 to determine the results of training. The pupils included in the 
 investigation had been trained largely according to the word or 
 sentence method, and were supposed to read primarily for mean- 
 ing. Instruction of this type had been supplemented by some 
 training in phonics. The pupils were selected with a view to 
 including the poorer readers and the better readers in each grade. 
 
 An analysis of the records showed clearly that pupils encoun- 
 tered difficulties in their reading, and that periods of evident con- 
 
 1 Gray, William S. Eighteenth Yearbook of the National Society for the 
 Study of Education, pp. 32-34. 
 
50 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 fusion occurred from time to time, as evidenced by the fact that 
 the steady forward movement of the eye was interrupted. These 
 complicated series of eye-movements exhibit a failure of recogni- 
 tion to follow its normal course, and suggest that the child was 
 exploring the letters in the words in order to recognize the word as 
 a whole. 
 
 The foregoing discussion can be translated into the terms 
 ordinarily used in describing school methods. The word method 
 begins with the assumption that the word is the natural first unit 
 of recognition. As the words become numerous and complicated, 
 the word method usually adds a plan of phonic analysis. The 
 motive of this added analysis is to help pupils to keep out of 
 periods of confusion. 
 
 Training a child in the analysis of words may very properly 
 be described as training him in the mechanics of reading. Purely 
 mechanical training is in an important sense in opposition to the 
 purpose of the school in its efforts to make good readers. The 
 school aims to reach the level of fluent synthetic grasp of phrases. 
 Mechanical training does, indeed, temporarily prevent the pu- 
 pil from understanding the meaning of passages. Mechanical 
 training would not. be justified if distractions could be avoided by 
 ready recognition of words. 
 
 The final conclusions of this phase of the study were that pupils 
 should be taught to read for content, that the word should be 
 accepted as the unit of recognition at the outset, and that analysis 
 or phonetic training should be- introduced later when it is needed 
 to keep the word units clear. 
 
 Phonetic analysis should be introduced in special drill periods 
 after pupils have begun to note similarities and differences in the 
 words which they have learned in reading exercises. It is the judg- 
 ment of the writer that detailed studies of words should be made 
 during drill periods set aside for this purpose. If such studies 
 are made during the regular reading period there is danger that 
 attention will shift from the content of what is read to the study 
 of individual words. If the basic training in the analysis of words 
 is given during drill periods, the information and skill thus se- 
 cured can be applied quickly and effectively during reading 
 exercises without withdrawing attention from the content of what 
 is read. 
 
 A number of progressive schools follow the practice of intro- 
 ducing phonics about the end of the second month of the first 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 51 
 
 grade. By this time the pupils have learned a limited reading 
 vocabulary and their attention has already been called to the simi- 
 larities and differences between such words as ran and can, cat and 
 sat, etc. In connection with the reading lessons the pupil notes 
 some of the familiar elements in the new words. A suggestion or 
 direction from the teacher leads him to a recognition of the new 
 words by combining familiar elements. After the pupil has met 
 with success a few times in the incidental study of new words he 
 is prepared, psychologically, to begin a systematic study of words 
 and their elements. If such studies are introduced with the first 
 reading lessons, the pupil does not have the background of facts 
 and intelligent interest in words which are essential if words are to 
 be studied quickly and effectively. 
 
 What phonic system should be used? This specific problem has 
 not received detailed attention in the literature of reading investi- 
 gations. It is, therefore, impossible to give a final answer to the 
 question. Effective results can be secured with almost any method 
 in use, as shown by the fact that there are representative schools 
 for each method which rank high as determined by current tests of 
 oral reading. Again, there are schools for each method which rank 
 very low. 
 
 In the selection of a phonic system there are two general consid- 
 erations which should be borne in mind: (a) the sounds of the 
 successive elements into which a word is divided should result in 
 a natural and accurate pronunciation of the word when the sounds 
 of these elements are combined; (b) the system of analysis which is 
 used should be so organized that the habits developed in the anal- 
 ysis of short words in the lower grades will aid rather than inter- 
 fere with the accurate analysis of longer words when they are en- 
 countered. 
 
 The danger in phonic drill is over-emphasis in the early 
 stages of learning to read. The predominant emphasis in 
 method in the beginning stages of teaching reading should 
 be on the recognition of words and word-groups, rather than 
 with word-forms, and phonetic analysis should be introduced 
 later as a key and to help keep word units clear and under- 
 standable. 
 
52 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 8. The Oral-Reading Stage 
 
 The primary stage an oral-reading stage. During the 
 primary stage of reading, which comprises the first and 
 second and probably the third grade, oral reading is the 
 natural method. " The child brings to the reading class a 
 fully developed mastery of many sounds and their meanings. 
 As soon, therefore, as a pupil recognizes the pronunciation 
 of a word, its meaning is suggested to him by its sound." l 
 In the general statement of aims it has been indicated that 
 oral reading has some value as an end in itself. The pri- 
 mary stage of reading is the logical stage for the child to 
 learn to read orally. Until the pupil's rate of silent reading 
 overtakes and passes his rate of articulation, oral reading is 
 a valuable preliminary development in the formation of the 
 proper eye-movement habits in reading. The oral reading 
 gives the teacher a rough index of the sort of eye-movement 
 the child is using. If the pupil is a slow, laborious reader, 
 we know that he is making too many eye-pauses, and it is 
 very important that he increase his speed of oral reading. 
 If he has a habit of repeating, photographs of his eye-move- 
 ment would probably show periods of regression and con- 
 fusion. This habit must be broken up through practice in 
 quick recognition of words and phrases, and through in- 
 sisting that the pupil read each sentence without repetition 
 before proceeding to the next. 
 
 Rate in oral reading. An important aim in the primary 
 grades, therefore, should be to develop an ease, smoothness, 
 and fluency in oral reading. Most teachers do not recog- 
 nize rate as an important element in oral reading. Gray's 
 studies in connection with surveys in several of our large 
 cities, involving the definite measurement of the rate of oral 
 
 1 Gray, William S. " Principles of Method in Teaching Reading, as 
 Derived from Scientific Investigation"; Eighteenth Yearbook of the National 
 Society for the Study of Education, part n, pp. 26-45. 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 53 
 
 reading of large numbers of pupils, show that there is a wide 
 variability in the oral-reading rates of pupils in the same 
 half grade. Of course it is not expected that all pupils in a 
 class will read orally at the same rate. But all pupils who 
 are considered as doing successful work in oral reading 
 should read at a rate that ensures the development of the 
 proper eye-movement habits. There should, of course, be 
 none of the racing type of oral reading. 
 
 Errors in oral reading. Gray has formulated l the follow- 
 ing analysis of types of errors in oral reading: 
 
 1. Gross mispronunciations, which include such errors in pro- 
 nunciation as indicate clearly that the word is too difficult 
 for the pupil to pronounce. 
 
 2. Minor mispronunciations, which include the mispronuncia- 
 tion of a portion of a word, wrong accent, wrong syllabica- 
 tion, omission of syllable, etc. 
 
 S. Omission of words. 
 
 4. Insertion of words. 
 
 5. Repetition of words or groups of words. 
 
 6. Substitution of one word or group of words for another. 
 
 Sight errors which do not change the meaning of the 
 sentence or give erroneous ideas of pronunciation had better 
 be overlooked by the teachers, in order not to develop too 
 great a word consciousness. 
 
 Expression of the meaning. While pupils should read 
 with correct emphasis and with adequate expression of the 
 meaning and feeling, there has probably been a tendency to 
 over-emphasize " reading with expression." When this is 
 over-emphasized, it tends to develop a stress and strain in 
 the pupil's reading which leads to a lack of ease and fluency. 
 It is important from the beginning to avoid having the 
 pupils form the habit of word-reading. If the pupil reads 
 with the proper expression of meaning, he will group the 
 
 1 Report of the St. Louis School Survey, vol. n, part 2, p. 1$8. 
 
54 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 words into thought units, rather than merely call the words 
 one by one. This is called proper phrasing in oral reading. 
 Pointing with the finger, which the pupils do naturally in 
 the early stages of reading in order to help the eye keep the 
 place, is favorable to word-reading. In the beginning stage 
 of reading in the book, the pupils should be supplied with a 
 strip of paper or cardboard, about an inch wide, to place 
 under the line being read to aid the eye in keeping the place. 
 In the first half of the first grade the pupils should be taught 
 to look through the whole of a short sentence before attempt- 
 ing to read it orally, and then read it as a whole or by groups 
 of words. The first-grade reading must necessarily be more 
 deliberate and consequently slower than in later stages. 
 Consequently the sentences should be short. As the child 
 gains in facility in reading, the sentences become longer 
 and the rate gradually increases. Reading with meaning 
 necessitates the proper grouping of words in reading, which 
 means a higher rate of eye-movement and of oral reading 
 than occurs in reading which consists in the mere calling 
 of words. 
 
 The main problems of the second and third grades. By 
 the time the child enters the second grade he has learned to 
 read a vocabulary of a few hundred words, has gained some 
 ability in working 'out new words, and can read independ- 
 ently, with a fair degree of ease and fluency, simple, interest- 
 ing material. But he recognizes only individual words at a 
 single fixation of the eye, rather than a group of words. 
 Important problems of the second and third grades are to 
 increase his easily recognized vocabulary, develop his 
 analytical power of working out new words, develop habits 
 of eye-movement that will enable him to recognize a group 
 of words at a single eye-pause, and provide conditions 
 favorable to the rather rapid increase in his rate of oral 
 reading which comes naturally following the first year. 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 55 
 
 One of the best means for accomplishing all of these out- 
 comes is to provide an abundance of interesting and whole- 
 some reading material. 
 
 Two types of oral reading. It is well to differentiate oral 
 reading into two types in order to aim for specific outcomes 
 in the development of reading power. Many good teachers 
 use the more difficult advanced material for the reading 
 work of the forenoon, and the easy long units for more rapid 
 sight-reading in the afternoon. In the first type of work the 
 procedure is more deliberate. More time is spent in dis- 
 cussing problems and meanings, attacking difficulties, cor- 
 recting errors, re-reading, and considering the content in 
 a more intensive fashion. The pupils make preliminary 
 preparation so that the recitation is a second going-over 
 of the material. Literary material that requires careful 
 scrutiny, " that repays thoroughness of study and discus- 
 sion, that challenges thought, arouses emotion, and vitalizes 
 ideals," would of course be taught under this first type of 
 procedure. Poetry would be taught by this method except 
 without preliminary preparation by the pupils. 
 
 Under the second type of procedure the pupils do not 
 read the material previous to the recitation. The material 
 is easy. The pupil is carried along by his interest in what 
 is coming next in the story. The reading proceeds more 
 rapidly because there are fewer difficulties, less deliberation, 
 less discussion. Each pupil has opportunity to read a 
 larger amount orally. This type of reading is favorable for 
 the development of the proper eye-movement habits in 
 reading. The pupil gains an ability to recognize a group of 
 words instead of merely one word at a single pause of the 
 eye. The pupil is getting an extensive type of experiential 
 reading which it is impossible for him to get if all of the oral 
 reading is of the slow, thorough type. 
 
 Under the first type he is developing power to meet and 
 
56 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 overcome difficulties, learning to analyze and synthesize, 
 increasing his vocabulary through deliberate consideration 
 of new words, and receiving experiential reading of the 
 deliberative type needed in all forms of careful reading. 
 The first trains for the study type of reading. The second 
 trains for the rapid recreative type of reading. Both are 
 needed. Skill is required of the teacher to be able to select 
 the material best adapted to each. 
 
 Phrase-flashing. A drill exercise that has been found 
 helpful in developing the power to recognize a group of 
 words at a single eye-pause, to lengthen the span of atten- 
 tion during a fixation of the eye, is phrase-flashing. The 
 following are some sets of phrases and short sentences that 
 have been formulated and used in one school: 
 
 The boy began 
 
 |j The dog ran 
 
 to walk 
 
 into the yard 
 
 to cry 
 
 in the yard 
 
 in earnest 
 
 out of the yard 
 
 to jump 
 
 through the yard 
 
 in bed 
 
 into the house 
 
 to laugh 
 
 around the house 
 
 etc. 
 
 etc. 
 
 The boy walked. 
 
 Walk to the chair. 
 
 The horse ran. 
 
 Run to the chair. 
 
 A bird sang. 
 
 Run to the door. 
 
 The frog jumped. 
 
 Walk to the window, 
 
 A boy jumped. 
 
 Move the chair. 
 
 The boy rode. 
 
 Move the desk. 
 
 etc. 
 
 etc. 
 
 The manipulation of the flashing is very important, and 
 very difficult to do to the best advantage. One way is to 
 have the phrases printed on strips of thin stiff cardboard, 
 about four inches by eighteen inches. The letters should be 
 about an inch high. The printing can be done with a 
 rubber-stamp outfit by one skillful in handling it. The 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 57 
 
 important thing in flashing is to effect a very short exposure 
 at a stationary position, in proper position with reference to 
 the pupils' eyes. This may be accomplished by placing a 
 cardboard about ten by eighteen inches in front of the set 
 of phrase-cards, and exposing the phrase-card immediately 
 above the screen card. In exposing the card the teacher 
 must be careful that the lower edge is parallel to the floor, 
 and that the card is vertical with the floor rather than tilted 
 back toward the teacher. The pupils should see the phrase 
 in stationary position instead of in motion. The exposure 
 should be only instantaneous, as a single eye-pause is only a 
 small fraction of a second. The idea is to allow time for 
 only one eye-fixation. If it is possible to have a stand for 
 the flash-cards to rest on, all of these conditions may be 
 fulfilled by removing the screen card from in front of the 
 card to be exposed and replacing it immediately. In many 
 schoolrooms the blackboard ledge will serve the purposes of 
 a stand. 
 
 The drill period for phrase and short-sentence flashing 
 should be brief, and should occur two or three times a week. 
 The slow, laborious readers should be given drill of this type, 
 while the other pupils are permitted to read for pleasure. 
 Games may easily be devised to make the drill a pleasure to 
 the pupils. 
 
 Audience reading. Audience reading should begin in the 
 first grade. Most of the reading work of the primary 
 grades is done by having all the members of the class have 
 the same material before them. It is difficult if not impossi- 
 ble to have the pupils feel a real audience situation under 
 this condition. After the child has gained some facility in 
 reading, he should have experience in reading material to 
 the class which the class does not have in hand, in order 
 to develop a consciousness on the part of the child that the 
 ultimate function of oral reading is to read something to 
 
58 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 somebody. It is very natural for the child, if he does not 
 have experience in reading under a real audience situation, 
 to develop habits which entirely overlook the idea of con- 
 veying the content of the reading matter to some one. We 
 realize this later when we have a pupil attempt to read 
 something to the class. The proportion of the audience- 
 reading to the non-audience reading should be gradually 
 increased from grade to grade. Detailed methods and 
 devices for audience reading are given in the chapter on 
 "Audience Reading." 
 
 4. Silent Reading 
 
 Certain points with reference to silent reading in the first 
 two grades should be emphasized here. 
 
 First grade. While the primary grades constitute pri- 
 marily an oral-reading stage, the use of the silent-reading 
 method should be introduced toward the middle of the first 
 grade, and its use gradually increased. The easiest way to 
 begin the silent-reading work is through the use of action 
 sentences, such as " Roll the ball." In this type of work the 
 child does not read the sentence orally. He reads it silently, 
 and then does what he thinks the sentence says. There are 
 a number of primers which have lessons of this type, but 
 unfortunately, teachers have not generally recognized the 
 advantage of differentiating the handling of these lessons 
 by omitting the oral reading. Even when these lessons are 
 headed " For Silent Reading and Acting," most teachers 
 use the oral-reading procedure. Material for this type of 
 reading is given in Chapter VII. 
 
 Second grade. In the second grade the teacher should 
 begin to get a rather definite measure of the pupil's rate of 
 silent reading, and of his ability to comprehend what he has 
 read without the assistance of oral reading. The Barnes 
 Second Reader provides definitely for both, and the Teacher's 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 59 
 
 Manual gives the detail as to how to use the silent-reading 
 lessons. The riddle and the fable are the types of material 
 used in these lessons. Kendall and Mirick say: 
 
 There should be frequent exercises in silent reading, not followed 
 by oral reading, but by spirited questioning that does not go too 
 much into detail. Its aim is to bring out the salient points, to 
 make sure that the silent reading has given a grasp of the selection 
 as a whole. 1 
 
 In the volume just quoted from above, the authors say, 
 regarding habits of study: 
 
 The work that a pupil does at his seat is no less important than 
 what he does in class. The habits of study formed in these early 
 years will certainly either help or retard his future student life. 
 The teacher must not be misled into the belief that the pupils will 
 naturally apply in their study the good methods of work that are 
 employed in the recitation period. . . . The teacher will then need 
 to teach the pupils how to set tasks for themselves. Some of the 
 following suggestions may be helpful: 
 
 Make a list of new words Tell how many incidents it con- 
 
 Of the people in the story tains 
 
 Of words hard to pronounce Compare it with another story 
 
 Of words hard to spell and give reasons for preferring 
 
 Of places in the story one or the other 
 
 Of birds, flowers, or trees Tell which person you like best, 
 
 Suggest a different title for the and give reason 
 story 
 
 Extensive reading in the second and third grades. In 
 the second and third grades, in addition to the silent reading 
 the pupils do, for specific purposes, during study and recita- 
 tion periods, they should do a considerable amount of silent 
 reading merely for the pleasure of it. This may be done 
 during the spare time in school and at home. Each room 
 should be supplied with a miscellaneous set of easy, attrac- 
 tive reading books for this purpose. Both from the stand- 
 
 1 Kendall and Mirick. How to Teach the Fundamental Subjects, pp. 31-32. 
 Houghton Mifflin Company, 1915. 
 
60 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 point of developing the proper reading habits and abilities, 
 and from the standpoint of providing valuable educational 
 experience, there should be considerable amounts of rapid 
 extensive reading during these grades. 
 
 Emphasize comprehension. Comparison of results in 
 Cleveland and St. Louis show clearly that there is danger in 
 over-emphasizing agility in reading difficult material aloud, 
 without the proper emphasis upon the comprehension of 
 what is read. 1 Scientific studies, as well as the experience 
 of teachers, indicate that it is not an uncommon thing for 
 facility in phonetic analysis and articulation to outrun 
 comprehension. These facts emphasize the importance of 
 gradually increasing the time devoted to reading instruction 
 under silent reading methods in the second and third grades. 
 But under both methods the " thought getting " process 
 must be continually emphasized. On this point the St. 
 Louis Course of Study in Reading says : 
 
 Indeed it should be a specific purpose of the third grade as well 
 as of the second grade to make pupils unwilling to leave a passage 
 that is not comprehended. Too much emphasis cannot be laid 
 upon the principle expressed earlier in this report, that the habits 
 formed in the first reading experience, and the set of the mind 
 toward the act and purpose of reading, must be right from the 
 start. 
 
 The too-slow group. The St. Louis Course of Study in 
 Reading contains the following suggestion, regarding one 
 type of pupil, which is worthy of careful consideration and 
 application: 
 
 The small group of slow readers needs to be taken care of early. 
 The teacher should carefully choose parts for them to read that 
 contain a minimum of difficulties, and they should be given much 
 practice, under the direction of good readers of the class, in reading 
 
 1 Gray, W. S. " Study of Emphasis on Various Phases of Reading 
 Instruction in Two Cities"; in Elementary School Journal (November, 
 1916), vol. 17, pp. 178-86. 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 61 
 
 stories of less difficulty than belong to their grade and quarter. 
 The slow readers must not be fighting obstacles at every step; 
 they must be given content that they can handle with reasonable 
 independence. This, of course, means that the slow group needs 
 some minutes that will be devoted particularly to them. The 
 rapid readers need not be penalized to listen; they may well be 
 rewarded by being allowed to go off to read silently for their own 
 pleasure. 
 
 Silent reading for pleasure and for home recreation should be 
 encouraged. Exercises in silent reading, as suggested in Appendix 
 A on that subject, should be a part of every week's program in the 
 third grade. The main purpose of these should be neither memory 
 nor speed, but selection and organization of meaning in progres- 
 sively larger units. 
 
 Increasingly larger thought units. In the beginning stage 
 of reading the sentence-word is the thought unit adapted to 
 the ability of the pupil. Gradually we increase the length 
 of the sentence. In the second grade the paragraph is the 
 unit of thought. In the third grade the pupil should be able 
 to divide the whole selection into groups of paragraphs. 
 The pupils should be encouraged to look for the important, 
 the large thought in what he reads. The silent reading and 
 discussion of the story as a whole aids the child to conceive 
 the story in its larger units, rather than in haphazard, broken 
 fragments, as so often occurs in the usual oral-reading 
 method. 
 
 The detailed methods, devices, and lesson illustrations for 
 primary silent reading are given in later chapters on silent 
 reading. 
 
 Vocabulary. While reading should always be for pur- 
 poseful thought-getting, it is fundamental that the child 
 acquire an ability to recognize words and groups of words 
 easily and quickly. The Riverside Primer and First Reader 
 set a standard, with reference to the recognition of words, 
 by listing in the back of each book a " Fundamental 
 Vocabulary " of one hundred words, which all first-grade 
 
62 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 pupils are to be able to recognize. There should be a list 
 of this kind for each half grade, and the pupils should occa- 
 sionally be tested upon the ability to recognize the words 
 with facility. Kendall and Mirick l set the following 
 standards of vocabulary attainment: 
 
 It may be said that by the end of the third grade children who 
 are not hampered by their customary use of a foreign language 
 ought to be able to read nearly everything within the range of their 
 individual or related experience. This would mean that they will 
 have a reading vocabulary of about one thousand words, and an 
 ability to read much that contains scattered words outside their 
 vocabulary. 
 
 The Jones vocabulary standards are discussed in the 
 chapter on " Tests." 
 
 PROBLEMS FOR STUDY AND DISCUSSION 
 
 M 
 
 1. List four values of oral reading in order of importance. 
 
 2. In most school systems, there is a much larger percentage of non- 
 promotions in the lower first grade than in any other half grade. 
 Why is this? To what extent can you justify it? To what extent is 
 it due to reading standards that are too high? To what extent is it 
 due to a course of study in reading that is not sufficiently adjustable 
 to individual differences? 
 
 8. Why is oral reading more necessary in the lower grades than in other 
 grades? 
 
 4. Formulate a plan for testing the oral reading of a class that would 
 give a reasonably accurate general estimate of the oral-reading 
 achievement of each pupil and that would be economical in the time 
 required. How often should the second- and third-grade classes be 
 tested in oral reading? 
 
 5. What do you consider to be the most important aim of the reading 
 instruction in the grade you teach or contemplate teaching? 
 
 6. Give two illustrations of material suitable for each of the two types 
 of oral reading described on page 55. 
 
 7. State the main reason usually advanced in opposition to phonetic 
 analysis and drill in the first two grades; the main reason in favor of 
 
 1 Kendall and Mirick. How to Teach the Fundamental Subjects, pp. 
 33-34. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1915. 
 
READING IN THE PRIMARY GRADES 63 
 
 systematic phonic teaching in these grades. Which has the greater 
 weight with you? 
 
 8. In the light of the discussion on primers, evaluate the primer or 
 primers used in your school in the beginning reading lessons. 
 
 9. Discuss special ways of meeting individual or group needs that will 
 realize the maximum development of the forward, the average, and 
 the backward pupils. 
 
 10. Criticize the general statement of aims and outcomes on pages 37-88. 
 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 TEACHING READING IN THE INTERMEDIATE AND 
 UPPER GRADES 
 
 1. In the Intermediate Grades * 
 Radical change in method. The fourth grade should be 
 radically different in the method of handling the reading 
 instruction from that characteristic of the second grade. 
 While in the primary grades the oral-reading method pre- 
 dominates, in the middle grades the silent-reading method 
 should predominate. The justification for this change of 
 emphasis is well stated by Dr. William S. Gray 2 as follows: 
 
 A first-grade pupil is able to pronounce words more rapidly than 
 he is able to recognize them, but during the second and third 
 grades his rate of recognition equals or surpasses his rate of pro- 
 nunciation. By the time the pupil reaches the fourth grade, he has 
 mastered the art of reading well enough to use it independently. 
 The result is that he begins to read more rapidly than during the 
 earlier grades. He becomes interested in the content of what he 
 reads, and, because his vocal chords react somewhat slowly, his 
 eyes run along the lines more rapidly than he can pronounce the 
 words. It is evident that under these conditions speed in recogni- 
 tion becomes an enemy of excellence in oral reading. These facts 
 justify the contention that less emphasis should be given to oral 
 reading during the intermediate grades and greater opportunity 
 should be given for the development of effective habits of silent 
 reading. Further justification for this change of emphasis is found 
 in the fact that a fourth-grade pupil of average ability has usually 
 mastered the mechanics of reading so well that he is able to pro- 
 nounce at sight words which he is unable to understand. When- 
 
 1 At this point the reader should review the discussion of the values of 
 oral reading and the general statement of aims and outcomes as given in 
 the first part of Chapter III. 
 
 2 Elementary School Journal (April, 1919), vol. 19, p. 609. 
 
READING IN THE INTERMEDIATE GRADES 65 
 
 ever a pupil has reached this stage in his development, additional 
 mastery of word pronunciation is less important than increased 
 mastery of meanings. These meanings are best secured by the 
 pupil's coming in contact with words and sentences time after 
 time until a body of meaning is built up in regard to them. A large 
 quantity of reading with emphasis on the thought side, such as 
 was recommended for the second and third grades, aids greatly in 
 the development of meanings. The change of emphasis from oral 
 reading to silent reading in the intermediate grades gives added 
 opportunity for concentrating attention on the content of what is 
 read. 
 
 Again, the curves of progress for rate of silent reading reveal the 
 fact that progress in rate of reading is very rapid in the second and 
 third grades, is less rapid in the intermediate grades, and ap- 
 proaches a maximum in the sixth and seventh grades. Numerous 
 investigations of progress in reading show that by the time pupils 
 reach the sixth grade their habits of careful silent reading have 
 been more or less permanently established. It is evident, therefore, 
 that the intermediate grades represent a period during which the 
 rate of reading may be emphasized to advantage. If rate is not 
 emphasized until later, it is probable that improvement in rate, if 
 secured at all, will be attained only through the expenditure of 
 much more time and effort than is required during the intermediate 
 grades. 
 
 Emphasis on content and major values. Along with the 
 change from the oral- to the silent-reading method will come 
 increased attention to the content of what is read. This 
 will involve attention to the major thoughts of the unit as a 
 whole, and consideration by sections and paragraphs. The 
 middle grades, being largely free from the obligation in 
 relation to oral reading, have increased opportunity and 
 obligation in the interpretation of the content read. 
 
 The plan used in some reading texts of listing difficult 
 words, with definitions at the beginning or end of the selec- 
 tion, tends to mechanical memorization of definitions and to 
 isolated consideration of word-meanings in the recitation. 
 The consideration of the meaning of individual words, with- 
 
66 SILENT AND OKAL READING 
 
 out any relation to a problem or to the interpretation of the 
 content, is altogether too common. Skillful teachers are 
 learning how to frame problems and exercises which involve 
 a scrutiny of individual words in relation to a larger purpose. 
 
 Word-study. While the primary grades develop pho- 
 netic analysis, the intermediate grades should develop 
 an ability to analyze words into their meaning elements. 
 There should be a study of prefixes, suffixes, root words, 
 synonyms, and antonyms. The purpose of teaching 
 phonics in the lower grades is to give the child a means of 
 working out the pronunciation of words the meaning of 
 which he already understands. It has been noted that 
 facility in pronunciation may easily outrun comprehension 
 of meaning. While pupils should gain a facility in recogniz- 
 ing the meaning of words through the context, they should 
 also be given the means of working out the meanings of 
 unknown words through analysis of the meaning elements, 
 and through the economical use of the dictionary and other 
 helps. In the middle grades there should be a systematic 
 study of words in relation to meaning, as there is a syste- 
 matic study of phonics in the primary grades. Just as the 
 phonics should be taught in a separate period, and applied 
 by the pupils in their reading, so should the word-meaning 
 study be taught in a period separate from the reading 
 period. A certain amount of exercises in spelling and 
 language will help in the development of a feeling of mean- 
 ing for a large vocabulary. Special exercises in connection 
 with vocabulary development in reading are given in 
 Chapter VIII. 
 
 Extensive reading. In order to develop the proper back- 
 ground of meaning, there should be extensive reading of all 
 types of material that give the child valuable experience. 
 The traditional point of view in relation to the reading 
 course for the middle and upper grades has been to have. 
 
READING IN THE INTERMEDIATE GRADES 67 
 
 a few well-selected units studied intensively, with oral 
 rendition following minute analysis. The point of view 
 now coming to be more generally accepted is to have large 
 amounts of reading done in these grades, to provide the 
 pupil with a vicarious type of experience, to develop effi- 
 cient reading habits, and to develop the habit of reading for 
 recreation. The new St. Louis Course of Study in Reading 
 contains the following paragraph: 
 
 Every sort of literature is proper to these years — epic stories of 
 adventure and romance, ancient and modern, the great mythic 
 cycles, lyric poetry, drama, Bible selections, general prose litera- 
 ture including biography, history, romantic fiction, appreciation 
 of nature, animal tales, stories of industrial development and 
 of industrial heroes — everything of a significant import. There 
 should be very much in the course for extensive reading, covering 
 a great variety of interests, fitted for rapid perusal and fairly easy 
 grasp of idea, whose spirit or story or information may be caught 
 as a whole, and appreciated and critically scrutinized as a whole. 
 Much of it, with a content that repays thoroughness of study and 
 discussion, that challenges thought, rouses emotion, and vitalizes 
 ideals, should be subjected to intensive study. 
 
 In his book, The Curriculum, 1 Professor Bobbitt devotes 
 a chapter to " Reading as a Leisure Occupation." He says: 
 
 The readings from the beginning to the end of the course, to the 
 end of life itself, need to be as wide and varied as earthly life and 
 to give an adequate revelation of all major types of human experi- 
 ence, in all portions of the world, and with such historical per- 
 spective as is needed for each of the various regions. 
 
 He enumerates four types, as follows: 
 
 1. First it will present a revelation of man in his present dis- 
 persion over a diversified planet: travels, geography, ethnol- 
 ogy, descriptive sociology, anthropology, etc. 
 
 2. A second series of readings will construct the historical back- 
 
 1 Bobbitt, Franklin. The Curriculum. Houghton Mifflin Company, 
 1918. 
 
 » 
 
68 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 ground: biography, travels (during past ages), history, 
 memoirs, evolutionary sociology, etc. 
 
 3. A third type will reveal the essential nature and relation of 
 things: science readings, mathematical, physical, biological, 
 sociological, technological, etc. 
 
 4. A fourth type of reading is literature, in the narrower sense. 
 It aims to present anything that happens to be chosen as its 
 theme. Clearly literature is not coordinate with the others. 
 It cannot be separated from them. 
 
 The following paragraph, also by Professor Bobbitt, gives 
 a stimulating conception of extensive geographical reading: * 
 
 Let us note some of the more detailed implications, beginning 
 with the geography. In the primary and intermediate grades, in 
 addition to the widest practicable direct observations, there will 
 be stories about things that make up the world in general. Much 
 must be oral; but beyond the first grades most of the stories will be 
 read. The book-trade is rapidly providing suitable books. Here 
 are a few titles taken at random: Little Folks of Many Lands, 
 Eskimo Stories, Around the World, The Wide World, Big and Little 
 People in Other Lands, The Dutch Twins, The Japanese Twins, 
 Little Journeys to China and Japan, Travels in Scotland, Gerda in 
 Sweden, etc. The more literary the stories can be, in the sense of 
 presenting a true and clear and interesting reconstruction of life 
 and its background in the various regions, the better for the edu- 
 cational experience. The readings offered at present have largely 
 been developed in an educational age of didacticism and fact- 
 memorization, and are often so freighted with information that 
 they do not reconstruct life so that it can be visualized, and re- 
 lived in imagination. Many books, however, particularly the more 
 recent, have avoided the pitfalls and fallacies of didacticism. 
 They simply present interesting stories that comply with literary 
 canons. They give no appearance of an attempt to be "inform- 
 ing." They are presented upon the sane theory that if children are 
 permitted to enter vividly into the life of a country and view con- 
 ditions as they are, they will have intelligence enough to see the 
 things that are there, and to carry away a sufficient residuum of 
 memories. 
 
 Training in silent reading and study. The Gray curves i 
 
 1 Bobbitt, Franklin. The Curriculum, p. 231. Houghton Mifflin Com- 
 pany, 1918. , 
 
READING IN THE INTERMEDIATE GRADES 69 
 
 of progress for silent-reading attainment in rate indicates 
 that the pupil's silent-reading rate is fairly well fixed by the 
 end of the sixth grade and that improvement after this time 
 usually is effected with a greater expenditure of time and 
 energy than before. According to Gray, the intermediate 
 grades is the period during which the largest emphasis 
 should be placed upon training exercises in developing speed 
 and improving comprehension. SpecfaTlnethods and de- 
 vices f oTsTTclTTr ainlrig are given in Chapter VIII. S 
 
 In view of the fact that the middle grades may constitute 
 the critical period in the development of efficient silent- 
 reading habits, it is highly important that the attainments 
 of the pupils in silent reading should be regularly checked 
 up by the use of standardized reading tests, and by tests 
 formulated by the teacher in connection with material at 
 hand. Careful study of the results of these tests will aid 
 the teacher materially in planning the reading instruction 
 for the greatest benefit of all her pupils. 
 
 Individual differences. The use of scientific tests have 
 emphasized the wide individual differences in reading 
 achievement. It is common to find the fastest readers in a 
 class reading silently four times as fast as the slowest ones. 
 We find the same wide variation in the comprehension 
 scores. The individual differences are much more marked 
 in the middle grades than in the upper grades. How shall 
 class instruction deal with these differences? Are we justi- 
 fied in holding together in a single class pupils so widely 
 separated in rate or quality of reading? Shall we substi- 
 tute individual instruction in reading for class instruction? 
 Judd says : l 
 
 There are vast individual differences in pupils. There is also 
 the practical necessity of dealing with pupils in groups. The prob- 
 
 1 Reading: Its Nature and Development, Supplementary Educational 
 Monographs, vol. n, no. 4, p. 175. 
 
70 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 lem is how to recognize individual needs and at the same time 
 economize effort by working with groups. The solution of this 
 problem will be found only when analysis of the process which is 
 being taught reveals those aspects which are common to all the 
 members of the class and those which must be dealt with indi- 
 vidually. When analysis has brought out these distinctions, it is 
 the duty of the school so to organize its instruction as to provide 
 for both class instruction and individual instruction. There can 
 be little doubt that teaching in groups has been overdone. Indi- 
 vidual instruction based on analysis of individual performances is 
 called for as one of the most important innovations to be worked 
 out in the schools. Individual instruction, when it is properly 
 worked out, will not be a chance concession to personal caprice, 
 but a systematic analysis of individual performances followed by 
 an adaptation of instruction to individual levels of achievement. 
 
 Reclassification on basis of individual needs. The 
 teacher of a room of two classes will find, through careful 
 observation and testing, that each class contains different 
 types of readers who vary widely in reading achievement. 
 Each will contain the slow reader who comprehends poorly, 
 and the fast, careless reader. Each will contain the fast 
 reader who is excellent in comprehension, and the medium- 
 rate reader who is good in comprehension. For a part of 
 the reading instruction the most practical thing to do would 
 be to rearrange this room of forty to fifty pupils into two, 
 three, or four groups, according to types of readers as de- 
 termined by scientific tests and the teacher's personal 
 knowledge of the pupils. Then each group could be given 
 material of a difficulty suited to its ability and interest. 
 Methods of instruction could be varied to suit the needs of 
 the specific group. Special cases of extreme backwardness 
 in reading would best be taken care of in an ungraded room, 
 if this is possible. Some schools have reported good results 
 from having the best silent readers act as individual teachers 
 of the poorer ones. 
 
 Oral reading. A relatively small proportion of time in 
 
READING IN THE INTERMEDIATE GRADES 71 
 
 the intermediate grades should be devoted to oral reading. 
 Some poetry, chiefly in the form of ballads or narrative 
 poetry, such as " Horatius at the Bridge," should be taught 
 by the oral-reading method. In the case of the very slow 
 silent readers in these grades, phonetic analysis and oral 
 reading will be found helpful in developing proper eye- 
 movement habits. There should be some audience reading 
 in each term's work. In these grades, wherever possible, 
 there should be a real audience situation in connection with 
 the oral reading. A very good rule to follow in these grades 
 is not to have the material read orally unless you have a 
 good specific reason for the oral reading. In connection 
 with long units used for silent reading, it is advisable to 
 have pupils choose funny parts, witty sayings, climaxes, 
 most interesting paragraphs, etc., to read to the remainder 
 of the class as audience reading. 
 Summary on intermediate-grade work in teaching reading. 
 
 1. The two leading aims in reading instruction in the 
 intermediate grades are to bring the rate and com- 
 prehension in silent reading to a high level of efficiency, 
 and to provide large amounts of vicarious experience 
 through extensive silent reading. 
 
 2. An abundance of material of a great variety of types, 
 covering all phases of life, full of action and spirit, 
 should be provided for extensive silent reading. 
 
 3. A variety of effective methods should be employed to 
 center attention upon the content during the study 
 time, as well as during the class period. 
 
 4. Special silent-reading training exercises should be used 
 with the class as a whole, and with special small groups, 
 for the purpose of bringing the rate and comprehen- 
 sion of every individual to the highest level possible. 
 
 5. There should be systematic lessons outside of the regu- 
 lar reading lessons, to develop ability to determine the 
 
72 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 meaning and pronunciation of words through word- 
 analysis and the use of appropriate helps. 
 
 6. The greater part of the oral reading should be organ- 
 ized about real audience situations that provide suf- 
 ficient motive to secure effective effort. Narrative 
 poetry appeals to pupils of these grades, and should be 
 studied and read orally as pleasurable experience. 
 
 7. Tests in rate and comprehension in silent reading 
 should be given regularly to determine both the level 
 of achievement of the class and of each pupil, and to 
 aid the teacher in working out better means of classi- 
 fying and instructing the pupils in accordance with 
 their needs. 
 
 2. In the Fpper Grades 
 
 The problems of reading in the upper grades (seventh, 
 eighth, and ninth) in some respects are similar to those in 
 the intermediate grades. It is not uncommon to find 
 pupils in these grades who are two or three years below the 
 standard in silent reading. The slow, laborious readers are 
 still in evidence. It will still be necessary to have training 
 exercises, but, if the reading instruction in the intermediate 
 grades has been properly done, this phase will not need as 
 much time as in the preceding grades. 
 
 Speed development in the upper grades. It has already 
 been noted in Chapter II that, according to Mr. John A. 
 O'Brien's study, there are large possibilities of speed de- 
 velopment in the upper grades. His conclusions with 
 respect to this important point are as follows: l 
 
 1. Marked increases in rate can be effected in the upper grades 
 
 1 O'Brien, John A. "The Development of Speed in Silent Reading"; 
 in the Twentieth Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education. 
 Public School Publishing Company, Bloomington, HI., 1921. 
 
READING IN THE INTERMEDIATE GRADES 73 
 
 when speed in reading is set as a definite problem for the 
 pupils. 
 
 %. When training in rapid silent reading is given to pupils not 
 previously trained therein, the increase in rate tends in a gen- 
 eral way to advance pari passu with the advance in the grade; 
 the higher the grade, the greater is the increase in rate. 
 
 3. As compared with the gains which can be readily effected 
 by systematic training in rapid silent reading, the increases 
 ordinarily obtained in rate in the upper grades are so small 
 as to indicate a condition almost pathological in character. 
 They constitute a serious indictment of the present school 
 regime in the teaching of reading, with its grotesquely mis- 
 placed emphasis on oral reading and its utter neglect of 
 reading in the true sense of the term — the silent interpreta- 
 tion of the printed symbols. 
 
 txper/meff/n/ Grvuo. 
 
 Coafro/ Grov/7. 
 
 Pig. 11. O'Brien's Graphs showing the Average Gain in Rate for 
 Grades IV to VIII, as determined by the Courtis Silent-Read- 
 ing Test ^ 
 
 Fig. 11 illustrates Mr. O'Brien's conclusion that the 
 higher the grade the greater the possibility of speed develop- 
 ment. This increase in speed was obtained without any 
 impairment of comprehension. It should be noted, how- 
 
74 , SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 ever, that checks on comprehension accompanied the speed 
 exercises. The speed development attained was measured 
 by the pupil's rate of reading very easy narrative material. 
 
 Variability in reading attainment within upper grade 
 classes. If one of the leading aims of reading instruction 
 in the intermediate grades, to bring the rate and compre- 
 hension in silent reading for all pupils to a high level of 
 efficiency, has been effectively carried out, the variability 
 of attainment in the upper grade will not be as great as in 
 the intermediate grades. But all the studies reported show 
 that, under present conditions in the schools in general, we 
 have widely separated levels of reading attainment in most 
 any upper-grade class. To attempt to have a large group 
 of pupils with marked individual differences in reading 
 attainment use the same reading material under the same 
 method of instruction will inevitably result in discouraging 
 results. On the basis of the scores of two or more stand- 
 ardized tests and of the teacher's judgment, the pupils of 
 a room should be classified into three or more groups and 
 each group given material and training in accordance with 
 its level of attainment. More detail as to how to make 
 these special groupings is given in Chapter X. 
 
 Extensive silent reading. In his chapter on " Reading," 
 Professor Bobbitt says, 1 in describing the reading work of 
 the grammar grades: 
 
 For the grammar grades, it is the same world-pageant that is to 
 be observed by way of further deepening and extending their 
 understanding and sympathies. They too will read accounts that 
 permit them adequately to visualize life in its totality in the vari- 
 ous lands. These are to be selected for their more mature under- 
 standing, however, and should reveal a wealth of details and rela- 
 tionships not possible on the earlier levels. The stories require for 
 effectiveness in the reconstructions the same types of literary 
 
 1 Bobbitt, Franklin. The Curriculum, pp. 233-34. Houghton Mifflin 
 Company, 1918. 
 
READING IN THE INTERMEDIATE GRADES 75 
 
 merit; and absence of didacticism. If children do not acquire this 
 habit of world-wide observation of human affairs during school 
 days when the instincts are most fully awake as a healthy and 
 satisfying leisure occupation, they are not likely to continue it 
 during the years of adulthood. It is this continuance at which 
 education should principally aim. This is immeasurably more 
 important at this period than the memorization of deciduous 
 information. But it will take care of the information, — and on 
 the sound presumption that most of it normally is deciduous. 
 Let them develop their appreciations and their habit of world- 
 observation as a satisfying leisure occupation, and the amount 
 of genuine information they will have on tap will be enormously 
 increased. And when they need other information they know how 
 to acquire it expeditiously. But let them during grammar grades 
 simply be dosed with didactic facts, then when adulthood is 
 reached, they will neither have the facts remembered, — except 
 where the learning was accidently experiential, — nor those habits 
 of observation of world-wide affairs which should constitute the 
 most important non-physical leisure occupation of adulthood. 
 
 What shall be the criterion for choosing literary units? 
 In recent years there has been a growing tendency for read- 
 ing texts for the upper grades to consist almost entirely of 
 classical literature, drawn from the writings of American 
 and English authors. In opposition to this point of view, 
 the writer just quoted says : l 
 
 Now for developing the leisure occupation here discussed, the 
 literature to be selected is that which will give the widest and full- 
 est and most effective possible revelation of the world sCs a whole 
 in its multifarious divisions and aspects. Any selection will be 
 chosen not upon the basis of literary form or structure; or nation- 
 ality of the writer; or language in which he originally wrote; or of 
 the age in which he lived; or recency of the selection; or fame of 
 the author. It is simply a question of whether it presents a clear 
 window through which one can look out upon existence. If it does 
 not, then it matters not how famous the author, or how difficult 
 the selection, or what the wealth of footnotes, it cannot be good 
 for the purpose here defined. 
 
 " Ibid, pp. 237-38. 
 
76 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Acceptance of this latter purpose must work profound trans- 
 formation in both spirit and content of the literature curriculum. 
 Selections will be chosen for their content-value. They will aim 
 at the greatest possible width of vision, historical perspective, and 
 depth of insight. The curriculum will draw upon the literatures 
 of all lands. 
 
 The purpose demands catholicity of theme. The literature 
 should reveal war, personal adventure, love, brigandage, philan- 
 thropy, religion, travels, poverty, family life, commerce, agricul- 
 ture, industry, transportation, government, the struggle with 
 nature and with disease, conflicting social classes, the labors of 
 science and technology; and the other major ingredients of human 
 existence. As literature rings the changes upon these things for 
 different historical periods and in different portions of the world, 
 its field is interminable and presents material for a rich and satis- 
 fying lifelong leisure occupation. It is the business of early edu- 
 cation to start youth upon this inspiring program; to bring him to 
 love it as he loves the simpler visual drama upon the stage or 
 screen; to develop habits in this field that are satisfying and per- 
 manent for the intellectual illumination of a lifetime. 
 
 The problems of difficulty and amount. The most com- 
 mon current method of teaching literature in these grades 
 is a slow, laborious process of minute analysis and explana- 
 tion. This is due partly to the fact that too difficult selec- 
 tions are oftentimes provided. Chubb says: 
 
 If much labor on words, constructions, allusions, and so forth 
 (those precious minutiae) is much needed in order that a work may 
 be understood, then it is mischosen for the grade. l 
 
 Bobbitt says: 
 
 As a matter of fact, reading should be easy, rapid, interesting, 
 so that much ground will be covered within the available time and 
 also, so that it can be done chiefly because of inner motives. . . . 
 Any selection that is so difficult as greatly to impede progress 
 thereby proves that it belongs on a later level. The way to make 
 
 1 Chubb, Percival. The Teaching of English. The Macmillan Com- 
 pany, 1902. 
 
READING IN THE INTERMEDIATE GRADES 77 
 
 reading easy and rapid and pleasant is to have much reading from 
 the first grade onward; an ever increasing quantity from grade to 
 grade.' 
 
 Kendall and Mirick say: 
 
 Some books should be allotted one period for discussion; others 
 call for two or three periods; but few, if any, books or poems will 
 return a profitable yield for an expenditure of eight or more 
 lessons. 
 
 Readings in community and national life. One of the 
 main problems in the grammar or junior-high-school grades 
 is to provide material for the reading course that appeals to 
 the early adolescent's changing view of life, that appeals to 
 the idealism of the adolescent, that develops his awakening 
 interest in social, civic, and occupational problems, and that 
 can be read with sufficient ease and rapidity that the ex- 
 perience is an enjoyable one. Classic material in the sense 
 of making a universal appeal should be used, but not ex- 
 clusively. The pupils should develop a permanent interest 
 in reading and discussing current events. Current litera- 
 ture and selections bearing on modern social and civic 
 problems and on topics of vocational interest should consti- 
 tute a part of the reading course in the upper grades. Read- 
 ing material on personal and social hygiene, accident pre- 
 vention, fire prevention, food and fuel conservation, indus- 
 trial developments, and other community problems, may 
 legitimately claim a share of the program reading time. * 
 
 Oral reading. There is more justification for oral reading 
 for social and recreational purposes in the early adolescent 
 period than in the preceding period. The group instinct 
 characteristic of this period makes favorable the entertain- 
 
 1 In 1918 the National Bureau of Education published the following: 
 Lessons in Community and National Life: Series B, for Upper Grades, 264 
 pp. ; Series C, for Intermediate Grades, 264 pp. Price 15 cents a copy, each. 
 These may be obtained from the Superintendent of Documents, Wash- 
 ington, D.C., and will be found very helpful for supplemental work. 
 
78 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 merit of one group by another group through dramatic and 
 other forms of audience reading. Larger uses can be made 
 of poetry in this period than in the preceding one. But 
 since poetry is a more difficult form of reading than prose, 
 it is very important to select units that can be read with 
 sufficient ease to ensure genuine enjoyment. Oral reading, 
 however, should constitute a minor phase of the reading 
 instruction in these grades. 
 Summary on upper-grade work in teaching reading. 
 
 1. The problem of the development of speed and com- 
 prehension continues into the upper grades, although, 
 if the reading instruction in the intermediate grades 
 has been effectively done, the proportional time de- 
 voted to this aim will be less than in the intermediate 
 grades. 
 
 2. Much extensive silent reading, of relatively easy 
 material of well-recognized worth in giving the pupils 
 a "wide observation of human affairs " and in de- 
 veloping high ideals and worth-while interests, should 
 be done by all upper-grade pupils. 
 
 3. For the upper-grade pupils who have attained a rea- 
 sonably high level of rate and comprehension, there 
 should be increased opportunity for experience in 
 enjoying literary material with catholicity of theme 
 drawn from the great literatures of the world. The 
 upper-grade period has increasingly greater possi- 
 bilities in the study of poetry. 
 
 4. The group instinct characteristic of the early adoles- 
 cent period increases the opportunities of realizing the 
 social values of oral reading. Considerable of the oral 
 reading should involve a real audience situation. But 
 the oral-reading type of recitation should be given a 
 minor portion of the total reading recitation time of 
 any upper-grade group. > 
 
BEADING IN THE INTERMEDIATE GRADES 79 
 
 5. In selecting material for upper-grade groups caution 
 should be used not to select material too difficult for 
 the mental and reading attainment levels of the group. 
 
 PROBLEMS FOR STUDY AND DISCUSSION 
 
 1. Discuss special types of classification for meeting individual or group 
 differences in reading ability. 
 
 2. What do you consider to be the three most important aims of the 
 reading instruction in the intermediate grades? In the upper grades? 
 
 3. What are the essential conditions necessary to real audience situations 
 in oral reading? Is it sufficient merely to have the pupils close their 
 books while one pupil reads orally his section of a selection previously 
 read by the class? 
 
 4. Examine a course of study in reading for a particular grade and 
 determine to what extent it fulfills the content requirements indicated 
 in this chapter. Consider its provision for material: (a) for audience 
 reading; (b) for training in silent reading; (c) for reading of the exten- 
 sive type; (d) for intensive literary study; (e) for individual reading; 
 (/) for special group reading. 
 
 5. Choose five selections from readers or from courses of study that you 
 think are too difficult for the grade for which they are listed. 
 
 6. Discuss the fundamental reason for a radical change from the tradi- 
 tional oral-reading method above the primary grades. 
 
 7. Give specific illustrations of pupils not being able to succeed in school 
 subjects other than reading on account of poor reading ability. 
 
 8. About what portion of the program reading time in the intermediate 
 grades should be devoted to poetry? In the upper grades? 
 
 9. Discuss the proposal that, in the intermediate grades, there should 
 be systematic study of words in relation to meaning, in short periods, 
 separate from and independent of the regular reading lesson. 
 
 10. Compare the aims of reading instruction in the intermediate grades 
 with the aims in the upper grades and note differences. 
 
 11. Evaluate O'Brien's conclusions with reference to the development of 
 speed in the upper grades. 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 APPRECIATION AND MEMORIZATION 
 1. Developing Appkeciation 
 
 Why we have failed in awakening appreciation. Appre- 
 ciation of literature as one of the leading aims in reading 
 instruction is probably more often given than any other. 
 Yet it is continually being seriously questioned whether the 
 schools are developing the proper emotional attitude to- 
 ward reading. The question naturally arises, Why have 
 our schools so often failed to develop appreciation? The 
 following answers to this question may be given: 
 
 1. There has too often been a lack of genuine apprecia- 
 tion by the teachers themselves of the best in classical 
 and current literature suited to the tastes and inter- 
 ests of the pupils. 
 
 2. The usual slow procedure of minute analysis and oral 
 reading of all the material has tended to bring about a 
 dislike for reading and an unfavorable attitude of 
 mind toward literature. Miss Earhart says: 1 "In 
 literature we frequently limit our efforts to following 
 the thread of the thought, to getting the pronunciation 
 and meaning of words, and to training in oral reading. 
 ... If nothing more than this is done, much of the power 
 of the pupils to appreciate will remain dormant." 
 Teachers in the intermediate and upper grades, as a 
 rule, have failed to utilize oral reading to the best 
 advantage because they have had all the material 
 
 1 Earhart, Lida B. The "Arousal and Guidance of Appreciation," 
 chap, x, of her Types of Teaching. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1915. 
 
APPRECIATION AND MEMORIZATION 81 
 
 read aloud, instead of only those parts essential to 
 appreciation. 
 
 3. There has been too great an appeal to the intellectual 
 faculties of memory, judgment, and criticism, and too 
 little stress upon the values of human life, its virtues, 
 ideals, trials, and struggles, as portrayed through the 
 printed page. Teachers have too often failed to con- 
 ceive reading as experience " lifting the individual 
 human consciousness to the highest potential of human 
 feeling. " There has been too much attention to con- 
 structions, classification of parts of speech, and other 
 matters of form and too little emphasis upon the 
 essential content values. 
 
 4. Effort has been wasted in trying to force adult litera- 
 ture and adult standards upon children. Very often 
 the reading provided in the middle and upper grades 
 has been too difficult, both in content and in vocabu- 
 lary. This has inevitably led to the errors in method 
 enumerated above. 
 
 5. What has been accomplished has been due largely to 
 the enthusiasm and intuitive wisdom of the naturally 
 superior teacher. Teachers have not been instructed 
 in the psychology and pedagogy of appreciation. Only 
 in recent years has the term " appreciation lesson" 
 been discussed in educational literature. The need 
 of rationalizing the teacher's method in developing 
 desired attitudes of mind toward reading is an impor- 
 tant one. 
 
 The nature of appreciation. Charters says: 1 
 
 The purpose, or function, of teaching is to assist pupils to appre- 
 ciate and control the values of life. ... To appreciate means to 
 estimate properly. . . . We are well acquainted with appreciation 
 
 1 Charters, W. W. Methods of Teaching, 1912 ed., pp. 9 and 21. Row 
 Peterson Company. 
 
82 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 as implied in ideals. . . . Literature is said to have its chief value 
 in giving children such ideals. 
 
 Strayer and Nors worthy say: * 
 
 Appreciation belongs to the general field of feeling rather than 
 knowing. . . . Appreciation involves the presence of some intel- 
 lectual states, but its addition makes the total complex of an 
 emotional rather than a cognitive nature. . . . Appreciation is an 
 attitude of mind which is passive, contemplative. . . . The indi- 
 vidual is satisfied with it. This puts appreciation in the category 
 of recreation. Appreciation then always involves the pleasure 
 tone, otherwise it could not be enjoyed. 
 
 Appreciation of social values. The conception of reading^ 
 as experience emphasizes the importance of stressing the 
 value and needs of human beings, both as individuals and | 
 as members of society. From the first grade on, in the read- 
 ing lessons, we ought not to fail to cultivate social apprecia- j 
 tion on "the basis of lofty motives, persistent effort, hard- j 
 ships overcome, and suffering nobly borne." In order to \ 
 develop this social appreciation, we need to choose reading 
 material for the pupils from the whole human drama, ; 
 representing a great variety of life situations in all parts of | 
 the world. The children need to experience a great deal of t 
 this reading, much as we witness a play upon the stage, the ( 
 reading being done with ease, rapidity, and pleasure. 
 
 Appreciation of aesthetic values. In a piece of literature j< 
 
 we may appreciate the thought or feeling expressed, the | 
 
 idea, the story, or the act, or we may appreciate the way in i> 
 
 which it is told, the fine choice of words, the fluency and ' 
 
 ease of style, the delightful musical qualities of the poem, jj 
 
 We may differ with Woodrow Wilson in his political ideas, !i 
 but all agree that he has a remarkable style in his state 
 papers. Poe's purpose was to produce an effect rather than 
 
 1 Strayer and Norsworthy. How to Teach, chap, vra, pp. 126, 127. The 
 Macmillan Company, 1918. — ~ 
 
 ': 
 
APPRECIATION AND MEMORIZATION 83 
 
 to express a thought. If we have been properly taught, we 
 cannot fail to appreciate the musical characteristics and the 
 skillful choice of words that he uses to produce the particu- 
 lar effect desired. ^Esthetic appreciation of good taste, 
 beauty, and the pleasurable effect of form can be more 
 effectively developed through experience than through too 
 much intellectual analysis of the underlying technique. 
 One school reports excellent results from allowing a fifth- 
 grade class to sing Scott's poems. 
 
 Appreciation of the humorous. When we reflect upon 
 the kinds of humor that the average individual in life appre- 
 ciates, the importance of the school in developing apprecia- 
 tion of the right sort of humor and wit is clear. The reading 
 instruction provides the best opportunity for utilizing and 
 directing the child's natural liking for the humorous. An 
 interest in reading may sometimes be aroused through this 
 element in literature when all other means fail. Every 
 term's work in reading should contain one or more selections 
 in which the essential element is the humorous. Such a 
 unit generally will be best appreciated by the pupils merely 
 by their being allowed to enjoy it. Problems may be set, 
 the discussion of which will involve the humor of the selec- 
 tion. For an example of this kind see the lesson in Chapter 
 VII on " How I Killed a Bear." The great danger is that 
 teachers will impose needless tasks upon the pupils, which 
 will hinder enjoyment. The oral reading of selected por- 
 tions will bring out humor under a community of attention 
 which individuals missed in their independent reading. 
 At other times a rapid silent reading in the recitation-lesson 
 will best cause the class to catch the spirit of the humor. 
 It is most important that the teacher realize that the essen- 
 tial element of the selection is the humor, and plan the 
 reading procedure so as to center attention upon that. 
 Miscellaneous audience reading, as described in Chapter V, 
 
•84 . SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 furnishes an excellent opportunity for the teacher to guide 
 the pupils in selecting commendable jokes and witticisms. 
 
 Appreciation of nature. There is always danger of carry- 
 ing correlation to absurd lengths. However, much may be 
 done in the reading lessons to arouse an interest in the 
 beauties of nature and in the enjoyable observation of 
 nature phenomena, as well as to develop appreciation of the 
 literature of nature. This may best be done by developing 
 a feeling for the spirit that animates the author, rather than 
 by centering attention upon information. Here again the 
 teacher's purpose must concentrate upon the large values 
 of the reading matter. The material used must be full of 
 the spirit of a lover of Nature in close communion with her 
 many-sidedness and her changing moods, and at the same 
 time be written in a style that appeals to the child as a child 
 rather than as an adult. Wherever the material reveals the 
 music of Nature, it should be read orally. 
 
 General method for the appreciation lesson. The 
 method for the appreciation lesson can hardly be reduced 
 to a formula. In general, there are three phases that are ! 
 fairly constant: (a) an initial large view; (6) analysis into I 
 essential elements; (c) a final perspective view of the whole. 
 Applying this to a reading lesson, it will mean that the j 
 selection will be read through from the beginning to the end, I 
 without interruption, to get the general theme or spirit of j 
 the unit. In some cases this should be done by the pupils | 
 during study time, and in some cases the selection should be 
 read orally to the class by the teacher. The second step 
 involves a consideration of the unit more in detail, with a ! 
 problem or problems as the basis of analysis and reclassifica- 
 tion. During this step any obstacles to a clear compre- 
 hension of the meaning of the material or appreciation of 
 its spirit are cleared away. ^Finally, there is a perspective ! 
 view of the unit as a whole. This may simply be a final 
 
APPRECIATION AND MEMORIZATION 85 
 
 reading of the poem to the class by the teacher, or by some 
 good pupil reader. It may be a final consideration of the 
 essential point of view, value, beauty, or ideal portrayed in 
 the selection, or it may be a recapitulation of experience 
 through dramatization. 
 
 General suggestions as to developing appreciation. The 
 following suggestions as to methods and plans may prove 
 helpful to teachers: 
 
 1. While an adequate knowledge is helpful toward appre- 
 ciation, ov er-analys i s is fatal to emotional enjo yment. 
 It is not necessary to know the meaning of every wbrcl 
 in order to appreciate a piece of literature. It is 
 better to determine the essential points and let the 
 rest pass. 
 
 2. " The best preparation for the teacher who feels that 
 her teaching is inadequate in those phases of her work 
 which involve appreciation is to plan to do what she 
 can to ensure her own growth in this particular. Read 
 more poetry, and especially read it with those who 
 derive great pleasure therefrom, if you wish to teach 
 poetry better." 1 The spirit of the emotional attitude 
 must be caught rather than taught. 
 
 3. In so far as there is attention to the technique of liter- 
 ary types and structures it should be clearly only a 
 means to a better understanding and appreciation of 
 the major content values. For the average person, 
 " literature is a thing to be experienced, not to be 
 studied; to be used, not to be analyzed; to be pleasur- 
 able experience motivated from within, and not tasks 
 arbitrarily imposed from without. " 
 
 4. A particular unit of reading matter should be read at a 
 rate similar to the rate that would be used in a typical 
 
 1 Strayer, George D. A Brief Course in the Teaching Process, chap. VII. 
 Macmillan, 1911. 
 
86 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 life situation. We read a book of fiction or a drama at 
 one sitting or within a few days. This gives a better 
 perspective view than is possible under the laboriously 
 slow reading typical of the school. The average 
 person's reading is largely for recreation. Qualities 
 characteristic of recreation should predominate in the 
 appreciation reading lesson. 
 
 5. It is necessary that teachers have clearly in mind 
 wherein lies the essential value of the unit. For the 
 Mother-Goose rhymes and poetry suited to the pri- 
 mary grades it is in the beauty of sound and form. 
 They are therefore suited for auditory experience and 
 memorization. The story makes its appeal through 
 the content, and its ordered arrangement in plot 
 and narrative. Consequently it may be experienced 
 through being heard or through silent reading, and 
 reexperienced through telling. The value of Warner's 
 " How I Killed a Bear " is in the humor. The value 
 of " Horatius at the Bridge " lies in the heroic act told 
 in a forceful manner. In the " Gettysburg Address " 
 Lincoln's simple but forceful appeal to the living to 
 complete the unfinished task of saving the Union has 
 made it a classic. It is useless for a teacher to attempt 
 to impart appreciation until she has determined 
 definitely the essential worth of the unit. 
 
 Cautions. 
 
 1. Avoid raising the critical attitude for the time. 
 
 2. Do not expect rapid growth in appreciation. 
 
 3. Do not attempt to develop appreciation for a unit 
 of literature which you do not genuinely appreciate 
 yourself. 
 
 4. Do not force children to give expression to the feeling 
 awakened. 
 
APPRECIATION AND MEMORIZATION 87 
 
 2. The Teaching of Poetry 
 
 A lesson on a poem is classified as an appreciation lesson. 
 Applying the general method of this type of lesson to the 
 poem, we have three main steps. 
 
 A perspective view of the whole. It is important that the 
 first impression be pleasurable and vivid. It may be neces- 
 sary to pave the way for the most effective attitude of mind 
 by a preparatory step. This may be done in either of 
 several ways: 
 
 1. By getting before the pupils the setting, through 
 questions and discussion. 
 
 2. By relating an incident or information essential to the 
 understanding of the poem. 
 
 3. By setting a problem to serve as a specific purpose for 
 securing a high degree of attention. 
 
 4. By exhibiting a picture or other concrete illustration 
 of the poem. 
 
 This preparatory step should be brief and to the point. 
 In the first five or six grades, and sometimes even above 
 this, the pupil's first impression of the poem should be from 
 the teacher's reading to the pupils, without the text before 
 them. There are two reasons for this. The literary values 
 of the poem are essentially auditory. Poetry is a more diffi- 
 cult form of reading than prose. In the upper grades the 
 perspective view may be a rapid silent reading of the whole 
 during study-time, especially with the longer units, such as 
 Miles Standish. Not until the sixth or seventh grade is it 
 advisable, as a rule, to have the pupils study the poem 
 preparatory to the recitation. 
 
 Excellent preparatory discussions for poems for each 
 grade may be found in The Teaching of Poetry in the Grades, 
 by Halliburton and Smith. Excellent accounts preparatory 
 to the presentation of poems for the four upper grades are 
 
88 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 given in the series of Readers entitled, Studies in Reading, 
 by Searson and Martin. Good brief preparatory para- 
 graphs and problems are given preceding the poems in The 
 Boys' and Girls' Readers, by Bolenius. Valuable illustra- 
 tions are given in the newer sets of readers. Those in the 
 Riverside Readers and the Natural Method Readers are very 
 good. The illustrations in the Jessie Willcox Smith edition 
 of the Mother Goose Rhymes are excellent for mounting or 
 framing. Some primary teachers use these by placing one at 
 a time above the blackboard as the rhymes are taught, and 
 using them as helps in recalling the rhymes. 
 
 Study by parts. In studying the poem by parts it is often 
 best to consider it in terms of thought units. In the 
 " Daisies," by Frank Dempster Sherman, each pair of lines 
 constitutes a thought unit. In " Where the Boats Go,'* by 
 Stevenson, each stanza answers a question, as follows: 
 
 Stanza 1, How does the river look? 
 Stanza 2, What is floating on the river? ~" 
 Stanza 3, Where is the river going? ^ 
 Stanza 4, What will happen a hundred miles away? 
 
 In some cases the analysis of the poem may be made in 
 terms of a problem. The following are some good prob- 
 lems. 
 
 "A Valentine," by Laura Elizabeth Richards. 
 
 Draw and color a little valentine that would suit this poem. 
 "Somebody's Mother." 
 
 Tell the class how you would arrange the poem as a moving 
 
 picture. 
 "A Riddle," by Hannah More. 
 
 After you have guessed this riddle, take each line separately 
 
 and show that it is true. 
 1 "The Bells," by Edgar Allan Poe. 
 
 List the four kinds of bells, and list under each four words 
 
 well chosen to express the effect characteristic of the bell. 
 
APPRECIATION AND MEMORIZATION 89 
 
 "The Pied Piper of Hamelin," by Robert Browning. 
 
 In preparation for dramatizing, decide upon how many scenes 
 
 will be needed and the stage-setting for each. 
 "Herve Riel," by Robert Browning. 
 
 For effective oral reading of the first stanza we should express 
 
 sympathy and terror. What should be expressed in reading 
 
 each of the other stanzas? 
 "The Children's Hour," by Longfellow. 
 In the picture in the Reader be able to identify each child. 
 
 During this analysis step any parts or words, the meaning 
 of which is not clear, would be explained. In some cases it 
 will be advisable to have the pupils consult the dictionary, 
 or the glossary in the reading text. But Chubb's caution in 
 this respect is needed: 
 
 Beware of the dictionary : let it be a Iastj-esort. Use it as little 
 as possible; there is no magical virtue in it. Encourage the habit / 
 of getting at the meaning of a word through the c ontext, which is \ 
 far more important than a habit of facile dictionary' hunting. 
 Few words have fixed values anyhow; they take complexion from 
 the company they are in. 1 
 
 The treatment of the poem by parts may be done in a 
 variety of ways. A part may be read silently by the pupils, 
 interpreted, details cleared up, related to the whole, and then 
 read orally by some pupil. Or the oral reading may be 
 deferred until the poem has been considered in detail, and 
 then the whole read aloud. In other cases it may be best 
 for the teacher to read the stanza or other division orally, 
 as the pupils read it silently, and have the pupil's oral 
 reading following the detailed analysis. It is appropriate 
 here again to cautionjigamst over-analysis. Be sure that 
 the essentials getTInto the foreground of llie child's con- 
 sciousness as the principal values to control in studying a 
 poem. 
 
 1 Chubb, Percival. The Teaching of English, p. 169. The Macmillan 
 Company, 1902. 
 
 \ 
 
00 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 A new experience of the whole. The final step in an 
 appreciation lesson should be one of synthesis. The first 
 step was a rapid survey of the whole. The second step was 
 an analysis of the details in relation to major values. The 
 last step is the opposite of analysis. Too often the last step 
 is omitted altogether. Other times it is a dreary review 
 without an element of newness. This third step, then, 
 should be synthetical and experiential, and should contain 
 sufficient new procedure and content to be impressive. In 
 some cases it might be a final oral reading or singing of the 
 whole. In another case it might be the dramatization of 
 the poem on the basis of the analysis made in the second 
 step. In other cases it might be the statement of the solu- 
 tion of the problem. It might consist in memorizing and 
 reciting the poem. The summarizing of the essential values 
 of the poem under a new organization might constitute the 
 final step. The important thing is for the teacher to deter- 
 mine the final step according to the nature of the particular 
 poem. 
 
 It is not possible in this treatment to give detailed illustra* 
 tions of model lessons. Excellent ones for each grade may 
 be found in The Teaching of Poetry, by Halliburton and 
 Smith. Excellent lists of poems by grades are given there 
 also. 
 
 3. Memorization 
 
 Method in a memorization lesson. Probably the most 
 common method used in helping a class or pupil to memorize 
 a poem is to have one line or stanza repeated several times 
 and then recited, then to have the next line or stanza re- 
 peated and recited, and so on through the poem. This is an 
 inefficient method, not in accord with the psychology of 
 memory or with the findings of experimental teaching. We 
 are all familiar with the experience of the boy who comes to 
 
APPRECIATION AND MEMORIZATION 91 
 
 the end of a stanza in recitation and can go no farther. 
 This is because the connection between parts has been very- 
 poorly made in the method used in memorizing. 
 
 Close association of meanings. All writers emphasize 
 the importance of closely associating in the pupil's mind 
 the ideas of matter to be memorized. Memorizing a poem 
 should be a very thoughtful procedure. Conscious memo- 
 rizing naturally follows the thinking process. The first 
 impression affects materially the pupil's interest in the poem, 
 and his effort in remembering it verbatim. The vividness of 
 the first experience may be heightened through the prepara- 
 tory step discussed under the teaching of a poem. The 
 pupil's first contact with a poem should be under a high 
 degree of attention and a feeling of pleasure. It is best to 
 present the poem in terms of the principal thought units. 
 The details under each of the major ideas should be developed 
 in the order in the poem. Tying the larger thoughts to- 
 gether helps the pupil to comprehend and appreciate the 
 poem as a whole, and aids recall. The meaning elements 
 need to be referred to when an attempt to recall is failing. 
 The commonly used method described in the preceding 
 paragraph fails to utilize association of meanings as an aid 
 in memorizing. 
 
 The method of the whole superior to the method by parts. 
 The poor method of memorizing line by line, or stanza by 
 stanza, is a method by parts. All experimenters have re- 
 ported better results from the method of the whole. In the 
 latter, the pupils' efforts at verbatim recall will be attempts 
 to recall the poem from the beginning to the end, rather 
 than to work on a part until it is memorized and then attack 
 the next part. Parker points out l two reasons why the 
 method of the whole is more economical than the method 
 by parts: 
 
 1 Parker, S. C. Methods of Teaching in High Schools, pp. 154-58. 
 Ginn and Company. 
 
92 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 1. No time wasted by useless associations by the whole method. 
 
 2. Greater concentration of attention by the whole method. 
 
 Combining the two methods. Strayer and Norsworthy 
 suggest 1 a combination of the part method and the whole 
 method: 
 
 The advantages of the whole method are that it forms the right 
 connections and emphasizes the complete thought, and therefore 
 saves time and gives the right perspective. Its difficulties are that 
 the material is not all of equal difficulty, and therefore it is waste- 
 ful to put the same amount of time on all parts; it is discourag- 
 ing to the learner, as no part may be raised above the threshold 
 of recall at the first study period (particularly true if it is rote 
 memory); it is difficult to use recall, if the whole method is ad- 
 hered to. A combination of the two is therefore wise. The learner 
 should be encouraged to go over the material from beginning to 
 end, until the difficult parts become apparent, then to concentrate 
 on these parts for a time, and again go over from the beginning — 
 using recall whenever possible. 
 
 Memorizing Wordsworth's " Daffodils." These authors 
 give in detail how to teach a class of sixth-grade pupils, in 
 fifteen minutes, to memorize the " Daffodils." The follow- 
 ing is the outline of their plan. 
 
 1. Preparatory arousal of interest in the poem. ' 
 
 2. Presentation of poem by parts, in terms of the big ideas with 
 related details. 
 
 3. Oral reading of whole by teacher to pupils, once or more. 
 
 4. Pupils recite poem with teacher, repeating each stanza several 
 times. 
 
 5. Analysis of thought, indicating, in the author's words as far 
 as possible, the development of ideas through the poem. 
 
 6. Recital of poem as a whole by teacher and pupils. 
 
 7. Individual study and recall by pupils. 
 
 8. Verbatim recital by pupils next day. 
 
 Recall as a factor in memorizing and retaining. While 
 there should be careful relational thinking and interpre- 
 tation, followed by a certain amount of verbatim repeti- 
 
 1 Strayer and Norsworthy. How to Teach, chap. v. The Macmillan Co. 
 
APPRECIATION AND MEMORIZATION 93 
 
 tion, effort at recall should come comparatively early in 
 the memorization process. Repetition prolonged tends to 
 make the recall mechanical, and consequently lacking in 
 concentration upon the thought. After a poem has been 
 memorized, it will be much more likely to be permanently 
 retained if recalled at intervals. If a poem is being mem- 
 orized to be recited upon a certain day, it is well to recall it 
 each day. After a poem has been memorized by a class, it 
 should be recalled occasionally in that grade and also in the 
 next grade to ensure a more permanent retention. Pupils 
 should be encouraged to recite their " memory gems " and 
 poems to individuals and to special groups, whenever ap- 
 propriate occasions arise. Teachers should be careful to 
 provide opportunity for pupils to recite poems learned in 
 previous grades. A very good scheme is to have a record 
 paper accompany the class, giving the poems memorized 
 by the class under previous teachers. 
 
 What to memorize. An interesting and valuable study 
 has recently been made to determine what poems are most 
 commonly used for memorization and in what grades. The 
 study is based upon the courses of study of fifty cities of 
 varying sizes located in various parts of the country. The 
 following list is taken from the report of the study and 
 consists of the poems most frequently listed in the fifty 
 courses of study and shows the grade in which each poem 
 was most frequently used: l 
 
 Preferred Lists of Poems for Memory Work 
 Grade 1 
 Author Title 
 
 1. Alexander, Mrs. C. F. All Things Bright and Beautiful 
 
 2. Brown, Kate L. Little Plant, The 
 
 1 Bamesberger, Velda C. Standard Requirements for Memorizing Lit- 
 erary Material. University of Illinois, Urbana. 50 cents. 1920. 
 
94 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 3. From the German 
 
 4. Stevenson, R. L. 
 
 5. Stevenson, R. L. 
 
 6. Stevenson, R. L. 
 
 7. Taylor, Jane 
 
 8. Tennyson, Lord 
 
 9. Cooper, Geo. 
 
 10. Field, Eugene 
 
 11. Rossetti, Christina 
 
 12. Stevenson, R. L. 
 
 Author 
 
 1. Allingham, Wm. 
 
 2. Cary, Phoebe 
 
 3. Child, Lydia M. 
 
 4. Coleridge, S. T. 
 
 5. Field, Eugene 
 
 6. Field, Eugene 
 
 7. Houghton, Lord 
 
 8. Ingelow, Jean 
 
 9. Kingsley, Chas. 
 
 10. Larcom, Lucy 
 
 11. Lear, Edward 
 
 12. Sherman, F. D. 
 
 13. Sherman, F. D. 
 
 14. Stevenson, R. L. 
 
 15. Field, Eugene 
 
 16. Longfellow, H. W. 
 
 17. Miller, Emily 
 
 18. Stevenson, R. L. 
 
 19. Stevenson, R. L. 
 
 Sleep, Baby, Sleep 
 
 Autumn Fires 
 
 Rain 
 
 Swing, The 
 
 Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star 
 
 Bird and the Baby, The 
 
 Come Little Leaves 
 
 Why Do Bells for Christmas 
 
 Ring? 
 Wind, The 
 My Shadow 
 
 Grade II 
 
 Tide 
 
 Fairies, The 
 
 Suppose 
 
 Thanksgiving Day 
 
 Answer to a Child's Question 
 
 Dutch Lullaby 
 
 Rockabye Lady, The 
 
 Lady Moon 
 
 Seven Times One 
 
 Lost Doll, The 
 
 Brown Thrush, The 
 
 Owl and the Pussy Cat, The 
 
 Daisies 
 
 Four Winds, The 
 
 Land of Story Books, The 
 
 Duel, The 
 
 Hiawatha's Childhood 
 
 Blue Bird, The 
 
 Wind, The 
 
 Windy Nights 
 
 Grade III 
 
 Author 
 
 1. Aldrich, T. B. 
 
 2. Allingham, Wm. 
 
 3. Bjornson, Bjornstjerne 
 
 4. Brooks, Phillips 
 
 Title 
 
 Marjorie's Almanac 
 
 Wishing 
 
 Tree, The 
 
 O Little Town of Bethlehem 
 
APPRECIATION AND MEMORIZATION 
 
 95 
 
 5. Cary, Alice 
 
 6. Field, Eugene 
 
 7. Hogg, James 
 
 8. Krout, Mary H. 
 
 9. Longfellow, H. W. 
 
 10. Moore, C. C. 
 
 11. Tennyson, Lord 
 
 12. Jackson, Helen H. 
 
 13. Longfellow, H. W. 
 
 14. Rands, W. B. 
 
 November 
 Norse Lullaby 
 Boy's Song 
 Little Brown Hands 
 Hiawatha's Sailing 
 VLsit from St. Nicholas, A 
 Owl, The 
 September 
 Children's Hour, The 
 Great, Wide, Beautiful, Won- 
 derful World 
 
 Grade IV 
 
 Author 
 
 1. Field, Eugene 
 
 2. Gould, Hannah F. 
 
 3. Jackson, Helen H. 
 
 4. Longfellow, H. W. 
 
 5. Lowell, J. R. 
 
 6. Tate, Nahum 
 
 7. Tennyson, Lord 
 
 8. Thaxter, Celia 
 
 9. Wordsworth, Wm. 
 
 10. Bryant, W. C. 
 
 11. Longfellow, H. W. 
 
 12. Lowell, J. R. 
 
 13. Riley, J. W. 
 
 Author 
 
 1. Bryant, W. C. 
 
 2. Bryant, W. C. 
 
 3. Carlyle, Thomas 
 
 4. Hemans, Felicia 
 
 5. Jackson, Helen H. 
 
 6. Longfellow, H. W. 
 
 7. Longfellow, H. W. 
 
 8. Longfellow, H. W. 
 
 9. Longfellow, H. W. 
 10. Morris, G. P. 
 
 Title 
 
 Night Wind, The 
 
 Frost, The 
 
 October's Bright Blue Weather 
 
 Village Blacksmith, The 
 
 Fountain, The 
 
 Christmas 
 
 Brook, The 
 
 Sandpiper, The 
 
 Lucy Gray 
 
 Robert of Lincoln 
 
 Arrow and the Song, The 
 
 First Snowfall, The 
 
 Brook Song, The 
 
 Grade V 
 
 Title 
 
 Gladness of Nature, The 
 
 Planting of the Apple Tree, The 
 
 Today 
 
 Landing of the Pilgrims, The 
 
 Down to Sleep 
 
 Excelsior 
 
 Paul Revere's Ride 
 
 Day is Done, The 
 
 Old Clock on the Stairs, The 
 
 Woodman, Spare that Tree 
 
96 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 11. Shakespeare, Wm. 
 
 12. Whittier, J. G. 
 
 13. Whittier, J. G. 
 
 14. Whittier, J. G. 
 
 15. Emerson, R. W. 
 
 16. Whittier, J. G. , 
 
 Author 
 
 1. Aldrich, T. B. 
 
 2. Cary, Alice 
 
 3. Drake, J. R. 
 
 4. Holmes, O. W. 
 
 5. Hunt, Leigh 
 
 6. Longfellow, H. W. 
 
 7. Tennyson, Lord 
 
 8. Wolfe, Chas. 
 
 9. Wordsworth, Wm. 
 
 10. Longfellow, H. W. 
 
 11. Tennyson, Lord 
 
 12. Tennyson, Lord 
 
 Author 
 
 1. Bryant, W. C. 
 
 2. Emerson, R. W. 
 
 3. Holland, J. G. 
 
 4. Miller, Joaquin 
 
 5. Browning, R. 
 
 6. Longfellow, H. W. 
 
 7. Lowell, J. R. 
 
 8. Lowell, J. R. 
 
 9. Maeaulay, T. B. 
 
 10. Taylor, Bayard 
 
 11. Tennyson, Lord 
 
 Author 
 
 1. Bryant, W. C. 
 
 2. Holmes, (X W. 
 
 Under the Greenwood Tree 
 
 In School Days 
 
 Barefoot Boy, The 
 
 Corn Song, The 
 
 Fable 
 
 Barbara Frietchie 
 
 Grade VI 
 
 Title 
 
 Before the Rain 
 
 Nobility 
 
 American Flag, The 
 
 Old Ironsides 
 
 Abou Ben Adhem 
 
 Builders, The 
 
 Charge of the Light Brigade 
 
 Burial of Sir John Moore- 
 
 I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud 
 
 Psalm of Life, A 
 
 Break, Break, Break 
 
 Bugle Song 
 
 Grade VII 
 
 Title 
 
 To a Waterfowl 
 Snowstorm, The 
 Gradation 
 Columbus 
 
 Home Thoughts from Abroad 
 Building of the Ship, The 
 Fatherland, The 
 Yussouf 
 Horatius 
 J Song of the Camp, The 
 Sir Galahad 
 
 Grade VIII 
 
 Title 
 
 Thanatopsis 
 Last Leaf, The 
 
APPRECIATION AND MEMORIZATION 97 
 
 3. Kipling, Rudyard Recessional 
 
 4. Pierpont, John Warren's Address 
 
 5. Shakespeare, Wm. Mercy Speech 
 
 6. Shelley, P. B. ^ Cloud, The 
 
 7. Sill, E. R. Opportunity 
 
 8. Whitman, Walt O Captain ! My Captain! 
 
 9. W T hittier, J. G. Snowbound 
 
 10. Burns, Robert For A' That and A' That ' 
 
 11. Gray, Thomas Elegy Written in a Country 
 
 Churchyard 
 
 12. Holmes, O. W. Chambered Nautilus, The 
 
 13. Lowell, J. R. Day in June, A. 
 
 14. Scott, Sir W. Breathes there a Man 
 
 15. Shakespeare, Wm. Polonius to Laertes 
 
 Caution in selecting poems. While the results of studies 
 like the one just referred to are very helpful in determining 
 what material to use, care should be taken to make sure 
 that poems chosen from lists of this kind are fitted in their 
 thought and feeling values to the level of development of 
 the pupils. For instance, in the preceding list, Whittier's 
 " Barefoot Boy " is given as one of the poems most fre- 
 quently memorized in the fifth grade. But an analysis of 
 the poem will show that it was written for adults with an 
 adult appreciation of the barefoot boy, and not for children. 
 This is not an appropriate poem to use in the grades. In 
 the lower grades, poems more difficult than the pupils can 
 be expected to learn to read may be used for memory work 
 provided they are psychologically suited to the children. 
 
 The number of poems required to be memorized. In the 
 study referred to in the preceding pages, it was found that 
 the most common requirement as to the number of poems 
 to be memorized was six in each grade. The median num- 
 ber required was seven in the first four grades and eight in 
 each of the four upper grades. 
 
98 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 PROBLEMS FOR STUDY AND DISCUSSION 
 
 1. Of the five reasons given as to why our schools have so often failed 
 to develop appreciation, which do you consider the most important? 
 
 2. Select a unit of reading matter, the essential element of which is (a) 
 the social value, (b) the aesthetic value, (c) the humor, (d) the nature 
 element. 
 
 3. What is the essential difference between knowing and appreciating? 
 
 4. What danger is there in reducing the appreciation lesson to formal 
 steps? 
 
 5. Do you agree with the fourth general suggestion for developing appre- 
 ciation? Is this generally done in school practice? Give illustrations. 
 
 6. Select a poem to be taught. Determine its essential value. Give 
 briefly your plan of procedure in teaching the poem. 
 
 7. Select another poem and formulate a good problem or specific aim 
 for the pupils to keep in mind in their experience with the poem. 
 
 8. Select a poem suitable for dramatization. 
 
 9. What are the two most important points in the methodology of 
 memorizing a poem? 
 
 10. Using some familiar poem, illustrate the difference between the 
 method of the part and the method of the whole. Show how the two 
 might be combined in memorizing the poem. 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 SECURING THE AUDIENCE SITUATION IN ORAL READING 
 
 Types of oral reading. There are two general types of 
 oral-reading recitation procedure. The most common one 
 is that in which all the pupils of the class have before them 
 the same material. This type is well adapted to primary 
 work. It is also well adapted to the intensive study of a 
 distinctly literary unit, especially the poem, the oration, 
 and the short unit of poetic prose, Literary values are 
 primarily auditory. The race had a considerable literature 
 before it had printing. The literature was transmitted 
 orally from generation to generation. Rhyme, rhythm, and 
 other literary values are essentially and distinctly auditory. 
 When we make an intensive study of a poem, the best 
 method is for each pupil to have a copy of the poem and to 
 use the oral-reading procedure as the guide of the recita- 
 tion. Excellent illustrations of model lessons may be found 
 in Teaching Poetry in the Grades, by Halliburton and Smith. 
 
 The second type of oral-reading method is that of audi- 
 ence reading. In the first type of oral reading there is no 
 conscious purpose of conveying thought to an audience. 
 It may be used as a test of the pupil's ability to express the 
 thought, but the other pupils and the teacher have the 
 reading matter before them, and any attempt to have the 
 pupil try to imagine that he is reading to an audience under 
 those conditions is futile. That type of oral reading is very 
 useful for certain purposes, but if only that kind is used the 
 pupils do not develop the proper facility in reading to an 
 audience. Audience reading is the principal use made of 
 oral reading outside of the school. It is the purpose of this 
 
100 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 chapter to give a number of plans for securing real audi- 
 ence situations. 
 
 Types of Audience Reading 
 
 Miscellaneous audience reading. One plan that it is 
 possible for practically all teachers to use is the miscel- 
 laneous audience reading. Have each pupil bring in a 
 short unit to read to the class. It may be a clipping, a 
 selection from a library book, a birthday book, a Christ- 
 mas book, a Sunday-School paper, a child's periodical, or a 
 letter received. Riddles and jokes may be used, but they 
 should not monopolize the time at the expense of more 
 valuable material. The teacher should read to the pupils 
 from time to time samples of good, short units, suitable for 
 this type of reading in her grade. It will be necessary to 
 stimulate and encourage the uninterested, discouraged, or 
 unresourceful pupils. It is better to provide such a pupil 
 with a book or periodical from which he may choose a 
 selection than merely to provide him with the selection. 
 Each pupil should make his selection, and practice at home. 
 
 The reader should be expected to put the thought across 
 to the audience — the remainder of the class. The pupils 
 naturally have a tendency to study their own selections 
 while one pupil is reading orally. In such case the teacher 
 should expect them to give full attention to the reader as a 
 matter of politeness. A failure on the part of the pupil to 
 put the thought across to the audience will be the teacher's 
 opportunity to instruct through both example and precept. 
 This type of recitation procedure should not be a mere 
 entertainment program. It should be a time of serious 
 effort and thoughtful instruction, as well as a period of 
 interest and enjoyment. The interest of the audience will 
 be increased through such problems as the following: 
 
SECURING THE AUDIENCE SITUATION 101 
 
 When the reader has finished, be ready to give the most inter- 
 esting point. 
 
 Be ready to name the characters, the chief character, the high- 
 est point of interest. 
 
 Be ready toward the end of the recitation to tell whose selection 
 you liked best and why. 
 
 What do you think will happen next in the story? 
 
 The discussion should be brief, just enough to stimulate the 
 interest of the class. 
 
 Oftentimes pupils living near each other will desire to 
 divide a story which is too long for one to read. It is best to 
 have as many different pupils as possible read during one 
 recitation. Each reading must be short. After the teacher 
 and pupils have had some experience with this type of 
 reading, it will be found that about fifteen pupils can read 
 in a thirty-minute period. Interest is stimulated by having 
 a definite time, such as a certain day each week, or every 
 other week, for this type of oral reading. A miscellaneous 
 collection of Primers is the best material to use for this type 
 of reading in the upper first grade. First Readers, with 
 short units, may be used to good advantage in the second 
 grade. 
 
 In this type of audience reading, where each pupil chooses 
 different material from each other pupil, there is an oppor- 
 tunity to develop judgment on the part of the pupils in 
 selecting reading material, and the school and the home are 
 in consequence brought into closer relationship. It is more 
 easily carried out in a community where the homes are 
 supplied with reading material for the children, but it may 
 also be a means of stimulating a desire for securing more 
 reading material for the children in homes less fortunate. 
 The writer has seen this plan carried out in a number of 
 classrooms to excellent advantage. 
 
 Group-to-group audience reading. The second type of 
 
102 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 audience-reading recitation is as follows: Each class is 
 given a different set of books containing short, easy selec- 
 tions of the narrative type, such as the Fifty Famous Stories. 
 Each class is assigned a unit for preparation at home, in- 
 cluding practice in reading orally. In the recitation pro- 
 cedure the first class reads its selection to the second class, 
 which has not had opportunity to read the selection, and 
 consequently constitutes a real audience. The pupils of 
 the first class have each a copy of the selection before them 
 and have the advantage of hearing it read and of reading it 
 silently at the same time. The discussion is carried on 
 mainly by the audience group, the reading group coming 
 into the discussion occasionally. The teacher sets prob- 
 lems to provide a specific purpose for the careful attention 
 of the listening group, and as the reading proceeds enough 
 questioning and discussion take place to keep both groups 
 alert and attentive. , After the first class has completed 
 reading its story to the second class, the second class reads 
 its story to the first. Ordinarily there is opportunity for 
 both classes to read in a thirty-minute period if the recita- 
 tion proceeds with the snap and vigor characteristic of a 
 well-planned and well-executed lesson. 
 
 Another type of group-to-group audience reading with 
 the whole room of pupils is that followed by one school, and 
 involves the use of a small number of copies of one book. 
 This school was furnished with ten copies of Peter and Polly 
 in Spring. This is a very interesting narrative nature book, 
 consisting of units of about three pages, each practically 
 independent of the other and suitable for second or third 
 grades. There being only ten copies of the book, it was 
 impossible to use it in the usual way of having each pupil in 
 the class have a book. The primary purpose of the book is 
 to lead to an observation and appreciation of nature. In 
 many cases the sounds were important characteristics. 
 
SECURING THE AUDIENCE SITUATION 103 
 
 For these reasons it seemed that the material should come 
 before the pupils in an oral fashion. The type of the ma- 
 terial being narrative, and the book being divided into 
 comparatively short units, it appeared that the book would 
 be suitable for audience reading. The content of the 
 material is such that, to realize the best experience for the 
 children, it was felt advisable to cover the material as 
 quickly as possible immediately preceding the opening-up 
 of the season represented, so that the stimulus of the inter- 
 est created would more likely result in enjoyable observa- 
 tion on the part of the pupils. 
 
 In group-to-group audience reading it is usually best for 
 the teacher to have a book. This left nine books for the 
 pupils. It was decided to cover three units a day. This 
 would take about two weeks, or a little more, to complete 
 the book. One unit was assigned to each of three groups 
 of three pupils for a reading period of each day. During 
 a study period these pupils were permitted to leave the 
 room and go to some vacant room, or to some appro- 
 priate place in the corridors, and practice reading so that 
 they could read to the best advantage to the whole room of 
 pupils. One of the better readers was placed in charge of 
 the group of three. They gave such help to each other as 
 they could in this preliminary preparation. It is evident 
 that this sort of group cooperation provides a type of ex- 
 perience that is very valuable in training for citizenship in a 
 democracy. 
 
 Conducting the group-to-group recitation. In conduct- 
 ing the recitation, the teacher had the group of three stand 
 in the center of the room in front and as near to the pupils 
 as possible. In order to get the rather large listening group 
 seated more compactly, and thereby make it easier for both 
 the audience and the reader, the teacher had the pupils 
 toward the rear of the room move forward, and if necessary 
 
104 SILENT AND ORAL BEADING { 
 
 sit with other pupils. The reading group was permitted to 
 place a drawing or any other material on the blackboard, 
 preceding the recitation, as a means of making clearer to the 
 audience the content of the unit. As the reading proceeded, 
 the teacher played an important part in guiding the recita- 
 tion. If a tendency on the part of the audience to become 
 inattentive showed itself, the teacher aroused interest by a 
 question, testing some pupil upon his understanding of what 
 had been read or providing a specific purpose for listening to 
 what was coming. At certain times the listeners were per- 
 mitted to ask the readers questions about matters which 
 were not entirely clear. After this group of three had 
 finished, the next group of three took their places and read. 
 
 By this plan the class was able to cover from eight to 
 twelve pages in an ordinary period of twenty-five or thirty 
 minutes, assignments for the next period included. Every 
 pupil in the room had opportunity to have a copy of the 
 book and participate in the audience reading at least twice 
 during the time the class was using the book. After the 
 book had been covered in this way, any pupil who desired 
 to read the book or any part of it more carefully was per- 
 mitted to do so for spare-time silent reading. The writer 
 observed this work several different days, and was impressed 
 with the interest and spirit manifested by the class. The 
 other books of the series, Peter and Polly in Summer, In 
 Winter, and In Autumn, were used in the same manner at 
 the appropriate times of the year. In the sixth, seventh, 
 and eighth grades the same plan was followed, using Dallas 
 Lore Sharp's Series — The Spring of the Year, Summer, 
 The Fall of the Year, Winter. 
 
 Most schools are organized on the " two classes to the 
 room " plan. As a general rule, it is not advisable to con- 
 duct reading work with the room as a whole. It is possible 
 to use the group-to-group audience-reading plan with one 
 
SECURING THE AUDIENCE SITUATION 105 
 
 class. Divide the class into two groups and provide each 
 group with a different set of books. In selecting the two 
 books for this, it is best to have books containing independ- 
 ent short units of the narrative type. It is also best to use 
 books that have not been used in the customary reading 
 lessons. The teacher should have a copy of each of the two 
 books in order to guide the recitation as may seem neces- 
 sary. The pupils prepare during their study period. If 
 possible it is advisable to have each group, under the con- 
 trol of a leader, go to some suitable place and assign the 
 parts to the different members of the group, and practice 
 reading aloud. In some instances it will be well for pupils 
 to take the books home, and practice reading the story to 
 some one at home. The suggestions made throughout this 
 section with reference to the teacher's part in the manage- 
 ment of the recitation apply, of course, here. In this type 
 of work it is best to have the reading group separated from 
 the audience group. In order to do this it is best to have 
 the reading group stand in front or to one side of the room, 
 and the audience group seated compactly. This plan makes 
 it easy to take care of individual differences, by grouping 
 according to ability and by providing easier material for 
 the lower group. 
 
 Suitable books to use for such reading. The following 
 is a list of books suitable for the group-to-group audience 
 reading: . 
 
 Books Suitable for Group-to-Group Audience Reading 
 
 *- Title Grades Publishers 
 
 Folk-Stories and Proverbs 1-2 Ginn & Co. 
 
 The Story Hour Reader, Book One 1-2 American Book Co. 
 
 Animal Fables 2-3 American Book Co. 
 
 Fairy Stories and Fables 2-3 American Book Co. 
 
 Peter and Polly Nature Series, 4 books 2-3 American Book Co. 
 
 Merry Animal Fables 3-4 Little, Brown & Co. 
 
-106 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Legends of the Red Children 
 
 Chinese Fables and Folk-Stories 
 
 Stories of Humble Friends 
 
 Fifty Famous Stories 
 
 Msops Fables (Stickney) 
 
 Short Stories (Turner) 
 
 Nature's Wonder Lore 
 
 Going to School in Animal Land 
 
 The Pig Brother 
 
 Japanese Folk-Stories and Fairy-Tales 4-5 
 
 Stories of Heroic Deeds 
 
 Quaint Old Stories 
 
 Lives and Stories Worth Remembering 
 
 True Bird Stories 
 
 Wilderness Babies 
 
 Beyond the Pasture Bars (Sharp) 
 
 Stories from Life 
 
 Indian Folk-Tales 
 
 Boy and Girl Heroes 
 
 Indian Legends 
 
 Myths of the Red Children 
 
 Bird-Life Stories 
 
 The Sharp Nature Series 
 
 (One book for each season) 
 Stories of English History 
 
 3-4 
 
 American Book Co. 
 
 3-4 
 
 American Book Co. 
 
 3-4 
 
 American Book Co. 
 
 3-4 
 
 American Book Co. 
 
 3-4 
 
 Ginn & Co. 
 
 3-4 
 
 Ginn & Co. 
 
 3-5 
 
 Rand McNally & Co. 
 
 3-4 
 
 A. Flanagan Co. 
 
 4-5 
 
 Little, Brown & Co. 
 
 4-5 
 
 American Book Co. 
 
 4-5 
 
 American Book Co. 
 
 4-5 
 
 Ginn & Co. 
 
 4-5 
 
 American Book Co. 
 
 4-5 
 
 Houghton Mifflin Co. 
 
 5-7 
 
 Little, Brown & Co. 
 
 5-7 
 
 The Century Co. 
 
 5-6 
 
 American Book Co. 
 
 5-6 
 
 American Book Co. 
 
 5-6 
 
 The Macmillan Co. 
 
 5-6 
 
 The Macmillan Co. 
 
 5-7 
 
 Ginn & Co. 
 
 6-8 
 
 Rand McNally & Co. 
 
 6-8 
 
 Houghton Mifflin Co. 
 
 6-7 
 
 Ginn & Co. 
 
 Dramatic reading. The third type of audience reading 
 is that involving the use of selections in dramatic form. 
 This is feasible for sight-reading work. Only as many 
 pupils should be given books as there are characters in the 
 drama. The other pupils of the class form the audience. 
 
 The following recitation, conducted by Miss Annette 
 Buehrmann with a fourth-grade class, illustrates this 
 type of recitation. The material used was two selections 
 from Stevenson's Children's Classics in Dramatic Form, 
 Book II — Pocahontas and Captain Smith, seven pages, and 
 Pocahontas Saves Jamestown, eight pages. The characters 
 were assigned to the pupils who were to take part in the 
 reading. The remainder of the class constituted the audi- 
 ence and did not have books. The teacher read the time, 
 
SECURING THE AUDIENCE SITUATION 107 
 
 place, etc., getting before the class clearly the setting of the 
 scene. As the reading proceeded, an occasional question 
 or suggestion was thrown out to arouse the attention of the 
 audience group. After the first drama was read, the charac- 
 ters in the second drama were assigned to pupils who had 
 not read, and the remainder of the class became the audi- 
 ence group. The class was a comparatively slow class, but 
 the plan provided such excellent motive, and was so well 
 carried out by the teacher, that the reading was a pleasure 
 to both the readers and the listeners. The improvement of 
 the pupils through such procedure was clearly evident to 
 the writer, who had followed the progress of these pupils 
 with special attention. The two short dramas, fifteen 
 pages, were read in a thirty-minute recitation period, and 
 every pupil in the class had taken part in the reading. 
 
 Topical audience reading. A fourth type of audience 
 reading involves the use of selections from one author or 
 upon one topic. The following recitation, conducted by 
 Miss Lucille Murphy, a seventh-grade teacher, illustrates 
 this type. The class had been making a study of Long- 
 fellow, and had completed the Courtship of Miles Standish 
 and one of his shorter poems. The teacher secured a num- 
 ber of fifth-, sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade readers 
 containing short selections from Longfellow. Each pupil 
 selected a different poem, and prepared upon it during 
 study-time in school and practiced reading it orally to the 
 folks at home. During a thirty-minute recitation, eight 
 poems were read, including such ones as " The Old Clock on 
 the Stairs " and " The Arrow and the Song." The teacher 
 kept the interest of the audience aroused by setting a prob- 
 lem for discussion in connection with each poem. The 
 discussion was, of course, necessarily brief, just enough to 
 stimulate thinking on the part of the audience. The read- 
 ing was surprisingly well done. There was no attempt to 
 
108 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 go into an intensive consideration of each poem. The 
 purpose was to give the pupils a more extensive experience 
 with Longfellow's poems than would be possible if all the 
 lessons in relation to Longfellow had been of the intensive 
 type. 
 
 In a similar way the audience reading may be carried out 
 by having the pupils read selections upon some theme of 
 interest, such as Washington's Birthday, Arbor Day, 
 Gardening, Safety First, Current Events, Thanksgiving, 
 Baseball News, Signs of Spring, Letters Received, Letters 
 Written, and themes of an ethical nature involving the 
 reading of stories illustrating patriotism, perseverance, 
 honesty, etc. 
 
 The " cut-up story." The fifth type of audience reading 
 involves the use of a " cut-up story." The teacher selects 
 a printed story, suitable for her class. The story is cut into 
 about as many units as there are pupils in her class. The 
 units are mounted upon uniform-sized cardboard for 
 convenience in handling. In selecting the story, the 
 teacher should see that the printing is up to the hygienic 
 requirements of her grade in size of type, leading, and 
 boldness. Each pupil is given one of these units, which are 
 numbered consecutively in the order of the story. The 
 work may be sight-reading, or the pupils may be given 
 opportunity to prepare for the reading. As each pupil 
 reads his part of the story, the other pupils should give 
 close attention as a matter of politeness. The teacher will 
 need to make sure, through questions and pupil-reproduc- 
 tions, that all members of the class are getting the story as it 
 is being read. 
 
 Illustrated audience reading. A sixth type of audience 
 reading is in connection with illustrative drawings which 
 pupils have previously made during drawing or reading 
 study-time, in correlation with the silent-reading recitations. 
 
SECURING THE AUDIENCE SITUATION 109 
 
 An eighth-grade class, in preparation for a silent-reading 
 recitation, had studied Rip Van Winkle to get the story as 
 a whole and to select paragraphs that would be good for 
 illustration. During the recitation a certain number of 
 paragraphs were selected by the class for illustration, and 
 one of these assigned to each pupil. During the following 
 study period each pupil made an illustrative drawing in 
 crayola to represent the picture in his paragraph, in har- 
 mony with the general spirit and setting of the whole story. 
 The one making a particular drawing read his paragraph 
 to the class, while another pupil held the drawing in good 
 light before the class. The problem to be solved by all was : 
 Is the drawing a good representation of the word pictures 
 in the paragraph, and in accordance with the general spirit 
 and setting of the story? The reader, being before the class 
 with the book, had every opportunity to justify his illustra- 
 tion by reading to the class. The other pupils were not 
 permitted to look at their books. They were expected to 
 depend upon the reader and upon their knowledge of the 
 selection gained in preceding study. 
 
 Some very interesting things were revealed. Some pu- 
 pils had made very good illustrations, showing that they 
 had caught the spirit and setting of the story as well as the 
 detail of the particular paragraph. Others showed, much 
 more quickly and completely than could have been re- 
 vealed by any other form of expression, their lack of insight 
 into Rip's character and their failure to comprehend the 
 details of the reading matter. For instance, one boy had a 
 picture of Rip fixing his fence. Another boy, who had 
 caught the spirit, soon brought him to task and he was 
 unable to justify it from any statement in the book. In 
 relation to the oral reading the point is that here was pres- 
 ent a real audience-and-reader situation. 
 
 Audience reading may be illustrated by the use of the 
 
110 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 stereopticon lantern. Lanterns may now be secured which 
 can be used without darkening the room. Recently the 
 writer observed an interesting lesson of this type with an 
 eighth-grade class on Evangeline. Each pupil had been 
 assigned a lantern slide. His problem during the study 
 period was to find in the poem the lines that described his 
 picture, and to be prepared to read this description to the 
 class as the picture was thrown upon the screen. The 
 lesson proceeded with a minimum need of effort on the part 
 of the teacher. There was a delightful interest throughout. 
 Several times pupils spontaneously asked questions. The 
 picture aided the audience pupils to follow the oral reading. 
 A few pupils read sentences not relevant to the description 
 of the picture, and were promptly criticized hy the other 
 pupils. 
 
 Wherever possible mounted pictures of good size, illus- 
 trative objects, or blackboard illustrations should be used 
 to aid the audience in following the oral reading. 
 
 Reading to the pupils. The following material, descrip- 
 tive of the advantages and the importance of placing ex- 
 amples of good reading before the children, is taken from 
 the St. Louis Course of Study in Reading: 
 
 Throughout the reading every variation in the mode of handling 
 the material that can be profitably employed should be introduced. 
 There should be, for example, a great deal of reading to the class 
 by the teacher, as well because it is always a pleasure to hear good 
 reading, as that imitation is a legitimate method to use to vitalize 
 and stimulate immaturity of any sort. Freed from the mechanical 
 labor of doing the reading, the children may have the fullest oppor- 
 tunity to appreciate the content read to them, and so realize the 
 possibilities of the printed page and the satisfactions that it may 
 disclose. 
 
 Grades I and II. Reading stories and poems to children strength- 
 ens in them the love of story and makes them eager to satisfy this 
 desire. Thus, a motive for mastering symbols is provided, a 
 jtandard of reading is set up, and a model of correct speech is pre- 
 
SECURING THE AUDIENCE SITUATION 111 
 
 sented. Not only should the teacher do this reading, but at times 
 excellent readers from their own number should be chosen, or 
 good readers from the second or third grade should be invited to 
 do it. 
 
 Grades III and IV. Reading to the children should be done in 
 this grade as in all other grades. The aim should be definite and 
 the response sympathetic. This exercise affords opportunity for 
 the children to hear good pronunciation, good inflection, and good 
 rendering of a masterpiece. The strong readers in the room 
 should be used to assist in this work. 
 
 Grades V and VI. Reading to the class by the teacher should be 
 done frequently to stimulate dynamic oral reading, to establish a 
 continuity of thought and feeling, and to secure a fuller compre- 
 hension and appreciation of literature through the interpretative 
 power of a good reading voice. 
 
 PROBLEMS FOR STUDY AND DISCUSSION 
 
 1. Teachers sometimes attempt to secure an audience situation for 
 oral reading by asking the pupils to close their books during the oral 
 reading of a paragraph or section, following the class discussion of it. 
 Criticize this plan. 
 
 2. Which of the types of audience reading interests you most? Why? 
 
 3. Give an illustration of one or more reading books suitable for group- 
 to-group audience reading, in addition to those listed on page 106. 
 
 4. In purchasing a dramatic reader, how many copies would you advise 
 being bought? 
 
 5. Choose a unit suitable for " cut-up-story " audience reading in a cer- 
 tain grade. 
 
 6. Choose a selection suitable for illustrative drawing and audience 
 reading. 
 
 7. Choose a selection suitable for a lantern-slide audience reading lesson. 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 
 
 1. Need for Change in Reading-Recitation 
 Procedure 
 
 A poor type of reading-lesson procedure. In the Survey 
 Report of the St. Louis Public Schools, in the discussion on 
 reading in the middle grades, the following paragraph 
 occurs: 1 
 
 The following method illustrates the procedure in one of the 
 classes which secured particularly poor results. The lesson was 
 introduced by asking the name of the story. The pupils then read 
 the first paragraph to themselves. The teacher asked the following 
 questions: "What is meant by conquest?" "What is an event?" 
 The paragraph was then read aloud. Three errors were corrected. 
 The pupils then read the second paragraph silently. Several other 
 disconnected questions were asked. The pupils read the second 
 paragraph orally, and were severely criticized by the teacher. 
 This method was followed through the recitation. At no time was 
 there- any evidence of interest on the part of the pupils. Nothing 
 was done to stimulate good thinking. The pupils were inattentive 1 
 and their reading was poorly done. Wherever such methods exist 
 there is need for a thoroughgoing revision of the methods of teach- 
 ing reading. 
 
 While the above description is that of an extreme case, 
 it nevertheless represents a somewhat common manner of 
 procedure. There are three outstanding characteristics in 
 this type. The recitation centers about an oral reading as 
 one of the essential factors and outcomes of the recita- ij 
 tion. The subject-matter is considered in fragmentary bits, 
 instead of being considered as a whole and in its larger 
 
 1 Gray, William S. "Reading"; Survey of the St. Louis Public Schools, 
 , 150. 
 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 113 
 
 units. The consecutive oral reading, paragraph by para- 
 graph, naturally tends to the neglect of the perspective 
 view and to undue emphasis upon detail. Proceeding con- 
 secutively by small units destroys the need for thought- 
 ful reading during study-time. The pupil who dawdles 
 during study-time will do about as well in recitation as if he 
 concentrates vigorously upon the thought of the content. 
 This naturally leads to poor reading habits in study. 
 
 Persons who have had wide experience in observing 
 reading recitations testify that this type is altogether too 
 common. 1 
 
 Many teachers are almost entirely absorbed in oral reading, and 
 this has led to an undesirable type of reading lesson common in 
 schools. Under this method one pupil after another rises and reads 
 one or two paragraphs, without previous study; and then states, 
 either in his own words or those of the book, the fragment he has 
 read. Incidentally, a few mispronounced words are corrected, a 
 few inflections and emphases are modified, and possibly some 
 paragraphs are re-read. After the selection has been read in this 
 way, the entire story is occasionally reproduced by one or more 
 pupils. 
 
 Why beginning teachers fall into such practices. For 
 the last ten years the writer has had opportunity to observe 
 many beginning teachers passing out from one of the best 
 teacher-training schools in the country. Why is it that 
 almost invariably this is the type of reading recitation they 
 conduct, regardless of what grade or content they are 
 handling? The plausible explanation seems to be that this 
 represents the type of reading recitation they were accus- 
 tomed to as pupils in the grades, and that their preparation, 
 including the apprentice period, had not given them suf- 
 ficient observation and experience in radically different 
 methods of handling the reading work. Another contribut- 
 
 1 Kendall and Mirick. How to Teach the Fundamental Subjects, p. 35. 
 Houghton Mifflin Company, 1915. 
 
114 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 ing factor, no doubt, is that this is one of the easiest ways of 
 getting through a reading recitation, in case of lack of 
 opportunity for preliminary preparation or in case of a 
 feeling of insecurity as master of the situation. 
 
 The writer is convinced that this scrappy type of recita- 
 tion will not cease to be common in the intermediate and 
 upper grades until teachers abandon thinking of reading as 
 an oral process, and abandon the qral-reading procedure as 
 the usual type in these grades. The transition from the 
 recitation centering about the oral reading as the main 
 outcome, to the recitation with little or no oral reading, 
 must necessarily be a gradual one. It takes time to work 
 out the technique of doing things in a new way. There is 
 considerable evidence that progressive teachers over the 
 country are breaking away from this old type of reading 
 teaching, and are developing a new technique for handling 
 silent-reading lessons. To aid in making such a change, 
 the new St. Louis Course of Study in Reading makes specific 
 provision for silent-reading work in all grades, and contains 
 four pages of " Suggestions for Classroom Conduct of Si- 
 lent Exercises in Reading." As a result of a recent study 
 of reading in the elementary schools in Indianapolis, Gray 
 reports 1 that " the diagrams for the first four grades show a 
 gradual increase in the percentage of time devoted to silent- 
 reading instruction.' ' Over a hundred teachers in the five 
 upper grades reported that they devote over fifty per cent 
 of the reading time to silent-reading instruction. 
 
 Over-emphasis of oral reading. For a long time many 
 leaders in educational thought have been advising more 
 attention to silent reading in the intermediate and upper 
 grades, and less time to oral reading. Suzzallo says : 
 
 Over-emphasized, it [oral reading] slows up the rate of reading 
 
 1 Gray, William S. " Reading in the Elementary Schools of Indian- 
 apolis"; in Elementary School Journal (January, 1919), vol. 19, p. 351. 
 
' 
 
 CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 115 
 
 to the throat-muscles rate and becomes a positive evil. Later there 
 is some place, preferably in the highest grades, for reading aloud 
 for recreation to others, but this is now completely over-empha- 
 sized in schools. Its relatively small use in life does not justify 
 present practice in school. Quick silent reading is the most im- 
 portant task beyond the first two years, and should be given 
 primary emphasis. 
 
 Briggs and Coffman say: * 
 
 The open and most inviting field in education to-day seems to 
 be that of silent reading. 
 
 Kendall and Mirick say: 2 
 
 If, then, thought-getting is the vital element in reading, those 
 methods must be used that lay most stress on it and that are 
 devised to develop skill in it. Because teachers realize this, they 
 are giving silent reading and study of the selection to be read much 
 more attention than formerly. 
 
 Judd says: 3 
 
 The fourth grade is a crucial point at which the methods of 
 training should undergo a radical change to comport with devel- 
 opment of independence and breadth of recognition. 
 
 Fifth-grade reading would no longer consist of an oral exercise, 
 in which each pupil holds his book and waits for an opportunity to 
 read a sentence in his turn. This class would devote three fifths 
 of its time each week to silent reading under supervision. 
 
 2. Oral vs. Silent Eeading 
 
 What proportion of the reading time in each grade shall 
 be given to silent reading? Of course it is impossible to 
 determine the answer to this question except in a general, 
 advisory way. Conditions will differ, and the teacher, in the 
 
 1 Reading in Public Schools (1911 edition), p. 259. Row Peterson Com- 
 pany. 
 
 2 How to Teach the Fundamental Subjects, p. 36. Houghton Mifflin 
 Company. 
 
 * Reading: Its Nature and DeveloymenU 
 
116 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 final analysis, must be the judge. The general tendency 
 among leaders of education, though, is to begin silent- 
 reading work in the first or second grade, with a small 
 proportion of time devoted to it; gradually to increase this 
 amount of time until in the fourth grade; and above the 
 fourth grade to devote over fifty per cent of the reading- 
 recitation time to silent-reading work. The following dia- 
 grams show the opinions of certain leaders. 
 
 Eighth Grade 
 
 Seventh Grade 
 
 Sixth Grade 
 
 ± 
 
 Ura 
 Gra 
 
 t 
 
 Fifth .Grade 
 
 Fourth Grade 
 
 y 
 
 Third Gr.nde 
 
 Second Grade 
 
 First Grade 
 
 
 b. 
 
 
 Eighth Grade 
 
 
 Seventh Grade 
 V 
 
 bo 
 
 Sixth Grade \ 
 
 1 
 
 (X 
 
 Fifth Grade V 
 
 a 
 
 Fourth Grade / 
 
 CO 
 
 Third Grade 
 
 
 ^•'Second Grade, 
 
 
 / First Grada 
 
 \ Fig. 12. Comparison of the Amount of Oral and Silent Reading 
 advisable in the various grades 
 
 a. Reproduced from How to Teach the Fundamental Subjects, by Kendall and Mirick. 
 
 b. Redrawn from a rough sketch in a letter (March, 1915) by Dr. Henry Suzzallo in 
 
 answer to a questionnaire. 
 
 There are two reasons why the second diagram may be 
 more nearly correct than the first. Studies seem to show 
 that the middle grades constitute the most important 
 growth period in silent reading. In the seventh and eighth 
 grades the pupils are growing into a new social point of view. 
 There is more opportunity in these grades to use oral read- 
 ing as a means of pleasure and recreation to others. But 
 the proportion of time devoted to silent reading in these 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 117 
 
 grades depends considerably upon the extent to which the 
 pupils have reached the proper standards in silent-reading 
 ability. 
 
 Essential differences between the oral and the silent- 
 reading lesson. In this treatment it is not meant that in 
 the oral-reading lesson there would be no silent reading, or 
 that in the silent-reading lesson there would be no oral 
 reading. In the usual oral -reading lesson, all the material 
 is read aloud consecutively, sentence by sentence or para- 
 graph by paragraph. The oral reading and the consecutive 
 treatment are essentials- to the method. In the silent- 
 reading lesson, both are only incidental. While there may 
 be occasional oral- reading of choice bits, or of a sentence or 
 paragraph to prove a point, or clear up the discussion, only 
 a small part of the material is read aloud. The material 
 may be considered in recitation in the consecutive logical 
 order of the selection, or it may be discussed in a psycho- 
 logical order characteristic of the problem method. 
 
 The silent-reading method is more than training exer- 
 cises. There may be silent-reading preparation in the 
 study period for class discussion of the content with little 
 or no silent reading in the recitation. On the other hand, 
 the silent reading may be done entirely within the recita- 
 tion period. Some plans of handling silent reading might 
 eliminate any division of the time into study and recitation. 
 Some conceive the silent-reading lesson as merely the use of 
 training exercises. 1 The writer conceives this as one type, 
 but holds that there is also plenty of opportunity for silent- 
 reading lessons in which the primary purpose is to give the 
 pupils valuable content-experience, without specific refer- 
 ence to silent-reading training. An important advantage 
 
 1 This seems to be the point of view in the article, " The Selection of 
 Silent-Reading Textbooks," by Ernest Horn, id Journal of Educational 
 Research, October, 1920. 
 
 
/ 
 
 118 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 of the silent-reading lesson is the variety of procedure that 
 is possible. 
 
 When to use the oral and when the silent-reading 
 method. After the pupil has acquired an ability to read 
 with ease and fluency the vocabulary which he understands 
 orally (this should be accomplished by the end of the third 
 grade), the oral method should not be used unless there is a 
 definite purpose in the teacher's mind in using it. It should 
 always be used in teaching a poem, in order to have the 
 child feel and appreciate the rhyme, rhythm, and other 
 literary values which are essentially auditory. Likewise it 
 should be used in teaching the oration. In general, it may 
 be stated that, above the primary stage of learning to read, 
 the oral-reading method should be used with such types of 
 material as would be likely to be read orally in out-of-school 
 reading, and that the silent-reading method should be used 
 in connection with those types of material that are ordina- 
 rily read silently rather than orally in out-of-school situa- 
 tions. This means that recreative reading of books and se- 
 lections that are suitable for extensive rapid reading would 
 be handled by the silent-reading method. Certain parts 
 might well be studied intensively, and read orally for cer- 
 tain auditory effects. Practically all informational material 
 would be taught by the silent-reading method. There is a 
 great body of reading material that provides experiential 
 reading in adventure, geography, history, biography, travel, 
 etc., which should be handled by the extensive silent- 
 reading method. 
 
 Silent-reading lessons classified. Silent-reading lessons 
 may be classified in several different ways. 
 
 1. Silent-reading lessons involving the use of the same material 
 by each pupil of the class. 
 
 2. Silent-reading lessons involving the use of different material 
 by each of two or more groups within the class. 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 119 
 
 3. Silent-reading lessons in relation to the use of different mate- 
 rial by each member of the class. 
 
 1. Silent-reading lessons without preliminary preparation, 
 involving silent reading in the recitation of the whole unit, 
 or consecutively by parts. 
 
 2. Silent-reading lessons with preliminary preparation, the 
 recitation consisting mainly of consideration of the content 
 on the material read outside of the recitation. 
 
 in 
 
 1. Content silent-reading lessons in which the primary purpose 
 is experience for the pupils. 
 
 2. Training silent-reading lessons in which the primary purpose 
 is to increase rate, improve comprehension, or both. 
 
 3. Test lessons in silent reading. 
 
 The following organization will be the guide in the dis- 
 cussion of silent-reading lessons in which the content 
 values constitute the primary purpose. 
 
 Content Silent-Reading Lessons 
 
 1. Involving the use of the same material by all pupils of the 
 class. Problem lessons. 
 
 (a) Problems of a general nature. 
 
 (b) Problems in relation to illustrative representation. 
 
 (c) Problems in relation to dramatic reproduction. 
 
 2. Involving the use of different material by each of two or more 
 groups within the class. Books provided in sets of five or 
 more. 
 
 3. Involving the use of different material by each pupil in the 
 class. 
 
 3. Planning the Silent-Reading Lesson 
 
 Stress the larger values. Growth in reading ability 
 means ability to read in increasingly larger units of thought. 
 In planning a content silent-reading lesson, the teacher's 
 main problem is to plan the work so as to throw the empha- 
 
120 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 sis upon the larger units of thought. Details should be 
 considered in their bearing upon these larger values, rather 
 than as mere fragments. It is highly important that the 
 pupils should realize, as a result of the instruction, that 
 details are not the main values in reading, but that the 
 comprehension and appreciation of the major thoughts and 
 feelings are the ultimate ends to be sought. It will be very 
 difficult to realize these larger values until teachers fully 
 appreciate that often the best method of procedure does not 
 involve a consecutive consideration, paragraph by para- 
 graph, of the unit. 
 
 The problem method. Probably there is no field wherein 
 the problem method is more needed than in the teaching 
 of reading in the intermediate and upper grades. Real 
 problems, involving a critical application or reorganization 
 of ideas, will aid in getting the perspective view before 
 the pupils and will be a guide to the teacher in stressing 
 the larger values. Before attempting an assignment, the 
 teacher should carefully study the unit of subject-matter to 
 discover what are the main content-values for the pupils. 
 Then formulate a few well-selected problems that will be 
 connecting links between the pupils' interests and these 
 major values. 
 
 Characteristics of good problems. The problem differs 
 from the factual question in that its solution involves the 
 gathering of data from the reading and its application or 
 reorganization in terms of the problem, while the factual 
 question is specifically answered in the reading matter in 
 the same terms as called for by the question. The problem 
 should be so stated as to arouse keen interest, on the part 
 of the pupils, in their silent-reading study and in the recita- 
 tion discussion. The wording should be definite and clear. 
 Problems which lead to a difference of opinion, resulting in 
 debate that involves the use of data from the reading matter, 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 121 
 
 are valuable. The problems should be such that their dis- 
 cussion will bring into prominent attention the main ideas, 
 purposes, or values of the unit being read. Problems that 
 involve ethical evaluation without preaching also are de- 
 sirable. 
 
 Assignments. The raising of the problem or problems so 
 that they become real and stimulating involves skill. The 
 pupil's interest will depend to a considerable extent upon 
 the way in which the teacher gets the problem before the 
 class. Usually too little time is given to assignments. 
 They are often made hurriedly, at the close of the recitation 
 or when the time is at hand for the study period. Of course 
 the amount of time will depend entirely upon the nature of 
 the assignment. In some cases only a few minutes will 
 suffice, while in other cases the last half of a recitation may 
 not be too much time. In case the unit of reading matter 
 to be taught is a long one which will occupy a series of 
 recitations, it is sometimes advisable to use one whole 
 recitation to get started, and to raise the problems the class 
 is to work upon for the succeeding days. This sort of lesson 
 may be called a preparatory, a motivation, or a study- 
 recitation-and-assignment lesson. 
 
 More time and attention should be given, in the assign- 
 ment, to the instruction of the pupils in the art of efficient 
 silent reading. They should often be told how long it 
 should take them to read a certain unit. In assigning a 
 new unit of reading matter, it is usually well to advise the 
 pupils to read the whole unit through rapidly first, merely 
 to get a general perspective view, and then to do such 
 additional reading as is necessary to solve the problems 
 assigned. They should often be directed how to attack a 
 given problem. Frequently questions and directions sub- 
 sidiary to the problem should be given. As a rule it will be 
 advisable to write the main problem on the blackboard, and 
 give the suggestive subsidiary questions and directions 
 
122 r SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 orally. A few problems — one, two, or three — carefully 
 and wisely chosen, will be more effective than a long list of 
 questions. Exercises that require the pupil to look for 
 something definite, and to relate details of vocabulary and 
 ideas to the larger values, should be a part of nearly every 
 assignment. 
 
 Definite assignments. The following directions and 
 advice regarding assignments are taken from a monograph 
 on The Teaching of Reading, issued by the Department of 
 Public Instruction of New Jersey: 
 
 It should be realized that the value of study to the pupil is in 
 direct proportion to the definiteness and the "problematical" na- 
 ture of the assignment. The more definite and restricted the 
 assignment, the more thought-provoking it is; i.e., the direction, 
 "Make as many words as you can," is not so productive of thought 
 as the direction, "Make as many words as you can, beginning with 
 a or b or c," or, "Make ten words which are the names of objects 
 or of actions," or, "Make ten words with phonogram ing, ten with 
 ace, etc." 
 
 Other problems for study are almost innumerable, such as: 
 
 1. "We are to learn five new words to-day. Pick them out as 
 the lesson progresses." 
 
 2. "The lesson is about a game. We shall play the game after 
 we have read about it." 
 
 S. " Give me an account of an experience of your own similar to 
 the one in the lesson." 
 
 4. "Write the names of each person the story tells about and be 
 ready to state what each person does." 
 
 5. "Select the most interesting paragraph in the story, or the 
 most important event, or person." 
 
 6. "Is the story well named?" etc. 
 
 A lesson which does not have a definite purpose, clear to pupils 
 as well as teacher, should not be assigned, and children should be 
 trained from the beginning to study and to recite with a definite 
 purpose in mind. This purpose should be present and evident in 
 oral-reading lessons, but it is particularly important in study- 
 reading exercises, if they are to have educational value. 
 
 Moreover, the lesson assignments should be of a sort to compel 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 123 
 
 a process of assimilation of the thoughts of the matter read; i.e., 
 there should be incentives to relate what is read with individual 
 experience. The common practice of having the story repeated 
 substantially as the book gives it is the least valuable kind of 
 exercise. The common practice of having one sentence or para- 
 graph reproduced at a time is also unfortunate, as it prevents the 
 very process of digestion that might naturally go on. Therefore, 
 the direction, "Tell the story,'* or the question, "What have you 
 read?" is the least desirable of lesson assignments. 
 
 Formulation of problems by the pupils. In all types of 
 reading method the pupil should be encouraged to raise 
 problems with reference to matters that are not clear to 
 him, with reference to matters with which he disagrees, or 
 with reference to matters which he would like to have dis- 
 cussed by the class. The mere asking a question about 
 some factual detail by a pupil to trip up some other pupil 
 should not be mistaken for the sort of purposive initiative 
 thinking that raises real problems of importance. Pupils 
 should be trained to see the difference between questions of 
 small import and questions which show critical interpre- 
 tation. The final aim is to produce critically selective 
 readers. 
 
 Occasionally, the full responsibility for formulating the 
 problems for discussion should be given to the pupils. 
 Each pupil may be asked to formulate one problem, the 
 discussion and solution of which will involve some of the 
 leading ideas of the unit. The problems thus formulated 
 could be considered in recitation and arranged according 
 to similarity. Pupils could be asked to show how the dis- 
 cussion of the problem would bring in a certain leading 
 point of the reading matter. The real problems could be 
 separated from the factual questions to illustrate the 
 difference. 
 
 Importance of problem formulation. The importance of 
 pupils forming the habit of having specific purposes in their 
 
124 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 reading is emphasized in the following excerpts, often quoted 
 by educational writers : 
 
 Some great men, always, before reading a book, make a short, 
 rough analysis of the questions which they expect to be answered 
 in it. — John Morley. 
 
 In reading we do well to propose to ourselves definite ends and 
 purposes. The distinct consciousness of some object at present 
 before us, imparts a manifold greater interest to the contents of 
 any volume. . . . Any one is conscious of this who reads a story 
 with the purpose of repeating it to an absent friend; or an essay, 
 or a report, with the design of using the facts or arguments in 
 debate; or a poem, with .the design of reviewing its imagery and 
 reciting its finest passages. . . . The private history of every self- 
 made man, from Franklin onward, attests that he selected his 
 books with distinct reference to the purposes for which he used 
 them. Indeed, the reason why self-trained men so often surpass 
 men who are trained by others, in the effectiveness and success of 
 their reading, is that they know for what they read and study, and 
 have definite aims and wishes in all their dealings with books. — 
 Noah Porter. 
 
 McMurry says: 1 "The unquestioning frame of mind 
 that allows a sympathetic approach to an author marks one 
 stage in study, but this must be followed by the critical 
 attitude." Pupils may be asked to read a unit for the 
 purpose of first getting an accurate understanding and 
 impression, and then raising questions about defects or 
 about any points of disagreement between the author and 
 himself. 
 
 The plan sometimes followed by teachers of asking the 
 pupils to write a certain number of questions on a selection, 
 merely to give the pupils something to do, fails to result in 
 the kind of purposive thinking in reading that is desired. 
 Usually, while some attention is given in recitation to the 
 questions written out by the pupils, there is little done to 
 
 1 McMurry, F. M. How to Study, p. 142. Houghton Mifflin Company, 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 125 
 
 help the pupil distinguish between factual questions and 
 specific purposes in the form of problems. The situation 
 under which pupils are asked to formulate problems should 
 be so stimulating that real interest will accompany his effort. 
 
 4. Illustrative Silent-Reading Lessons 
 
 In order to illustrate the various points made in the 
 preceding pages, and to make clear how to teach content 
 silent-reading lessons, a detailed account is given of a num- 
 ber of such lessons in different grades, involving the use of 
 the short unit, the medium-length unit, and the book as a 
 unit. 
 
 In one of our Fourth Readers is the story of " The 
 Prodigal Son," about two pages. In the assignment for 
 study, the pupils were asked first to read the story through 
 rather quickly from beginning to end, then to re-read it, 
 considering the following problem questions: 
 
 1. Which of the two sons do you like the better? List the points 
 in favor of the older son. List the points in favor of the 
 younger son. List the points against the younger son. List 
 the points against the older son. 
 
 2. This story was told by Jesus to illustrate a father's love for 
 his son. Select three sentences which show the father's love, 
 and indicate your selections by page and line. 
 
 The opinion of the class was about evenly divided on the 
 first question. The lists suggested were worked out and 
 formulated on the blackboard as group work, and each 
 pupil left to decide for himself. The purpose of the problem 
 was to get the pupils to examine the facts critically. A 
 problem which leads to debate through difference of opinion 
 is a fine type of problem, provided, of course, that its dis- 
 cussion involves the leading facts in the reading material. 
 
126 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 The spirit and enthusiasm with which the pupils debated 
 this problem showed that this lesson, which might other- 
 wise have been somewhat of a bore to the pupils, was a real 
 enjoyment. The second problem, of course, was for the 
 purpose of centering their attention upon the main idea 
 running through the story. Details with reference to the 
 pronunciation of words and the meaning of words and 
 phrases came up for attention from time to time throughout 
 the recitation, but always as subordinate elements in rela- 
 tion to a larger problem. 
 
 n. ANOTHER FOURTH-GRADE SILENT-READING LESSON 
 
 The following is an account of three recitations on " The 
 Magic Prison," a selection of thirteen pages from The River- 
 side Fourth Reader. " The Magic Prison " is a story of a 
 little prince who had become so selfish and peevish through 
 flattery and indulgence that the parents had to send for the 
 fairy godmother, who took the little prince to a magic 
 prison. The room was lavishly furnished. There were 
 jars of perfume, an abundance of candy, fruits, and the like 
 to eat, and comfortable couches and soft pillows. There 
 was a beautiful songbird in a cage. The walls consisted of 
 mirrors alternating with windows all around the room. 
 From the windows could be seen a variety of beautiful 
 scenic views. The boy spent his time indulging himself in 
 enjoyment before the mirrors. He forgot to care for the 
 bird and never noticed the scenes from the windows. The 
 windows gradually grew smaller until they ceased to exist. 
 The perfume was gone, the couch had turned to iron, the 
 candy to stones, and the fruit had disappeared except a 
 withered apple. He screamed and kicked and tried to 
 escape until exhausted. Finally he became sorry for the 
 bird calling in the dark. Through a series of kind acts for 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 127 
 
 the bird, the windows, step by step, came back to normal 
 size, and the boy secured his release and return to his 
 parents. He remained a loving, kind prince, and became 
 an ideal king. 
 
 The purposes of the first recitation were to observe the 
 pupils in their silent reading, noting cases of slow eye- 
 movement, lip-movement, etc., to get the class started in 
 the study of the story, and to make the assignment for the 
 following study and recitations. The pupils were told to 
 begin the story and read it through silently. In about eight 
 minutes two pupils had completed reading the story of 
 thirteen pages. Then they were all asked to stop and 
 report the number of pages read. Some had read only six 
 pages. The class was questioned upon the first few pages 
 of the story, and it was noted that the slowest readers did 
 not respond as well as the fastest readers. Certain advice 
 was given about reading habits, such as inhibiting lip- 
 movement, concentration of attention, quick eye-move- 
 ment, etc. Then the assignment for the following study 
 and recitation was made. They were told to complete the 
 reading of the story at as rapid a rate as they could to get 
 the gist of the story, then to go over it again, considering 
 the following questions, which were written on the black- 
 board : 
 
 1. List three words that describe the Little Prince. 
 
 2. Be able to describe the inside of the Magic Prison. 
 
 3. What made the windows grow narrower? 
 
 4. How did the prince cause them to begin to open again? 
 
 5. List three words that describe the prince when he returned 
 home. 
 
 The second recitation involved a consideration of the 
 problems, the discussion of which brought out the main 
 points of the story and gave some opportunity for purpose- 
 ful vocabulary work. For the third recitation the pupils 
 
128 ' SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 were asked to take the books home, select a paragraph 
 particularly interesting, and practice reading it to the folks 
 at home so they could read it to the class. One choice was 
 made in class as an illustration of a good choice. In addi- 
 tion the pupils were asked to list and number the five acts 
 of kindness on the part of the boy to the bird, resulting in 
 the gradual reappearance of the windows and the final 
 release of the boy. During the assignment the first one 
 was selected by the pupils and listed as follows: 
 Acts of Kindness 
 
 1. He gave the bird some water, resulting in the appearance of a 
 tiny window opening. 
 
 During the third recitation these lists of acts of kindness 
 were read by the pupils, and commented upon by the pupils 
 and teacher. Then the pupils read to the class the selections 
 chosen during their home preparation for audience reading. 
 About twelve pupils read. As one pupil read to the class, 
 the other pupils closed their books and gave full attention 
 to the reader, with the problem in mind as to whether 
 the pupil had given a satisfactory reason for choosing the 
 selection being read. The previous study and recitations 
 gave a familiarity with the thought and the words, elimi- 
 nating hesitancy and making the reader-audience situation 
 easier of realization for both the reader and audience. The 
 social value of such a classroom situation was clearly greater 
 than the ordinary consecutive oral-reading plan. 
 
 m. A SERIES OF FIFTH-GRADE SILENT-READING LESSONS ON 
 "SOME MERRY ADVENTURES OF robin hood" 
 
 A unit of reading material, such as Some Merry Adven- 
 tures of Robin Hood, by Pyle, is well adapted for extensive 
 silent reading. The book consists of twelve chapters, and 
 176 pages. It was used with an upper fifth-grade class, 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 129 
 
 taught by Miss Blanche Turechek. Ten recitation periods 
 of thirty minutes each were used. The following are 
 representative of the problems used as a basis of reports on 
 assignments : 
 
 In the shooting of the deer which led to Robin Hood becoming 
 an outlaw, who was most to blame, Robin Hood or the 
 foresters? 
 
 Why was Little John so named? 
 
 What was the Sheriff's purpose in holding a shooting-match? 
 
 In what three ways did Robin Hood disguise himself so that the 
 Sheriff did not know him? 
 
 What is the point of highest excitement in the chapter? 
 
 Select witty lines in this chapter. 
 
 The assignment involved one or two chapters to a recita- 
 tion. The pupils were told to read the chapter through 
 first without reference to the questions, and then to go over 
 it again considering the questions and exercises written on 
 the board for the chapter. The oral reading was of two 
 types, that which came in naturally to prove points, and 
 that which was planned as a part of the procedure in rela- 
 tion to a problem, such as — " Select a witty saying in the 
 chapter, write the page and line on a slip of paper, and be 
 prepared to read it to the class." After the book was com- 
 pleted chapter by chapter, one recitation was used to get a 
 perspective view of the whole with a consideration of such 
 problems as the following: 
 
 Cite incidents showing Little John as the right-hand man. 
 
 List six places where Robin Hood and his band outwit the 
 Sheriff. 
 
 Name the men Robin Hood could not overcome in single com- 
 bat. 
 
 List five characteristics of Robin Hood's personality which 
 helped to bring him good fortune throughout the stories. 
 
 A poor way to proceed. The procedure with the unit of 
 reading matter mentioned above was radically different 
 
130 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 from the procedure the writer once observed in connection 
 with a similar unit. An eighth-grade class was studying a 
 school edition of Ivanhoe containing two hundred and eight 
 pages. The method used was that of reading it orally and 
 consecutively, page by page, with discussion of the details. 
 The discussion of the class was centered largely upon minor 
 details, with little consideration of the larger problems 
 which might have been discussed after the pupils had all 
 read the whole story silently. The class had completed 
 the reading of a little over half of the book after five weeks, 
 or fifteen recitations. However, upon inquiry from the 
 pupils, it was discovered that most of the class had com- 
 pleted reading the book silently on the side at odd times. 
 With any literary material of this kind there should be 
 some oral reading, but to attempt to read orally all of a 
 unit of this length is not only objectionable because it tends 
 to throw the discussion too largely upon small points, but 
 also because it is too slow a procedure with reference to the 
 amount of material the class is able to cover, and it tends to 
 slow up the individual rate of silent reading. The point is 
 that in the past this type of oral-reading procedure has been 
 altogether too common, due to a conception handed down 
 that a reading recitation means oral reading. We are 
 coming to realize that the development of efficient silent 
 readers is the most important phase of the reading problem 
 in the intermediate and upper grades. The appreciation 
 of good reading material of various types, including the 
 distinctly literary types, of course, is also important, but it 
 is believed by the writer that, except in the case of poetry, 
 pupils get more enjoyment and appreciation through the 
 silent-reading method. 
 
 Silent reading and study. The tendency in recent years 
 has been to place greater stress on the study methods and 
 habits of the pupils than formerly. A careful observation 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 131 
 
 of the silent-reading method will reveal the fact that this 
 method tends to place greater emphasis on the study of the 
 pupil. In the oral-reading method the pupil who had made 
 little headway in his study could follow along and do about 
 as well as though he had studied vigorously. But in the 
 silent-reading method the pupil is practically unable to 
 participate in the development discussion unless he has 
 read with some degree of efficiency during his study-time. 
 It also reveals to the teacher, and to the particular pupil as 
 well, valuable information as to the pupil's silent-reading 
 efficiency, and should result in some wholesome advice 
 as to how to improve in silent reading. There is undoubt- 
 edly a vital relationship between the pupil's silent-reading 
 efficiency and his efficiency in study in the content subjects. 
 
 IV. A SEVENTH-GRADE SILENT-READING LESSON 
 
 The following is an account by Miss Lucille Murphy of 
 a recitation in silent reading with a seventh-grade class. 
 
 Material: How I Killed a Bear, by Charles Dudley Warner. 
 Primary purpose: 1. To develop appreciation of the humor. 
 Secondary purpose: 2. To improve comprehension and increase 
 
 rate. 
 Problem: To plan a motion picture based upon this story. 
 
 Statement of the problem. " We see a great many moving 
 pictures with many different plots. WTiere do you suppose 
 the motion -picture director gets the stories for all the 
 pictures he must produce? One pupil answered that people 
 write them, and another soon suggested that they take 
 some from books. W r e are going to read a story this morn- 
 ing called How I Killed a Bear, that I believe could be 
 worked into an interesting motion picture. For the next 
 half-hour let us forget that we are pupils of the Garden- 
 ville School, and let us be motion-picture directors. Let 
 
132 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 us read through this story from the standpoint of a director, 
 and decide what scenes we will include and in what order." 
 
 Solution of the problem. " We will read ahead until we 
 have decided upon the opening scene." The children set to 
 work with a will, each one hoping to be the first to discover 
 the opening scene. In a short time some one suggested it, 
 adding graphic suggestions as to the arrangement of the 
 stage and the action of the characters. All agreed to this, 
 and set to work to find the next scene. Here a difference of 
 opinion arose. Some pupils wanted to include the account 
 of the hero's previous experiences with a gun, but others 
 objected on the score that this did not properly belong to 
 the action, How I Killed a Bear. Some asked, " Well, 
 suppose you do include it, how are you going to connect it 
 with the story?" This objection was quickly answered by a 
 wide-awake boy who responded at once, " Don't they often 
 show what people are thinking about in motion pictures? 
 All you would have to do would be to have him hold his 
 gun and look at it as though he were thinking, and then 
 show these things." Here the teacher stepped in. " Be- 
 fore we can decide what to include in our picture I believe 
 it will be necessary to decide whether the picture is to be 
 exciting, funny, sad, or romantic." The name of the story 
 suggested exciting to some, while others, influenced by the 
 humorous account of the hero's past experience with a gun 
 as just read, insisted that it would have to be funny. The 
 teacher suggested that the class read on before deciding. 
 
 The humorous account of a colored cook's encounter 
 with a bear was read by the children with general amuse- 
 ment, as they were now on the lookout for humor. One 
 member of the class, who had insisted that this would make 
 a good humorous picture, fearing that those on the opposing 
 side would miss the point of the account, spontaneously 
 rose and read aloud as soon as he discovered it, " He did not 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 133 
 
 know whether she would agree with him." At this point all 
 agreed that the picture was to be humorous. " Then if our 
 picture is to be humorous, what kind of incidents must 
 we be sure to include? " "Funny," the pupils replied in 
 chorus. 
 
 As the pupils went on to discuss each scene, even such 
 minute detail as the " glad surprise " of the bear were 
 appreciated. The pupils decided that they would have to 
 have a well-trained bear, for if he failed to look glad the 
 audience would lose one laugh. They decided to include 
 what the man was thinking when the bear came toward 
 him, for it would certainly add humor. They explained 
 that the scene in which the hero relates his experience to his 
 home folks would have to be liberally interspersed with 
 leaders, for the humor lay in the swift repartee. Then 
 came a heated discussion as to the closing scene. Some 
 wished to stop with the procession carrying the bear home- 
 ward, others with the crowd who assembled to view it, 
 others with the hero just dropping off to sleep with " the 
 last delicious thought," " I have killed a bear." This last 
 suggestion was finally agreed upon, for the pupils decided 
 that if it were presented skillfully it could be made very 
 funny. 
 
 Value of such a lesson. The writer observed a part of 
 this recitation, and was impressed with the enthusiasm and 
 interest with which the pupils read and discussed. This is 
 a fine example of the study-recitation type of silent reading, 
 which should be used occasionally for the purpose of ob- 
 serving the pupils' silent-reading habits and for the purpose 
 of developing better study habits. However, most of the 
 silent-reading lessons should be of the type requiring definite 
 study preparation in connection with problems set by the 
 teacher or conceived by the pupils. This particular recita- 
 tion is especially good in several respects. The pupils were 
 
134 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 learning how to select, compare, judge, exclude, appropri- 
 ate, put together, and draw conclusions. It forced the slow 
 readers to become more alert, concentrate better, and in- 
 crease their rate of reading. The discussion helped them 
 to keep the connection, to see their lack of thought-getting, 
 and provided a motive for renewed effort. It resulted in 
 keen appreciation of the characteristic elements of this unit 
 of literature. The absence of oral-reading in no way hin- 
 dered the appreciation of the humor of the selection. In 
 fact the rapidity of the silent reading was a distinct ad- 
 vantage over the slowness of oral reading, in so far as the 
 appreciation of the humor was concerned. 
 
 The recitation just described illustrates the advantage of 
 one major problem as a substitute for the oral-reading in 
 serving as a steering compass as the recitation proceeds. 
 One problem here sufficed for the consideration of a unit 
 of twelve pages of average-sized print. Note how the 
 teacher divided the main problem into subsidiary problems: 
 
 Major problem: To plan a motion picture based upon this story, 
 (a) Scenes — number, order. 
 (jb) What to include in the scenes. 
 
 Picture to be exciting, funny, sad or 
 
 romantic? 
 
 Note how the decision to make the picture " funny " pro- 
 vided a constant contact between the details and the 
 teacher's main purpose in developing appreciation of the 
 humor. Also note that the pupils were constantly told to 
 look for something definite. For instance, at the beginning 
 they were told to decide upon the opening scene. In this 
 recitation the pupils' attention was centered upon the larger 
 values, but they were constantly scrutinizing and analyzing 
 detail and reorganizing it in terms of the ultimate outcomes 
 the teacher desired to have realized. 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 135 
 
 A word of warning may not be out of place with reference 
 to attempts to use the motion-picture problem in connec- 
 tion with units to which it will not apply. One of the most 
 important parts of the teacher's preparation for teaching a 
 unit of reading matter is the formulation of appropriate 
 problems. The selection of the problem used in the pre- 
 ceding illustration was very fortunate, but the writer has 
 seen attempts by other teachers to use this same problem, 
 with units not containing material for a good motion pic- 
 ture, which were unfortunate. The skillful teacher will 
 make sure that her problems are adapted to the content 
 of the reading matter, and that their solution will focus 
 attention upon the leading ideas. 
 
 V. A SEKIES OF FIVE EIGHTH-GRADE RECITATIONS ON 
 "THE MAN WITHOUT A country". 
 
 First recitation. The following assignment was made 
 preliminary to the study period for the recitation: 
 
 Read the book through as rapidly as you caD, simply to get and 
 enjoy the story. If you are a rapid reader, you can do this in 
 thirty minutes. If you do not complete it during the period, take 
 the book home and complete it. 
 
 The time set for reading the story was estimated in the 
 following manner: The number of words in each of several 
 lines was determined. There appeared to be an average of 
 eight words to the line. By multiplying by the number of 
 lines on a page, we found the estimate for a page to be two 
 hundred and forty-eight words. By actual count this page 
 contained two hundred and forty-five words. According 
 to the standard rate of reading for the average eighth- 
 grade pupil, this is about the number of words he should 
 read in a minute. There are forty-two pages in the story. 
 An average reader would then complete the story in from 
 
136 SILENT AND ORAL READING ' 
 
 forty to forty-five minutes, and a rapid reader in about 
 thirty minutes. 
 
 At the beginning of the first recitation the following list 
 of problems were placed upon the blackboard, and all the 
 pupils were asked to copy them into their study notebooks: 
 
 1. Give facts and incidents that show how Nolan was punished 
 for damning the United States and wishing never to hear of 
 her again. 
 
 2. What were the main activities that Nolan had for occupy- 
 ing his time? List four of them in their order of importance. 
 
 3. Prove that Nolan loved his country dearly. 
 
 4. Contrast Nolan's character as a young man, and his char- 
 acter as revealed in the story from about the age of forty 
 until his death. 
 
 There was some discussion as to the time it took different 
 pupils to read the story, in order to direct their attention to 
 rate as a factor in efficient reading. Then they were told 
 to note how well the rapid readers were able to respond to 
 the above questions in comparison with the slowest ones. 
 Then followed a discussion of the first problem. Many 
 interesting contributions were made. A few had to be 
 ruled out as not being relevant to the problem. A sum- 
 mary was made of the more important ones. A beginning 
 on the second problem was made. During the study period 
 for the second recitation the pupils were asked to formulate 
 the list called for in the second problem, and collect facts 
 for a debate on the third. 
 
 Second recitation. The second recitation opened with a 
 consideration of the lists in answer to the second question. 
 Differences of opinion as to which activities should be in- 
 cluded in the approved list and as to their order of impor- 
 tance brought in a discussion of a great many interesting 
 details, compelled the pupils to weigh values, select and 
 reject, to " give reason for the faith that was in them," 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 137 
 
 and resulted in considerable debate in which the teacher 
 was a tactful and judicious referee. The value of a correct 
 solution of the problem was not nearly so great as was the 
 thinking that was aroused and the experience provided by 
 this procedure. A beginning was made on the third prob- 
 lem, and groups voluntarily arranged to debate the ques- 
 tion. Some whose memory clung more to the first part of 
 the story chose the negative. The remainder of the pupils 
 agreed to report upon the fourth problem. 
 \- Third recitation. During the informal, promiscuous 
 debate the pupils spontaneously arose at different times 
 and read sentences or paragraphs to support their points. 
 Of course the poorer readers and thinkers who had selected 
 the negative were routed by those on the affirmative, but 
 the losers had learned, in a concrete way, something of the 
 importance of relative values in drawing conclusions. 
 
 Fourth recitation. In the consideration of the fourth 
 problem there was opportunity to emphasize the more 
 important ethical values of the story in relation to character 
 development. For the closing recitation the following 
 problem was assigned: 
 
 Select one of the most interesting incidents and be prepared to 
 read it to the class. 
 
 A number were suggested by the pupils and they were 
 left to make their own selections, with the caution that the 
 selection must be brief so there would be time for a good 
 many to read. 
 
 Fifth recitation. The last recitation was given over to 
 the enjoyment of the audience reading indicated in the 
 problem assigned. 
 
 It will be seen that in this plan there is no attempt to go 
 through the story consecutively from the beginning to the 
 end. Oftentimes the discussion on one of j the problems 
 would necessitate the pupiPs relating a part of the story, 
 
138 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 or a questioning of certain pupils about the facts of the 
 story, but these factual reproductions and questions were 
 always subsidiary elements to a problem involving con- 
 centration upon the large view of the story. Pupils who 
 were able to take little or no part in the discussions were 
 stimulated to read more selectively, and with greater con- 
 centration in their study-preparation for the next recitation. 
 This type of oral reading and the type indicated in the 
 fifth problem have some incentive, some purpose in con- 
 trast to the procedure which involves oral reading be- 
 cause of a vague notion that all the material in the reading 1 
 lesson must be read orally. 
 
 Provide an abundance of red-blooded silent-reading 
 material. It will be noted that the first assignment in the 
 lesson last given provided for a rapid reading of the whole 
 of The Man Without a Country at one sitting. This is the 
 way the average individual desires to read a unit of this 
 type in the ordinary life situation. It is also true that 
 pupils in school desire to go through to the end of an 
 absorbing story of this kind without interruption, and with- 
 out deliberation upon any set problems or points to watch 
 for. If there were more provision in school for this kind of 
 reading experience, with real red-blooded material that 
 appeals to the pupils' love of adventure and spirited action, 
 the teacher would have less difficulty with pupils reading 
 the forbidden dime novel under cover of a large geography 
 book. Irvin Cobb * testifies that, if he had a son twelve to 
 fourteen years old, he would supply him liberally with 
 reading matter of the type of the Nick Carter, Cap Collier, 
 Deadwood Dick, and the Jesse James books, and say to 
 him: 
 
 Read them openly. . . . Read them for their brisk and stirring 
 
 1 Cobb, Irvin. "A Plea for Old Cap Collier"; in Saturday Evening 
 Post, July 3. 1920. . 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 139 
 
 movement; for the spirit of outdoor adventure and life which 
 crowds them; for their swift but logical processions of sequences; 
 for the phases of Pioneer Americanism they rawly but graphically 
 portray, and for their moral values. Read them along with your 
 Coopers and your Ivanhoe and your Mayne Reids. Read them 
 through, and perhaps some day, if fortune is kinder to you than 
 ever it was to your father, with a background behind you and a 
 vision before you, you may be inspired to sit down and write a 
 dime novel of your own almost good enough to be worthy of men- 
 tion in the same breath with the two greatest adventure stories — 
 dollar-sized dime novels is what they really are ■ — that ever were 
 written; written, both of them, by writing men, who, I'm sure, 
 must have based their moods and their modes upon the memories 
 of the dime novels which they, they in their turn, read when they 
 were boys of your age. I refer to a book called Huckleberry Finn, 
 and to a book called Treasure Island. 
 
 5. Lists of Books Suitable for Use 
 
 Books as interesting as a dime novel. In 1907 Professor 
 W. W. Charters wrote to twenty-four of the largest cities 
 in the United States and asked the city librarian to send 
 him the titles of the twelve books which boys of the dime- 
 novel age found to be as interesting as the dime novel. In 
 1917 he wrote again, and from the replies compiled a list 
 of the most popular books of this type. This list he pub- 
 lished 1 and it is reproduced below. The numbers following 
 each title indicate the frequency of mention by the li- 
 brarians of the twenty-four cities. 
 
 Stevenson: Treasure Island (17). 
 
 Clemens: Tom Sawyer (13). 
 
 Otis: Toby Tyler, or Ten Weeks with a Circus (10). 
 
 Verne: 20,000 Leagues under the Sea (9). 
 
 Altsheler: The Young Trailers (8). 
 
 Clemens: Huckleberry Finn (6). 
 
 Drysdale : The Fast Mail (6). 
 
 1 School and Society, March 13, 1920. Also reproduced in the Course of 
 Study for the Atlanta Public Schools for 1920-21. 
 
140 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Carruth : ; Track's End (5) . 
 
 Grinnell: Jack, the Young Ranchman (5). 
 
 Masefield: Jim Davis (5). 
 
 Altsheler : Last of the Ch iefs (4) . 
 
 Barbour: Crimson Sweater (4). 
 
 Burton: Boys of Bob's Hill (4). 
 
 Cody: Adventures of Buffalo Bill (4). 
 
 Defoe: Robinson Crusoe (4). 
 
 London: Call of the Wild (4). 
 
 Monroe: Cab and Caboose (4). 
 
 Quirk : Boy ScouU of the Black Eagle Patrol (4), 
 
 Schultz : With the Indians in the Rockies (4). 
 
 Altsheler: Horsemen of the Plains (3). 
 
 Brown : Two Boys in a Gyro Car (3) . 
 
 Grinnell: Jack among the Indians (3). 
 
 Malone : Winning His Way to West Point (3). 
 
 Mason: Tom Strong (3). 
 
 Moffet : Careers of Danger and Daring (3) .] 
 
 Sabin: Bar B Boys (3). 
 
 Sab in : Buffalo Bill and the Overland Trail (3). 
 
 Stevenson: Young Train Dispatcher (3). 
 
 Wallace: Wilderness Castaways (3). 
 
 An abundance of material for extensive reading experi- 
 ence that partakes of the spirit of travel, of contest, of 
 exciting experience, of spirited conversation, of rapid 
 action, of heroic endeavor, of courageous battle, in short, 
 that carries the pupil through the whole round of world 
 situations and experiences in the way in which the child and 
 youth desire to be carried, should be furnished for class- 
 room purposes. Much of this should be read by the pupils 
 without particular classroom consideration. Consider- 
 able amounts should be considered class fashion as The 
 Man Without a Country was treated in the series of lessons 
 previously described. 
 
 List of books suitable for class use, by grades. The fol- 
 lowing is a brief list of books suitable for classroom use for 
 extensive silent-reading purposes, arranged by grades: 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 
 
 141 
 
 Grades 3 and If. 
 
 Defoe: 
 
 Robinson Crusoe. 
 
 Baldwin: 
 
 Old Greek Stories. f 
 
 Baldwin: 
 
 Old Stories of the East. 
 
 Stickney: 
 
 Andersen's Fairy Tales. 
 
 Wiltse: - 
 
 Grimm's Fairy Tales. 
 
 Barrie-Perkins: 
 
 Peter Pan. 
 
 Shaw: 
 
 Big People and Little People of Other 
 
 
 Lands. 
 
 Andrews: 
 
 Seven Little Sisters. 
 
 Cowels: 
 
 Going to School in Animal Land. 
 
 Chance: 
 
 Little Folks of Many Lands. 
 
 Grades k and 5 
 
 Cellodi-Cramp-Lochwood : 
 
 Pinocchio. 
 
 Lane: 
 
 Arabian Nights Entertainments. 
 
 "Washburne: 
 
 Indian Legends. 
 
 Pyle: 
 
 Some Merry Adventures of Robin Hood. 
 
 Sewell: 
 
 Black Beauty. 
 
 Schultz: 
 
 Sinopah the Indian Boy. 
 
 Moran: 
 
 Kwahu the Hopi Indian Boy, 
 
 Hawthorne: 
 
 The Wonder-Book. 
 
 Carroll: 
 
 Alice in Wonderland. 
 
 Perkins: 
 
 The Japanese Twins. 
 
 Otis (Pioneer Series) : 
 
 Benjamin of Ohio. 
 
 McDonald and Dalrymple 
 
 
 (Little People Every- 
 
 
 where Series): 
 
 Betty in Canada. 
 
 Grades 5 and 6 
 
 Warren: 
 
 King Arthur and His Knights. 
 
 Swift: 
 
 Gulliver's Travels. 
 
 Leblanc: 
 
 The Blue Bird for Children. • 
 
 Mabie:_; 
 
 Norse Stories. 
 
 Kipling: 
 
 The Jungle Book. 
 
 Sharp: 
 
 Beyond the Pasture Bars. 
 
 Schwartz: 
 
 Wilderness Babies. 
 
 Ouida: 
 
 The Niirnberg Stove. 
 
 Seton: 
 
 Lobo, Rag, and Vixen. 
 
 Seton: 
 
 Krag and Johnny Bear. 
 
 Harris: 
 
 ' Uncle Remus. 
 
142 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Hawthorne: 
 
 Tanglewood Tales. 
 
 Ruskin: 
 
 King of the Golden River. 
 
 Wyss: 
 
 Swiss Family Robinson. 
 
 
 Grades 6 and 7 
 
 Mark Twain: 
 
 Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. 
 
 Hasbrouck: 
 
 The Boys' Parkman. 
 
 Spyri : 
 
 Heidi. 
 
 Aldrich: 
 
 Story of a Bad Boy. 
 
 Eggleston: 
 
 Hoosier School Boy. 
 
 Dodge: 
 
 Hans Brinker. 
 
 Mabie: 
 
 Heroes Every Child Should Know. 
 
 Coe: 
 
 Heroes of Every Day Life. 
 
 Grenfell: 
 
 Adrift on an Ice Pan. 
 
 Sharp: 
 
 Roof and Meadow. 
 
 
 Grades 7 and 8 
 
 Curtis: 
 
 In the Land of the Head Hunters. 
 
 Curtis : 
 
 Indian Days of Long Ago. 
 
 Wells: 
 
 Hoiu the Present Came Out of the Past 
 
 Mark Twain: 
 
 Travels in History. 
 
 Mark Twain: 
 
 Travels at Home. 
 
 Stevenson : 
 
 Treasure Island. 
 
 Rutland: 
 
 Old Testament Stories. 
 
 Helen Keller: 
 
 The Story of My Life. 
 
 Hawthorne* 
 
 The Great Stone Face. 
 
 Irving : 
 
 The Legend cf Sleepy Hollow. 
 
 Kipling: 
 
 Captains Courageous. 
 
 Mark Twain: 
 
 The Prince and the Pauper. 
 
 Dana: 
 
 Two Years before the Mast. 
 
 Hale: 
 
 The Man Without a Country. 
 
 Hughes: 
 
 Tom Brown's School Days. 
 
 Stowe: 
 
 Uncle Tom's Cabin. 
 
 Silent-reading selections, by grades. The following is a 
 list of readings, arranged by grades, with suggested prob- 
 lems and exercises: 
 
 Grade 2 
 "The Wise Lion" — 6 pages — Edson-Lang First Reader. 
 1. Just why do you think the Lion was wise? 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 143 
 
 2. What did the rabbit think that was foolish? 
 
 3. What did the rabbit do that was foolish? 
 
 "The Fairies' Secret" — 7 pages — The New Barnes Second 
 Reader. 
 
 1. Name the three kinds of fairies mentioned. 
 
 2. Write the sentence that is the fairies' secret. 
 
 "Little Two Eyes" — 13 pages — Free and Treadwell First Reader. 
 
 1. Write four things the two sisters did to make Little Two Eyes 
 unhappy. 
 
 2. Why do you think the little old woman and the prince helped 
 Little Two Eyes? 
 
 Grade 3 
 "The Little Builder" — 5 pages — Baldwin and Bender Second 
 Reader. 
 
 1. Write the five words that tell the five persons and things the 
 boy appealed to for building blocks. 
 
 2. Do you think any little boy would have done what this boy 
 did to get the blocks? 
 
 " Cedar Tree's Reward " — 9 pages — Story-Hour Second Reader. 
 
 1. Write the names of the four trees appealed to by the blue bird. 
 
 2. What was the cedar tree's reward? 
 
 "Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp" — 9 pages — Merrill Third 
 Reader. 
 
 1. Read through to the end rapidly to get the story. Do not 
 bother about words you cannot pronounce. 
 
 2. Why was the stranger so good to Aladdin in the first part of 
 the story? 
 
 3. How did the stranger intend to reward Aladdin for getting 
 the lamp? 
 
 4. Mention five incidents in the story where magic worked a 
 wonder. 
 
 5. Go through the story again and write the 8 words most 
 unfamiliar to you. 
 
 "The Faithful Beasts" — 10 pages — Literary Reader, II. 
 
 1. Copy the sentence which tells why the animals helped the 
 man. 
 
 2. What did the mouse do to help, that neither the bear nor 
 monkey could do? 
 
 3. What did the bear do to help, that neither the monkey nor 
 the mouse could do? 
 
144 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 4. Make a drawing to illustrate lines 6, 7, 8, and 9 on page 83. 
 (Bear swimming, monkey on bear's back with magic stone 
 in his mouth, mouse in bear's ear.) 
 "The Stone Cutter" — 5 pages — Riverside Third Reader, 
 
 1. Read the story through. 
 
 2. Re-read and write the places where something important 
 happened. 
 
 3. Be able to name the people in the story. 
 
 4. Glance through the story hastily, counting the number of 
 wishes Hof us made, and write the number. 
 
 5. What did Hofus learn? 
 
 Grade 4 
 "The Bear, the Boar, and the Fox" — 5 pages — Edson-Lang 
 Third Reader. 
 1. On a sheet of paper plan for three columns, headed like this: 
 1. Bear 2. Boar 3. Fox 
 
 Place each of the following under one of the three, as you think 
 is most nearly correct according to the story: 
 
 (1) sly (2) cowardly (3) piggish (4) stupid (5) unfair (6) 
 industrious (7) high-tempered (8) bluffer (9) plower (10) 
 sower (11) boss (12) winner (13) schemer. 
 "Why the Sea is Salt" — 12 pages — Story -Hour Third Reader. 
 
 1. According to the story why is the sea salt? 
 
 2. What mistake did the rich brother and the captain both 
 make? 
 
 "The Emperor's Test " — 12 pages — Riverside Fourth Reader. (In 
 dramatic form.) 
 
 1. Read the play through rapidly to get the story. 
 
 2. In recitation the pupils may act the play without the books. 
 Re-read it carefully so you will know when to talk, about 
 what to say, and what to do. Do not try to memorize the 
 lines. The pupils who are not assigned as characters will be 
 the audience. In case an actor fails one of the audience may 
 take his place. 
 
 (As a part of the assignment the teacher designates a pupil 
 for each of the eleven characters.) 
 
 Grade 
 
 "The Maid of Orleans" — 8 pages — Natural-Method Fourth, 
 Reader. 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 145 
 
 1. Read the story through rapidly. 
 
 2. In your geography, on the map of Europe, find France and 
 England. Locate the two important cities of France men- 
 tioned in the story. 
 
 3. Did Joan of Arc succeed or fail? 
 
 (a) In what way did she fail? 
 
 (6) Did the French succeed in driving the English out of 
 France? 
 
 (c) How did her life help the French? 
 
 (d) How did her death help the French? 
 
 "Who is the Happiest Man?" — 6 pages — Baldwin and Bender 
 Fifth Reader. 
 
 1. Read the story through rapidly and close the book. 
 
 2. Then copy the characters as listed, and place after each the 
 one of the following words which is appropriate: 
 
 wealth mercy wisdom service martyr 
 
 Characters 
 Cyrus Solon Tellus 
 
 Crcesus The Two Young Men 
 
 "The Talking Saddle " — Joel Chandler Harris — 11 pages — 
 Selections from Riverside Literature for Fifth Grade. 
 
 1. Read to the end rapidly to get the story. 
 
 2. Who is the chief character in the story? 
 
 3. What is the first thing we learn of Tip-Top that would make 
 an important change in his life? 
 
 4. Divide the story into scenes for dramatization. 
 
 Grade 6 
 "Horace Greeley, — Journalist" — 10 pages — Riverside Sixth 
 Reader. 
 
 1. Give two illustrations of the pluck of the young man. 
 
 2. Select three sentences that tell things that Greeley did that 
 helped him succeed. 
 
 3. Pluck was one of his characteristics. List five words of your 
 own that describe other characteristics of Greeley. 
 
 "The Sugar Camp" — 6 pages — Literary Reader, Book VI. 
 
 1. What do you think interested the boy most? 
 
 2. What would have interested you most? 
 
 "When Hannibal Finished the Bridge" — 11 pages — Boys* and 
 Girls' Sixth Reader. 
 
146 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 (An elephant is used in building the bridge. He scents a 
 jaguar and a death struggle results.) 
 
 1. Give two illustrations to show that Hannibal had the feeling 
 of a wild elephant. 
 
 2. Select the section of about a half page that you think con- 
 tains the most thrilling scene. 
 
 3. Select the two sections that you think best to read aloud. 
 
 4. Show that Tom was a brave boy. 
 
 Grade 7 
 "A Fight with the Pirates" — Stevenson — 8 pages — Riverside 
 Seventh Reader. 
 
 1. Read through to the end to get the story. 
 
 2. Re-read carefully, and make a diagram showing the stockade, 
 the blockhouse, and the location of each of the defenders and 
 the fighting equipment. 
 
 3. Which side won? 
 
 4. Select three sentences that are good expressions of rapid 
 action. 
 
 "An Apple Story" — 9 pages — The Holton- Curry Seventh Reader. 
 
 1. Read the story through for the enjoyment of it. 
 
 2. Explain the pun on "ruminating." If necessary look up its 
 meaning in the glossary. 
 
 3. Select five other words upon which the author makes puns, 
 and be prepared to read the puns to the class. 
 
 4. Relate the two most ludicrous things that happen in the story. 
 
 Grade 8 
 "The Great Stone Face" — 21 pages — Elson Eighth Reader. } 
 
 Helps to Study * 
 
 1. What part of the description of the Great Stone Face do you 
 like the best? 
 
 2. What influence had this Face upon the valley? Upon the 
 clouds? Upon the sunshine? 
 
 3. Show how each of the four characters failed to realize the 
 ideal. 
 
 1 Elson, William H. Elson Grammar-School Reader, Book iv (for eighth 
 grade), p. 162. 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 147 
 
 4. What purpose do you think Hawthorne had in creating these 
 characters? 
 
 5. Why did so many people think that each of these men was 
 the image of the Great Stone Face? 
 
 6. Why did not Ernest think so? 
 
 7. What were the characteristics of the ideal? What words 
 name them? 
 
 8. What does the Great Stone Face symbolize? 
 
 9. What words tell you the source of Ernest's power? 
 
 10. What lines tell you of his humility? 
 
 11. Summarize his characteristics. 
 
 12. What pictures do you find in the selection? 
 
 13. Point out sentences that contain examples of alliteration. 
 
 14. Find a humorous sentence. 
 
 15. Who were the Titans? 
 
 16. Who was Midas? 
 
 6. Problems of Illustrative Representation 
 
 ' Types of illustrations. There are a few selections in 
 almost any school reader which are adapted to illustrative 
 representation. This may be in the form of pictorial draw- 
 ings in black or colored crayola on manila paper, of simple 
 cuttings, of illustrated cuttings, of diagrams or graphs, 
 of silhouette illustrations, of map drawings, or of construc- 
 tions. As a rule pupils delight in making illustrations. 
 
 Purposes. From the viewpoint of the reading, the value 
 of the illustrating is to provide a specific purpose for careful, 
 critical reading, to test the accuracy of the reading, and to 
 make more concrete the content of the material. It pro- 
 vides interesting seat work, and, if skillfully directed, applies 
 the reading ability to a concrete situation for a definite 
 purpose. A finished art production is not at all essential 
 in so far as the value to the reading is concerned. The 
 pupils' crude productions may be fuller of meaning to them 
 than the finished art productions which adorn the pages 
 pf their books. 
 
148 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Correlation with drawing. Illustrating reading material 
 provides an excellent opportunity for correlation between 
 reading and the drawing or art work. During reading- 
 time the content may be taught in relation to the illustra- 
 tion work, while the actual drawing or construction is done 
 during drawing-time. In the reading recitation, the 
 problems in relation to the content of the illustrations are 
 raised and the reading-content interpreted in relation to 
 these problems. After the illustrations are made, they are 
 critically scrutinized in reading-time to determine whether 
 they portray correctly the thoughts and ideas of the read- 
 ing-content. This sort of correlation is of advantage to 
 both the drawing and the reading. It produces better 
 illustrative work in the drawing, and better thinking and 
 richer experience in the reading. 
 
 Lesson steps. The following steps come naturally in 
 each illustrative lesson: 
 
 1. Assignment. During the assignment the teacher 
 suggests that the pupils may be interested in making some 
 illustrations of a certain type. The following would be a 
 good assignment: 
 
 Read the selection through rapidly to get the story. 
 
 Re-read and decide which type of illustration, construction or 
 
 crayola drawings it will be best to use. 
 Select two passages suitable for illustration. 
 
 2. Recitation. During the recitation there is a discussion 
 and decision as to the type of illustration to use. Then the 
 various sections chosen by the pupils for illustration are 
 considered. Any unsuitable ones are discovered by the 
 class and ruled out. A certain number of the best ones are 
 listed, from which the pupils may choose. The content 
 that should go into these illustrations, or the composition 
 of the illustrations, is discussed. 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 149 
 
 3. Illustrations. The illustrations are made during 
 drawing-time, at home, or during reading-study-time. 
 
 If,. Second recitation. In the next recitation the illustra- 
 tions are critically scrutinized. The illustration or illustra- 
 tions of a particular section are exhibited to the class while 
 the class reads the section carefully, or while a pupil reads 
 the section to the class as audience reading. Is the illustra- 
 tion representative of the general spirit of the story? Does 
 it portray correctly the picture of the section? 
 
 An example of an illustration lesson, taken from Irving, 
 will show the possibilities of such work. 
 
 ILLUSTRATING "RIP VAN WINKLE " — AN EIGHTH- 
 GRADE LESSON 
 
 The writer used the procedure outlined above in teaching 
 Rip Van Winkle to an eighth-grade class. The pupils took 
 great pleasure in making the crayola drawings. Some of 
 the illustrations were very good from the standpoint of the 
 principles of drawing, but did not show appreciation of the 
 spirit of the story or accurate portrayal of the facts. Others 
 were rather crude drawings, but showed a grasp of essential 
 values and facts. From the standpoint of the reading in- 
 struction, the latter type would be considered the better. 
 Of course there were some that were good in both phases 
 and some poor in both. 
 
 The problems raised in the original assignment provided 
 the specific purpose for the silent reading during study- 
 time. Likewise, as the pupils were making their drawings, 
 they would at times refer back to the book and re-read. 
 The pupils placed a title or statement from the story under- 
 neath the picture to characterize it. 
 
 The greatest value in relation to the development of 
 reading ability was realized during the time that the pictures 
 were being critically considered in relation to the reading- 
 
150 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 content. This was conducted as audience reading. One 
 pupil held the drawing so the class could see it. It was 
 necessary to see that the pupil held the picture so that it 
 got the proper light, and so that it faced properly toward 
 the pupils. The pupil who made the drawing read from the 
 story the part he had illustrated. The remainder of the 
 class listened with books closed, and with two problems 
 in mind. Is the picture in harmony with the general 
 spirit and setting of Rip Van Winkle? Is there a cor- 
 rect portrayal of the detailed facts given in the selection 
 read? 
 
 One boy presented a picture of Rip mending his fence. 
 Some more thoughtful pupils challenged this as not being 
 in keeping with the character of Rip. The pupil who made 
 the drawing was unable to substantiate the fact from any 
 statement in the story. This experience no doubt helped to 
 make a better reader of him. He had failed to verify the 
 facts he portrayed by reference to the reading matter. The 
 failure of pupils to take this step of verification in careful 
 reading is very common. One of the teacher's problems is 
 how to get such pupils to check up their impressions and 
 conclusions by a careful scrutiny of the reading-content. 
 Such experiences as this boy had, under sympathetic and 
 helpful direction, will be a help in that direction. 
 
 Many teachers use illustration to excellent advantage 
 without necessarily following the procedure outlined in this 
 instance. The photographic reproductions given opposite 
 show some possibilities of group illustration. 
 
 Briggs and Coffman, in their volume on Reading in the 
 Public Schools, pages 120-27, show silhouette illustrations 
 for "Old Pipes and the Dryads." Through a series of 
 eighteen simple illustrations the complete story is por- 
 trayed. The appropriate sentences accompany each illus- 
 tration. 
 
m 
 
 — 
 
 < 
 
 «! 
 
 c; 
 
 = 
 
 P 
 
 - 
 03 
 
 <" 
 
 — 
 
 pj 
 
 - 
 
 c~ 
 
 — 
 
 
 
 w 
 
 
 H 
 
 w 
 
 « 
 
 - 
 
 
 
 £ 
 
 !* 
 
 < 
 
 
 s 
 
 - 
 
 K ^ 
 
 - 
 
 
 . < 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 151 
 
 Units suitable for illustration. In planning a lesson in- 
 volving the use of problems of illustration, it is very im- 
 portant to select units that easily lend themselves to the 
 type of illustration contemplated. Units that portray an 
 abundance of action, and scenes with outstanding charac- 
 teristics, are adapted to pictorial drawings or cuttings. 
 Where the color characteristics are prominent, colored 
 crayolas should be used. Where there is little color, but 
 plenty of action, use black crayola, or make cuttings from 
 black paper and mount them on white paper, or from white 
 paper and mount them on black paper or cloth. 
 
 Most teachers in the intermediate and upper grades will 
 have some material that is adapted to illustration by 
 diagrams, graphs, or maps. The " Fight with the Pirates/' 
 from Stevenson's Treasure Island, will be much more con- 
 crete to the pupils if they are asked to make a diagram 
 showing the location of the stockade, blockhouse, etc. 
 This is also a good test of reading ability. A good problem 
 in map illustration to use in teaching is found in a selection 
 in the Baldwin Seventh Reader entitled, " The Great Fight 
 at Aldreth," an excerpt from Kingsley's Hereward y the 
 Last of the English. 
 
 The use made of this latter selection by one teacher came 
 under the observation of the writer. The pupils were asked 
 during their study-time to read the selection through, and 
 then to make a map drawing showing the location of the 
 various points, rivers, etc., mentioned. The stronghold to 
 be attacked by the Normans was upon an island formed by 
 the encircling of a wide river. The only approaches were 
 obstructed by meres, fens, reeds, mud, floating peat-beds, 
 and slimy water. The account is so written that it takes 
 very close reading to visualize the map-scene. Notwith- 
 standing the difficulty of the reading, several of the pupils 
 made diagrams giving a very adequate representation of 
 
152 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 the reading matter. This was an excellent test of their 
 reading ability. Several pupils made a flat failure, showing 
 a lack of ability to get anything approaching an adequate 
 conception of the setting through their reading. But the 
 discussion of the maps in recitation and the making by the 
 class of a blackboard map, proving and disproving what 
 should or should not be in the construction of the map, 
 involved such reading activity as these poorer readers were 
 in need of, and did much to clear up their hazy and inade- 
 quate conceptions. 
 
 7. Problems Relating to Dramatization 
 
 An example of such work. Dramatization is a type of 
 problem which may be utilized to excellent advantage in 
 silent-reading lessons with units not written in dramatic 
 form, but having dramatic characteristics. The Merrill 
 Fourth Reader has a prose adaptation of Browning's " Pied 
 Piper." This was dramatized by a class as a part of a 
 school entertainment. The study and recitation for this 
 type of silent reading would be about as follows: 
 
 Assignment: 
 
 1. Read the selection through to get the story. 
 
 2. Write out a cast of characters, similar to the one at the be- 
 ginning of the play on page 280 of your Reader. 
 
 8. Decide how many scenes there should be. 
 
 4. Decide upon an imaginary stage-setting for each. 
 
 Several of the pupils write their cast of characters on the 
 blackboard. They are compared and criticized. Refer- 
 ences to the text are made when necessary. A correct cast 
 of characters is formulated with the aid of the pupils, if 
 none of the pupils do not already have a correct one. The 
 problems of the different scenes are discussed, and a solu- 
 tion placed on the blackboard. The discussion of the 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 153 
 
 imaginary stage-setting naturally accompanies the discus- 
 sion of the scenes. The characters for the dramatization 
 are assigned. Substitutes are assigned for each character, 
 to take part in case of absence or failure. The pupils are 
 told to prepare for the play by becoming thoroughly 
 familiar with the story, so they will know when to talk, 
 what to say, and what to do, and to give particular attention 
 to the characters they represent. 
 
 Value of dramatizing. Opportunity is offered to corre- 
 late language and reading by having the story dramatized. 
 There would be no attempt to costume or to provide stage- 
 setting other than to use what is at hand in the schoolroom. 
 Children enjoy the imaginary part of it. The dramatizing 
 should be spontaneous and free. If a pupil does not know 
 what to do or say, and continues to delay the play, allow a 
 substitute to take his place. Such a failure should be recog- 
 nized by the pupils as serious as any other failure in school 
 work due to lack of preparation or lack of ability to com- 
 prehend the material studied. The dramatization becomes 
 a test of the pupil's ability to read well silently, provides a 
 motive for his effort in study and recitation, and makes 
 the situation real or concrete to him. The value of the 
 dramatization in relation to silent reading does not lie in 
 the excellence of the dramatizing, but rather in the fact 
 that as a problem-project it forms the basis for the study 
 and recitation procedure for a series of silent-reading 
 recitations. Its primary purpose should be kept constantly 
 in mind by the teacher. 
 
 Among some teachers there is an impression that drama- 
 tization is merely a primary-grade activity, but dramatiza- 
 tion, as a means of motivating the silent-reading work, is 
 adapted to any grade. Especially in the upper grades, 
 where the new social instincts are beginning to play an 
 important part, is dramatization important. The following 
 
154 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 paragraphs, taken from Briggs and Coffman, 1 set forth 
 well the social benefits and place of this type of work : 
 
 The enthusiasts claim that dramatic work in connection with 
 reading brings the pupil and teacher into a new relation, where, 
 for the first time, they actually become acquainted. Of course this 
 acquaintanceship is unreal and likely ineffective in its results in 
 case the teacher fails to live in the play on the level of her children. 
 However, when this result is achieved, the work will not be pleas- 
 urable simply, it will be a positive delight and enjoyment. Unless 
 this spirit saturates the work, the social benefits to be derived from 
 it are of no more real value than superficial manners are to an 
 individual in good society. 
 
 A stage effect is never to be sought, merely a realistic reading. 
 Costumes, paraphernalia, a platform — none of these is essential. 
 The imagination will supply them all. All dramatic work in school 
 can be justified only on the ground that it affords an opportunity 
 for reading. It represents, in the first place, the child's interpreta- 
 tion of the selection. After the play has been sympathetically 
 criticized by both the teacher and pupils, it can then be read, or 
 rather re-read, with increased meaning, vitality, and force. So 
 dramatic reproduction stands between reading for understanding 
 on the one hand and reading for interpretation on the other. It 
 is not indulged in for mere entertainment — in fact, it should never 
 be permitted for this alone. 
 
 Because of the unique place it holds in the mastery of a given 
 selection, there will be no special time for it, nor can it be given 
 every day. It may be used with increasing frequency, as fluency 
 is gained in reading, but it will always be used more in the lower 
 than in the upper grades. 
 
 As indicated above, the art-element is present when children 
 yield with freedom to an intense, urgent desire for expression. 
 The crudities of their speech must be left for future correction. 
 Many of them will drop out, through imitating the teacher, long 
 before the time for correcting them is reached. Of course, all 
 flagrant abuses of language must be corrected, but, in the main, 
 the freedom and inventiveness of the children should not be inter- 
 fered with. 
 
 1 Briggs and Coffman. Reading in Public Schools, chap. x. Row 
 Peterson Company. 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 155 
 
 What not to dramatize. Sara Cone Bryant points out 1 
 in an effective way what we should not have pupils drama- 
 tize: 
 
 The teacher, on the other hand, must avoid with great judg- 
 ment certain absurdities which can easily be initiated by her. 
 The first direful possibility is in the choice of material. It is very 
 often desirable that children should not be allowed to dramatize 
 stories of a kind so poetic, so delicate, or so potentially valuable 
 that the material is in danger of losing future beauty to the pupils 
 through its present crude handling. Mother Goose is a hardy old 
 lady and will not suffer from the grasp of the seven-year-old; and 
 the familiar tales and fables of the "Goldilocks" variety have a 
 firmness of surface which does not let the glamour rub off; but 
 stories in which there is a hint of the beauty just beyond the pal- 
 pable — or of a dignity suggestive of developed literature — are 
 sorely hurt in their metamorphosis, and should be protected from 
 it. They are for telling only. 
 
 8. Plans for Individual and Group Reading 
 
 Group work in silent reading. All of the lessons previ- 
 ously described in this chapter have involved the reading 
 of the same material by all the pupils of a class. All of the 
 pupils work upon the same problems. The study- work is 
 largely upon the individual basis. In the type of recitation 
 common in schools, though, there is some opportunity for 
 cooperative effort. The reaction of the pupils is very 
 largely a response to the teacher as the center of interest 
 and activity. There are those who advocate that the 
 methods of handling the work should be such as to allow 
 more opportunity for cooperative effort on the part of 
 groups within the class. It is claimed that this sort of 
 activity and experience will give a valuable training that is 
 needed in a democracy. One way to encourage group work 
 is to provide reading books in small sets of five to ten. 
 
 1 Bryant, Sara Cone. Stories to Tell to Children, p. 39. Houghton 
 Mifflin Company. 
 
156 , SILENT AND ORAL READING . 
 
 Then one group could be assigned a unit of reading matter 
 from one book, and another group from another book. 
 Each group would study in a cooperative way and make a 
 report to the class as a whole. 
 
 Reading material in dramatic form l is adapted to this 
 type of work. One group is assigned one drama to read 
 silently and, after cooperative preparation, to dramatize 
 for the whole class, while another group is assigned another 
 play. 
 
 Books containing short, spirited units of narrative 
 material for reproduction may also be used in this way. 
 The books listed on page 105 for audience reading will be 
 found adapted to the group silent-reading method. During 
 the study period, the group first reads the story silently and 
 works out, in a cooperative way, plans for presenting to the 
 class the content of the unit read. The report may take 
 the form of simply retelling the story, each pupil telling the 
 part assigned to him during the cooperative group planning. 
 It may take the form of dramatizing the story, or exhibiting 
 a series of illustrations with explanations. Or it might take 
 the form of presenting an outline of the material read. In 
 some cases the group might plan the report so that one 
 pupil would report upon the characters, another upon the 
 point of highest interest, etc. 
 
 Special plans for grouping. In connection with the 
 reading of books, a group may select a book to report upon 
 to the group. One school possessed five copies of Helen 
 Keller's The Story of My Life. A group of five pupils agreed 
 to read this and report to the class as to whether they would 
 recommend the book for the others to read, and to give 
 their reasons. 
 
 In some schools, all the pupils of each room are organized 
 
 1 Augusta Stevenson. Children s Classics in Dramatic Form, Books I 
 to V. Houghton Mifflin Company. 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 157 
 
 into teams, three to six teams to the room. There is a 
 captain for each team. Usually each team is given different 
 reading material. A part of the work is in the form of 
 individual study, a part in the form of group conference or 
 oral reading by turns, and a part in the form of a report or 
 contribution by a group to the remainder of the pupils of 
 the room. 
 
 While group work has a place in connection with the con- 
 tent silent-reading lessons, the larger portion of the time can 
 probably be most profitably spent in lessons involving the 
 reading of the same material by all members of the class. 
 Even here, of course, there is some opportunity to assign 
 different problems to different groups within the same class. 
 
 Individual silent reading. The following lesson, which 
 gives an account of a series of recitations involving the use 
 of different material by each member of a fourth-grade class, 
 illustrates this type of work. 
 
 A Fourth-Grade Lesson 
 From a miscellaneous collection of Third and Fourth 
 Readers, a sufficient number was selected to provide each 
 pupil in a fourth-grade class with a book containing a story 
 of two to eight pages. The first recitation was given over 
 to the distribution of the books, the choosing of the selection 
 by each pupil, and suggestions regarding their silent-reading 
 and study in preparation for their reports to the class. 
 After the books were distributed, it was explained to the 
 class that each pupil might choose a short selection of prose 
 to read silently during study-time with a view to reporting 
 upon it to the class. The teacher inspected the choice of 
 each pupil to see that a selection of the desired type was 
 chosen. Most of the pupils made good selections, but a 
 few needed to be advised individually. Some even chose 
 selections of poetry. This gave a good opportunity to 
 
158 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 teach some simple distinctions between poetry and prose. 
 After the selections were all decided upon, the pupils were 
 given suggestions regarding their silent reading and study. 
 They were told first to note the subject carefully, then to 
 read the selection through rapidly, and then to go through 
 it again more carefully, making preparation for the report. 
 Their attention was called to the vocabularies in dictionary 
 form in the back of some of the books, and also to other 
 study helps. Rather definite plans for the reports were 
 then developed. It was decided that, in giving the reports 
 in recitations to follow, the pupil would give the title of his 
 selection, and that one or more of the following might be 
 utilized in connection with the report: 
 
 1. Tell the story briefly. 
 
 St. Tell why the title is a good one. 
 
 3. Suggest problems for the class to discuss. 
 
 4. Give opportunity for the pupils to ask questions. 
 
 5. Tell what interested you most. 
 
 6. Who was the leading character and what was the main thing 
 the leading character did? 
 
 7. What was the main point of the selection? 
 
 8. Use your own plan in reporting, if you wish. 
 
 In the four succeeding recitations all the pupils reported 
 upon their selections. From four to six pupils reported 
 during each thirty-minute recitation. It was necessary, 
 of course, at times for the teacher to guide the report and 
 the discussion. In one case a pupil failed to report correctly 
 an important word in the title, revealing that he had failed 
 to get the main point of the selection. An investigation 
 by a neighboring pupil brought out the main point. The 
 pupil learned a point in pronunciation under a situation 
 more conducive to retention than the usual fourth-grade 
 reading situation. The pupils who had reported were al- 
 lowed to exchange books, and read whatever interested 
 them during the program study period for reading. In 
 
CONTENT SILENT-READING LESSONS 159 
 
 this way a considerable amount of silent reading was done 
 for the mere pleasure of the pupils, and without reference 
 to any report. At the beginning some of the brighter 
 pupils who volunteered were called upon for their reports, 
 as a means of setting a good example for the less capable 
 ones. Then the reports of the better and of the poorer 
 ones were alternated so as to avoid a situation favorable 
 to a lack of interest. 
 
 Use of the room library. A similar plan, which some 
 teachers find feasible, involves the use of the room library, 
 consisting of forty-five books suitable to the grade. One 
 reading period a week for the room is given over to the 
 returning and taking out of these library books, and for the 
 reports upon the books read. A plan similar to the one 
 given above is followed in connection with these reports. 
 This sort of plan enables the teacher to keep in close touch 
 with the recreative reading of the pupils, stimulates interest 
 in such reading, and enables the teacher to have a better 
 knowledge of the pupils' reading interests and to lead the 
 pupils to higher interests and tastes in reading. 
 
 PROBLEMS FOR STUDY AND DISCUSSION 
 
 1. Why has silent-reading instruction lagged so far behind the recom- 
 mendations of psychologists and other educational experts? 
 
 2. What per cent of the program reading-time, in your grade, should be 
 devoted to silent reading? 
 
 3. Do you agree with the statement as to the essential difference between 
 the oral- and the silent-reading method? If not, why not? 
 
 4. Do you agree with the general statement as to when to use the oral- 
 and when to use the silent-reading method? If not, why not? 
 
 5. Choose a short unit of reading material (three to fifteen pages) and 
 formulate a problem or problems to be used as a basis for the study 
 and discussion. Are the requirements of good problems as stated 
 fulfilled? 
 
 C. Select a book for a particular grade of the type of those listed for 
 extensive silent reading. Formulate a problem or problems for one 
 chapter. Formulate a list of problems for use in a final perspective 
 view of the book as a whole. 
 
160 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 7. Choose a unit of reading material suitable for rapid silent reading in 
 recitation, according to a plan similar to that given for How I Killed 
 a Bear. 
 
 8. Choose a selection suitable to use according to the plan described for 
 Rip Van Winkle. Choose a selection suitable to illustration by 
 drawing diagrams, graphs, or maps. Choose a selection suitable 
 for a group cutting or construction project. 
 
 9. Choose a selection not in dramatic form, but suitable for dramatizing. 
 
 10. Formulate a plan for using some particular book, furnished in a 
 set of five to ten copies. 
 
 11. Give an illustration of effective group work in silent reading. 
 
 12. Try out the plan suggested for a series of recitations devoted to indi- 
 vidual silent reading, and report results. 
 
 13. Relate a plan for content silent reading different from any suggested 
 in the chapter. 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
 TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 
 
 Content and training lessons contrasted. In the silent 
 reading discussed in the preceding chapter, the primary aim 
 and purpose lies in the value of the content in the pupils' 
 experience. There are secondary training purposes, but 
 these are always kept subordinate to the content-values. 
 While that type of reading experience is adequate in de- 
 veloping the desired silent-reading abilities on the part of 
 a goodly portion of the pupils, it will not be adequate for 
 another considerable portion. 
 
 Training lessons will have as their primary aim the in- 
 crease of the rate of reading and the improvement of the 
 comprehension. While the content- values are secondary, 
 and the material is selected because of its adaptation to 
 specific training methods, the content used should always 
 be worth while. While in the content silent-reading lessons 
 everything is subordinate to having the pupils experience 
 the content-values, in the training lessons experience in 
 relation to the content- values is subordinate to the specific 
 training purposes in view. The method of procedure of 
 a particular recitation will be determined by the specific 
 training purpose of that recitation. 
 
 In the training lessons three main purposes are dominant : 
 to increase the reading rate, to improve the pupils' compre- 
 hension of both meaning and organization, and to expand 
 the pupils' vocabulary. We shall consider each of these 
 main purposes, in the order stated. 
 
 1. Devices for increasing Rate 
 
 Phrase-flashing. The flashing of phrases and short 
 sentences was discussed in Chapter III in connection with 
 
162 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 the primary grades. In the intermediate grades and in 
 ungraded rooms for backward pupils, phrase-flashing will 
 be found to be helpful, for pupils who have not developed 
 in reading ability beyond the primary stage, in increasing 
 the length of the unit of recognition in a single pause. 
 Oftentimes the backward pupil is a slow and laborious 
 reader. His oral reading is often characterized by difficulty 
 in quick recognition, lack of phrasing, and repetition. 
 Photographs of the eye-movements of such pupils show 
 many instances of regressive movements and periods of 
 confusion. Phrase-flashing is one means of training for 
 better eye-movement habits. The content should be such 
 as will appeal to the age and interests of the pupils. The 
 following is a set of phrases that would be likely to appeal 
 to the boys: 
 
 The Baseball Game 
 
 Play ball 
 
 Out field 
 
 Play hard 
 
 Home run 
 
 Run fast 
 
 Out at home 
 
 Two-base hit 
 
 A safe hit 
 
 Hit the ball 
 
 A foul ball 
 
 Foul ball 
 
 Out on first . 
 
 Good play 
 
 Good catch 
 
 This could be played as a game with any number on a 
 side and with a set of rules, as follows : 
 
 A player recognizing a phrase, exposed for two to three 
 fifths of a second, would advance the runners one base. 
 A pupil failing in correct recognition would be out. 
 
 A school might print or duplicate a reading lesson on this 
 topic. 
 
 In the Elson Grammar-School Reader, Book I (fifth 
 grade), at the end of a selection entitled " Capturing the 
 Wild Horse," a number of phrases are listed for special 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 163 
 
 attention. Such a unit could be used to good advantage in 
 increasing rate by using it as a test lesson in rate. When 
 this has been done, practice phrase recognition for several 
 days, and then test the rate again. The following phrases 
 are listed in the Elson Reader: 
 
 council of war rich herbage 
 
 toilsome march thundering down the valley 
 
 finely diversified scouring down the meadow 
 
 diminutive size headlong chase 
 
 pranced off swept down 
 
 hotly pressed happily arranged 
 
 pressed him gallantly this magic circle 
 
 unbounded freedom flanking parties 
 
 fringed with trees marred the whole scene 
 
 autumnal flowers dashed furiously 
 
 well mounted 
 
 Every second, third, and fourth-grade teacher, and every 
 teacher of ungraded pupils backward in reading, should 
 have several sets of small flash-cards about two and one- 
 half inches by three and one-half inches in size, each con- 
 taining typewritten or printed phrases. 
 
 Reading under a time limit. There are several different 
 ways to proceed in handling a training lesson involving 
 silent reading under a time limit. Two methods of pro- 
 cedure that have been found successful will be described. 
 
 Under the first plan, allow the class a specified time for 
 silent reading, such as five minutes. All of the class read 
 the same unit, beginning at the same point. Before be- 
 ginning, the teacher states that this is an exercise to see 
 how much each pupil can read in five minutes, and be able 
 to reproduce what is read. The pupils begin and stop at 
 the teacher's signals, marking the last word read. As they 
 read, the teacher observes the pupils for habits of pointing 
 with the finger, lip-movement, and vocalization. She also 
 notes the fast readers and the too-slow readers. At the 
 
164 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 close of the time, the pupils count the number of pages or 
 lines read, and each writes his name and the amount read 
 on a slip of paper. The slips may easily be arranged in 
 order of the amount read by calling them in in that order. 
 Call upon the pupil who read the smallest amount to repro- 
 duce what he read, and supplement his reproduction by 
 criticism and suggestions from the class. As a rule the slow 
 reader will not reproduce well. Intelligent individual-case 
 analysis of the cause of poor silent-reading, with friendly 
 advice, will usually mark a beginning in improvement. 
 Then the next pupil in amount read continues the reproduc- 
 tion, beginning where the other one stopped, and so on 
 through the class. 
 
 The following is the showing of a fourth-grade class as to 
 rate in a lesson of this type: 
 
 Riverside Fourth Reader. "How a King Was Found" 
 
 Time 4 minutes 
 
 No. lines read No. pupils 
 
 35 
 
 1 
 
 40-49 
 
 2 
 
 50-59 
 
 8 
 
 60-69 
 
 2 
 
 70-79 
 
 2 
 
 80-89 
 
 4 
 
 90-99 
 
 4 
 
 145 
 
 1 
 
 Total 19 , 
 
 Note that the fastest reader read four times as much as the 
 slowest reader. An interesting fact revealed to the pupils 
 was that the faster readers knew the first part of the story 
 better than the slower readers. It is evident that the slower 
 readers in this group are in need of special individual and 
 small-group training in silent reading. 
 The second plan is similar. Choose a rather long unit, 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 165 
 
 Formulate a question for each paragraph or page. An- 
 nounce to the pupils that you wish to see how rapidly they 
 can read, and be able to answer questions on what they read. 
 Allow the pupils to read until one or two have completed 
 the unit, and then call " Time." Have each pupil write his 
 name and the number of pages read on a slip of paper. 
 The teacher arranges these slips, or calls them in, in order 
 from the lowest to the highest, and follows this order in 
 asking the questions which she has arranged in the order 
 of the pages. The observation of habits, advice to pupils, 
 and the general impression to be made, are the same as in 
 the preceding plan. 
 The following is the result as to rate of a fifth-grade class : 
 
 Riverside Fifth Reader. "Gerasimus and the Lion" 
 
 No. pages read No, pupils 
 
 15 1 
 
 14-10 3 
 
 9-8 5 * 
 
 7-5 6 
 
 4 3 
 
 In this case, also, the fastest reader read nearly four times 
 as much as the slowest. It is evident that there are three 
 very slow readers in this class who are in need of individual 
 diagnosis and special training. 
 
 Timing the pupil's reading. Assign a selection to be 
 read through to the end by all pupils. When the first pupil 
 finishes, he raises his hand and the teacher writes the time 
 on the board. Every five seconds the teacher writes the 
 time upon the board, and as the pupils finish they take the 
 last time on the board as their time. If desired, pupils may 
 calculate their rates in terms of the number of words per 
 minute. Pupils should be given a definite idea of the 
 standard rate for their grade. Each pupil should be en- 
 couraged to increase his rate, in so far as possible and still 
 
166 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 maintain adequate comprehension. Any exercise in speed- 
 ing up the rate of reading should be accompanied with some 
 sort of informal check on comprehension, such as reproduc- 
 tion or answering questions. 
 
 Time records on reading outside of recitation. A valu- 
 able exercise to increase rate is to assign a long unit of easy 
 reading material, to be read during a study period or at 
 home. The pupil records the time it took him to read the 
 unit and reports to the teacher in writing. The compre- 
 hension is checked up through the discussion of the unit. 
 
 Re-reading for increase of rate. Investigators have 
 found that the re-reading of material aids in forming better 
 eye-movement habits, and therefore tends to increase the 
 individual's rate in reading other similar material. The 
 main problem in this connection is to provide a strong 
 motive for the re-reading, so the second or third reading will 
 be done with spirit and interest. In conducting silent- 
 reading lessons teachers will often find opportunity to have 
 the pupils re-read passages, and should encourage a rapid 
 re-reading when the main purpose for the re-reading is to 
 increase rate. 
 
 Skimming. Is it ever advisable to skip in reading? 
 Shall we teach pupils when and how to skim in reading? 
 We hear a great deal about thoroughness in school work. 
 It is well that this should be emphasized under some condi- 
 tions. But there is a serious question as to whether over- 
 emphasis upon it has not tended to hinder desirable growth 
 in rate of reading. There are various types of silent reading, 
 varying according to the purpose of the reader. We have 
 the careful reading in study and the rapid, recreative 
 reading. Skimming is a type of reading that is legitimate 
 for certain purposes. We may glance over the pages of the 
 newspaper, noting the headings in order to select what we 
 shall read, to find a certain fact, or to determine if there is 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 167 
 
 anything in the paper about a certain matter. We may 
 look through an article or book, reading a little here and 
 there to get the gist of the book or to determine whether we 
 care to read it or not. Roosevelt is said to have done a 
 great deal of rapid perusal of this type, showing a remark- 
 able ability in getting the kernel of a book in a surprisingly 
 short time. When a pupil has occasion to refer to a refer- 
 ence book for specific data, he should be able to skip 
 irrelevant matter. 
 
 All of these types of skimming should be trained for in 
 school; but care should be taken that pupils do not form 
 the habit of skimming as a general practice in their reading. 
 WTien an exercise in skimming is for the purpose of training 
 the pupil to read much more rapidly, for a certain purpose, 
 there should be a definite check upon how he comprehends 
 in line with that purpose. Otherwise skimming will tend 
 to decrease his comprehension in his ordinary reading. 
 
 O'Brien's three types of training for speed. In connec- 
 tion with a study already referred to in Chapters II and IV, 
 Mr. O'Brien discusses the types of training used : 1 
 
 Three types of training were developed. In Type I practice in 
 rapid, silent reading was made the basic factor; in Type II the 
 stress was placed coordinately upon the decrease of vocalization 
 and practice in rapid, silent reading; while in Type III emphasis 
 was directed upon training in perception by means of short expo- 
 sure exercises, supplemented with practice in rapid reading. In 
 Type I all the eleven foregoing factors except Nos. 2 and 3 were 
 incorporated; in Type II, all except No. 3; and in Type III, all 
 except No. 2. All three types of training have much in common — ■ 
 the same auxiliary devices, the same technique. They differ chiefly 
 in the factor which has been made the basic one in each method. 
 
 Type I — Training in rapid, silent reading — will be outlined 
 
 1 O'Brien, John A. " Development of Speed in Silent Reading"; in Twen- 
 tieth Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education. Public 
 School Publishing Company, Bloomington, 111., 1921. 
 
,168 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 briefly, as it is typical of the general procedure in the other two 
 methods. 
 
 The teacher was instructed first to point out to the pupils the 
 advantages of a rapid, effective rate of reading, and to enlist their 
 whole-hearted effort in the attempt to develop such a habit. The 
 method consisted essentially of alternate reading and reproduction. 
 The reading period was broken into several reading stretches, con- 
 sisting of two, three, or four minutes. During each stretch the 
 pupils were instructed to read as rapidly as possible — consistent, 
 of course, with an understanding of what was read. The periods 
 were made quite brief, in order to evoke the greatest possible speed 
 by an intensity of effort which could not be sustained over a longer 
 period. The idea was to break up the old order of eye-movement 
 habits as quickly as possible, and to build into a habit an ocular- 
 motor reaction of a more advantageous type. The short period 
 safeguarded against fatigue, as well as against a relapse into the 
 customary leisurely reading rate. In short, speed was the dominant 
 note in the entire set of directions. 
 
 The amount read was quickly determined and marked. The 
 pnpil then reproduced what was read — sometimes by free para- 
 phrase, orally or in writing, and sometimes by answers to specific 
 questions based on the text. The reproduction was usually brief. 
 Its function was merely to show both the teacher and the pupil 
 whether the matter was properly grasped. The aim was to devote 
 about two thirds of the time to actual rapid reading. Interesting, 
 familiar material was preferred. Difficult words were explained 
 beforehand. Whenever thought preparation was deemed necessary, 
 the teacher was instructed to give it briefly. At the end of the total 
 reading period the pupil immediately entered upon the chart his 
 average rate of speed as the record for the day. 
 
 2. Plans for improving Comprehension 
 
 In all rapid silent reading for the increase of rate there 
 should be some kind of check on comprehension, to make 
 sure that the pupils actually read the material, and to avoid 
 increasing the rate to the serious detriment of comprehen- 
 sion. Likewise, in lessons for the improvement of com- 
 prehension, the relation of rate should be kept in mind. 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 169 
 
 In training in comprehension in rapid reading, timed read- 
 ing wall often be necessary. The difference in the lesson 
 that trains primarily for rate, and the one that trains pri- 
 marily for comprehension, is a difference of emphasis. 
 
 Action sentences and directions. Even in the first grade, 
 pupils should be taught to comprehend sentences without 
 oral reading, and to express the meaning of the sentences 
 in other ways than through oral reading or telling. Sen- 
 tences that can be acted out, or that contain directions for 
 seat work, are the best to use in the first lessons in silent 
 reading not followed by oral reading. 
 
 The following are some sets of such sentences that have 
 been found easily usable : l 
 
 For Silent Reading in Class, without Oral Reading 
 1 2 
 
 Hold up your hands. Run to the east. 
 
 Fold your arms. Run to the west. 
 
 Jump on one foot. Run to the north. 
 
 Find something round. Run to the south. 
 
 Find something square. Clap your hands. 
 
 Point to the clock. Stamp your feet. 
 
 Point to the door. Stand on one foot. 
 
 Point to the blackboard. Snap your fingers. 
 
 Point to the window. Wink your eye. 
 
 Give me some chalk. Shake your head. 
 
 Direction Sentences for Silent Reading in Relation 
 to Seat Work 
 13 14 
 
 Write seven words beginning Write your name ten times. 
 
 with " c." Write six words ending in " ing." 
 
 Draw six window boxes in two Write five words ending with 
 
 rows. "ask." 
 
 Draw five circles upon five Write five words ending with 
 squares. "atch." 
 
 1 Fourteen such sets, printed on cards 5^"x 1\" , may be purchased from 
 the Plymouth Press, 6749 Wentworth Ave., Chicago. 
 
170 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Draw two triangles upon two Write your father's name five 
 squares. times. 
 
 Put four letters into four squares. Write the first half of the alpha- 
 Cut six oblongs into halves. bet. 
 
 Put five numbers into five Write the last half of the alpha- 
 circles, bet. 
 
 Put eight numbers into eight Draw ten gods in two rows, 
 squares. Draw eight circles in four rows. 
 
 Draw eight flags in two rows. Draw nine cats in three rows. 
 
 Draw nine hats in two rows. 
 
 The first two sets are easily used about the middle of the 
 first grade and the last two toward the end of the first grade. 
 
 The following are similar sentences, adapted from the 
 Teacher's Manual of the Barnes Primer: 
 
 TO BE READ SILENTLY AND ACTED TO BE READ ORALLY 
 
 Spin the top. The top spins. 
 
 Spin the little top. The little top spins. 
 
 Spin the big top. The big top spins. 
 
 Spin the red top. The red top spins. 
 
 The Holton Primer has some very good lessons for silent 
 reading. The following are ' representative of the types 
 used. 1 
 
 
 
 TO BE READ SILENTLY AND ACTED 
 
 All play you are rabbits. Catch the baby rabbits. 
 
 Jump. Run. All listen to the dog. 
 
 Eat grass. Eat apples. Run away, little rabbits; run fast. 
 
 Mary may be the mother bear. Taste of your soup. 
 
 Jack may be the father bear. Baby bear, cry. 
 
 Frank may be the baby bear. Sit in your chairs, bears. 
 
 Nell may be the little girl. Say what the bears said. 
 
 Sit in the chairs, little girl. Run after the little girl. 
 
 Bears, come home. Run home, little girl, run! 
 
 1 Holton, M. Adelaide. The Holton Primer, pp. 29, 50. Rand McNally 
 Company. 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 171 
 
 Unfortunately, as a rule, primary teachers have not used 
 these types of silent-reading lessons found in primers in the 
 way in which the authors intended. Too often they have 
 been used as an ordinary oral-reading lesson. Teachers 
 need to realize the advantage of omitting almost entirely 
 oral reading in connection with these lessons. 
 
 Silent reading and reproduction. The simplest type of 
 silent-reading lesson for improving comprehension is the 
 reproduction, oral or written, of a story read silently. The 
 organization of thought rather than memory should be 
 stressed. Comparisons of differing versions help to clarify 
 organization of content. The story read may be repro- 
 duced orally or by writing. 
 
 The silent reading of the story takes place during the 
 recitation under the observation of the teacher, and with a 
 time limit. The teacher notices the silent-reading habits 
 of the pupils, noting individual cases of pointing with the 
 finger, vocalization, and lip-movement. 
 
 1. Telling the story. The pupils either tell the story, 
 each pupil being called upon to relate a part or to make cor- 
 rections, or in the assignment the pupils are told to read a 
 certain story and get it well enough to tell to the class. In 
 the case of one of the more familiar stories, it may be well 
 to ask the pupils to be on the lookout for variations in 
 detail from the version they have heard before. The recita- 
 tion consists in the telling of the story, questions, and dis- 
 cussion. The relation of good reading habits to compre- 
 hension is commented on during the reproduction. 
 
 2. Written reproduction. During study-time the pupils 
 read the story, place the books in the desk, and then write 
 the story. The recitation consists in the reading of the 
 written stories, with comments. While there are individual 
 exceptions, the number of words reproduced, counting out 
 erroneous expressions, is a fairly good index of compre- 
 hension. 
 
172 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Three main forms of comprehension reading. In train- 
 ing pupils for comprehension of what is read, teachers will 
 use three main types of reading matter, and with somewhat 
 different ends in view. The aim of the first type will be to 
 enable the pupils to answer factual questions, that of the 
 second type to answer relational or problem questions, and 
 that of the third type to train pupils in comprehending the 
 organization of the selection. We will next consider each 
 of these types, in the order named, and under the sub- 
 heads A, B, and C. 
 
 A. Reading to answer factual questions 
 As a general rule factual questions are in disfavor, and 
 properly so. Yet an occasional spirited exercise in factual 
 comprehension is helpful as a check on ability to get details. 
 It is a quick, effective means of stimulating competition in 
 grasping the facts of a selection. It trains in one type of 
 comprehension, and should not be permitted to displace 
 exercises in more rational and critical silent reading. 
 
 In connection with the cumulative story. Here the 
 reading is done in recitation, by sections. The teacher 
 explains to the pupil that the purpose of the reading is to 
 find the answer to questions quickly. The teacher asks the 
 question before the section is read. As soon as a pupil has 
 read the section and can answer the question, he stands. 
 This speeds up the slow reader. The question should call 
 for some specific fact. What happens in the next section? 
 What is the next animal that comes into the story? The 
 cumulative story and the fable are adapted to this plan of 
 rapid reading for facts. At the end of the exercise, the story 
 as a whole should be reviewed. 
 
 In connection with informational material. The need of 
 training in the comprehension of facts is illustrated by the 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 173 
 
 answers which Thorndike reports ■ were given in answer to 
 his tests on the understanding of sentences. The following 
 is one section of his test: 
 
 Read this and write the answers to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. 
 Read it again as often as you need to. 
 
 Tom gave a gray cat to Mary. She gave him a black dog. 
 
 1. What did Tom give the girl? 
 
 2. What did the girl give Tom? 
 
 3. "What was the girl's name? 
 
 4. What color was the dog? 
 
 5. What color was the cat? 
 
 6. Was the dog the same color as the cat? 
 
 7. Did Mary give Tom anything? 
 
 8. Who gave the cat to Mary? 
 
 The following absurd or nonsense answers were among 
 the responses of the third and fourth grades: 
 
 1. What did Tom give the girl? 
 
 Tom gave the girl a skate 
 
 a new hat 
 *" 5. What was the color of the cat? 
 
 gray and white 
 
 the cat 
 
 said Mary 
 
 What color was the cat? 
 7. Did Mary give Tom anything? 
 
 she gave him a chicer bord. 
 
 Tom anything. 
 
 The following is another section of the test: 
 
 B 
 
 Read this and then write the answers to 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Read 
 it again as often as you need to. 
 
 Nearly fifteen thousand of the city's workers joined in the 
 parade on September seventh, and passed before two hundred 
 
 1 Thorndike, Edward L. "The Understanding of Sentences"; in Ele-^ 
 merdary School Journal (October, 1917), vol. 18, pp. 98-114. 
 
174 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 thousand cheering spectators. There were workers of both sexes 
 in the parade, though the men far outnumbered the women. 
 Question 2. Which sex was in the majority? 
 
 The following are some answers reported from the fifth, 
 sixth, and seventh grades: 
 
 The fifteen thousand 
 
 Workers 
 
 Workers of sex in the parade 
 
 Workers were in the majority 
 
 In the parade 
 
 Both in the parade 
 
 Sexes in the parade 
 
 Seventh 
 
 Two hundred spectators 
 
 Spectators and working 
 
 Sixes 
 
 Men and women 
 
 Far out women 
 
 Sexes of women 
 
 An experiment in factual comprehension. An interesting 
 experiment was carried on by the writer in connection with 
 factual comprehension with a sixth-grade group. The 
 pupils were asked to read a selection from Chatty Readings 
 in Elementary Science, Book 3, entitled, " The Little Spinner 
 and Weaver." Then they were given ten factual questions 
 to answer without referring to the book. One of the ques- 
 tions was, " Where are cobwebs in their proper place? " 
 The reading specifically stated that cobwebs were in their 
 proper place in the garden. The following are the answers 
 given: 
 No. pupils Answers No. pupils Answers 
 
 18. 
 
 In the garden 
 
 
 corner 
 
 7. 
 
 (No attempt made) 1 
 
 in corners 
 
 2. 
 
 Garden 
 
 
 between loges 
 
 2. 
 
 In the corner 
 
 
 in a whole in the ground 
 
 
 gardens trees 
 
 
 in corners in the house 
 
 
 houses 
 
 
 on neighboring leaves 
 
 
 in trees 
 
 
 At the end of the web 
 
 
 in a tree 
 
 
 in dark places 
 
 
 feild 
 
 
 
 
 Total, 42 
 
 pupils; 
 
 correct, 18. 
 
 Some of these answers can be explained in terms of over- 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 175 
 
 potency of certain words occurring in the reading, but some 
 cannot. There was no mention of tree, for instance. Some 
 answered from their knowledge or experience. Several 
 answers are clearly incorrect, when measured either from 
 knowledge in the reading or out of it. The seven who knew 
 that they did not know should probably have some credit 
 over those whose answers were absurd or unintelligent. 
 The important observation is that less than half of the 
 pupils answered this simple factual question correctly. 
 
 Exercises in reading and answering factual questions 
 may be conducted by having pupils read and record the 
 answers during study-time, and then have the answers 
 compared and checked up during recitation. Another plan 
 would be to have the pupils read the material silently in 
 recitation, and then write the answers without the text in 
 hand. We have plenty of evidence that both types are 
 needed. The question naturally arises, Will it be interest- 
 ing to the pupils or will it be monotonous? This all de- 
 pends upon the skill of the teacher in selecting material, 
 formulating the questions, and utilizing competition and 
 interest in achievement. 
 
 B. Reading to answer relational or problem questions 
 Training in relational thinking. For the purely factual 
 question, the answer is given specifically in the reading 
 matter and practically in the words of the questions. This, 
 of course, is the simplest type of question, and the one 
 easiest for the child to answer. To be a real problem- 
 question some relational thinking must be required, and it 
 should not be possible to answer in the exact language of 
 reading matter unless the question asks for the selection of a 
 group of words from the text in application to a condition 
 not given in the text. The following is an example of an 
 
176 ' SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 exercise, used with sixth and seventh grades, for training 
 for relational thinking in silent reading: 
 
 The Little Spinner and Weaver 
 Chatty Readings in Elementary Science, Book 3, p. 64 
 Assignment: First read the whole selection through rapidly. 
 Then read the part indicated before the question, and write the 
 answer if you can. If necessary to re-read, in order to answer the 
 question, do so. After you have written your answer verify it; 
 that is, re-read to see if it is correct. In case you think what you 
 have written is not correct, do not erase it, but put a large question 
 mark at the left-hand margin. The questions should be answered 
 in your own words, and not by copying sentences from the book. 
 Paragraphs 1 and 2. Give two reasons why a spider is not an insect. 
 1. 
 % 
 Par. 3. Why do spiders spin webs? 
 
 On this rough outline drawing of a spider's body put 
 an X where the spinnerets are located. 
 Par. 4. Give two reasons why the cord fastens where it drops. 
 1. 
 
 <3 
 
 Par. 5. Give two reasons why the web is not easily destroyed by 
 the wind. 
 1. 
 
 2. 
 Par. 6. How are spiders beneficial to the garden? 
 Par. 7. Why does a spider lurk under a leaf near the web? 
 Paragraphs 1-7. Prove that we must use spinner and weaver 
 both in order to describe fully what the spider does. 
 
 Proper statement of relational questions. A good rela- 
 tional question will be stated clearly, and will call for a 
 definite answer. A poor question is frequently misinter- 
 preted. The question should also be on a level with the 
 reasoning ability of the pupils of the class. The last ques- 
 tion of the above exercise was misinterpreted by a number 
 of pupils, was answered correctly by only a very few 
 seventh-grade pupils, and by none of the sixth-grade class. 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 177 
 
 This indicates that the question was certainly too difficult 
 in form and required too complex a type of relational 
 thinking and organizing for the sixth grade. Experience 
 with the exercise proved that the other questions were 
 worded so clearly and so definitely that there was little 
 excuse for misinterpreting them. 
 
 During the recitation following the study period upon the 
 exercise, the questions were taken up one at a time and 
 answers from a number of pupils read. These responses 
 were discussed, and a correct one agreed upon. Then there 
 was a show of hands to see who recorded the correct answer 
 during the study. As this was a training exercise and not a 
 test, there was no attempt to put a score, or grade, upon the 
 pupils' work. Pupils having answers showing poor think- 
 ing were asked if they carried out the step of verification as 
 given in the assignment. Rarely had this been done. The 
 importance of checking up their answers was, of course, 
 emphasized, and the example of some of the better readers 
 who had done this was tactfully made prominent, as a 
 means of getting all in the habit of verifying answers in 
 careful reading or study. 
 
 Considering meanings of words. The sources of error 
 may be summarized as relating to vocabulary, to method 
 in study, and to inability to do relational thinking. The 
 discussion of several words came up in connection with 
 vocabulary errors. One pupil had taken elastic to mean 
 everlasting. In connection with the exercise requiring the 
 placing of an X on the drawing to locate the spinnerets, a 
 number of pupils did not understand abdomen, and a good 
 many failed to get the significance of the expression, " end 
 of the abdomen," as used in the text. The meanings of 
 words were considered in this lesson in relation to the 
 thought under discussion, rather than in an isolated re- 
 citing of definitions which is so common. 
 
178 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Verifying answers by careful re-reading. The failure 
 of many pupils to verify their answers has already been 
 mentioned. Monroe stresses the importance of attention to 
 this step in his chapter on " Correcting Defects in Reading." 1 
 He says that exercises of this type will give pupils an idea of 
 what careful reading involves, and their attention will be 
 directed to the necessity of verifying their answers. Thorn- 
 dike says, 2 in this connection: 
 
 There are two contrasting forms of defective procedure used by 
 children in these tests. The first is to examine the paragraph until 
 some word is found which does not appear unsuitable, and to use 
 that as the answer. . . . The second is to accept anything from 
 within or without the paragraph which comes to mind without 
 reexamining the paragraph at all closely. . . . This fishing around 
 in the text for something to use and its use without reorganization 
 is perhaps the most debased form of reasoning — selective think- 
 ing — which school work shows. Many educational theorists 
 will, indeed, deny that it is reasoning. It certainly is a very 
 inadequate form; and the extent to which it prevails among pupils 
 even in the higher grades shows the need for practice in reading 
 and study. I am inclined to think, however, that the cure for it 
 is not to repress the verbatim use of wrong, irrelevant, or roughly 
 appropriate quotations, but to permit it, plus careful examination 
 of the quotations to see if they really do meet the need. 
 
 Improving the ability to think logically in reading and 
 study. Some pupils show poor ability in rational thinking 
 by failing to distinguish between a vague general reason 
 loosely related to the problem, and a specific reason that 
 gives a definite fact in relation to the conditions of the 
 problem. Note the vague general reason in contrast to a 
 good specific reason in answer to one of the questions of the 
 exercise described on page 174. 
 
 1 Monroe, Walter S. Measuring the Results of Teaching. Houghton 
 Mifflin Company. 
 
 2 Elementary School Journal (October, 1917), vol. 18, pp. 110, 112. 
 
 : 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 179 
 
 Give two reasons why the web is not easily destroyed by the 
 wind. 
 
 1. It is elastic. 
 
 2. It is not only one line but a vast number. (Vague.) 
 
 An answer with both points definite: 
 
 1. It is elastic, and can't be easily broken by the wind. 
 
 2. It is built of strong cords. 
 
 A number of pupils failed to realize that two phases of 
 one reason were not two reasons. This is illustrated in the 
 answers to the first exercise: 
 
 Paragraphs 1 and 2. Give two reasons why a spider is not an 
 
 insect. 
 Correct answer : 1. A spider has eight legs and an insect six. 
 
 2. A spider is born a spider, while an insect is 
 hatched from an egg and changes its form 
 several times in its life. 
 
 Answers given in which one reason is mistaken for two: 
 
 Pupil A: 1. A spider has eight legs. 
 
 2. An insect has six. 
 Pupil B: 1. A spider is born a spider. 
 
 2. An insect is hatched from an egg. 
 
 It is important to train pupils to distinguish between a 
 vague general reason and the statement of a specific fact in 
 terms of the problem, and to distinguish statements that 
 give a part of a reason, a complete point, and two or three 
 complete points. 
 
 Other difficulties that pupils have in relational compre- 
 hension are: 
 
 (a) Failure to keep in mind the problem or point wanted. 
 
 (b) Failure in being able to select significant words or 
 phrases. 
 
 (c) Inability to reject quickly and skip irrelevant 
 matter. 
 
 A training exercise using the geography. The following 
 
180 SILENT AND OEAL READING 
 
 exercise was devised and used by Miss Emily White, with a 
 sixth-grade class: 
 
 Silent-Reading Lesson in Geography 
 Material: Essentials of Geography, Book II, pp. 164-66. 
 Assignment: First read the material through rather rapidly. 
 Then read to find the answer to the first question. After recording 
 the answer, re-read the section to make sure the answer is correct. 
 In case you are not sure that the answer is right, put a question 
 mark in front of the answer. The answers are to be facts taken 
 from the text, and stated in your own words so as to apply to the 
 question. Answers based upon your previous knowledge or experi- 
 ence, the facts of which are not given in the text, will not be cor- 
 rect. Each question can be answered in one sentence, except the 
 one requiring a drawing. 
 
 Sec. 227: What is the difference between the way moisture is 
 
 supplied for farming in the Plateau States and the 
 
 way it is supplied in the eastern part of the United 
 
 States? 
 
 Helps: Select one word or phrase that tells how the crops are 
 
 watered in the East. Select one word that tells how the crops are 
 
 watered in the Plateau States. Write a sentence containing the 
 
 two which will answer the question. 
 
 Sec. 228: Why did irrigation begin in Utah? 
 Sec. 229: Draw a rough sketch of an irrigation system and label 
 with words given in the text. 
 
 At first each farmer provided his own ditch direct 
 from the stream. What led to the need of cooperation 
 through companies for building irrigation systems? 
 List two sources of water for irrigation. 
 Sec. 230: Why is "The Reclamation Service" a good name for 
 the department of the United States that helps with 
 irrigation? 
 
 Why is a dam built? 
 
 In how many States is there land reclaimed through 
 irrigation projects? (This question tested the resource- 
 fulness of the pupils in consulting a map embodied 
 1 in the text, and referred to.) 
 
 How does building a dam for irrigation sometimes 
 promote manufacturing? 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 181 
 
 A silent-reading exercise with a history text. In a de- 
 partmental organization the teachers of the content sub- 
 jects need to cooperate in training for silent reading. The 
 reading teacher, the history teacher, 1 the geography teacher, 
 the language and grammar teacher, and to some extent the 
 arithmetic teacher, should all assume some of the responsi- 
 bility for specific training with comprehension exercises. 
 The following is an exercise used by an eighth-grade history 
 teacher, Miss Ada E. Plass: 
 
 Test in History 
 
 Beard and Bagley — History of the American People, pp. 549-54. 
 
 The Results of the War; American's New Interest in the Orient 
 P. 549: 1. "What was the chief objection advanced against holding 
 the Philippines? 
 2. What great advantage for the United States in possess- 
 ing the Islands? 
 P. 550: 1. Reading the map on page 550, state: 
 
 a. The direction Japan is from the Philippines. 
 
 b. The direction of the Philippines from lie place of 
 the Boxer uprising. 
 
 P. 551: 1. Select a group of words from the text that express the 
 feeling that caused the Boxer uprising. 
 
 2. What right did the Filipinos have to expect independ- 
 ence? 
 
 P. 55%: 1. What is the meaning of the cartoon on page 55%, with 
 reference to the intentions of the nations in sending 
 soldiers into China? 
 £. Why is this cartoon not correct with reference to the 
 United States? 
 
 3. Why were there so many Chinese students in the 
 United States after the Boxer uprising? 
 
 P. 55% 1. What was the chief political issue in 1900? 
 
 -553: %. State the main difference between the position of the 
 
 Democrats and of the Republicans as to the Philippines 
 
 in 1900. 
 
 1 The Barr Diagnostic Test in American History, published by the Public 
 School Publishing Company, of Bloomington, 111., has some very interest- 
 ing and valuable exercises for training in the comprehension of historical 
 reading. 
 
182 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 P. 554: 1. Prove that the Democratic administration in 1913-17 
 maintained the same position with reference to the 
 Philippines as the Democrats did in 1900. 
 2. What right was granted to Porto Rico that was not 
 granted to the Philippines? 
 
 In formulating an exercise of this kind, it should be kept 
 constantly in mind that the purpose is for training in com- 
 prehension in reading, and all the questions should spe- 
 cifically involve selecting, reorganizing, or applying data 
 in the reading-content, rather than from the pupil's fund 
 of general information. While questions calling for criti- 
 cisms, experiences, etc., would be appropriate under some 
 conditions, they would be out of place in a training exercise 
 involving silent reading. The success of an exercise of this 
 type will depend upon the skill of the teacher in making the 
 questions and in keeping the attention of the pupils, during 
 the study and the recitation, directed to the content of the 
 reading text. The method of the pupil's study should be 
 scrutinized, as revealed in the recitation, and helpful 
 suggestions made to aid him to substitute good habits of 
 attack for poor ones. 
 
 Substituting silent for oral reading in grammar exercises. 
 In exercises in grammar, the usual practice is to have a 
 pupil read the exercise orally while the remainder of the 
 class reads it silently, and at the same rate. From the 
 standpoint of training in silent-reading rate it is much 
 better to have all the pupils read the exercise silently, make 
 any interpretations or explanations asked for by pupils, and 
 then ask the pupils to rise as soon as they are able to carry 
 out the directions of the exercise. What is meant may be 
 made clearer through the use of an exercise chosen from a 
 text on English. 
 
 Oral Exercise in English 
 Point out the essential parts of the following sentences, and 
 name the modifiers of each part. Tell what kind of modifier each is. 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 183 
 
 [Previous work in the chapter had listed the essential parts as 
 follows:] 
 
 1. Principal word of the subject. 
 
 2. The verb. 
 
 S. The predicate word, if there is one. 
 
 4. The object, if there is one. 
 The modifiers treated in the chapter are adjectives, adjective 
 phrases, adjective clauses, adverbs, adverb phrases, and adverb 
 clauses. 
 
 The usual plan of having the directions read orally is a 
 waste of time, slows down the silent reading to the articula- 
 tion rate, and hinders concentration of attention to the 
 thought. Experiments have shown that pupils compre- 
 hend better in silent reading than in oral reading. Evi- 
 dently " essential parts " and " kinds of modifiers " are the 
 expressions that need interpretation. As a beginning it will 
 be advisable to have each pupil write down what these 
 expressions mean to him. After the meaning is clear, the 
 teacher may ask the pupils to stand as they are able to 
 recite upon the first sentence. This tends to speed up the 
 slow ones. The pupil's recitation does not need to begin 
 with an oral reading of the sentence, as is so common. The 
 pupils have all read it silently; what can be the purpose of 
 reading it aloud? Following the pupil's recitation upon the 
 first sentence, comprehension of the directions may be tested 
 by asking the pupils to point out any omissions made with 
 reference to the different points in the directions. Every 
 opportunity of this kind, in any subject, to train in compre- 
 hension in silent reading should be utilized. There should 
 be no oral reading unless there is a very definite reason 
 for it. 
 
 C. Training in comprehension of the organization of 
 what is read 
 
 One cause of failure in adequate understanding in read- 
 ing is in not comprehending the organization of the text. 
 
184 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Many times pupils do not understand the plan of headings 
 and subheadings. In the reading instruction there should 
 be exercises in outlining, and in selecting the central thought, 
 leading ideas, key sentences, appropriate topical headings 
 for paragraphs or divisions, and significant or climax para- 
 graphs or chapters. Several types of exercises are adapted 
 to aiding pupils to give more attention to the organization 
 of the content. 
 
 Summing up paragraphs of exposition in study recita- 
 tion. Begin the recitation by having all the pupils read the 
 unit through rather rapidly to get the general theme. 
 Then ask the class to decide upon a suitable topic for each 
 paragraph. The class then reads the first paragraph 
 silently and works out the topic, and so on through the unit. 
 See if the topic does or does not continue over into the next 
 paragraph. Discover the sentences that are most signifi- 
 cant. There should be some reading lessons of this sort in 
 every term's work in the fourth and fifth grades. Some 
 bright third-grade classes may be able to make a beginning. 
 The teacher will need to use skill in selecting suitable easy 
 material for this, and in making a preliminary outline her- 
 self. The following is a part of a fourth-grade lesson: 
 
 A Fotjbth-Grade Lesson 
 "The Beaver" — Baldwin Fourth Reader. 
 
 1. Description: Content summary: length — weight — color — 
 tail? 
 
 2. Characteristics: kind — neighborly — helpful -7 wise. 
 
 It will be noted that the words in (2) give the facts, while 
 the words in (1) give only the nature of the facts and not 
 the facts themselves. The greater extent to which the 
 units can be indicated and the outline be kept concise and 
 brief, the better the result. 
 
 The necessity of distinguishing between leading ideas and 
 
 : 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 185 
 
 subordinate ones makes outlining difficult for immature 
 students. The lower the grade the more important it is to 
 select material that easily outlines, and the simpler should 
 be the outline. Until pupils have some facility in compre- 
 hending the organization of units, it is best to use selections 
 in which each paragraph has a clearly outstanding idea. 
 The following outline was worked out in class in the lower 
 fifth-grade : 
 
 "Uncle Sam as Flag-Maker" — Natural Method Fourth Reader, 
 
 Paragraph Topic 
 
 1. A fleet of Uncle Sam's warships 
 
 2. The dreadnoughts 
 
 3. A display of flags on the warships 
 
 4. Uncle Sam the big flag-maker 
 
 5. Seeing the flags made 
 
 6. Very many flags needed for decoration and signaling 
 
 7. Some are elaborate — The President's 
 
 8. Changes in the flag since 1777 
 
 9. The trouble and expense when a new state is admitted 
 
 10. Flags vary greatly in size 
 
 11. The best material is used 
 
 12. Two things to think about when we see the flag 
 
 Making a topical outline of a selection. The Teacher's 
 Manual for The Boys 9 and Girls' Readers for the Fourth and 
 Fifth Grades, by Bolenius, provides definitely for lessons 
 that train the pupil to see the organization of a selection. 
 The following is taken from the Manual: 
 
 "The Fish I Did n't Catch" — Whittier — Fifth Reader. 
 
 This selection falls into nine logical divisions, each of which has 
 a leading thought. It therefore offers good material for training 
 your pupils to sum up a paragraph in a few words. A good plan 
 of procedure is to have the pupils read through the paragraph or 
 section, and when through it close the book and try to sum it up 
 in a few words. The teacher should call for these various attempts, 
 and have the children select the best to record on the blackboard. 
 
186 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 After a topic is written on the board, the class should be directed 
 to open books and read the next section. 
 
 Paragraph Topic 
 
 1. Description of the surroundings of the homestead 
 
 2. Why the settlers prize these meadows 
 S. Whittier's hatred of snakes 
 
 4. The beauties of the meadow 
 
 5. The attractions of the brook 
 
 6. Whittier's chief reason for liking the brook 
 
 7. A fishing excursion 
 
 8. First sorrows and the uncle's advice 
 
 9. Whittier's feeling about this lesson 
 
 An excellent unit for beginning training in making topics 
 for paragraphs is the following: 
 
 44 The Milky Way " — The Merrill Fourth Reader. 
 
 Paragraph 
 
 Topic 
 
 1. 
 2. 
 3. 
 
 4. 
 5. 
 6. 
 
 7. 
 
 A broad path of misty light 
 Composed of thousands of stars 
 What the Greeks thought 
 What the Norsemen thought 
 What the Indians thought 
 The description in Hiawatha 
 Jacob's Road v 
 
 8. 
 
 In all the stories, the Milky Way is the path from earth 
 to heaven 
 
 Grouping paragraphs. Training in grouping paragraphs 
 together under headings represents a further advance in the 
 study of organization. The following selection, taken from 
 the Teacher's Manual for the Sixth Reader, by Bolenius, 
 illustrates this work well : 
 
 " The Boyhood of a Naturalist" — John Muir. 
 
 This selection offers splendid training in grouping paragraphs 
 together under heads. It will pay to build up on the board an out- 
 line by paragraphs, and then reconstruct the outline somewhat as 
 follows. Thus the pupils see for themselves how an author thinks 
 in large measure. 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 187 
 
 ions 1- 5. 
 
 Entrance into the wilderness 
 
 6-20. 
 
 Different kinds of bird,s 
 
 81. 
 
 The frogs 
 
 22-25. 
 
 Snakes 
 
 26-27. 
 
 Insects 
 
 28-32. 
 
 Fishes 
 
 33. 
 
 The Lake 
 
 34—40. Learning to swim 
 
 An eighth-grade lesson in outlining. The following 
 account of an eighth-grade lesson illustrates the facility 
 with w T hich an upper-grade class grasps the leading ideas in 
 a selection. The following outline was formulated as a 
 guide for the teacher: 
 
 Castlewood, England — 1691. From Henry Esmond, Baldwin 
 Eighth Reader, pp. 145-48. 
 I. The meeting of the Viscountess and Henry Esmond (Par. 
 1-4.) 
 
 1. The lad of twelve. Sad. Studious. (Par. 1.) 
 
 2. A kind greeting. (Par. 2.) 
 
 3. The charming Viscountess. (Par. 3.) 
 
 4. Henry impressed by her tenderness and kindness. 
 (Par. 4.) 
 
 II. The meeting of Henry with the Viscount and Beatrix. (Par. 
 5-9.) 
 
 1. The Viscount laughs at Henry's adoration for the Vis- 
 countess. (Par. 5.) 
 
 2. The Viscount welcomes Henry. (Par. 6.) 
 
 3. The Viscount laughs when told that Henry had been 
 saying his prayers. (Par. 7.) 
 
 4. Beatrix greets Henry kindly and Henry is grateful. 
 (Par. 8.) 
 
 HI. Description of Castlewood Surroundings. (Par. 9-10.) 
 
 1. The sunset scene. (Par. 9.) 
 
 2. The Viscount's appreciation. (Par. 10.) 
 IV. The Next Day. (Par. 11-13.) 
 
 1. Henry's anxiety about the continuation of the welcome. 
 (Par. 11.) 
 
 2. The kindly greeting of Henry by the Viscount and 
 Beatrix. (Par. 12.) 
 
 3. The pleasant conversation. (Par. 13.) 
 
188 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 The following was the assignment' given by the teacher 
 preliminary to the study by the pupils: 
 
 1. Read through the selection rather rapidly. 
 
 2. Re-read, considering the dominating characteristics of the 
 pictures, and list words that express these. 
 
 3. Divide the whole into four main divisions, and formulate a 
 heading, choosing words that effectively express the main 
 idea of the paragraph. 
 
 In recitation the words listed were first considered, and 
 then, the pupils having their outlines in hand and with 
 the teacher leading and directing, agreed upon the four 
 main divisions and the headings, which were placed upon 
 the blackboard. Then the pupils were asked to fill in a 
 topic for each paragraph in each division, again choosing 
 words that adequately expressed the essential idea of the 
 paragraph. After this was completed, the outline on the 
 blackboard was completed. The class outline, as given 
 below, shows the final wording of the outline. The outline 
 is the product of the cooperative efforts of the class. The 
 teacher stimulated thinking by criticisms and questions, 
 but the outline in its organization and wording represents 
 the combined contributions of the pupils. 
 
 I. The meeting of the Viscountess and Henry. (Par. 1-4.) 
 
 1. Characterization of Henry Esmond. (Par. 1.) 
 
 2. The kind greetings of the Lady of Castlewood. (Par. 2.) 
 
 3. Description of the charming Viscountess. (Par. 3.) 
 
 4. Henry's expression of admiration for the Viscountess. 
 (Par. 4.) 
 
 II. The meeting of Henry with the Viscount and Beatrix. 
 (Par. 5-8.) 
 
 1. The amusement of the Viscount at the adorer of the 
 . Viscountess. (Par. 5.) s 
 
 2. The Viscount's welcome of Henry. (Par. 6.) 
 
 3. Beatrix's expression of surprise at Henry's position. 
 (Par. 7.) 
 
 4. Henry's gratitude. (Par. 8.) 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 189 
 
 III. The beautiful scene as viewed from the garden. (Par. 9-10.) 
 
 1. The sunset scene beyond Castlewood. (Par. 9.) 
 
 2. The Viscount's expression of pleasure at the beauty of 
 Castlewood. (Par. 10.) 
 
 IV. The next day. (Par. 11-13.) 
 
 1. Henry's fear that the welcome may not last. (Par. 11.) 
 
 2. The same kind greetings. (Par. 12.) 
 
 3. Henry's promise to teach the Viscountess French. 
 (Par. 13.) 
 
 Making running notes. Training pupils in the making 
 of running notes on what is read is another form of training 
 in the comprehension of literary organization. 
 
 The following illustrative exercise is taken from the 
 Teacher s Manual of the Boys' and Girls' Sixth Reader, 
 by Bolenius : 
 
 "How the Trolley Car Runs" — Eva March Tappan 
 
 Running notes of a selection to serve as clues of content. This 
 selection is packed full of thought. The following running notes 
 will help to show what is played up in the article. 
 
 1[ 1. Why the marble rolls and stops — two things that happen 
 % 2. How to move cars — what electricity travels through — insula- 
 tion — example, lightning rods — a circuit — free — closed 
 Tf 3. The generator — power house — how it drives the cars — closed — 
 
 broken circuit 
 ^| 4. Care in laying rails to prevent jumping of electricity 
 Tf 5. The motorman's work — speed — brakes — skidding wheels — 
 
 sand 
 H 6. How the car is heated — why it does not catch on fire 
 ^ 7. What the trolley is — how made and used 
 
 1[ 8. How wires may be placed — underground — overhead — conduits 
 m[ 9-11. Electric locomotives — third rail — loose wires — advantages of 
 steam over electricity — storage battery not yet perfected — trial 
 of running cars without rails — why the overhead trolley is preferred 
 Iffl 12-13. What the trolley does for the country — example, peach farm 
 — speed in reaching markets — less expense — how it helps the 
 steam road 
 H 14. How the trolley helps the workman — in congested districts — 
 Great Britain, Belgium, and Cleveland 
 Ancient idea of the city and the trolley 
 
190 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Topical outline versus running notes. In connection with this 
 selection there is excellent opportunity to show the pupils the 
 difference between a topical outline arranged with main points 
 and sub-points, and mere running notes like those given on this 
 page. 
 
 Making and matching paragraph headings; group work. 
 In this work the class is divided into two or more teams. 
 Each team is given a short selection containing good para- 
 graph organization. Each member of the team reads the 
 selection, and makes as many paragraph headings as possi- 
 ble in a given time. In team conference the best heading 
 for each paragraph is selected. These selected headings 
 are arranged promiscuously, and given with the books to 
 another team. Each member of the receiving team matches 
 the headings as best he can in a limited time. The members 
 of the team agree in conference upon the best matchings. 
 The team that made the headings checks the matchings 
 of the other team. A comparison is made of the percentage 
 of correct matchings made by each team. 
 
 Training in reading headings in texts and newspapers. 
 Consult almost any text in history or geography and you 
 will find a definite scheme of printing to show headings for 
 the chapter, for a few large parts of the chapter, for sections 
 of these parts, and for paragraphs under these. In begin- 
 ning the use of a new text, the teacher should use the time of 
 a period or two to familiarize the pupils with the scheme of 
 headings used. Show the pupils the scheme in the first 
 chapter. Then see if they can copy it in the form of an 
 outline. Pupils should be led to give more attention to 
 these headings in their study. This can be done by the 
 teacher giving more reference to them in her questions and 
 other details of her teaching. Pupils may be asked to 
 compare the organization in one text with that in another, 
 or to make substitute headings for those in a text. 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 191 
 
 Pupils should also be taught the organization of material 
 in newspapers. Their attention should be called to the 
 division into sections, such as news, sports, editorials, etc. 
 The purpose of the use of different sizes of type should be 
 taught. In a newspaper story the title is printed in a heavy 
 black headline; below the headline is given a brief summary 
 of the story. This is called the lead. It is printed in letters 
 smaller than the headline, but usually larger than the rest 
 of the story. Frequently sub-titles are scattered throughout 
 an article to serve as guide-posts, or to bring out exciting 
 things in the story. 
 
 The following are good exercises of this type to set for 
 pupils : 
 
 (a) Bring to the class a newspaper, and be ready to point out 
 headlines and leads. 
 
 (b) Read a short newspaper article to the class, and ask them to 
 make up headlines and leads. 
 
 Analyzing short and long narrative units. While short 
 units of exposition have the most easily conceived para- 
 graph organization, the narrative has the advantage of a 
 sequence of incidents arranged just as they happened. 
 While the teacher should keep in mind the danger of too 
 much attention to structure in developing appreciation, 
 some attention to organization will help to develop a sense 
 for the best. In the upper grades, the pupils may be taught 
 to divide the story according to the following outline: 
 
 I. Introduction 
 
 II. Development of the plot 
 
 m. The Climax 
 
 IV. The Outcome 
 
 The pupils may be asked to select the climax chapter of 
 books read both as class reading and as individual reading. 
 Pupils may be asked to select and read to the class begin- 
 
102 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 nings of stories that especially arouse an interest in reading 
 the story. 
 
 A very good outline of Rip Van Winkle is given in the 
 chapter on " Synopses," in Reading in the Public School, by 
 Briggs and Coffman. Bolenius, in her Teacher's Manual 
 for the Fifth Reader, gives the following outline of a story: 
 
 "How the differs Won" — Samuel Merwin 
 Vital parts of the story 
 
 Sections 1- 2. Rivalry between the Town and Cliff Schools 
 Sections 3- 8. Ole Anderson and the challenge 
 
 3- 4. His proposition to the Cliff boys 
 5- 6. The rules for the game 
 7- 8. The challenge and acceptance 
 Sections 0-14. The first run 
 
 9. The differs in training 
 10-11. Getting the lay of the land 
 12-14. Winning the first race 
 Sections 15-29. The second run 
 
 15-16. Preparations of both sides 
 
 17. The start 
 18-21. Laying false scents 
 
 22. Resting at the monastery 
 23-24. Laying another false scent 
 24-25. Ole and Joe over the cliff 
 26-27. The run home 
 
 28. The Cliff School declared winners 
 
 29. Return of the hounds one hour and 
 
 six minutes later 
 Section 30. The Towners' challenge for next year 
 
 The teacher may help to develop a sense on the part of 
 the pupils for the vital parts of a story by making an out- 
 line like the one above and asking the pupils to divide the 
 story into sections to fit the outline, or she may give the 
 pupils the sections and ask them to work out the headings. 
 Pupils may be asked to find and report important turning- 
 points in long narrative units. In the case of units suited 
 for dramatization, they may be asked to reorganize the 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 193 
 
 story in dramatic outline, giving the acts and scenes, the 
 synopsis of each, and the list of characters in order of 
 importance. 
 
 Training in quickly grasping the central thought or the 
 essential total meaning of a unit. In various phases of the 
 reading work, pupils are, of course, getting experience in 
 this element of comprehension. But special exercises under 
 a time limit are needed. A good exercise of this kind is to 
 assign the pupils a number of paragraphs, each undoubtedly 
 containing a topical sentence, and ask each pupil to indi- 
 cate as many topical sentences as possible in a given time. 
 A plan similar to that suggested under " Making and 
 matching paragraph headings " could be used. 
 
 Other means by which the pupil may quickly indicate the 
 essential total meaning of the unit may be employed. 
 Monroe has used the following in his reading tests : 
 
 r 1. The western part of the United States was not settled till 
 much later than the eastern. The discovery of gold quickly 
 drew many settlers to California; and, as the search for the 
 precious metal was carried farther, the entire West soon 
 became explored and settled. 
 
 Draw a line under the one word in the paragraph above 
 that tells what it was that caused the western part of the 
 United States to be settled. 
 
 2. In order to live in Holland the people have built dikes, to 
 keep the sea out, and have dug canals to drain the land. 
 The water that collects inside the dikes is pumped out by 
 windmills. 
 
 Draw a line under the word below that which most nearly 
 describes the land in Holland. 
 
 mountainous low desert high 
 
 3. Aladdin's uncie said: "I will take a shop and furnish it for 
 you." Aladdin was delighted with the idea, for he thought 
 
194 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 there was very little work in keeping a shop. He liked that 
 better than anything else. 
 
 Draw a line under the word below that tells us what kind 
 of a boy Aladdin was. 
 
 industrious ambitious active lazy honest 
 
 4. The soldier crawled out of the trench, where he had spent 
 the night. He was covered with mud from head to foot, and 
 almost frozen. He looked around at his companions. What 
 a miserable lot they were! This, then, was the glorious war 
 
 | told about in the papers. 
 
 Draw a line under the word below that tells how the soldier 
 felt. 
 
 happy patriotic brave angry downhearted 
 
 5. Not far from Greensburg is a little valley, among the high 
 hills. A small brook glides through it, with just murmur 
 enough to lull one to repose; and the occasional whistle of a 
 quail, or tapping of a woodpecker, is almost the only sound 
 
 j that ever breaks in upon the uniform tranquillity. 
 
 What kind of a picture do you get from reading the above 
 paragraph? 
 
 disorder activity noise calmness confusion 
 
 6. A silly young cricket, accustomed to sing 
 
 Through the warm sunny months of gay summer and spring, 
 Began to complain, when he found that at home 
 His cupboard was empty, and winter had come. 
 
 Draw a line under the word which best describes the cricket. 
 
 wise faithful foolish proud prudent 
 
 7. \ The boy stood on the burning deck, 
 
 Whence all but him had fled; 
 The flame that lit the battle's wreck, 
 
 Shone round him o'er the dead; 
 Yet beautiful and bright he stood, 
 
 As born to rule the storm. 
 
 Draw a line under the word that best describes the boy. 
 cowardly mischievous - brave _young good 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 195 
 
 8. Nowhere in the world do the children have so many good 
 times as in Japan. They are allowed to play anywhere, and 
 there are all sorts of toys and games for their amusement. 
 
 Are the children of Japan happy? Answer with "Yes" or 
 "No." 
 
 3. Plans for Vocabulary Training 
 
 How we enlarge our vocabulary. It cannot be too often 
 or too thoroughly emphasized that there should be very 
 little centering of attention upon words in the reading for 
 isolated definition. It has been repeatedly pointed out 
 that there is altogether too much of this in the usual school 
 practice. Still the problem remains that pupils are not able 
 to pronounce words, and do not have an adequate concep- 
 tion of the meaning of words. This problem must be solved 
 upon the basis of how we acquire correct pronunciation and 
 adequate meanings of words. How does our vocabulary 
 grow? We all know that our vocabulary develops through 
 experience, and not through the use of the dictionary or 
 the formal recitation of definitions. Every new activity 
 we enter upon enlarges our vocabulary. When one learns 
 to play golf or to drive an automobile, a whole new set of 
 words is required. We learn to pronounce them and to 
 understand their meaning through conversation and read- 
 ing. One of the fundamentals of reading-vocabulary 
 growth is an extensive vicarious experience through reading. 
 We fully comprehend a word only when we have experienced 
 it in varied contextual relations. 
 
 The importance of oral reading in vocabulary develop- 
 ment is often stressed. In the absence of scientific studies 
 in this particular we must fall back upon opinion. All will 
 agree that oral reading is a large factor, in the first few 
 grades, in the growth of the pupils' sight-reading vocabulary. 
 But, when a pupil can read his known auditory vocabulary, 
 
196 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 there is serious question whether oral reading continues to 
 be an important factor in increasing his sight-reading 
 vocabulary, his speaking vocabulary, or his written vocabu- 
 lary. Language work, discussion and interpretation, and 
 conversation are better motivated situations for checking 
 pronunciation than oral reading, except real audience read- 
 ing. In the main, persons come to use words through 
 hearing them in conversation and discussion, and then 
 feeling a need for them in expressing thoughts and experi- 
 ences. 
 
 This treatment, though, is concerned chiefly with the 
 growth of the pupil's reading vocabulary, and as silent 
 reading is much more important to this end than oral read- 
 ing, it is more concerned with the growth of an adequate 
 meaning vocabulary. The following is a summary of the 
 principal activities previously discussed which aid in the 
 growth of the sight vocabulary. 
 
 Activities Aiding the Growth of the Sight Vocabulary 
 
 1. Oral reading in the lower grades 
 
 2. Audience reading 
 
 3. An extensive vicarious experience through reading 
 
 4. Interpretative discussion, naturally involving the oral use 
 of many words in the text 
 
 5. Special interpretative problems requiring the selecting, 
 comparing, and contrasting of words in the text 
 
 6. Systematic lessons in the analysis of word meanings and in 
 the use of appropriate helps, given in. periods separate from 
 the regular reading lessons 
 
 The last two of the above-mentioned activities will be 
 discussed more in detail. 
 
 Vocabulary-problem lessons. In the assignment of a 
 reading lesson, wherever it can be readily done, the teacher 
 should include a problem or exercise requiring the pupil to 
 list a definite number of words, not for isolated defining, 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 197 
 
 but as an aid in interpretation. From among the suggestive 
 problems and exercises on pages 143-147, select those that 
 require the listing of words. 
 
 Some selections lend themselves to the use of a vocabulary 
 problem as the main one in the assignment. The following 
 is a brief account of two lessons of this type. 
 
 I. A Vocabulary Lesson on "The Bells," by Pob — 
 Seventh Grade 
 
 After the teacher had read the poem as a whole to the 
 pupils, to give them an auditory perspective impression, 
 the more analytical study by parts was undertaken. The 
 teacher announced that the poem would be attacked by 
 determining the four kinds of bells described, and listing 
 under each the words that were used to express the particu- 
 lar effect desired. The following lists were placed upon the 
 blackboard during the recitation: 
 
 Sledge 
 
 Wedding 
 
 Alarm 
 
 Tolling 
 
 Bells 
 
 Bells 
 
 Bells 
 
 Bells 
 
 merriment 
 
 mellow 
 
 shriek 
 
 groaning 
 
 silver 
 
 molten 
 
 scream 
 
 Runic 
 
 tinkle 
 
 golden 
 
 clash 
 
 melancholy 
 
 jingling 
 
 liquid ditty 
 
 clang 
 
 throbbing 
 
 crystalline 
 
 voluminary 
 
 roar 
 
 muffled mono- 
 
 tintinnabulation 
 
 rhyming 
 
 turbulent 
 
 tone 
 
 
 chiming 
 
 desperate 
 
 sobbing 
 
 
 euphony 
 
 twanging 
 
 moaning 
 
 
 
 palpitating 
 
 rolling 
 
 
 
 clamorous, etc. 
 
 tolling 
 
 The pupils selected and discussed these words in relation to 
 a specific interpretative purpose. It is under reading situa- 
 tions of this type that discussing and defining words have 
 value. For the assignment for the succeeding study and 
 recitation the teacher checked ten of the more unfamiliar 
 words, and wrote the following on the blackboard: 
 
198 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 1. Find as many synonyms as possible for each word. 
 
 2. Check the one whose meaning is nearest to the word. 
 
 3. Prove that the word that Poe has used is more appropriate 
 than any of the synonyms would have been. 
 
 During the next recitation the following was placed upon 
 the board as the consensus of the opinion of the class: 
 
 crystalline 
 
 clamorous 
 
 voluminously 
 
 molten u euphony 
 
 pure 
 
 *noisy 
 
 *swelling 
 
 *melted pleasing sound 
 
 *clear 
 
 loud 
 
 large 
 
 fused sweet sound 
 
 transparent 
 
 
 copious 
 
 cast *harmonious 
 
 palpitating 
 
 melancholy 
 
 monody 
 
 solemn monotone 
 
 fluttering 
 
 despondent 
 
 funeral song 
 
 grave *one tone 
 
 *throbbing 
 
 sad 
 
 *lamentations 
 
 *serious continuous 
 
 quivering 
 
 *mournful 
 
 
 sacred utterance 
 
 pulsating 
 
 dejected 
 
 
 impressive not varied 
 
 
 sorrowful 
 
 
 ceremonious 
 
 Another vocabulary lesson will illustrate further what 
 may be done. 
 
 II. A Sixth-Grade Vocabtjlaby-Pboblem Lesson 
 "The Chimsera" — Hawthorne's Wonder-Booh 
 
 Problem: Select and list expressions that mean the same as Pega- 
 sus, and prove that each is appropriate. 
 
 Solution: winged horse; snow-white steed; wondrous spectacle; 
 horse fowl; marvelous horse; aerial wonder; splendid 
 bird; beautiful friend; sky-skimmer. 
 
 The selection and discussion of these was a valuable 
 means of testing the pupils' silent reading, an interesting 
 way to clear up hazy ideas of meaning, and proved a valu- 
 able means of interpreting. This is a good illustration of 
 attacking the content in a psychological though miscel- 
 laneous order instead of in the order presented in the story. 
 The lesson ended by relating the story. 
 
 Systematic word study. Systematic word study presents 
 a common vocabulary problem for reading, spelling, and 
 language. There is opportunity here for correlation. No 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 199 
 
 doubt some of the reading-program time should be devoted 
 to definite word study growing out of experience with 
 words causing difficulty in the reading texts. The most 
 suggestive material along this line as yet published is the 
 following extract from Judd's monograph on Reading: 
 Its Nature and Development, in the chapter on " Some 
 Experiments in Training Pupils ": 
 
 Before the work had progressed very far it became apparent 
 that definite word study was necessary in order to build up a 
 background of meaning. Words were studied in the context for 
 meaning, and certain ones were chosen for detailed analysis of 
 prefix, suffix, and stem. A stem word analyzed in this manner 
 became the nucleus for grouping together other closely related 
 words more or less familiar to the student. The word traction 
 encountered in an article on the "Lincoln Highway" brought out a 
 discussion of traction engines, their use in plowing, road-building, 
 and trench warfare, why so called, etc. This centered attention 
 upon the stem tract. As its meaning became clear the following 
 list was elaborated: 
 
 subtract 
 
 distract 
 
 attraction 
 
 contract 
 
 extract 
 
 distraction 
 
 detract 
 
 retract 
 
 subtraction 
 
 attract 
 
 contraction 
 
 extraction 
 
 A study of the prefixes in these words gave a point of leverage for 
 attacking the meaning of words containing them. In this type 
 of prefix study only those words were listed whose stems were 
 familiar to the pupil, as, for example: 
 
 recall 
 
 rebound 
 
 retake 
 
 reclaim 
 
 retain 
 
 reinforce 
 
 rearrange 
 
 reform 
 
 return 
 
 regain 
 
 remake 
 
 ref rame, etc 
 
 In a similar manner an acquaintance was made with the most 
 common suffixes. 
 
 The meaning of some words was approached by the study of 
 synonyms and equivalent idiomatic phrases. These were, as far 
 as possible, studied in the context and discussed at length to bring 
 out shades of difference in meaning. An indomitable hero met in 
 
200 SILENT AND ORAL READING , 
 
 the pioneer tales brought forth the following synonyms and 
 idiomatic phrases: 
 
 indomitable fearless stout-hearted 
 
 brave heroic intrepid 
 
 courageous bold audacious 
 
 resolute daring defiant 
 
 manly plucky undismayed 
 
 to look danger in the face 
 
 to screw one's courage to the sticking-point 
 
 to take the bull by the horns 
 
 to beard the lion in his den 
 
 to put on a bold front 
 
 Vocabulary exercises in the Lewis and Roland Silent 
 Readers, The Silent Readers, by Lewis and Roland, for 
 the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth grades, have 
 each a number of pages devoted to vocabulary exercises 
 independent of any of the reading lessons. The following 
 typical samples are taken from the Sixth Reader: l 
 
 Turning out the Intruder 
 
 Arrange your paper with your name on the first line at the right, 
 and your grade below it on the second line. Skip the third line, 
 but on the next six lines, in the margin, write the figures, 1 to 8. 
 
 Here is an exercise that will let you see not only how well you can 
 follow printed directions, but also how well you can arrange words 
 in classes or groups. Read the first group of words at the bottom 
 of the page. What kind of list does it seem to be ? A list of several 
 kinds of fruit, does it not? Or at least it would be a good list of 
 fruit, if we could omit the word rope, which does not seem to 
 belong to the list at all. After figure 1, on your paper, write the 
 word rope. 
 
 In each of the other groups there is also a word that should be 
 dropped out. You are going to write these words on your paper. 
 Start with the next group, and when you find the word that 
 should be omitted, write it after figure 2; and in the same way, 
 finish the remaining groups in the exercise. When you finish wait 
 quietly for the others to do so. 
 
 1 Reproduced with the permission of the publishers, The John C. Win- 
 ston Company. The size of the printing has been reduced. 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 201 
 
 1. 
 
 2. 
 
 S. 
 
 4. 
 
 apple 
 
 lion 
 
 mountain 
 
 lumbering 
 
 peach 
 
 tiger 
 
 gulfs 
 
 farming 
 
 rope 
 
 elephant 
 
 hills 
 
 grazing 
 
 grape 
 
 tusks 
 
 plain 
 
 manufacturing 
 
 pear 
 
 horse 
 
 valley 
 
 jumping 
 
 orange 
 
 cow 
 
 island 
 
 fishing 
 
 5. 
 
 6. 
 
 7. 
 
 8. 
 
 automobile 
 
 flowers 
 
 cup 
 
 chair 
 
 store 
 
 grass 
 
 saucer 
 
 table 
 
 bank 
 
 fence 
 
 plate 
 
 room 
 
 station 
 
 tree 
 
 pan 
 
 sofa 
 
 hotel 
 
 bush 
 
 pitcher 
 
 bench 
 
 church 
 
 weeds 
 
 bowl 
 
 bookcase 
 
 Putting Words where They Belong 
 
 Arrange your paper with your name on the first line and your 
 grade on the second line. Divide the rest of your paper into 
 four parts with lines drawn as shown below: 
 
 TRAVELING 
 
 BANKING 
 
 GRAZING 
 
 SEASHORE 
 
 Below is a list of words that is not very well arranged. Some 
 words suggest a long railroad journey, some an errand to the 
 bank, some the lonely occupation of a cowboy, and others a vaca- 
 tion at the shore. Write the words, traveling, banking, graz- 
 ing, seashore at the top of your paper on the fourth line as 
 shown above. Now rearrange the words below into four columns 
 under these four heads, putting all the words that seem to sug- 
 gest traveling in the first column, and all the words that suggest 
 banking in the second column, and every word that suggests 
 grazing or seashore in its proper column. When you finish 
 wait quietly for the others. 
 
 discount 
 train 
 
 station 
 interest 
 
 flock 
 bridge 
 
 cattle 
 deposit 
 
202 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 sheep 
 
 check 
 
 vault 
 
 account 
 
 cashier 
 
 salt-lick 
 
 grass 
 
 ranch 
 
 sand 
 
 waves 
 
 life-guard 
 
 balance 
 
 suitcase 
 
 taxi 
 
 signal 
 
 curve 
 
 ocean 
 
 swim 
 
 fence 
 
 herd 
 
 spring 
 
 adding machine 
 
 pass-book 
 
 tree 
 
 beach 
 
 fish 
 
 conductor 
 
 ticket 
 
 boardwalk 
 
 engineer 
 
 lighthouse 
 
 steamer 
 
 Can You Understand Relationship? 
 
 This drill will test your ability to recognize easily relationships 
 between words. Beginning on the first line, write the figures 1 
 to 10. 
 
 In each group of words below, the first two words have a certain 
 connection in meaning. When you discover this relationship 
 between the first two words, you can find among the five words 
 that follow, two other words that bear the same relationship. 
 For example, in group one, the tire is made of rubber. Now if 
 you look among the words that follow, you will easily see that the 
 words house and bricks are related in the same way. (The 
 house is made of bricks. Write these four words after figure 1 
 on your paper: 
 
 1. tire rubber house bricks 
 
 Look at group two. We can easily see that just as the tailor 
 makes clothes so the baker makes bread. So you will write 
 these four words after figure 2 on your paper: 
 
 2. tailor clothes baker bread 
 
 Complete the exercise by selecting the two words in each 
 remaining group that are related in meaning in the same way 
 that the given words are related in meaning. When you have 
 finished, wait quietly for the others. 
 
 1. tire, rubber (wagon, circle, house, brush, bricks). 
 
 2. tailor, clothes (baker,, store, city, ship, bread). 
 S. fire, heat (knife, candle, burn, light, wood). 
 
 4. sailor, sea (book, sing, soldier, fight, land). 
 
 5. gun, bullet (bow, horse, shoot, arrow, fly). 
 
 6. young, quick (old, fast, grow, father, slow). 
 
 7. apple, tree (oranges, south, grape, vine, sweet). 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 203 
 
 8. ceiling, floor (sky, attic, stair, earth, high). 
 
 9. window, glass (silk, knife, book, steel, pencil). 
 10. squirrel, chatters (bird, tree, sings, fly, nuts). 
 
 Finding Opposites 
 
 This drill will not only test your ability to follow printed direc- 
 tions, but also your ability to exercise a careful choice of words. 
 Follow the directions very closely. 
 
 1. Arrange your paper with your name on the first and your 
 grade on the second line. Beginning with the fourth line, in the 
 margin, write the figures 1 to 10. 
 
 2. Below are ten sets of words. In each case, the first word is 
 followed by four other words, one of which is exactly opposite in 
 meaning to the first word. You are going to find these opposites. 
 Look at group one. high is the first word. Of the four words 
 that follow it, which do you think is the exact opposite of high? 
 Of course it is low. Write this pair of opposites after figure 1 on 
 your paper as follows: ^->^ 
 
 1. high low 
 
 3. After figure 2, write the second pair of opposites: 
 
 2. great small 
 
 Complete the exercise by selecting the opposites from each remain- 
 ing group, and writing them after the proper figure on your paper. 
 When you have finished put down your pencil and wait quietly 
 for the others. 
 
 1. high (sky, low, above, deep). 
 
 2. great (less, large, small, beautiful). 
 
 3. hill (mountain, valley, high, river). 
 
 4. many (few, more, plenty, less). 
 
 5. gradual (quick, slowly, sudden, degree). 
 
 6. wound (sword, nurse, heal, bind). 
 
 7. light (bright, sun, shadow, darkness). 
 
 8. straight (long, uneven, twist, crooked). 
 
 9. land (plain, water, farm, river). 
 10. spring (fall, cool, October, green). 
 
204 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 4. The Latest Types of Silent-Reading Exercises 
 A. Motivated drill work in third-grade silent reading 
 
 A very valuable type of drill exercise in speed and com- 
 prehension, in the form of a game, has been reported by 
 J. H. Hoover. 1 He used sets of cards two inches by four 
 inches containing a sentence or a paragraph. He devised 
 four sets of these cards, each set consisting of from 100 to 
 250 cards. The sets were lettered A, B, C, and D. The 
 cards in each set were numbered in order of difficulty from 
 the easiest card to the most difficult one. The following 
 shows sample cards reduced in dimensions about half: 
 
 A 
 
 
 125 
 
 School 
 
 closes at four 
 
 o'clock in 
 
 the 
 
 afternoon. 
 
 Show how 
 
 the 
 
 face of a 
 
 clock looks at that time. 
 
 B 67 
 
 A donkey was loaded 
 with salt. He laid down in 
 the water. What happened 
 to the salt ? 
 
 The content of the first and last card of each set will now 
 be given in order that the reader may have some idea of the 
 types of reading material used. The type of response re- 
 quired is also indicated. 
 
 Set A — Action Cards 
 
 I. Face the rising sun. 
 
 150. The children played tag on the lawn. They soon felt 
 tired and went to sleep. There were eleven children in the group. 
 Make the figure "eleven" on your paper. 
 
 1 Hoover, J. H., " Motivated Drill Work in Third-Grade Silent Reading," 
 in the Twentieth Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education, 
 part n. Public School Publishing Company, Bloomington, 111. > 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 205 
 
 Set B — Language Response Cards 
 1. Name some good winter games. 
 
 150. Last year I bought some roses for twenty cents a dozen. 
 How many things does it take to make a dozen? 
 
 Set C — Pretense Cards 
 
 1. Show how mother rocks the baby. 
 
 250. Mr. Wilson is digging potatoes to-day. He plows them out 
 with a big team of mules and a plow. He puts them in a sack and 
 carries them to the cellar. Act as if you were picking up potatoes. 
 
 Set D — One Word Response Cards 
 (Yes, no, right, or wrong) 
 1. Apples and peaches grow on the ground. 
 100. We went to church last Sunday. Uncle John and Aunt 
 Lena came home with us. They took us out riding in the after- 
 noon. Do you enjoy riding in a car? 
 
 The drill game is carried out in such a way as to give 
 equal emphasis to speed and comprehension. The plan of 
 the game will be made clear by giving the following excerpt 
 from the report, just previously referred to: 
 
 Playing Rules (Set A) 
 
 The children are arranged in pairs according to some convenient 
 plan. Each child is given a sufficient number of cards to occupy 
 his time for the entire reading period. If the time allotted to a 
 reading period is fifteen minutes, ten cards given to each child will 
 probably be enough. 
 
 For convenience, let us say that Ruth and James are playing 
 together. Each is given (say) ten cards from Set A. Each has a 
 pencil and paper on which to keep the score of his or her opponent. 
 James picks up one of his cards, reads it silently, hands it to Ruth 
 who reads it carefully, then proceeds to perform the required 
 activity. By his performance, Ruth judges whether or not James 
 has gotten the thought of the passage which he has just read. She 
 now gives him a score of "1" if he has performed his task cor- 
 rectly, and "0" if he has failed. 
 
 The teacher will do well to be in the midst of the children while 
 
206 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 the game is in process, to watch the performances of the children 
 being judged and the scoring of the ones doing the judging. Fair- 
 ness, accuracy, and speed are things to be encouraged. 
 
 Ruth now reads one of her cards and James becomes judge. 
 Thus the game proceeds until the twenty cards are exhausted or 
 until the reading period has been consumed. The one having 
 the greatest number of perfect scores (ones) at the end of the play 
 period wins the game. 
 
 The rules for playing with cards from Sets B, C, and D are the 
 same as the above directions which are based upon Set A, the 
 only difference being in the nature of the responses given, and 
 these varied responses do not affect the rules for playing. 
 
 Mr. Hoover carried out a carefully planned and extensive 
 experiment to determine the effect of this type of drill upon 
 speed. The pupils in thirty third-grade rooms were divided 
 into two groups of equal size and mental attainments. 
 One group of classes was given the drill ten minutes a day 
 three times a week for three months, while the other group 
 of classes was not. Both groups of classes were given the 
 same amount of program-reading time and the same 
 assignments, except the drill exercises, in reading. 
 
 The Monroe Standardized Reading Tests were given 
 before the experiment began and at the end of the three 
 months. The drill classes made very much more improve- 
 ment in both rate and comprehension than the non-drill 
 classes made. The results are summarized by Mr. Hoover 
 as follows: 
 
 It follows from this study of over eleven hundred third-grade 
 pupils in thirty classrooms of Kansas City, Kansas, that in every 
 phase of reading considered in this study the improvement made 
 by the classes that were drilled in reading by the games devised 
 by the writer was more pronounced than the improvement made 
 during a corresponding period by the classes that devoted the same 
 amount of time to other forms of reading exercises. 
 
 i 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 207 
 
 B, Exercises developed at Detroit for making reading 
 function 1 
 The following selected silent-reading exercises, excellent 
 in training for self-directed, careful reading, can be used for 
 seat work by one class while another is reciting, or they 
 might profitably be assigned to the better readers of a class 
 while the teacher works with the too-slow group. They 
 were devised and used in the Detroit schools. 
 
 I. Directions for Illustrating Nursery Rhymes 
 "There was an old woman who lived in a shoe, 
 
 She had so many children she did n't know what to do" 
 Cut out a large shoe. 
 Put a little window in the shoe. 
 Color the shoe black. 
 Cut out six children. 
 
 Make two of the children peeking over the top of the shoe. 
 Make three children peeking out of the window. 
 Make one peeking over the toe. 
 
 II. Directions for Illustrating Stories 
 Read over the story — 
 
 "The Three Little Pigs" 
 Draw the pigs' house. 
 Draw the mother pig at the door. 
 Make the three little pigs going away. 
 
 Draw the first little pig when he met the man with sqme straw. 
 
 Draw the house of straw. 
 
 Make the pig looking out of the window. 
 
 Draw the wolf at the door. 
 
 Draw the second little pig when he met the man with the wood. 
 
 Draw the house of wood. 
 
 Make the pig looking out of the window. 
 
 Draw the wolf at the door. 
 
 1 Courtis, S. A., and Heller, Regina R. " Exercises Developed at Detroit 
 for Making Reading Function," in the Twentieth Yearbook of the National 
 Society for the Study of Education, part n. Public School Publishing 
 Company, Bloomington, 111. 
 
208 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 III. Directions foe Constructing Toys 
 
 "How to Make A-B-C Blocks " 
 Fold your paper into sixteen squares. 
 Cut off one row of squares. 
 Make three cuts on each side like this. 
 In square one, print a capital A. 
 In square three, print a small a. 
 In square two draw a picture of an apple. 
 In square four draw a picture of an acorn. 
 Fold like a box and paste. 
 
 IV. Directions for Illustrating Social Studies 
 "Objects for an Indian Sand Table: an Indian Wigwam' 9 
 
 Get three sticks about six inches long. Tie them together at the 
 top with string. Spread them out at the bottom so they will 
 stand. This will make the framework of the wigwam. 
 
 Take a piece of brown paper nine by twelve inches. Cut a 
 half circle from it. Make it as large as you can. This is the skin 
 covering for your wigwam. Draw some Indian pictures on the 
 skin. Fasten the skin covering around the frame work. Fold 
 back the flaps for a door. 
 
 V. Type Demanding the Reading of a Short Description 
 
 to Carry out the Directions 
 "The Goldfinch" 
 In the summer, father goldfinch wears a bright lemon-yellow 
 suit. He has a black cap, black wings, and a black tail. His little 
 wife's dress is a dull green or olive yellow. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Goldfinch build a tiny little nest shaped like a cup. 
 It is made of fine grass and moss. They are very fond of thistles 
 and dandelions for they can line their nests with the fluff from these 
 little weeds. Then they can eat the seeds for their dinner. 
 
 VI. A Sample Scale of Reading Ability used in the First 
 
 Four Grades 
 Draw a bird house. 
 Make it blue. 
 
 Put it in the top of a little tree. 
 Make a bluebird flying over the bird house. 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 209 
 
 Make another bluebird standing on top of the bird house. 
 
 Put a little red worm in his mouth. 
 
 The bird house is in a garden, so draw a round flower bed near 
 
 the bird house. 
 Draw some yellow tulips in the middle of the bed and some red 
 
 tulips around the outside. 
 Draw some low bushes with red blossoms on them in the garden, 
 
 too. 
 Now think of a name for your picture and print it with black 
 
 crayon at the top of your paper. 
 Draw a little square in the lower left-hand corner of your paper. 
 In the upper half of this square print the initial of your first 
 
 name in green. 
 In the lower half of the square print the initial of your last name 
 
 in brown. r 
 
 C. Silent-reading exercises developed at Cedar Rapids and 
 Iowa City 
 
 The following exercises have been selected from those 
 given in the Twentieth Yearbook of the National Society 
 for the Study of Education, Part II, as being different from 
 any of the preceding types: 
 
 "Our Visit to the Fire Station" 
 
 (Reported by Miss Byrd Snyder, Grade I, Taylor School, 
 
 Cedar Rapids, Iowa) 
 
 After a story and talk about fires and how they can be pre- 
 vented, the following questions were given as a silent-reading 
 lesson: 
 
 1. What day is to-morrow? 
 
 2. Why do we have Fire Prevention Day? 
 
 3. Who helps us when we have a fire? 
 
 4. Who pays the firemen? 
 
 5. How do the firemen know when we need them? 
 
 6. Why do we have a fire drill at school? 
 
 7. How can boys and girls help prevent fire? 
 
 8. Tell some rules we should obey. 
 
 9. Would you like to visit a fire station to-morrow? 
 
210 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 The following lesson was developed with the children as a sum- 
 mary of their trip. 
 
 Our Visit to the Fire Station 
 On "Fire Prevention Day" we went to the fire station. 
 When we got there, the fireman invited us in. 
 We all went around on one side of the truck. 
 We saw the tank of chemicals. 
 
 They use chemicals whenever they can, instead of water. 
 Water spoils the furniture. 
 In the back of the truck we saw a big hose. 
 Then the fireman showed us the engine. 
 Laurence turned the crank and we heard the siren. 
 Ruby rang the bell. 
 
 These tell the people to get out of the way. 
 While we were still looking at the truck, there was a real fire. 
 After they had gone, we went outside a little while. 
 Then we went upstairs and saw their boots and the beds where 
 
 they sleep. 
 Soon the firemen came back. 
 The fire was out. 
 
 Then the firemen let Paul and Albert go down the pole. 
 The following questions were given as a silent-reading lesson 
 after the visit to the fire station: 
 
 1. What did we see on the side of the truck? 
 
 2. Why do they use chemicals? 
 
 3. What did we see in the back of the truck? 
 
 4. Who turned the crank? 
 
 5. Who rang the bell? 
 
 6. Why did they have these? 
 
 7. What happened while we were looking at the engine? 
 
 8. Where do the firemen sleep? 
 
 9. Why do they stay at the station all night? 
 
 A Lesson to Test and Develop the Ability to Comprehend 
 
 Certain Words and Phrases 
 (Submitted by Emma Watkins, First-Grade Teacher, University Elemen- 
 tary School, State University of Iowa) 
 The calendar used for these exercises is of the ordinary sort 
 distributed as advertising by commercial houses. It was mounted 
 on a large sheet of cardboard in order to give the required stiffness. 
 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 211 
 
 The words, phrases, and sentences were printed on pieces of card- 
 board, care being taken to print the entire phrase or sentence in 
 one line. After seating the pupils as close to the calendar as con- 
 venient, the lesson is begun by telling the pupils that they are to 
 be shown flash cards upon which are printed words which will tell 
 them what to point to on the calendar. Pupils are directed to 
 stand as soon as they understand the meaning of the first phrase 
 which is flashed. The pupil who finishes first is allowed to stand 
 before the calendar and point to the appropriate place indicated 
 by the flash card. This pupil continues the exercise, reading addi- 
 tional cards, until he makes an error, when his place is taken by 
 some other pupil who can read that exercise. The lesson as 
 described here is given under time pressure. It presupposes that 
 the words and phrases which are used have been already developed 
 with the class. The class is an advanced first-grade class. 
 
 1, Phrases 
 
 yesterday 
 
 to-day 
 
 to-morrow 
 
 next week 
 
 this week 
 
 the month 
 
 the year 
 
 the date 
 
 week after next 
 
 a week from to-morrow • 
 
 two weeks from to-morrow 
 
 a week ago yesterday 
 
 day after to-morrow 
 
 day before yesterday 
 
 in two days 
 
 the first day of the month 
 
 the first day of the week 
 
 next Saturday 
 
 last Thursday, etc. 
 
 the last day of the month 
 
 the first quarter of the moon 
 
 new moon 
 
 full moon 
 
 last quarter of the moon 
 
 Sunday 
 
 Monday 
 
 Tuesday 
 
 Wednesday 
 
 Thursday 
 
 Friday 
 
 Saturday 
 
 the day before the last day 
 
 of the month 
 the sixteenth 
 the fifteenth, etc. 
 next Monday, etc. 
 next month 
 last Monday 
 
 2. Sentences 
 On what day do you go to Sunday-School? 
 What will be the last day of school this week? 
 (Other similar sentences.) 
 
212 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 D. Types of remedial training work reported by 
 C. J. Anderson and Elda Merton 
 
 One of the difficult problems of the classroom teacher is 
 to " individualize classroom teaching in reading so that the 
 pupils could be given remedial treatment according to their 
 particular needs." C. J. Anderson and Elda Merton have 
 made a distinct contribution to this problem. 1 A few of the 
 devices tried by them, which are somewhat different from 
 devices already given, will be treated briefly. 
 
 Listing words according to ten phonetic rules. The 
 following excerpts from the articles by the authors men- 
 tioned above will make clear how pupils in the second, third, 
 and fourth grades who had not attained first-grade reading 
 ability, were helped with word difficulty: 
 
 Many teachers, following the phonic courses outlined in various 
 reading manuals, require pupils to learn hundreds of phonograms, 
 building up lists of words from each "family" as it is taught. 
 Practically two thirds of alt "phonograms commonly taught would 
 not need to be learned separately by the pupils, since the words 
 containing them can be unlocked with the help of the ten phonetic 
 rules of pronunciation. 
 
 The following seat-work exercise was given pupils to overcome 
 "periods of confusioa." Ten sheets of paper were fastened together. 
 At the top of each was written one of the ten phonetic rules. In 
 all study work the pupils watched for words containing these rules. 
 As they found them, they listed these words on the pages where 
 they belonged. Pupils were encouraged to look in newspapers, 
 magazines, Sunday-School papers, etc., for these words also. 
 
 The following are the ten phonetic rules referred to above: 
 Phonetic Rules of Pronunciation 
 
 1. When e comes at the end of a word of one syllable the e is 
 silent and the preceding vowel is long. This is known as the 
 rule of "Final e" — can, cane; not, note; cub, cube. 
 
 Anderson, C. J., and Merton, Elda. "Remedial Work in Silent 
 Reading"; in the Elementary School Journal (January, 1921), vol. 21, pp. 
 S36-48. 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 218 
 
 2. When two vowels occur together in a word the first vowel is 
 long and the second vowel is silent. This is known as the rule 
 of "Two vowels" — boat, people, neither, train, seize. 
 
 3. C before e, i, or y has the sound of s — cent, city, fancy. 
 
 4. G before e, i, or y has the sound of j — gentle, ginger, suggested, 
 
 gypsy- 
 
 5. W before r is silent — write, wrestle, wrap. 
 
 6. K before n is silent — knight, knock, know, 
 
 7. G before n is silent — gnat, gnaw, sign, gnome. 
 
 8. Ph always has the sound of / — phonograph, elephant, phlox. 
 
 9. When ed comes at the end of a word it adds a syllable when 
 preceded by d or t — roasted, faded, laughed, rolled. 
 
 10. In words ending in tion or sion the accent falls on the next to 
 the last syllable — graduation, profession, ascension. 
 
 4 
 
 Drilling on phrases. The following paragraph explains 
 a type of work that followed the word drill: 
 
 When the pupils had attained first-grade reading ability, teach- 
 ers eliminated word drills as such from the reading exercise and 
 substituted lists of phrases. These phrases were taken directly 
 from the lesson and contained the difficult words which needed 
 special drill. This phrase drill served a triple purpose. It trained 
 pupils to recognize word groups rather than single words, at the 
 same time giving drill upon the pronunciation and the meaning of 
 difficult words usually placed upon the board in word lists. 
 
 Flashing of phrases. Two plans were used for the flash- 
 ing of phrases. Six booklets of phrases were made. The 
 booklets were graduated in difficulty and size of type as 
 indicated below: 
 
 Book I (Primer type) Book VI (twelve-point type) 
 
 at last half the kingdom 
 
 by and by Early in the morning 
 
 one morning On his way home 
 
 at home There was once 
 
 all day Once upon a time 
 
 far away a bit farther 
 
 just then In the meantime 
 
214 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 ran away with all his might 
 
 very well toward evening 
 
 at once In an instant 
 
 Some teachers found that the pupils learned the phrases 
 by location, and consequently used small flash-cards two 
 and one half inches by three and one quarter inches in size. 
 
 Building up meaning vocabularies. The following is a 
 valuable means of building up meaning vocabularies in the 
 primary grades: 
 
 Pupils in the primary grades built up large meaning vocabularies 
 as a result of the following seat-work exercise. Sets of ten-word 
 groups each were cut from old discarded primary readers, mounted 
 on stiff paper, cut into separate word groups and placed in envel- 
 opes made by the pupils for this purpose. Each envelope was 
 numbered. A pupil received an envelope and during the seat- 
 work period illustrated each word group with pencil and crayons, 
 and placed the proper word group directly under each picture. 
 The teacher checked this work carefully at the close of each 
 period. If a child had made mistakes, he was told what the 
 phrases were and given another chance to score 100 on the follow- 
 ing day. Examples of mistakes were "a brown house" for "a 
 brown horse," "the little chicken" for "the little children," etc. 
 "When pupils scored 100 their envelopes were collected and they 
 were given a new number. The teacher kept a record of the 
 number of each envelope as a child finished it. As no two word 
 groups in the entire set of envelopes were the same, a child who 
 had completed fifteen envelopes would have comprehended one 
 hundred and fifty word groups well enough to illustrate them cor- 
 rectly. The following examples of these word groups were taken 
 from one of these envelopes: 
 
 a red squirrel our flag 
 
 a fat boy seven children 
 
 three big eggs the blue flowers 
 
 a red and yellow kite two little robins 
 
 a wee, wee house some brown leaves 
 
 Using paragraph cards with specific questions on the 
 back. The following gives the content of one of the para- 
 
TRAINING LESSONS IN SILENT READING 215 
 
 graph cards used as a remedial device for the pupils show- 
 ing inability to give correct answers to specific questions. 
 The questions are printed on the back of the card: 
 
 The Eskimo's House 
 An Eskimo's winter home is made of snow. The Eskimo makes 
 his house in one day. He cuts big blocks out of the snow. He 
 puts them together. He must work carefully. At last the house 
 is finished. There is a hole in one side. It is just large enough to 
 crawl through. That is the door. What a queer little house with 
 its queer little door! How can people live in it? But they do. 
 
 Questions 
 How long does it take to make an Eskimo winter hut? 
 Of what is it made? 
 Where is the door? 
 How large is it? 
 
 SOME POINTS TO REMEMBER 
 
 1. Training lessons for what three general purposes are enumerated in 
 the chapter? 
 
 2. Enumerate the five devices treated under the first major heading. 
 S. Enumerate the three main purposes discussed under the second 
 
 major heading. 
 
 4. List the different means given for developing a sense of the organiza- 
 tion of reading matter. 
 
 5. What main activities for vocabulary training are treated in the chap- 
 ter? 
 
 PROBLEMS FOR STUDY AND DISCUSSION 
 
 1. Formulate a phrase-flashing exercise, suitable for an intermediate- 
 grade class. 
 
 2. Try one of the two plans given under " Reading under a Time Limit," 
 and report as to which type of pupil comprehended the best, the slow, 
 the medium, or the fast reader. 
 
 3. Give examples of reading matter that would be useful in skimming. 
 
 4. How do you explain that primary teachers as a rule have not used 
 action sentences and exercises for silent reading, instead of for oral 
 reading? 
 
 5. Select a unit of reading matter from one of your reading books, suit- 
 able for silent reading and reproduction. 
 
216 SILENT AND ORAL READING , 
 
 6. Select a cumulative story adapted for silent reading and factual 
 questioning. 
 
 7. How do you account for the absurd answers given to factual ques- 
 tions, as listed on pages 173-174? 
 
 8. What do you consider the chief source of error in relational compre- 
 hension in silent reading? 
 
 9. Formulate a training exercise in relational comprehension, using — 
 
 (a) a selection from a reader 
 
 (b) a selection from a history 
 
 r (c) a selection of geographical material 
 
 10. Report a scheme for training in silent reading, in connection with a 
 language or a grammar lesson. In connection with an arithmetic 
 
 * lesson. 
 
 11. How could you correlate reading with construction work? 
 
 12. Select a unit of reading matter suitable for a certain grade, and for- 
 mulate a plan for training in the comprehension of the organization. 
 
 13. Formulate a set of five exercises for training in the ability to grasp 
 the central thought or the essential total meaning of a paragraph or 
 stanza. 
 
 14. Choose a reading unit suitable to a vocabulary-problem lesson, and 
 give a brief account of your plan. 
 
 15. Formulate a plan for a lesson on word study, similar to one of those 
 quoted from Judd. 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 
 READING TESTS AND THEIR USE IN IMPROVING READING 
 
 Note: The reading of this chapter will be of greater value and 
 the meaning clearer if a copy of each test described is at hand 
 while reading the text. For the convenience of those who may 
 wish to order samples or quantities of the tests the following 
 information is listed, giving the publisher and address, the name 
 of the test, and prices. 
 
 The Public School Publishing Company, Bloomington, Illinois. Under 
 the auspices of the Bureau of Research, University of Illinois. 1 
 
 1. Courtis Silent-Reading Test No. 2. 
 
 Sample Set, 20 cents. 
 
 Form 1, for grades 2 to 6, $2.50 per 100. 
 
 Form 3, for grades 2 to 6, $2.50 per 100. 
 
 2. Gray Oral Reading, 80 cents per 100. 
 r Sample Set, 6 cents. 
 
 3. Gray Silent-Reading Tests. 
 • Sample Set, 15 cents. 
 
 Selections: "Tiny Tad" for grades 2 and 3; "Grasshoppers" for 
 
 grades 4, 5, and 6; " Ancient Ships" for grades 7 and 8. 2 cents 
 
 each title. 
 Reproduction Sheets. 
 
 "Tiny Tad" for grades 2 and 3, 75 cents per 100. 
 
 "Grasshoppers" for grades 4, 5, and 6, 75 cents per 100. 
 
 " Ancient Ships" for grades 7 and 8, 75 cents per 100. 
 
 4. Monroe Standardized Silent-Reading Tests. 
 
 See also Illinois Examination. 
 Sample Set, 7 cents. 
 Form 1. 
 
 Test I, for grades 3, 4, and 5, 80 cents per 100. 
 
 Test II, for grades 6, 7, and 8, 80 cents per 100. 
 Form 2. 
 
 Test I, for grades 3, 4, and 5, 80 cents per 100. 
 
 Test II, for grades 6, 7, and 8, 80 cents per 100. 
 Form 3. 
 
 Test I, for grades 3, 4, and 5, 80 cents per 100. 
 
 Test II, for grades 6, 7, and 8, 80 cents per 100. 
 
 5. Holley Sentence Vocabulary Scale, Series 3A, 75 cents per 100. 
 
 Sample Set, 6 cents. 
 
 (Price list of January, 1921.) 
 
 1 See note at end of this chapter. 
 
218 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Bureau of Publications, Teachers College, Columbia University, New York 
 City. 
 Thorndike-McCall Reading Scale. 
 
 For examiner: One copy of Manual of Directions. One Record Sheet 
 for each class. Directions and Record Sheets are supplied with 
 each order. 
 For pupil: One copy of the form selected. Price: $2.25 per 100. 
 Sample set: One copy of Form 1 and direction bulletin. Price: 10 
 cents. 
 Thorndike Visual Vocabulary Scales. 
 
 There are four scales, A2 x and A2 y, B x and B y. The words in the 
 A series are classified as words meaning flowers, animals, names, games, 
 books, etc.; the words of the B series — words about war, fighting, business, 
 or money, church or religion, color, etc. The X or Y series may be used 
 as alternates to measure improvement over a certain period or to check 
 results. The four scales are of approximately equal difficulty. 
 
 Material required 
 
 For examiner: One copy of Manual of Directions. Price: 40 cents. 
 One answer stencil for each scale. Price: 5 cents each. One 
 Record Sheet for each 50 pupils, or class. Price: 3 cents. 
 
 For pupil: One copy of each scale used. Scale A2 x and Scale B x are 
 usually given at one time. Price: Each scale, 50 cents per 100; 
 $4.25 per 1000. 
 
 Sample set: One copy of each of the four scales. Price: 4 cents post- 
 paid. 
 
 (From price list of February, 1921.) 
 
 Russell Sage Foundation, 130 East 22d Street, New York City. 
 Scale for Measuring Ability in Silent Reading. May Ayres Burgess. 
 Prices of Scales — Postage paid: 
 Sample copies, five cents each. 
 Less than 1000, $1.25 a hundred. 
 1000 or over, $1.00 a hundred. 
 
 (From price list of December, 1920.) 
 
 fVorld Booh Company, Yonkers-on-Hudson, New York, Chicago, and 
 Dallas, Texas. 
 Haggerty Reading Examination 
 
 Sigma 1. By M. E. Haggerty and Margaret E. Noonan. 8 pages. Illus- 
 trated. Price per package of 25 examination booklets with Class Record, 
 $1.40 net. 
 
 Key for Sigma 1. Card. 1 page. Price 5 cents net. 
 Sigma 2. By M. E. and Laura C. Haggerty. In preparation. 
 
 For grades 3 to 6. 
 Key for Sigma 2. In preparation. 
 
READING TESTS 219 
 
 Sigma 3. By M. E. and Laura C. Haggerty. 8 pages. Price per 
 
 package of 25 examination booklets with Class Record, $1.50 net. 
 Key for Sigma 3. Card. 2 pages. Price 10 cents net. 
 Manual of Directions. 48 pages. Price 30 cents net. 
 Specimen Set. An envelope containing 1 each of Reading Examina- 
 tion: Sigma 1 and Sigma 3; 1 Key for each of the two tests; 1 Manual; 
 1 Class Record. Price 50 cents postpaid. 
 
 (From price list of February, 1921.) 
 
 Department of Psychology, University of Indiana, Bloomington. 
 The Pressey-Skeel Group Vocabulary Test. 
 
 (Printed in primer type.) 
 
 In connection with the recent movement to measure 
 abilities and achievement scientifically, and to set up 
 objective standards of accomplishment, there has been a 
 rather large number of reading tests devised. A few of 
 these have been used widely over the country, and others 
 have been used very little. These tests are of interest not 
 only because they are valuable measuring instruments to 
 use, but also because they show ways by means of which 
 the teacher may improve the usual classroom tests with 
 material at hand. 
 
 1. Oral Reading Tests 
 
 Gray's oral-reading test. The most widely used oral- 
 reading test is the one devised by Dean Gray, of the School 
 of Education of Chicago University. After several years 
 of experimenting, testing, and retesting, he arranged a 
 large sheet of twelve paragraphs, printed in type sizes 
 suited to the grade to be tested, and increasing in difficulty 
 from primer material to material too difficult for the eighth 
 grade. The paragraphs reproduced on page 220 are typical 
 of two sizes of type used. 
 
 Each child is tested individually, preferably in a room 
 by itself. The grade or score depends upon the rate of 
 reading combined with the errors, such as pronunciations, 
 
220 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 1 
 
 A boy had a dog. 
 The dog ran into the woods. 
 The boy ran after the dog. 
 He wanted the dog to go home. 
 But the dog would not go home. 
 The little boy said, 
 
 "I cannot go home without my dog." 
 Then the boy began to cry. 
 
 6 
 
 The part of farming enjoyed most by a boy 
 is the making of maple sugar. It is better than 
 blackberrying and almost as good as fishing. 
 One reason why a boy likes this work is that 
 someone else does most of it. It is a sort of work 
 in which he can appear to be very industrious and 
 yet do but little. 
 
 repetitions, etc. The reading is timed by a watch. The 
 tester, preferably without the child's knowing it, ascertains 
 and records the number of seconds it takes to read each 
 paragraph, as far as the child is able to read without too 
 many errors. As the child reads, the tester records on a 
 copy of the paragraphs the errors made by the pupil. Within 
 certain limitations the faster the pupil reads and the smaller 
 the number of errors, the higher the score. Some practice 
 is needed to develop skill in giving the test. The direc- 
 tions for recording errors are as follows: 
 
READING TESTS 221 
 
 The sun pierced into m? large windows. It was the opening of October, 
 and the sky was<£?)a dazzling blue. I looked out of my window dimD down 
 the street The white hous^of tho long, slight street were^Jtnost painful 
 to the eyes. The dear atmosphere allowed full play to^ljs stjnjij>rightness. 
 
 If a word is wholly mispronounced, underline h as in the case of "atmosphere.* 
 If a portion of a word is mispronounced, mark appropriately as indicated above: 
 "pierced" pronounced in two syllables, sounding long a in "dazzling," omitting the 
 * in "houses" or the al from "almost, or the r in "straight." Omitted words are 
 marked as in the case of "of" and "and", substitutions as in the case of "many" 
 for "my" insertions as in the case of "clear"; and repetitions as in the case of ' r to 
 the sun's/ Two or more words should be repeated to count as a repetition. 
 
 Fig. 13. Directions fob recording Errors in the Gray Oral- 
 Reading Test 
 
 Advantages of this test. An important advantage in 
 using such a standardized test is that, from its use, teachers 
 and pupils may know how each class and grade ranks, in 
 comparison to standards for the country as a whole. 
 These have been established as a result of the testing of 
 thousands of pupils in each grade in different parts of the 
 United States. The test also has large diagnostic value. 
 In the case of pupils not up to standard, the record for each 
 will show whether or not the child reads too slowly, and 
 what is the nature of the errors he makes. 
 
 The writer once asked a teacher of a third-grade class to 
 let him hear the best two readers in the class. Both read 
 without errors, but it appeared that one read considerably 
 faster than the other. Both were given the Gray test. 
 The time of the one was very much less than that of the 
 other, and both made very few errors. A careful listening 
 to the slower one showed that he read by words, and the 
 faster one by groups of words. The problem of the slower 
 one was to learn to phrase properly. The teacher was not 
 sufficiently aware of the importance of phrasing in relation 
 to the rate of reading and to the expression of the meaning. 
 
 In some cases the errors will be of certain types. For 
 
222 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 instance, a pupil may make most of his errors through a 
 habit of repetition. It will make a stronger impression 
 upon the pupil if he is shown the teacher's record, indicat- 
 ing just where he repeated in each paragraph, than if he is 
 merely admonished in the usual way. This individual 
 diagnosis is one of the chief advantages of the test. If it 
 is not possible to test all of the pupils of the school in oral 
 reading, it is more important to test the pupils in the lower 
 grades, and the poorer readers in the other grades. 
 
 Limitations of the test. The time taken to test pupils 
 by an elaborate scheme of this kind naturally raises the 
 question as to whether it pays. This is an important 
 question, which, of course, can be answered only by each 
 school and teacher. The writer believes that the light 
 thrown upon the elements determining good oral-reading, 
 and the interesting facts revealed through an objective 
 measurement, will make it worth while for all teachers of 
 the three lower grades to do some testing with Gray's 
 Standardized Paragraphs. All need not be tested, but 
 much light will be thrown on the reading difficulties of 
 some by such testing. 
 
 The Jones vocabulary test. A number of years ago R. G. 
 Jones made a study of all the words found in ten primers. 
 These were divided into phonetic words and sight words. 
 In order to test the pupils' recognition of the more com- 
 monly used words, he listed on a card the phonetic words 
 found ten or more times. He listed these in the order of 
 the number of times they recurred in the primers. For 
 instance, bit was found 1101 times and stands first. He did 
 the same with the sight words. The test consists in seeing 
 how many of these words the pupil can pronounce in list 
 form. The testing must, of course, be done individually. 
 The author has established standards for the upper first 
 grade, and each half of the second and third grades. By 
 
READING TESTS 223 
 
 using this test a teacher may obtain comparative results 
 from different methods or systems of teaching reading. 
 A class score may be secured by testing ten pupils, promis- 
 cuously selected. It will repay every lower-grade teacher 
 to try out this test, and use it as a help in formulating sim- 
 ilar tests adapted to her reading material. 1 
 
 2. Hearing-Reading Tests 
 How to test the listening powers. So far there has been 
 no scientific attempt to test listening ability. The follow- 
 ing, taken from the Teacher s Ma?iual for the Boys' and 
 
 Girls' Fifth Reader ; by Bolenius, is suggestive: 
 
 Before beginning the reading, ask the pupils to write their 
 names and the date at the top of a sheet of paper. Then let them 
 lay these papers on the desks face downward, so that they will not 
 catch any curious eyes. Next, the teacher announces that she is 
 going to read a story. Instead of letting the class read the intro- 
 duction themselves, the teacher should use this herself to intro- 
 duce the story. The children should sit in comfortable positions, 
 with no books whatsoever, but alert and ready to listen and enjoy. 
 
 Many teachers may prefer to distribute the readers to the class 
 after the second day's reading, instead of at the beginning. 
 
 The teacher reads The Rivals on page 1 in her clearest, most 
 interesting voice. When she concludes, she should ask the chil- 
 dren to turn their papers face up and copy the questions she will 
 dictate about the story that they have just heard. There are 
 two ways to do this: (1) she may tell them to leave two lines vacant 
 between questions for the insertion of the answers; or (2) she may 
 dictate the question, have the children copy it, and answer it at 
 once, the teacher meanwhile observing the children to find out 
 who have quick and retentive minds and who have trouble to 
 think and to remember. 
 
 The following questions bring out the main facts: 
 
 J. The Rivals (page 1) 
 1. Whom did Tim want to beat at hoeing turnips? [Perkins, or 
 the hired man — accept either one.] 2. Who taught Cameron to 
 
 1 Read " Standard Vocabulary," by Jones, R. G., in Fourteenth Yearbook 
 of the National Society for the Study of Education (1915), part i, pp. 37-43. 
 
224 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 hoe turnips? [Tim.] 3. What did they call the long ridge of 
 earth in which the turnips were planted? [A drill.] 4. What 
 sound did the hoes seem to make? [Click-click.] 
 
 77. The Race (page 6) 
 1. Was the race in the morning or in the evening? [Evening.] 
 2. Who told Tim how to race Perkins? [Cameron.] 3. Who won 
 the race? [Tim.] 4. Who came to the field at the end of the race? 
 [Tim's father; or Haley; or the farmer.]'. 
 
 3. Testing Silent Reading 
 A, Factors to consider in selecting reading tests 
 In order that the discussion of the silent-reading tests 
 may be of more value and interest, the following points 
 should be kept in mind in considering each : 
 
 1. Does the test measure rate, or comprehension, or both? 
 Does it measure the degree of difficulty the pupil is able to 
 grasp, or the amount done? Do the scores reveal the ac- 
 curacy with which the pupil apprehends the reading done? 
 8. How is the rate tested? In terms of the number of words 
 read per minute, or in terms of some other unit? Standards 
 in rate are generally stated in terms of the number of words 
 read per minute. 
 S. What element or elements of comprehension are tested? 
 While the following analysis is not entirely free from over- 
 lapping of elements, it may be helpful, 
 (a) Grasp of the facts 
 
 (jb) Conception of the rational relationships (The reason- 
 ing element) 
 
 (c) Comprehension of the organization 
 
 (d) The getting of the central idea or the essential total 
 meaning or effect 
 
 (e) Understanding of directions 
 
 (J) The subtler elements of appreciation, criticism, dis- 
 covering new problems, judging validity of statements, 
 etc. 
 4. How is the comprehension tested? The following types of 
 responses have been used: 
 
READING TESTS 225 
 
 (a) Reproducing 
 
 (6) Writing answers to factual questions 
 
 (c) Writing "yes" or "no" 
 
 (d) Writing answers to problem questions 
 
 (e) Indicating answers to questions by underlining one of 
 several given answers 
 
 (J) Adding a detail, such as a line, an eye, or a tail, to 
 complete a drawing 
 
 (g) Indicating comprehension of ideas by drawing a line, 
 ring, or cross on a picture 
 
 (h) Indicating a grasp of the essential total meaning of a 
 paragraph by following correctly simple drawing in- 
 structions in the paragraph 
 
 5. Is the reading-content narration, description, directions, 
 poetry, the informational type, or a mixture of two or more? 
 Is rapid or careful reading tested? 
 
 6. Is the method of scoring a simple or a complicated one? 
 
 7. What criticisms may be made regarding the test? 
 
 Necessity of using several tests. It is hardly possible 
 to get a complete and adequate testing of silent-reading 
 ability by the use of any one test. As there are various 
 types of silent reading, varying in purposes, conditions, 
 and elements involved, it would appear impossible to have 
 a single test that would completely measure silent-reading 
 ability. The ones that have been most widely used and the 
 ones best -adapted to classroom use will be described. 
 
 B. The Monroe Standardized General Survey Silent- Reading 
 
 Tests 
 These tests have been devised after the plan of the Kansas 
 Silent-Reading Tests, which were objectionable because 
 they consisted too largely of reading puzzles not typical of 
 ordinary reading situations. Test I is for the third, fourth, 
 and fifth grades, and Test II is for the sixth, seventh, and 
 eighth grades. The original edition of these tests was used 
 extensively. Sample exercises from the original edition 
 
226 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 may be seen on page 193. The improvements made in the 
 revised edition are the elimination of complicating directions 
 and the type of exercise that required a choice between two 
 alternatives, such as " yes " or " no," as a comprehension 
 response. 
 
 The content and the type of response in the Monroe tests. 
 The following exercises are taken from the revised edition. 
 Test I, Form I, for the third, fourth, and fifth grades. 
 
 1. One evening in the late autumn I saw some beautiful 
 11 birds come out of the bushes. They were as white as snow. 
 24 They were swans. They flew high in the air and sailed away 
 
 37 to the warm South. 
 
 38 What kind of bird did I see? 
 
 45 pigeon duck goose canary swan 
 
 193 5. Six white eggs on a bed of hay, ' 
 
 201 Flecked with purple, a pretty sight! 
 
 207 There as the mother sits all day 
 
 214 Robert is singing with all his might. 
 
 221 The above lines of a poem tell about a bird's nest. Of 
 
 234 what does this stanza say the bird's nest was made? 
 
 243 sticks leaves hay moss grass 
 
 Fig. 14. Samples of the Monroe Silent-Reading Test — I 
 
 In the instructions, the pupil is told to answer each 
 question by drawing a line under the correct word. He is 
 given three preliminary exercises like this before beginning 
 the real test in order to make sure that the pupil under- 
 stands what to do. 
 
 It will be noted that each of the foregoing exercises is a 
 test of factual comprehension. Of the seventeen exercises 
 in the test, eight are of the factual type. The other nine 
 exercises test the pupil's ability to grasp the essential total 
 meaning or effect of the paragraph or stanza. Of the 
 sixteen exercises in Test II, Form I, for the sixth, seventh, 
 and eighth grades, only one is clearly of the factual type. 
 
READING TESTS 227 
 
 The following exercises taken from the upper-grade test 
 are typical of those that test the pupil's grasp of the essen- 
 tial total meaning or effect : 
 
 60 2. It was cold, bleak, biting weather; foggy withal; and 
 
 70 he could hear the people in the court outside go wheezing up 
 
 82 and down, beating their hands upon their breasts and stamp- 
 
 92 ing their feet upon the pavement-stones to warm them. 
 99 What kind of picture does this paragraph describe? 
 107 comfortable luxurious cheerless pleasant exciting 
 
 409 9. At every turn the maples burn, 
 
 415 The quail is whistling free. 
 
 420 The partridge whirrs and the frosted burrs 
 
 427 Are dropping for you and me. 
 
 433 What season of the year does the stanza tell about? Draw 
 
 445 a line under the one you think. 
 
 451 spring summer autumn winter 
 
 560 12. He was lying alone, one sunny spring day, on a mossy 
 571 bank beside the clear stream flowing past with steady, cease- 
 581 less motion. He had his book open in his hand, but he was 
 
 not reading. 
 595 Draw a line under the word which tells why he was not 
 
 607 reading. 
 
 608 frightened asleep hungry cold unhappy 
 
 Fig. 15. Samples of the Monroe Silent-Reading Test — U 
 
 The rate and comprehension scores. The pupils are 
 allowed exactly four minutes to read and indicate the 
 answers. The method of determining the rate and compre- 
 hension scores is made clear in the following paragraph, 
 taken from the sheet of directions : * 
 
 On this test the pupil is to be given two scores, one for rate and 
 one for comprehension. The rate score is the average number of 
 words read per minute. The words of the exercises have been 
 counted and the accumulative totals printed in the left-hand 
 margin. Take the number which the pupil has marked as indi- 
 cating the line he was reading when time was called, and divide 
 
228 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 it by 4, since four minutes were allowed for the reading. The 
 quotient is the number of words he has read per minute and be- 
 comes his rate score. The pupil's comprehension score is the num- 
 ber of exercises which he has done correctly. The pupil is expected 
 to underline the correct word. However, accept any indication of 
 the right word as correct. Write both the rate and comprehen- 
 sion scores in the upper right-hand corner of the first page of the 
 test folder. Note that in the case of Test II, 5 is to be added to 
 the comprehension score and 29 to the rate score to make them 
 comparable with the scores on Test I. 
 
 Possible criticisms of the Monroe tests. A strictly 
 accurate measuring-rod will have units of exact equality in 
 every respect. Every inch on the yardstick, for instance, 
 is exactly equivalent to every other inch. But Monroe has 
 a mixture of content-units. Some are prose and some 
 poetry. Some are descriptive and some narrative. Again, 
 especially in the test for the third, fourth, and fifth grades, 
 a part of the time, the test is measuring ability to respond 
 to fact questions, and a part of the time it is measuring the 
 ability to respond to thought or interpretative questions. 
 
 Furthermore, it does not appear that the test was worked 
 out with sufficient care to insure that the units are of equal 
 difficulty. Out of sixty-nine fourth-grade pupils tested, a 
 teacher found that one exercise tried by all was done cor- 
 rectly by 96 per cent of the pupils, while another tried by all 
 was done correctly by only 68 per cent of the pupils. Exer- 
 cise No. 12, reproduced on page 227, will no doubt be 
 brought into question by many teachers as being very 
 easily susceptible of misinterpretation, and, consequently, 
 will prove to be more difficult than some of the others in 
 the same test. 
 
 While it is claimed that the test measures the rate of 
 reading in terms of the number of words read per minute, 
 it apparently does not do so. Gray established his rate 
 norms, as given on page 21, by timing individually the 
 
READING TESTS 
 
 229 
 
 pupil's reading of one hundred words. The question may 
 naturally arise as to why the rate in the Gray Tests is so 
 much greater than in the Monroe Test as shown in Table II. 
 
 Table II. Comparison of the Monroe and Gray Rate 
 
 Standards 
 Words per Minute 
 
 Grade 
 
 2 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 7 
 
 8 
 
 Gray 
 
 Monroe 
 
 90 
 
 138 
 86 
 
 180 
 121 
 
 204 
 137 
 
 216 
 147 
 
 228 
 160 
 
 240 
 177 
 
 The Monroe rate-value is not an accurate measure of 
 rate in terms of the number of words per minute, because 
 the time unit includes the time the pupil is deliberating, 
 re-reading, and recording responses. In view of the fact 
 that considerable re-reading will be done by the pupils, 
 more by some than by others, the rate-score is not accurate 
 as a measure of the number of words read in a minute. 
 
 Evaluation of the Monroe test. Notwithstanding the 
 inherent defects in the test, it provides a valuable index to 
 the pupil's ability to do careful reading under a time limit. 
 It reveals whether the pupil is rapid and accurate, rapid 
 and careless, slow and accurate, or slow and inaccurate. 
 It is very important for the teacher to know these charac- 
 teristics in a definitely measured way in order to administer 
 effectively to the individual needs of the pupils by means 
 of special groupings, adaptation of content to ability, and 
 the use of remedial instruction. In addition the tests are 
 relatively inexpensive, easily given without consuming 
 much time, and easily scored. The relation of rate and 
 comprehension attainment for a school and the accomplish- 
 
230 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 ment of the school as compared to the average of the coun- 
 try may be made clear and emphatic by graphing the results. 
 
 C. Scale for Measuring Ability in Silent-Reading, by 
 May Ayers Burgess 
 
 Similarities to the Monroe test. Like the Monroe test, 
 the Burgess test consists of short units and the score de- 
 pends upon the number of exercises done correctly in five 
 minutes. Both measure careful reading under a time limit. 
 
 Essential characteristics of the Burgess test. The type 
 
 1. This naughty dog likes to steal bones. When he 
 steals one he hides it where no other dog can find it. 
 He has just stolen two bones, and you must take your 
 pencil and make two short, straight lines, to show 
 where they are lying on the ground near the dog. 
 Draw them as quickly as you can, and then go on. 
 
 Fig. 16. A Sample Unit of the Burgess Silent-Reading Scale 
 
 of comprehension response is unique. This can be shown 
 best by reproducing one of the twenty units, each of which 
 requires the same type of response. 
 
 The Burgess theory of measurement. The author of 
 this test has made a stimulating contribution to the theory 
 of measurement in education. A reproduction of the au- 
 thor's summary with reference to the three types of tests 
 
READING TESTS 231 
 
 and the single variable will suffice for the purposes of this 
 treatment : l 
 
 1. The innumerable factors which influence the results of 
 testing may be classified into three distinct fundamental 
 groups. They are variables of quality, of difficulty, or of 
 amount. 
 
 2. The measurement of quality is illustrated by contests in 
 marksmanship or in bowling. In these contests the difficulty 
 of task and the time allowed for doing it are maintained as 
 constants, and the variable measured is the quality of the 
 performance. 
 
 3. The measure for difficulty is seen in the high jump. There 
 quality and time are constants, and the variable is the diffi- 
 culty of the hardest task successfully done. 
 
 4. The measure for amount is seen in the race, where quality 
 is but slightly operative, difficulty is constant, and the 
 variable measured is either the amount done in a given time, 
 or the time required to do a given amount. 
 
 5. Time and amount are complementary terms, each of which 
 depends for its meaning upon the other. In the threefold 
 classification of variables, the term amount is to be consid- 
 ered as carrying with it its companion term time, 
 
 6. Educational measurements are attempts to answer the three 
 fundamental classroom questions: "How well can he do?" 
 "How hard work can he do?" and "How fast can he do it?" 
 Each seeks to measure one of the three ^fundamental factors, 
 and, according to which it selects, it may be classified as a test 
 or scale for quality, for difficulty, or for amount. 
 
 7. The student of educational measurement who plans to devise 
 a scale for ability in any school subject must consider, first, 
 which of the three variables he will attempt to measure; and 
 second, having chosen that variable and thereby fixed the 
 type of scale which must be employed, what are the implica- 
 tions as to the methods he must follow. 
 
 The following excerpts are selected to show how the 
 author of the test concluded to use this particular type of 
 test: 
 
 1 Burgess, May Ayers. The Measurement of Silent Reading. Russell 
 Sage Foundation, New York, 1921. 
 
232 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Reading does not readily lend itself to measurement by scales 
 for quality of product. One reason for this is that it does not 
 directly result in a tangible objective product of such a nature that 
 its goodness or quality can be measured. Another reason is that 
 for practical purposes the problem of measuring reading is to 
 discover not what rich and varied meanings the subject draws 
 from the printed page, but rather, how rapidly he can read the 
 material with a sufficient degree of comprehension to get from it 
 the essentials of its meaning. 
 
 Reading is a subject in which the time allowed is of great 
 influence on scores secured through testing. In scales for reading, 
 the time element must therefore be controlled. Since the task of 
 recording rate or controlling time, in a large group of children, 
 for every child, at every step of a difficulty scale, presents nearly 
 prohibitive difficulties of administration, the attempt to make a 
 difficulty scale for reading was abandoned. 
 
 Reading is readily measurable by tests and scales for amount 
 done. In such measurement, the quality required is reading good 
 enough to get the essential thought. The difficulty of the testing 
 material is confined to a single type, and is maintained at a single 
 level. A time limit is set which shall result in scores fairly dis- 
 tributed between and 100; and the variable measured is the 
 amount of such reading under such conditions that the child can 
 do successfully in the time allowed. The new scale for measuring 
 silent reading, Picture Supplement Scale 1, is a scale for amount 
 done. 
 
 The four outstanding characteristics of the scale are 
 given as follows by the author: 
 
 The scale has four outstanding characteristics. The first is 
 that it makes a definite attempt to measure a single ability, which 
 is the ability to read silently a single type of material, at a con- 
 stant level of difficulty, in a fixed period of time. It measures the 
 amount of reading of a practically useful nature which the child 
 can do in five minutes. 
 
 The second outstanding feature of the new scale is that a care- 
 ful attempt has been made to discover the controlling factors in 
 silent reading. Some twenty-five such factors have been identi- 
 fied. One, the child's rate of reading, has been adopted as the 
 variable to be measured; and the remaining twenty-four factors 
 
READING TESTS 
 
 have been, in so far as possible, held constant. It is believed that 
 by following this method, a test has been prepared in which every 
 task presents the same type of reading difficulty as every other, 
 and for which the scores represent comparative amounts of one 
 single sort of reading ability. 
 
 The third outstanding feature is that the test is planned for 
 classroom use. It can be given to large numbers of pupils simul- 
 taneously. It requires five minutes for actual testing; and can 
 be scored accurately, rapidly, and easily. The cost of printing 
 has been kept low; and companion editions can be prepared as 
 need arises. Three such alternate editions have already been 
 prepared as Picture Supplement Scales 2, 3, and 4. 
 
 The fourth outstanding feature is that grade scores have been 
 turned into equivalent scale values for those grades. This makes 
 it possible, in testing with Picture Supplement Scale 1, to measure 
 the ability of each child in terms of its relation to the known 
 abilities of other children who are approximately of the same 
 degree of maturity, and have received approximately the same 
 amounts of training. 
 
 The pupil's score. The score depends upon the number 
 of paragraphs marked correctly. Table III shows the 
 scheme, which gives a higher credit the lower the grade for a 
 certain number of paragraphs read correctly. 
 
 Table HI. Credit Corresponding to each Number op 
 Paragraphs marked in each Grade 
 
 H 
 
 Number of Paragraphs read and marked correctly 
 
 R 
 
 o 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 7 
 
 8 
 
 9 
 
 10 
 
 11 
 
 12 
 
 13 
 
 14 
 
 15 
 
 16 
 
 17 
 
 18 
 
 19 
 
 20 
 
 i 
 
 s 
 
 
 
 26 
 
 32 
 
 38 
 
 44 
 
 50 
 
 5V 
 
 62 
 
 08 
 
 74 
 
 SO 
 
 86 
 
 92 
 
 98 
 
 100 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 14 
 
 20 
 
 26 
 
 32 
 
 3S 
 
 44 
 
 .50 
 
 56 
 
 62 
 
 68 
 
 74 
 
 80 
 
 86 
 
 92 
 
 98 
 
 100 
 
 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 5 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 14 
 
 20 
 
 26 
 
 32 
 
 38 
 
 44 
 
 50 
 
 56 
 
 62 
 
 68 
 
 74 
 
 80 
 
 86 
 
 92 
 
 98 
 
 100 
 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 8 
 
 14 
 
 20 
 
 26 
 
 32 
 
 38 
 
 44 
 
 50 
 
 56 
 
 62 
 
 68 
 
 74 
 
 80 
 
 S6 
 
 92 
 
 98 
 
 100 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 8 
 
 14 
 
 20 
 
 26 
 
 32 
 
 38 
 
 44 
 
 50 
 
 5G 
 
 62 
 
 68 
 
 74 
 
 80 
 
 86 
 
 92 
 
 98 
 
 100 
 
 
 7 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 8 
 
 14 
 
 20 
 
 20 
 
 32 
 
 38 
 
 44 
 
 50 
 
 56 
 
 62 
 
 68 
 
 74 
 
 80 
 
 86 
 
 92 
 
 98 
 
 100 
 
 8 
 
 What the Burgess scoring plan does not reveal. There 
 are two distinct factors in reading efficiency, rate and com- 
 
234 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 prehension. The Monroe test, which is similar to the Bur- 
 gess test, gives a score in rate and one in comprehension, 
 as has been noted previously. Any test of the type of these 
 two which does not reveal in the pupil's score some index of 
 the pupil's accuracy or inaccuracy will be limited in its 
 value to schools. The teacher and the supervisory officer 
 need to know the relation of the pupil's rate and compre- 
 hension in order to provide the right kind of training and 
 experience. With the Burgess plan of scoring, it is impossi- 
 ble to graph the results for a room or a school to show this 
 relationship. 
 
 Evaluation of the Burgess test. The Burgess test has 
 been very carefully worked out and no doubt is one of the 
 most accurate measuring-rods, for the thing it professes to 
 measure, of any of the scales or tests. It is an adequate 
 measure of a certain type of reading on a certain level of 
 difficulty. The author does not claim that it is an adequate 
 measure of what some term general reading ability. 
 
 D. The Gray^ Silent-Reading Tests 
 The content of the tests. There are three of the Gray 
 silent-reading tests, progressive in difficulty. The title of 
 each test, the grades for which it is intended, and the first 
 paragraph of each test, are shown below, to give the reader 
 an idea of the content of these tests : 
 
 Tiny Tad 
 
 (Grades two and three) 
 Tmy Tad was a queer little fellow with only two legs and a 
 short tail. He was nearly black, too, and much smaller than most 
 tadpoles in the big pond. He could hardly wait for his front legs 
 to grow. 
 
 The Grasshoppers 
 (Grades four, five, and six) 
 The grasshoppers were among the worst enemies of the early 
 settlers of Nebraska. Their homes were on the high plains and 
 
READING TESTS 235 
 
 among the hills at the foot of the great mountains in the West. 
 Here they lived and raised their families. 
 
 Ancient Ships 
 (Grades seven and eight) 
 There is no more interesting study to marine architects than 
 that of the growth of modern ships from the earliest form. Ancient 
 ships of war and of commerce equally interest them; but as they 
 study the sculptures and writings of the ancients, they find the 
 records of warships far outnumbering ships of commerce. 
 
 How the rate is tested. The method of measuring the 
 rate of the pupil's reading in the Gray tests is given briefly 
 in the following statement of Dean Gray: 
 
 Each of these selections was printed on a separate card in three 
 columns. The middle column of the easiest selection contained 
 exactly one hundred words, and the corresponding column in 
 each of the other cases contained exactly two hundred words. 
 This device in printing enabled the one giving the test to record 
 the exact time required to read one or two hundred words, as the 
 case might be. 
 
 Gray's measure of comprehension. One of the first 
 means used in testing comprehension in scientific tests was 
 to have the pupils reproduce the story or information read. 
 Starch l found, by marking out the parts of the reproduc- 
 tion that were wrong, or that were not in the content of the 
 test, and then counting the number of words, that he had 
 as a general rule an accurate measure of comprehension. 
 Gray uses two types of responses and takes an average. 
 One type is the Starch method of reproduction, and the 
 other is that of having the pupils answer a set of questions 
 after they have read the material and written the repro- 
 duction. Unlike the Monroe tests, the pupils do not have 
 the content before them while answering the questions. 
 
 1 Starch, Daniel. " The Measurement of Efficiency in Reading"; in 
 Journal of Educational Psychology (January, 1915), vol. vi, pp. 1-24. 
 
236 SILENT AND ORAL READING ' 
 
 The following is his list of questions on the test for the 
 fourth, fifth, and sixth grades: 
 
 The Grasshoppers 
 
 1. In what Western State were the grasshoppers enemies to the 
 settlers? 
 
 2. What effect did the dry seasons have on the number of grass- 
 hoppers? 
 
 3. On what kind of nights did the grasshoppers sometimes travel 
 all night long? 
 
 4. When the grasshoppers were making their long journeys 
 what would they often do late in the afternoon? 
 
 5. In what year did the great grasshopper raid take place? 
 
 6. Like what did the great groups of grasshoppers look as they 
 traveled through the air? 
 
 7. What sort of noise did they make when flying through the 
 air? 
 
 8. What change was brought about in the appearance of the 
 cornfields by the grasshoppers between morning and night? 
 
 9. What did the settlers do to protect their favorite plants? 
 10. Why didn't the grasshoppers eat the broomcorn and sor- 
 ghum? 
 
 The Gray tests, individual tests. The Gray tests are 
 individual tests. His device for testing the rate necessi- 
 tates testing the pupils one at a time. For this reason they 
 are not practical for schoolroom use, as the giving of them 
 consumes too much time. But for measuring the rate of 
 certain individuals for the particular type of material repre- 
 sented in the test, the Gray method is the most accurate 
 one that has been devised. 
 
 E. The Courtis Silent- Reading Test 
 The content. The Courtis test consists of a simple story 
 of 567 words. The first part of the story is reproduced in 
 exact type in Fig. 17. This story is about a third- or fourth- 
 grade story. 
 
c 
 s 
 
 a 
 
 i 
 
 c3 
 
 c3 
 
 O 
 
 c 
 
 0> 
 
 
 <» fl a> >>© 
 
 (h > o'O 
 
 S° > fc 
 
 « g o § g 
 
 A ^ ° > 5 
 
 £0.3 *h O « 
 
 03 , 
 
 ^3 g >>_.2 a 
 
 -*s pS ca M o 
 
 -S* 003 ^ 
 
 M 
 
 a^ 2 £.d 
 
 -OT5 s&*d 
 
 
 a> g ■*» 
 
 
 ^ *-• 2'r 1 
 
 
 d g £ 
 
 1 
 
 o3-2 * 
 
 i— 
 
 p-H O^ 
 
 O 
 
 a. ^> * 
 
 s 
 
 ( *H 
 
 s 
 
 >> >>*■& a> 
 
 3 
 
 ^3 c3 d Q« 
 
 a 
 
 nd w>g cu . 
 
 ! 
 
 c3_rt dn3 
 
 I 
 
 03 
 
 oT ^ a w 
 
 i 
 
 S ^ Si O >> 
 
 a 
 
 w 
 
 ? 
 
 H 
 
 nd .-« > 
 
 s 
 
 7; +■=> ^ ^ 
 
 
 H 
 
 a 
 
 5 
 
 5 u ° £ 
 
 
 -d-e p £ 
 
 § 
 
 of t 
 
 Mo 
 
 wei 
 
 and 
 
 flow 
 
 
 >/g ® *~ 
 
 c3 d 5-j co 
 
 § 
 
 
 O 
 
 
 bO, 
 
 +^ d « 2 2 X 
 
 ££:§ 
 
 c3 C 
 
 c3 
 c3 
 
 5 >>d^^{ I 
 
 43 cj o^ " 
 
 eo — « Q os r- 
 
 -• C* 60 CO •<* 
 
238 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 The rate test. As this is a group test, all the pupils read 
 at the same time, beginning exactly together at the teacher's 
 signal. The rate of reading is determined by having the 
 pupils each mark the last word at the end of each half- 
 minute and at the teacher's signal. The pupils are allowed 
 to read for exactly three minutes. The number of words 
 read per minute is found by determining the number of 
 words read at the end of two minutes and dividing that 
 number by two. The Courtis rate represents the rate of 
 silent reading of rapid narrative material. As shown in 
 Fig. 8, page 23, the Gray rate standard is higher than the 
 Courtis in the fourth and fifth grades, but the Courtis 
 standard rate is considerably higher than the Gray in the 
 seventh and eighth. To what extent the latter difference is 
 due to the difference in the type and difficulty of the content 
 of the two tests has not been determined scientifically, but 
 that is the probable explanation of it. 
 
 The comprehension test. 1 The Courtis comprehension 
 test is a separate test immediately following the rate test. 
 In contrast to the Gray comprehension test, the pupils have 
 the material before them as they answer the questions. 
 This is made clear by reference to the following excerpt from 
 the comprehension test: 
 
 When the day of the party came, Daddy planted a May-pole 
 and Mother tied it with gay-eolored ribbons. There were to be 
 games and dances on the grass and a delicious supper, with a 
 basket full of flowers for every child. 
 
 1. Were the children to have anything to eat? 
 
 2. Were they going to play on the grass? w 
 
 3. Were they going into the house to dance? 
 
 4. Were the baskets to be full of flowers? 
 
 5. Was it Daddy who tied the ribbons to the pole?. 
 
 1 Read: Courtis, S. A. " The Problems of Measuring Ability in Silent 
 Reading"; in the American School Board Journal, May, 1917. 
 
READING TESTS 239 
 
 It will be noted that the questions are so worded that 
 they may each be answered by " Yes " or " No." They 
 are factual questions, and consequently test only the factual 
 clement in comprehension. As the pupils have an oppor- 
 tunity to re-read, to find the answers to the questions, the 
 test measures factual comprehension in careful reading. 
 As the responses to the questions are given as " yes " or 
 " no," by mere chance guessing of the pupils the average 
 score would be fifty per cent. The folder of directions 
 gives the directions for getting the index of comprehension, 
 as follows: 
 
 If a child wrote "Yes" (or "No") to every question he would 
 have fifty per cent of his answers right. The significant feature 
 of his answers is the relation the difference between the right and 
 wrong answers bears to the right answers. This will be called 
 "The Index of Comprehension." It is found as follows : Subtract 
 the wrong answers from the right answers. (If there are more 
 wrong than right, find the difference and give it a negative sign.) 
 Then divide the difference by the number of right answers, carry- 
 ing the results to three places and keeping two. (To the nearest 
 whole per cent.) Most scores will fall between ten and sixty 
 questions right and the index of comprehension between one 
 hundred per cent and seventy-five per cent. 
 
 Comments on the Courtis test. It is very much to be 
 regretted that the mechanical make-up of the printing of 
 the story in the Courtis test has marked differences from 
 that to which pupils are accustomed. For the younger 
 children this is likely to retard the rate. You will note, in 
 the reproduction in Fig. 17, that the spacing between the 
 words is unusually wide, and that the lines are closer to- 
 gether than the standards of the hygiene of printing require. 
 These facts may explain why the Courtis rate standards 
 are lower in the third and fourth grades than the Gray 
 standards. 
 
240 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 The Courtis test may be said to measure the rate of 
 rapid silent-reading of a simple third- or fourth-grade story, 
 and to measure the grasp of certain facts in the careful 
 reading and re-reading of the story in sections. While the 
 test appears to be an accurate measure of these types of 
 reading rate and comprehension for the lower intermediate 
 grades, there is serious question as to whether it is an ade- j 
 quate measure of rate in rapid narrative reading for the 
 upper grades. Some teachers report that the manipulation 
 of the pamphlets is confusing and that, on that account, it is 
 .not an accurate comprehension test. This objection can 
 probably be overcome by a skillful handling of the test on 
 the part of the teacher. 
 
 F. The Thorndike and the Thorndike-McCall Scales for 
 Measuring the Understanding of Sentences 
 
 The Thorndike scale. In his scale, Thorndike does not 
 attempt to measure rate. He measures comprehension in 
 careful reading. The plan of the scale is illustrated in Fig. 
 18. The paragraph and the questions are both before the 
 pupils for reading and re-reading as they are in the Monroe 
 and in the Courtis tests, but there is no time limit as there 
 is in the other two tests. 
 
 Part I and Part II are arranged on separate sheets. One 
 objection to the tests has been the large size of the sheets. 
 On the two sheets there is a total of seven sets of paragraphs 
 and questions, arranged in order of difficulty. The useful- 
 ness of the Thorndike test to classroom teachers has been 
 limited on account of the difficulty in determining the 
 correctness of some answers, the complicated plan of 
 scoring, and the large amount of time consumed in giving 
 and scoring the test. 
 
READING TESTS 241 
 
 Set I. Difficulty 4 {approximately) 
 
 Read this and then write the answers. Read it again if you need to. 
 
 John had two brothers who were both tall. Their names were 
 
 Will and Fred. John's sister, who was short, was named Mary. 
 
 John liked Fred better than either of the others. All of these 
 
 children except Will had red hair. He had brown hair. 
 
 1. Was John's sister tall or short? 
 
 2. How many brothers had John? . 
 
 3. What was his sister's name? 
 
 Set V. {in part). Difficulty 8 
 Read this and then write the answers to 5, 6, 7, and 8. Read it 
 again if you need to. 
 
 In Franklin, attendance upon school is required of every child 
 between the ages of seven and fourteen on every day when school 
 is in session unless the child is so ill as to be unable to go to school, 
 or some person in his house is ill with a contagious disease, or the 
 roads are impassable. 
 
 5.^What is the general topic of the paragraph? . . . 
 
 6. How many cases are stated which make absence excusable? 
 
 Fig. 18. Sample Exercises of the Thorndike Reading Tests 
 
 The Thorndike-McCall scale. 1 The Thorndike-McCall 
 scale has been issued in pamphlet form, and Form I consists 
 of units which had previously been standardized in the 
 Thorndike scale. The new test has a time limit of thirty 
 minutes and a simple plan of scoring, and grade and age 
 standards are provided in the manual of directions. It is a 
 test of ability to comprehend increasingly more difficult 
 material. This is in contrast to the Burgess test, which we 
 have noted as a measure of the number of units, all on the 
 same level of difficulty, read and comprehended accurately 
 in a given time of five minutes. 
 
 ^ead: McCall, William A. "A Uniform Method of Scale Construc- 
 tion"; in the Teachers College Record (January, 1921), vol. xxu, pp. 31-51. 
 
242 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Evaluation of the scale. The amount of time that it 
 takes to give and score a test is a matter of practical con- 
 sideration to the classroom teacher. The Thorndike-McCall 
 test is time-consuming in comparison to the Monroe or the 
 Burgess test. However, it has the advantage of measuring 
 through a type of response which pupils use frequently in 
 school, namely, questions and answers. The score depends 
 upon the number of correct responses. Consequently, like 
 the Burgess test, the scores do not reveal the degree of 
 accuracy of the reading. The type of exercises represented 
 in the scale is a valuable one to use as a training exercise in 
 silent reading. 
 
 The Thorndike-McCall scale has the advantage of being 
 issued in ten different forms, so a new test can be given each 
 month to measure progress. 
 
 G. The Haggerty Reading Examinations 
 The test for the primary grades. The Haggerty-Noonan 
 test, Sigma 1, is designed for grades one, two, and three. 
 The samples in Fig. 19 illustrate the types of responses 
 called for, the content, the size of type, and the length of 
 line of the test. Unfortunately, the lines of the reading 
 matter beyond the eighth exercise are too long, almost 
 twice as long as the length of line best adapted to speed in 
 reading. . 
 
 As illustrated in the sample exercises, the test is progres- 
 sive in difficulty, and consequently, like the Thorndike- 
 McCall test, measures the ability of the pupil to compre- 
 hend increasingly more difficult material. As the score 
 depends upon the number of exercises done correctly, it 
 does not reveal the accuracy of the reading. The pupils are 
 allowed exactly twenty minutes in which to indicate 
 responses to as many of the twenty-five exercises as possible. 
 The type of exercise is such that it takes less time to check 
 up the pupil's paper than in the Thorndike-McCall test. 
 
6b 
 'EL. 
 
 CO 
 
 • •— < 
 
 •B 
 
 a 
 o 
 
 a 
 
 •M 
 4-1 
 
 S 
 
 A 
 
 I 
 
 a 
 
 
 • ?h 
 
 bJD 
 
 
 
 
 4-> 
 
 Oh 
 
 
 
 
 CO 
 
 
 
 
 
 P 
 
 <U 
 
 
 
 
 •' > 
 
 ^C 
 
 
 
 
 <H-, 
 
 4-» 
 
 
 
 
 ' < 
 
 +-> 
 
 
 
 £° 
 
 CO 
 
 
 
 
 "Sh 
 
 <D 
 
 o 
 
 • 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 H3 
 
 
 V 
 
 
 
 • i-H 
 
 
 i i 
 
 Td 
 
 4-1 
 
 JH 
 
 O 
 
 4— * 
 
 <L> 
 
 P 
 
 
 H 
 
 » H 
 
 > 
 
 o 
 
 .SP 
 
 «$ 
 fc 
 
 O 
 O 
 
 CO 
 
 
 "Sh 
 
 
 "d 
 
 CO 
 
 (U 
 
 w 
 
 
 CJ 
 
 M 
 
 o 
 
 Oh 
 
 £ 
 
 4-J 
 
 I 
 
 4-J 
 
 4-> 
 
 
 Ih 
 
 1 
 
 Cj 
 
 4-J 
 
 ^3 
 S 
 
 J3 
 
 o 
 
 +-> 
 O 
 
 JO 
 
 J3 
 
 I 
 
 cd 
 
 
 "Sh 
 
 C5 
 
 CO 
 
 «33 
 
 O 
 +-> 
 
 G 
 
 •»H 
 
 4-> 
 
 tH 
 
 = 
 
 S 
 
 £ 
 
 ^ 
 
 «-t 
 
 
 I 
 
 Uh 
 
 (D 
 
 <D 
 
 3 
 
 
 Oh 
 
 nd 
 
 CO 
 
 "o 
 
 £ 
 
 s 
 
 P" 
 
 G 
 3 
 
 P 
 
 CO 
 
 OS 
 
 i— i 
 
 >^ 
 
 <u 
 
 CO 
 
 o 
 
 
 
 bfl 
 
 # g 
 
 (h 
 
 
 
 Oh 
 
 c3 
 
 rt 
 
 
 r^ 
 
 <d 
 
 +-» 
 
 +j 
 
 
 
 Z3 • 
 
 3 
 
 3 
 Oh 
 
 
 U 
 
 <L> *£j 
 
 
 
 
 C 
 
 jq 
 
 M 
 
 • 
 
 
 O 
 
 H 
 
 W 
 
 M 
 
 
•S 
 
 ~<3 
 
 8 
 
 ft! 
 
 
 3 
 
 I 
 
 
 s 
 
 1 
 
 I 
 
 r 
 
 £!±i 
 
 •s 
 
 ^3 
 
 s 
 
 
 C3 
 
 nrt <D 
 
 CO 
 
 O 
 43 
 
 43 
 
 .+* o 
 
 CD 
 
 u 
 
 V 
 
 43 
 
 
 i Ih t-i 
 
 U <D o 
 
 CO ^J 
 
 ° £ 
 
 o 
 
 <u 
 
 4-» S 'S 
 
 o 
 
 43 
 
 rrt rH !_, • ^H 
 
 G 
 o 
 
 <4H 
 
 o 
 o 
 
 *co 
 
 G 
 
 CD 
 43 
 
 ^3 
 
 G 
 
 PQ 
 
 CD 
 
 , CD — ' 
 
 G 53 
 
 y 
 
 T3 "S 
 
 CD 
 
 cd 
 
 43 
 o 
 
 4-» 
 
 OS 
 
 43 
 
 O 
 
 u. 
 in 
 cd 
 G 
 
 45 
 
 PQ 
 
 +3 <D 
 
 bJO § o 
 • fH ojO 
 
 U CO rj 
 •"O ,,H .5 
 
 £ Cd •--* 
 
 ^ 42 CL, 
 
 3 
 
 CO 
 
 <D CD 
 
 . G 43 
 
 .5 G G 
 43 
 
 +-» u O > 
 
 CO 
 
 CD 
 
 3 & 
 
 42 <D 
 
 o 
 
 T3 o 
 
 o 2 
 
 CD 
 
 > 
 cd 
 
 CD 
 
 43 
 O 
 
 CO 
 
 G 
 
 -!-» 
 Cd 
 
 U 
 
 Cd 
 Oh 
 
 Oh 
 OS 
 
 CD 
 
 4J r *j rv rt 
 
 CD •»-< 
 
 Ih 
 
 3 
 
 CD 
 
 43 
 
 CJ 
 
 cd 
 
 Oh 
 
 G cd 
 
 5 u 
 
 O CD 
 
 c 
 
 o 
 +-> 
 o 
 
 a 
 
 bJO 
 
 G 
 
 Jh 
 
 CD 
 
 4-> 
 4-> 
 
 cd 
 
 42 
 
 CD 
 
 fejo 
 
 c3 . 
 
 2| 
 
 co O 
 c3 c 
 
 CD 
 
 c3 
 
 CD 
 CD & 
 
 4-» 
 
 G CD 
 g CD CD 
 
 Sffi-S 
 
 « CO 
 
 y -M "1 
 
 Oh d — • 
 
 S fe o 
 
 G CD 
 
 CD +-» 
 
 a 
 
 o 
 o 
 
 CD 
 
 If 
 
 CD «-2 
 
 Oh 
 
 2 £ 
 
 cd : ^ G 
 
 co cj co 
 
 C3 
 
 CO 
 M 
 
 CD g 
 
 j_ op 
 
 ^ S3 
 
 CD Oh 
 CO 
 
 u .22 
 
 a -G 
 
 G <D 
 O M 
 
 CD *-» 
 
 lH ^ 
 
 2 *- 
 G cJ 
 
 CD ^. 
 G ^ 
 
 i-G CO 
 
 -I 
 
 
 G 
 
 O 
 G 
 
 
 CO 
 
 
 <D 
 
 
 4D 
 
 
 4-> 
 
 
 C3 
 
 
 43 
 
 
 4-* 
 
 
 CO 
 
 • 
 
 T3 
 
 G 
 
 Vh 
 
 CD 
 
 O 
 
 CD 
 
 * 
 
 CO 
 
 CD 
 
 CD 
 
 43 
 
 CD 
 
 
 u O 
 
 CD *-h 
 co CD 
 
 •^ 'G 
 
 O cd 
 cd S 
 G 
 O 
 CD 
 43 
 
 <4H 
 
 o 
 
 <D 
 
 H3 
 
 a 
 
 G 
 
 CJ 
 
 G 
 
 CD 
 
 CD 
 
 43 
 
 G 
 
 4-» 
 
 i i 
 
 CO 
 
 CJ 
 
 & 
 
 & 
 
 O 
 43 
 
 rt 
 
 CO 
 
 03 
 
 CI 
 
READING TESTS 245 
 
 It is the only silent-reading test feasible for the first grade. 
 On the last page of the Haggerty-Noonan test booklet is 
 Test 2, consisting of twenty questions to be answered by 
 " Yes " or " No." The following are samples: 
 
 2. Can a hat walk? 
 
 3. Are men larger than boys? 
 
 20. Do convicts sometimes escape? 
 
 In case the pupil gets a larger number right than wrong, 
 the score is the number right minus the number wrong. 
 Otherwise, the score is zero. This is a simpler plan for 
 grading this type of response-question test than the one 
 used by Courtis and avoids the confusion of minus scores. 
 The Haggerty reading examinations for the intermediate 
 and upper grades. Sigma 2, for the intermediate grades, 
 is in preparation. Sigma 3, for the upper grades is now 
 available. It consists of three tests. Test 1 is a vocabulary 
 test, and Test 2 is a series of questions to be answered by 
 " Yes " or " No." Both of these tests are very similar to 
 exercises used in several of the intelligence tests. Test 3 
 is a series of seven paragraphs increasing in difficulty. The 
 pupils are given twenty minutes to read and indicate as many 
 correct responses as possible. The types of response used 
 will be made clear by reproducing the first unit of the test. 
 The size of the type has been reduced. 
 
 A carriage, drawn by four horses, dashed 'round the turn of the 
 road. Within it, thrust partly out of the window, appeared the 
 face of a little old man, with a skin as yellow as gold. He had a low 
 forehead, small, sharp eyes puckered about with innumerable 
 wrinkles, and very thin lips, which he made still thinner by press- 
 ing them forcibly together. 
 
 1. Underline the correct phrase: 
 
 two mules 
 
 The carriage was drawn by f an £ y eam 
 
 four horses 
 
 a gray mare 
 
246 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 2. Check the sentence which is true : 
 
 a. — The carriage was slowly drawn around the turn. 
 
 b. — The carriage was turned over as it rounded the turn. 
 
 c. — The carriage was hurried violently around the turn. 
 
 3. Check the false statements: 
 
 a. — The man was large and bony. - 
 b. — The man was middle-aged. 
 c. — The man was little and old. 
 
 The advantage of the type of response used by Haggerty, 
 as well as the types used by Monroe and Burgess, in com- 
 parison to written answers to questions, used by Thorndike- 
 McCall, is that language-expression difficulties are elimi- 
 nated. 
 
 4. Vocabulary Tests 
 
 One of the factors in silent reading accomplishment is at- 
 tainment in a ready grasp of a meaning vocabulary. It is 
 important that this element should be measured to deter- 
 mine the relative efficiency of a class, a school, or a system 
 of schools. It should also be considered in measuring the 
 results of teaching methods and devices. Oftentimes an 
 individual pupil in need of special diagnosis should be 
 given a vocabulary test. Three vocabulary tests will be 
 now discussed. 
 
 The Thorndike Visual Vocabulary Scales. Thorndike 
 has devised a visual vocabulary test issued in four forms. 
 One of these forms is reproduced in reduced size in Fig. 20. 
 In addition there is a preliminary test to be used first to 
 make sure the pupils understand just what to do in taking 
 the test. The manual of directions explains the administer- 
 ing of the test, the calculation of the scores, and the inter- 
 pretation of the scores. The following directions taken from 
 
Fig. 20. The Thorndike Visual Vocabulary Scale 
 
 (Copyright, 1916-1920, by Teachers College, Columbia University,] 
 
 New York.) 
 
248 READING TESTS 
 
 the pamphlet of directions may be suggestive to teachers 
 and supervisors of reading: 1 
 
 It would be very foolish for any one to undertake to drill 
 pupils upon the meanings of words in order to obtain a higher 
 score on this test, especially to undertake to teach them the par- 
 ticular words included in the Thorndike scales. Such a procedure 
 would be equivalent to teaching a person who is going to be 
 weighed, how to grasp the weighing machine and to exert the 
 strength of his muscles to increase the pressure on the platform 
 of the scales. The fact that one was able to exert greater pressure 
 than his mere weight would not prove that he had increased his 
 weight, any more than the teaching of pupils how to identify the 
 words of these scales would prove that they had thereby increased 
 their word-knowledge. 
 
 A low score in the visual vocabulary scales may be the result of 
 lack of experience in life, it may be the result of inadequate expla- 
 nations of the experiences the child has had, or it maybe the result 
 of some entirely different factors. The teacher of reading, or of 
 arithmetic, or of geography may have assumed, without warrant, 
 that the words of the textbook were understood by the pupils. 
 In such a case, verbal memory may have enabled the pupil to 
 make satisfactory responses to the questions asked in class, but 
 may be entirely inadequate to enable him to identify the words 
 when they appear on a scale such as the one here discussed. The 
 purpose of these scales is to measure the results actually being 
 obtained rather than to indicate anything at all about what 
 causes these results or to improve them. 
 
 Teachers who desire to check up the difficulty of the words 
 appearing in the geography, arithmetic, history, or other textbooks 
 used by their pupils may easily do so by making up a test blank in 
 which every second word is from an appropriate difficulty level 
 of the Thorndike scales, with the words from the textbook sand- 
 wiched in between the words of known difficulty. Care should 
 be taken in such a case to make certain that the textbook words 
 are such as could be properly classified under one of the instruc- 
 tions appearing at the top of the test sheet. The results should be 
 tabulated on the form of scoring sheet shown on page 8. To prove 
 
 1 Trabue, M. R., Director of the Bureau of Educational Service, Teach- 
 ers College, Columbia University, Bulletin, Eleventh Series, No. 13. 
 (February, 1920.) 
 
READING TESTS 249 
 
 that the words of the textbook are not too difficult, the percentage 
 of errors on the textbook words should be smaller than the per- 
 centage of errors on the scale words, if the scale words were chosen 
 from lines having the difficulty values corresponding to the stand- 
 ard score of the grade as shown on page 15. 
 
 The most common misunderstanding of the results of measure- 
 ments of ability in reading, or in any other subject, is to assume 
 that measuring the ability of a class or of a pupil will improve 
 that ability. Measuring the height of a child does not make him 
 taller, nor does measuring his word-knowledge increase his vocab- 
 ulary. The supervisor or teacher who measures a child and finds 
 him under weight and not as tall as he should be, may perhaps 
 inform the pupil or his parents of the kind of food that would be 
 most healthful and most likely to overcome the deficiency, but the 
 measuring in itself will not increase either the height or the weight. 
 It merely reveals more exactly the size of the pupil. Measuring 
 word-knowledge reveals the size of the reading vocabulary in the 
 same way. The teacher may know or discover the causes of the 
 present size of vocabulary, and she may discover ways of increas- 
 ing the vocabulary in the future, but the measurement itself 
 should not be expected to enlarge that vocabulary. Measurement 
 of results and the production of results are two distinct processes. 
 
 The Holley Sentence Vocabulary Scale. The reproduc- 
 tion in reduced size of the general instructions, and the first 
 ten and the last ten units, in Fig. 21, will give the reader 
 an adequate idea of the Holley Sentence Vocabulary Scale. 
 The standards are in terms of mental age. This type of 
 test is commonly used in intelligence tests, which are de- 
 signed to measure the pupil's mental ability in mental-age 
 units. 
 
 The Pressey-Skeel group test for measuring reading 
 vocabulary in the first grade. It was observed, in the dis- 
 cussion of the Jones vocabulary test, that the amount of 
 time consumed in giving an individual test limits its practi- 
 cal use very greatly. The Pressey-Skeel first-grade vocabu- 
 lary test is printed in primer type and may be given to a 
 large group at one time. The nature of the test will be 
 

 a >» 
 
 o — 
 
 ft,d ej « +j ft 
 
 ft,d 
 
 <j d 
 
 2.1 *a 
 
 Mils 
 
 4) 
 
 cp <u 22 
 
 a o3 
 
 to 
 
 M .a 
 
 o a 
 a « 
 
 S 
 
 •©•a fc UZ M <& ^4 ft 6Ij,d ft^Q co t>£) £ Xi «d 
 
 
 £5 DQ O V 
 
 ?s s a C 
 
 to 
 
 g 
 
 O T3 
 
 o <y 
 
 s § 
 
 118 
 
 < § s s si § ^ 
 
 CO 
 
 B 4 a ."5 
 
 » 
 
 C/2 
 
 2 w J3 C 
 
 T3 S 
 
 • SP I d 'Ja r? « 
 
 3 "ft 
 5b •£ 
 
 .a a 
 
 la 
 
 "3 3 
 B ^ 
 
 ft « 
 
 a o 
 
 g c3 
 
 u, toC 
 
 T3 
 CJ % ft CJ 
 
 ft 22 ft. a 
 
 O 3 03 O 
 
 § ft^ 8 
 
 a p ^ ft^ 
 
 
 I I 
 
 > 
 
 d d 
 
 c3 g 
 
 as 
 
 co co 
 
 d d 
 ~ .22 ° 
 5b a u «d 
 
 > 03 aj d 
 
 o 2 
 
 O - 
 o cj c3 
 
 d o S3 
 PQ 
 
 .22 ^".22 
 
 r=! ?3 b 
 
 03 
 
 CO r*s CO 
 
 .» ,_ .^ 
 1 S * 
 
 a £ 
 
 d 
 
 E 
 
 CO 
 
 §.a 
 
 
 SS5-§ 
 
 
 -d 5 pq K H 5 
 
 v dd,_S5±5oo"""o""o"oxs> 
 
252 READING TESTS 
 
 made clear to the reader by giving an excerpt from the re- 
 port of the authors: x 
 
 The first five lines of Form A are as follows: 
 
 tl mz the unf pr t 
 wx I sn en w 
 ol bux ts lz go 
 see elx bim ts osn 
 bul og he bu In 
 
 The problem of the test is carefully developed through the first 
 five lines which are used as examples; following these are the 
 twenty-two lines of the test proper. The directions for Form A 
 are to be given orally as follows: 
 
 Look at the first line! Who can see a real word in that line? What is 
 the word? Yes, "the." What part of the line is it in? Yes, right in the 
 middle. I want you to draw a line around the word "the" because it is the 
 only real word in the line. The other groups of letters don't make words. 
 Draw a line around "the." 
 
 Look at the next line! What is the real word? Yes, "I." Draw a line 
 around "I" because it is the only real word in the line. 
 
 Look at the next line! What is the real word? Yes, "go." Draw a line 
 around "go." 
 
 Look at the next line! What is the real word? Yes, "see." Draw a line 
 around "see." 
 
 Look at the next line! What is the real word? Yes, "he." Draw a line 
 around "he." 
 
 Now, every one attention! I want you to read over the rest of the lines 
 on the page in the same way. In each line there is just one real word. You 
 find the real word in each line, and then draw a line around it. 
 
 The children are allowed exactly three minutes after the direc- 
 tions are given for work on the test. In scoring, count only the 
 lines in which the correct word, and nothing more, is marked; the 
 score is simply this total of items correct. It should be added that 
 any indication of the correct word — line around, line under, cross 
 — is considered satisfactory; the child is not required to follow 
 directions exactly, but only to show in some unmistakable way 
 that he knows the word in question. 
 
 1 Pressey, L. C, and Skeel, H. V. "A Group Test for Measuring Read- 
 ing Vocabulary in the First Grade"; in the Elementary School Journal 
 (December, 1920), vol. 21, pp. 304-09. 
 
READING TESTS 253 
 
 The value of a group vocabulary test in the primary 
 grades. The authors of the Pressey-Skeel test have found 
 that the results have a rather high correlation with the 
 results obtained in giving the same words as an oral test in 
 pronunciation. To what extent the ability to distinguish 
 real words from nonsense syllables correlates with ability 
 to read is not known. However, since it is important in the 
 first grade to develop a sight recognition vocabulary, it 
 would appear that this type of test would be helpful in 
 determining definitely the amount of progress a pupil has 
 made with reference to the sight vocabulary. Further 
 studies along this line will no doubt be made in the near 
 future. 
 
 An adequate equipment of reading tests. Caution should 
 be given as to the danger of drawing conclusions from the 
 results of one test, especially in the judging of any particu- 
 lar pupil. If only one test can be given, probably the 
 Monroe test is the best general measure of silent-reading 
 ability. The following outline may be helpful to teachers 
 and supervisory officers in selecting an equipment of read- 
 ing tests: 
 
 I. Group Tests 
 
 1. Short time tests on amount done correctly 
 
 a. Monroe. Reveals relation of rate and compre- 
 hension 
 
 b. Burgess. Scores reveal the amount done cor- 
 rectly 
 
 2. Long time difficulty tests 
 
 a. Thorndike-McCall. Score reveals amount done 
 correctly 
 
 b. Haggerty. Reveals the amount done correctly 
 (The only silent-reading test for the first and second 
 grades. The upper-grade test includes a vocabu- 
 lary test. Rather expensive) 
 
 3. Tests in rapid narrative reading 
 
 a. Courtis. Rate score in words per minute 
 
254 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 (Suitable for lower middle grades) 
 (There is no suitable test for upper grades) 
 4. Vocabulary tests 
 
 a. Pressey-Skeel. For first grade 
 
 b. Thorndike. Tests ability of pupils to identify 
 words by similarity of classification 
 
 c. Holley. Commonly used as one item in measur- 
 ing intelligence 
 
 II. Individual Tests 
 
 1. Gray Oral-Reading Test. An excellent instrument to 
 use with special cases 
 
 2. Jones Vocabulary Test. Tests ability of pupils to pro- 
 nounce primer words in lists. Good for testing a few 
 pupils 
 
 3. Haggerty. Similar to the Jones, but shorter 
 
 4. Gray Silent-Reading Tests. Excellent for getting an 
 accurate measure of rate on a certain type of material, 
 with special cases 
 
 5. How Results are improved through the Use of 
 
 Tests 
 
 A number of reports have been made and published 
 showing how results in reading have been improved through 
 the use of standardized tests. 1 By way of showing what 
 may be accomplished, an account will be given here of the 
 use of the Monroe tests in the school of which the writer is 
 principal. 
 
 Reading tests as used in one school. In May, 1919, 
 
 *As good examples of such studies the following may be cited: Ober- 
 holtzer, E. E. "Testing the Efficiency of Reading in the Grades"; in 
 Elementary School Journal (February, 1915), vol. 15, pp. 313-22; Waldo, 
 K. D. "Testing Reading in the Sycamore Schools"; in Elementary School 
 Journal (January, 1915), vol. 15, pp. 251-68; Gray, William S. "The 
 Use of Tests in Improving Instruction"; in Elementary School Journal 
 (October, 1918), vol. 19, pp. 121-42; Waldman, Bessie. "Definite 
 Improvement of Reading Ability in a Fourth-Grade Class"; in Elementary 
 School Journal (December, 1920), vol. 21, pp. 273-80; Zirbes, Laura. 
 "Diagnostic Measurement as a Basis of Procedure"; in Elementary School 
 Journal (March, 1918), vol. 18, pp. 505-22. 
 
READING TESTS 255 
 
 Form II of the Monroe tests was given to all pupils in the 
 third grade and above, in the Gardenville School, in St. 
 Louis. The results were tabulated and graphs were made, 
 showing the relative standing of classes and grades in com- 
 parison to the standards calculated by Monroe from the 
 results of testing several thousand pupils in each grade. 
 The standard represents the median score of the grade. 
 The median is about the same as the average. The results 
 by grades for this test may be seen at a glance by refer- 
 ring to the graphs on page 256, Figure a shows that all 
 the grades were above standard in rate. Figure b shows 
 that all grades except the fourth were below standard in 
 comprehension. The graphs also reveal that the higher 
 grades were the highest above standard in rate, and the 
 lowest below standard in comprehension. 
 
 The results shown by the test were made the basis of 
 a teachers' meeting. In discussing the reasons why the 
 classes as a general rule were above standard in rate and 
 below in comprehension, it was concluded that this was due 
 to carelessness, working too rapidly, failure to check up 
 or to verify answers, and to a lack of training in the type 
 of comprehension involved. It was made clear that the 
 problem of the school, especially above the fourth grade, 
 was to work for accurate comprehension in reading and 
 study under the stimulus of a time limit. During the last 
 school year a number of meetings have been held for 
 considering the reading problems. Two were given over 
 to the problem of getting pupils to check up their answers 
 in careful reading by verifying through re-reading as much 
 as was necessary. Exercises for developing facility in quick, 
 ready grasp of a fact or relationship expressed, and for 
 developing the habit of checking up quickly and accurately, 
 were formulated and used in the rooms. 
 
 The test repeated a year later. Figures c and d show the 
 
256 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Rate 
 
 133 
 131 
 129 
 126 
 123 
 120 
 117 
 114 
 111 
 108 
 105 
 102 
 99 
 96 
 93 
 
 Fig. a May 1919 
 '■* Test I Form 2 Test II 
 
 - 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 J 
 
 J 
 
 ,— — ■• 
 
 / 
 
 • 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 " 
 
 J 
 
 
 
 • 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 . 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 f 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 ' A 
 
 
 
 
 •// 
 
 
 
 
 V / 
 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 
 
 
 IV 
 
 VI VII 
 
 Grade 
 • Standard Medians 
 
 VIII 
 
 Fig. c May 1920 
 Test I Form 3 Test II 
 
 VI 
 Grade 
 Gardenville Medians 
 
 VIII 
 
 Fig.b 
 
 Form 2 May 1919- 
 
 Fig, d 
 
 Comprehension Form 3 Mayyl920 
 
 VIII 
 
 Fig. 22. Graphs for the Monroe Silent-Reading Test 
 
 Comparing results in rate and comprehension. May, 1919, and May, 1920, 
 Gardenville School, St. Louis, Missouri 
 
 results of the Monroe tests in the same school and grades 
 for May, 1920. As the content of this second test was 
 new, there was no possibility of previous experience with 
 the same exercises influencing the result. Figure c shows 
 that the record of the school in rate in comparison to the 
 
READING TESTS 257 
 
 standard is about the same as it was a year ago, but with a 
 more marked improvement in the lower grades. All the 
 grades are shown as being considerably above the standard. 
 
 Figure d shows that all of the grades have made a better 
 record in comprehension than was made in 1919. Compar- 
 ing Figures b and d, we see that the seventh and eighth 
 grades have a remarkably better record in the compre- 
 hension test in 1920 than in 1919. Instead of being con- 
 siderably below the standard, they are considerably above. 
 The sixth grade is nearer to the standard, but still slightly 
 below. The fifth grade has risen from a position below the 
 standard to a position slightly above. The fourth grade is 
 somewhat further above the standard than formerly. For 
 the school there has been a remarkable gain in comprehen- 
 sion, with no loss in rate except a slight one in the sixth 
 grade. 
 
 The question naturally arises as to why the sixth grade 
 is the only one below the standard in comprehension. Its 
 rate in relation to the standard is about the same as the 
 fourth, the fifth, and the eighth grades, and slightly better 
 than the seventh. The reading in the seventh and eighth 
 grades for the preceding year was taught by one teacher in 
 a departmental unit of four rooms. This teacher is one of 
 exceptional training and ability. The other teachers of the 
 unit have also given attention to the training of the pupils 
 in reading material of their respective subjects. In the 
 sixth grade the reading has not been departmentalized, and 
 each of the sixth-grade classes has been taught for a part 
 of the year by comparatively inexperienced teachers. 
 These two facts probably partly explain why the sixth 
 grade has a relatively lower standing than the seventh and 
 eighth. But the same conditions apply to the fifth grade, 
 which has made considerably more improvement than the 
 sixth. In looking forward to the coming year's work, it is 
 
258 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 important that a study should be made of the record of the 
 classes and of the individuals in the sixth grade, and that 
 the teachers and principal confer as to the best means of 
 strengthening this evident weakness. 
 
 Conclusions from this study. Scientific-standardized 
 reading tests should be given regularly toward the beginning, 
 about the middle, and toward the close of the school year, 
 and the results should be graphed and used by the principal 
 and supervisor as a means of improving the efficiency of 
 the supervision of the teaching of reading. The results of 
 these tests may well be made the basis of group conferences 
 of teachers, with a view to cooperative efforts to improve 
 results. The individual teachers should make careful 
 analysis of the showing of their classes on each particular 
 test. Interpretation of the results should lead to improved 
 plans for classifying and instructing the pupils in accord- 
 ance with individual abilities, attainments, and needs. 
 Teachers should learn to diagnose individual cases of weak- 
 ness, and provide suitable remedial treatment. 
 
 6. Tests with Material at Hand 
 Testing neglected. While teachers as a rule give tests 
 or examinations in such school subjects as arithmetic, 
 geography, and history, in many instances they do not give 
 tests on the comprehension of reading material. The 
 Cleveland Survey * showed that the failures in reading in 
 the first two grades were very much more numerous than 
 the failures in arithmetic, but above the second grade the 
 failures in arithmetic were very much more numerous than 
 the failures in reading. The greatest differences in this 
 respect were in the intermediate grades. The tests in 
 reading and in arithmetic, given as a part of the Survey, 
 
 1 Judd, Charles H. Measuring the Work of the Public Schools. 
 
READING TESTS 259 
 
 proved that the intermediate grades had not succeeded 
 better in reading than in arithmetic. No doubt the teachers 
 had been checking up results in arithmetic in an objective 
 form, but had not been checking up the results of the read- 
 ing instruction. In addition to giving standardized tests 
 two or three times a year, the pupils should be tested at 
 least every five or six weeks with tests on rate and com- 
 prehension in silent reading formulated by the teacher. 
 
 It requires quite as much training and skill to give good 
 tests or examinations as it does to do good teaching. One 
 of the important results that should come from the use of 
 scientific-standardized tests is the improvement of the tests 
 and examinations given by the teacher. The writer does 
 not believe that long-drawn-out, formal, set examinations 
 are advisable in the grades, but he does believe that the 
 results of teaching in all subjects should be checked up, 
 in so far as is possible, in an objective form. As a matter of 
 fact, pupils like tests of the right sort. Classroom tests in 
 reading should be both pleasurable and profitable. By 
 studying the theory and content, method and purpose of 
 scientific tests, the teacher will be better able to make and 
 give tests that will be more accurate in measuring results, 
 and at the same time be much more acceptable to the 
 pupils. 1 
 
 An improvised second-grade silent-reading test. The 
 following is a second-grade silent-reading test, which Miss 
 Agnes Dunsford has formulated on a fable in one of the 
 supplementary reading books, and which has been used 
 with succeeding classes for several terms and has been in 
 consequence developed into a fairly reliable standard. 
 
 1 An excellent book for teachers to read, in this connection, is Monroe, 
 W. S., Measuring the Results of Teaching. Houghton Mifflin Company, 
 1913. 
 
260 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 The Ant and the Dove 
 
 1. What happened to the ant? 
 
 2. What did the ant do then? 
 
 3. What did the dove throw down to the ant? 
 
 4. What did the ant say? 
 
 5. A few days later what was the dove doing? 
 
 6. What was the man going to do to the dove? 
 
 7. What did the ant do to the man? 
 
 8. What did the man do then? 
 
 9. What did the dove then do? 
 
 10. What did the dove say to the ant? 
 
 In applying this test the teacher tells the pupils to read 
 the story through at their usual rate of reading without 
 stopping to re-read or ask about words. They are told that 
 they will be given a set of questions to answer. When the 
 child completes the reading, he places his book in the desk 
 and waits until all have finished. Then the pupils write the 
 answers to questions given by the teacher. In this way the 
 teacher gets a fair idea as to the rate at which the pupils 
 read and observes their reading with reference to vocaliza- 
 tion, lip-movement, finger pointing, etc. 
 
 This teacher reports that this device has aided her in 
 judging the silent-reading ability of her pupils more ac- 
 curately. After the papers are graded, they are handed 
 back to the pupils during a follow-up lesson on the fable. 
 The pupils re-read it, and discuss the questions and answers. 
 In this way the comprehension of the pupils is improved 
 and the experiential value of the fable increased. 
 
 Tests provided for in readers. Some of the newer read- 
 ing texts are making a beginning in providing tests as a 
 regular part of the reading instruction. The New Barnes 
 Second Reader has twelve test lessons. Two of these les- 
 sons are reproduced here to illustrate the two types of ele- 
 ments in comprehension which they test. 
 
READING TESTS 261 
 
 The Young Robin 
 A young robin lived in an apple-tree near the door of a house. 
 He wanted to go into the house and hop on the floor. 
 "No, no!" said his mother, 
 "You must stay with me. 
 Little birds are safer 
 Sitting in a tree." 
 Young robin gave his tail a fling, and said, "I don't care." 
 Then down he flew, and the cat caught him before he had time to 
 wink. 
 
 "Oh," he cried, "I'm sorry, 
 But I didn't think." 
 
 The following suggestions and directions from the 
 Teacher's Manual show how to use such a story as a read- 
 ing test: 
 
 Rate of silent reading: Eighty per cent of the class will read the 
 story silently in less than seventy-five seconds. A few pupils 
 will finish in forty-five seconds or less, several may take longer 
 than the indicated maximum. 
 
 For this test the pupils should be supplied with pencils and paper. 
 
 At a signal from the teacher, the pupils, having been directed 
 to find the page, begin the reading together. 
 
 The teacher will quietly note the rate of the most rapid readers 
 and the slower ones. When all pupils have finished the reading, 
 as indicated by closed books, the teacher proceeds to ask questions 
 and directs the pupils to write the answers. Ample time must be 
 allowed for writing the answers. 
 
 Questions 
 
 1. Write the name of the bird you have read about. 
 
 2. Write the words that tell where he lived. 
 
 3. Write the words that tell where he wanted to go. 
 
 4. Write the first word his mother said to him about it. 
 
 5. Write the three words the young robin answered. 
 
 6. Write the words that tell what the young robin did then. 
 
 7. Write the name of the animal that caught him. 
 
 8. Write the sentence that tells why he did n't mind his mother. 
 After the papers are collected, a few pupils will read the selection 
 
 to the class. 
 
262 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 By keeping a record of the time required for each pupil to read 
 the lesson silently, the teacher may obtain the average speed of her 
 class in silent reading. 
 
 By rating her class on the answers to the questions, she may 
 obtain some idea of the ability of each child to interpret thought 
 from silent reading. The score of the individual pupil as well as 
 the class score may thus be obtained if the teacher desires either. 
 These may be of value in noting the progress of the class from time 
 to time in rapidity and accuracy. 
 
 The questions, with the exception of the last one, it will 
 be noted, are purely factual. The last question involves 
 selective thinking, or reasoning. This would probably be a 
 more difficult question than the others. No scheme of 
 grading or scoring is given, as should be to make the plan 
 complete. This lesson tests in a rough way the rate of 
 reading, and tests principally the factual element in com- 
 prehension. 
 
 The second test lesson to be reproduced is as follows: 
 
 Guess its Name 
 
 I am thinking of something that is good to drink. We could 
 not live without it. It has no taste. It has no color. We can 
 see through it. 
 
 It comes from the rivers and lakes. It comes from springs. 
 
 We cook with it. It makes us sweet and clean. It keeps our 
 houses sweet and clean. 
 
 In winter we skate on it. Fish live in it. Insects like it. 
 Nothing could live without it. 
 
 Write its name. 
 
 In this lesson rate is tested in the same way as in the 
 preceding one. The comprehension of the essential total 
 meaning of the unjt is tested. Such a selection is an excel- 
 lent one for testing this element of comprehension. 
 
 One other lesson of the same type is given entitled, 
 " Guess What It Is." It tells about the nut. The other 
 
READING TESTS 263 
 
 test lessons are similar to the first one, merely testing the 
 comprehension of the facts. 
 
 The Bolenius Readers tests. The Boys 9 and Girls* 
 Readers, for the fourth, fifth, and sixth grades, by Emma 
 Miller Bolenius, 1 provide regular tests in silent reading. 
 The Teachers* Manual provides for the use of five selections 
 in each book for testing. Detailed directions for giving the 
 tests are stated. Five factual questions are listed for each 
 test. The fable and the short tale is the type of unit used 
 for test lessons. 
 
 The following, from the Sixth Reader, is typical of the 
 tests: 
 
 The Foolish Brahmin 
 
 1. What did the Brahmin want? (A sheep) 
 
 2. Who had the dog? (Three rogues) 
 
 3. Who bought the dog? (The Brahmin) 
 
 4. What did he think it was? (A sheep) 
 
 5. What did he pay for it? (A measure of rice and a pot 
 
 of ghee) 
 
 The following scheme for scoring is given in the Manual: 
 
 All questions correct A 
 
 One question wrong B 
 
 Two questions wrong C 
 
 Three questions wrong D 
 
 Four questions wrong E 
 
 Five questions wrong F 
 
 Evaluation of the Bolenius tests. Tests like the above 
 
 have the following advantages: 
 
 1. The questions are clear and definite, and consequently 
 do not admit of misinterpretations by pupils or teach- 
 ers. 
 
 2. There can be but one correct answer, permitting ac- 
 curate, easy, and rapid scoring. 
 
 1 Published by Houghton Mifflin Company, 1920. 
 
264 SILENT AND ORAL BEADING 
 
 3. The questions are of about equal difficulty, and there- 
 fore are adapted to a simple scoring plan. 
 
 4. The scheme of rating the papers is simple, economical 
 in time, and sufficiently accurate for classroom pur- 
 poses. 
 
 These readers have made a distinct step forward in help- 
 ing teachers to check up results in silent reading. In each 
 test a definite rate score in terms of the number of words 
 read in a minute is secured. Rate standards are provided, 
 and teachers are encouraged to have the pupils know how 
 their rates compare with the standard for their grade. The 
 Manual gives valuable suggestions on what we can learn 
 from a test, on diagnosis and drill, on the spur of publicity 
 of individual scores, on appealing to class pride, and on 
 schemes for class charts. 
 
 The tests are limited to one element in comprehension. 
 The questions merely require a reproduction of a fact. 
 There is no test of ability to do selective thinking, to reason, 
 or to perceive relationships. There is no test of the pupil's 
 ability to grasp the essential total meaning or effect of a 
 unit. The comprehension of the organization of a unit is 
 not tested. The author has done well to limit a particular 
 test to one element of comprehension. The wide-awake 
 teacher will no doubt devise tests for the other elements of 
 comprehension. 
 
 Difficulties in testing problematical thinking in reading. 
 Comprehension of the factual element in reading is, of 
 course, the easiest to test. The grasp of the essential total 
 meaning or effect of a unit is the next in order of difficulty. 
 Exercises from the Monroe tests, from the Haggerty- 
 Noonan tests, and from the New Barnes Second Reader 
 have been given to illustrate tests of this type. 
 
 So far no tests have been devised to test the pupil's com- 
 prehension of the organization of the unit. Exercises from 
 
READING TESTS 265 
 
 the Thorndike Scale and from the Haggerty Reading Ex- 
 amination, Sigma 3, have been given to show how to test 
 the pupil's ability to do selective thinking, or reasoning, in 
 answering a problem question. Testing this element in 
 comprehension is much more difficult than testing mere 
 knowledge of specific facts. The difficulties which teach- 
 ers seem to have in testing problematic thinking in silent 
 reading may be summarized as follows: 
 
 1. To word problem questions or exercises so that they 
 admit of only one interpretation. 
 
 2. To secure a wording so the question can be answered 
 correctly only by responding with a certain idea or 
 thought. 
 
 3. To secure a number of problems within the average 
 ability of the class, not too difficult and not too easy. 
 
 4. To avoid using the question requiring for the answer 
 a choice between two alternatives unless all the ques- 
 tions are of this type, and a special method of calcu- 
 lating the index of comprehension is used. 
 
 5. To select a unit suitable to a relational-comprehension 
 test. 
 
 I. A fourth-grade silent-reading test 
 The above principles will be made more concrete by 
 applying them in a critical evaluation of the following re- 
 lational comprehension test, used by one of the best teach- 
 ers the writer has ever known, and based on the story of 
 " The Emperor's New Clothes," by Hans Christian Ander- 
 sen, in The Riverside Fourth Reader. The story reads as 
 follows: 
 
 The Emperor's New Clothes 
 Many years ago there lived an Emperor, who thought so very 
 much of grand new clothes that he spent all his money upon them, 
 that he might be very fine. He did not care about his soldiers; 
 
266 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 he did not care to see the play, or to drive in the woods, except to 
 show his new clothes. He had a coat for every hour of the day; 
 and just as they say of a king, "He is in council," so they always 
 said of him, "The Emperor is in the clothes-closet." 
 
 In the great city in which he lived it was always very merry. 
 Every day came many strangers. One day two rogues came. 
 They gave themselves out as weavers, and said they knew how to 
 weave the finest stuff any one could fancy. Not only were their 
 colors and patterns, they said, very beautiful, but the clothes made 
 of the stuff had this wonderful quality — they could not be seen 
 by any one who was unfit for the office he held, or was too stupid 
 for anything. 
 
 "Those would be capital clothes!" thought the Emperor, 
 "If I wore those, I should be able to find out what men in my 
 empire were not fit for the places they have; I could tell the clever 
 from the dunces. Yes, the stuff must be woven for me at once!" 
 And he gave the two rogues a great deal of cash in hand, that they 
 might begin their work without delay. 
 
 As for them, they put up two looms, and made as if they were 
 working; but they had nothing at all on their looms. They at once 
 called for the finest silk and the costliest gold. This they put into 
 their own pockets, and worked at the empty looms till late into 
 the night. 
 
 "I should like to know how far they have got on with the stuff," 
 thought the Emperor. But he felt quite uneasy when he thought 
 that one who was stupid or not fit for his office could not see it. 
 He believed, indeed, that he had nothing to fear for himself; 
 still, he thought he had better first send some one else to see how 
 matters stood. All the people in the city knew what peculiar 
 power the stuff had, and all were anxious to see how bad or how 
 stupid their neighbors were. 
 
 "I will send my honest old Minister to. the weavers," thought 
 the Emperor. "He can judge best how the stuff looks; for he has 
 sense, and no one knows his place better than he." 
 
 Now the good old Minister went out into the hall where the two 
 rogues sat working at the empty looms. 
 
 "Mercy on us!" thought the old Minister, and he opened his 
 eyes wide. "I cannot see anything at all!" But he did not say 
 this. 
 
 Both the rogues begged him to come nearer, and asked if the 
 colors and the patterns were not pretty. Then they pointed to 
 
READING TESTS 267 
 
 the empty loom, and the poor old Minister went on opening his 
 eyes; but he could see nothing, for there was nothing. 
 
 "Mercy!" thought he, "suppose I am really stupid! I never 
 thought that, and not a soul must know it. Suppose I am not 
 fit for my office! No, it will never do for me to tell that I could not 
 see the stuff." 
 
 "You don't say anything of it? " said one, as he went on weaving. 
 
 "Oh, it is charming — quite enchanting!" said the old Minister, 
 as he peered through his glasses. " What a fine pattern, and what 
 colors ! Yes, I shall tell the Emperor that I am very much pleased 
 with it." 
 
 "Well, we are glad of that," said both the weavers; and then 
 they named the colors, and explained the strange pattern. The 
 old Minister listened closely, that he might be able to repeat it 
 when he should come to the Emperor. And he did so. 
 
 Now the rogues asked for more money, and silk and gold; they 
 wanted it all for weaving. They put all into their own pockets, 
 and not a thread was put upon the loom; but they kept on as 
 before, and wove at the empty loom. 
 
 The Emperor soon sent another honest officer of the court to 
 see how the weaving was going on, and if the stuff would soon be 
 ready. He fared just like the first: he looked and looked; but, 
 as there was nothing to be seen but the empty looms, he could 
 see nothing. 
 
 "Is not that a pretty piece of stuff?" asked the two rogues; 
 and they showed and made clear the handsome pattern which 
 was not there at all. 
 
 "I am not stupid! " thought the man; "it must be my good office, 
 for which I am not fit. That would be queer enough, but I must 
 not let it be noticed." And so he praised the stuff which he did 
 not see, and said how pleased he was with the beautiful colors 
 and the charming pattern. "Yes, it is enchanting," he told the 
 Emperor. 
 
 All the people in the town talked of the gorgeous stuff. 
 
 Now, the Emperor wished to see it himself while it was still 
 upon the loom. With a whole crowd of chosen men, among whom 
 were also the two honest statesmen who had already been there, 
 he went to the two cunning rogues, who were weaving with might 
 and main, without fiber or thread. 
 
 "Is not that splendid?" said the two honest statesmen. "Does 
 Your Majesty see what a pattern it has and what colors?" And 
 
268 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 then they pointed to the empty loom, for they thought that the 
 others could see the stuff. 
 
 "What's this?" thought the Emperor. "I can see nothing at 
 all! This is terrible. Am I stupid? Am I not fit to be Emperor? 
 That would be the most dreadful thing that could happen to me. 
 
 "Oh, it is very pretty," he said aloud. "It has my highest 
 approval." And he nodded in a contented way, and gazed at the 
 empty loom; for he would not say that he saw nothing. 
 
 The whole crowd that he had with him looked and looked, but 
 they got nothing more out of it than all the rest; but, like the 
 Emperor, they said, "Oh, that is very pretty!" and they begged 
 him to have some clothes made of this new, pretty stuff, and to 
 wear them for the first time in the great procession that was soon 
 to take place. "It is splendid, excellent!" went from mouth to 
 mouth, and they all were like one person in the way they talked. 
 
 The Emperor gave each of the rogues a ribbon to wear in 
 his buttonhole, and gave them the title of Imperial Court 
 Weavers. 
 
 The whole night before the morning on which the procession 
 was to take place, the rogues were up and kept more than sixteen 
 candles burning. The people could see that they were hard at 
 work upon the Emperor's new clothes. They made believe take 
 the stuff down from the loom; they made cuts in the air with great 
 shears; they sewed with needles without thread; and at last they 
 said: 
 
 "Now the clothes are ready!" 
 
 The Emperor came himself with his noblest cavaliers; and the 
 two rogues lifted up one arm as if they were holding something, 
 and said: 
 
 ' ' See, here are the trousers ! Here is the coat ! Here is the cape ! ' ' 
 and so on. "It is as light as a spider's web: one would think one 
 had nothing on; but that is just the beauty of it." 
 
 "Yes," said all the cavaliers; but they could not see anything, 
 for there was nothing. 
 
 "Will Your Imperial Majesty be so good as to take off your 
 clothes?" said the rogues; "then we will put on you the new 
 clothes, here, in front of the great mirror." 
 
 The Emperor took off his clothes, and the rogues pretended to 
 put on him each new robe, as it was ready. They wrapped him 
 about, and they tied and they buttoned, and they worked hard, 
 and the Emperor turned round and round before the mirror. 
 
READING TESTS 269 
 
 "Oh, how well they look! how nicely they fit!" said all. "What 
 a pattern! What colors! That is a splendid dress!" 
 
 "They are standing outside with the canopy which is to be 
 borne above Your Majesty in the procession!" said the Head 
 Master of the Ceremonies. 
 
 "Well, I am ready," replied the Emperor. "Does it not suit 
 me well?" And then he turned again to the mirror, for he wanted 
 it to look as if he saw all his finery. 
 
 The chamberlains, who were to carry the train, stooped down 
 with their hands toward the floor, just as if they were picking up 
 the train; then they held it up in the air. They did not dare to 
 let it be seen that they could see nothing. 
 
 So the Emperor went in procession under the rich canopy, and 
 all the people in the streets and at the windows said : 
 
 "How fine the Emperor's new clothes are! What a train he 
 has to his mantle! How well it fits him! " No one would let it be 
 seen that he could see nothing, for that would have shown that 
 he was not fit for his office, or was very stupid. No clothes of 
 the Emperor's had ever had such a success as these. 
 
 "But he has nothing on!" said a little child. 
 
 "Mercy on us! Just hear that innocent voice!" said his father; 
 and one whispered to another what the child had said. 
 
 "He has nothing on; there's a little child here says he has 
 nothing on." 
 
 "That's so! He has nothing on!" said the whole people at last. 
 
 That touched the Emperor, for it seemed to him that they were 
 right; but he thought within himself, "I must go through with the 
 procession." And so he held himself a little higher, and the 
 chamberlains marched and carried the train, but there was no 
 train. 
 
 Questions and answers. On this story the following 
 questions were asked, and the type of answers accepted is 
 shown opposite. 
 
 Questions Approximate Answers accepted 
 
 1 by the Teacher 
 
 Par. 1. Why would n't the Thought too much about his 
 Emperor be prepared to meet clothes, 
 trouble? 
 
270 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 2 
 
 Par. 2. How were the officers Unfit for office or stupid. 
 
 likely to lose their positions? If they could n't see the colors. 
 
 If they didn't see what the 
 rogues were weaving. 
 
 o 
 
 Par. 3. In what way did the He could tell who were stupid 
 Emperor think the clothes or unfit for work, 
 would assist him? To see what men of his were fit 
 
 for office. 
 4 
 
 Par. 4. How did the rogues de- Asked all the time for gold and 
 ceive the king? put it in their pockets. 
 
 5 
 Par. 5. Why was the king He was afraid he was not fit for 
 afraid to ask to see the goods office. 
 
 himself? He might not be fit to be Em- 
 
 peror. 
 
 6 
 
 Par. 6. Why was the old Min- He could judge the best and 
 ister the first one chosen to see was honest, 
 the weaving? He was honest and had sense. 
 
 He was an honest man. 
 7 
 
 Par. 10. What two questions Am I stupid? and, Am I not fit 
 did the Minister ask himself? for office? 
 
 8 
 Par. 10. Why did the Minister Because he was afraid to say 
 say he was pleased with the there was n't anything, 
 pattern? If he said no, he would not be fit 
 
 for his office. 
 
 9 
 
 Par. 12. Why was the Minister Because he had to tell it to the 
 
 able to describe the color and king. 
 
 pattern to the Emperor? Because he would say the same 
 
 thing the weavers said. 
 
 Because he listened to them. 
 10 
 
 Who was the only honest one in The child, 
 the story? 
 
READING TESTS 271 
 
 Criticism of the test and questions. The following com- 
 ments on the above questions seem fair, and may be helpful 
 to teachers in the formulation of test questions on other 
 selections: 
 
 Question 1. This is a good question for the purpose of the test 
 because it is clear and definite, requires reasoning, because teach- 
 ers would not be likely to disagree as to the correct answer, and 
 because it is of the proper difficulty. The answers do not show 
 that the question was misinterpreted. Eight pupils gave correct 
 answers, and nine incorrect ones. 
 
 Question 2. This is a poor question, because it is not closely 
 enough related to the content of the paragraph, because teachers 
 would disagree upon the interpretation of the question, and 
 because there are too many possibly correct answers. Consider- 
 ing only the last objection, we find that only five out of the seven- 
 teen answers were counted as right. 
 
 Question 3. This question tests the pupil's perception of rela- 
 tionships, and can be answered only by giving one particular 
 reason. Only three out of seventeen gave the incorrect answer. 
 If worded in such a way as to make it slightly more difficult, it 
 would be an excellent question. 
 
 Question If.. The answers of the pupils and the grading of the 
 teacher show that this question involves a too complicated answer, 
 if strictly graded, and that teachers are likely to disagree as to 
 what would be an acceptable answer. Statements to the effect 
 that looms were put up and that the rogues made as though they 
 were weaving were counted wrong, while statements to the effect 
 that they kept calling for more silk and gold and keeping it for 
 themselves were accepted as correct. Probably both ideas are 
 required for an adequate answer. The question does not call for a 
 sufficiently definite and short answer. 
 
 Question 5. The answers show this to be a very good question. 
 There were seven correct answers, and ten that were counted 
 wrong. 
 
 Question 6. There are three ideas involved in this: he was 
 honest, he had sense, and he was best able to judge. The teacher 
 accepted the first as a correct answer, but did not accept either 
 of the others unless the first was given also. There would prob- 
 ably be disagreement about what should be accepted as a correct 
 answer. The question should be made more definite. 
 
272 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Question 7. This question calls for a mere reproduction of 
 what was stated, and consequently does not involve relational 
 comprehension. 
 
 Question 8. The wording of this question makes it too difficult, 
 as is shown by the fact that only three out of the seventeen gave 
 an acceptable answer. The idea involved is an excellent one. 
 The question should be made more specific. Wherever possible 
 substitute a more definite expression for "why." 
 
 Question 9. This question has the same weakness as the eighth. 
 
 Question 10. The answer to this question is not specifically 
 stated in the reading. Therefore it involves selective thinking. 
 Twelve gave correct answers, and five wrong ones. 
 
 A better test by the same teacher on the same selection. 
 The following is a test formulated by the same teacher, after 
 reading the preceding criticisms and after becoming familiar 
 with the devices used in scientifically devised tests: 
 
 The Emperor's New Clothes 
 
 1. Indicate one reason why the Emperor would not be pre- 
 pared to meet trouble. 
 
 1. Because he did n't have an army 
 
 2. " " was a coward 
 
 3. " " his soldiers didn't drill 
 
 4. " thought only of his clothes 
 
 5. " " was too old to fight 
 
 2. What was peculiar or unusual about the cloth? 
 
 3. Indicate the reason that tells why the Emperor was inter- 
 ested in the cloth. 
 
 1. Because he wanted to look handsome 
 
 2. " thought it was beautiful 
 
 3. " always thinking of clothes 
 
 4. it would tell him who was fit for office 
 
 5. " " was cheap 
 
 4. Indicate the one word below that tells the material the 
 rogues used on the looms to weave this wonderful cloth. 
 
 silk gold cotton nothing thread 
 
 5. Indicate the one reason below which tells why the Emperor 
 was afraid to see the cloth himself. 
 
READING TESTS 273 
 
 1. Because he thought the rogues would hurt him 
 
 2. " " was too feeble 
 
 3. " " knew the rogues were magicians 
 
 4. " it might prove he was stupid 
 
 5. " " would blind him 
 
 6. Select and underline one of the following as a reason for 
 sending the Minister to see the cloth. 
 
 The Minister was: old industrious sensible kind 
 
 7. Of what two things was the Minister afraid? 
 
 1. That he was going blind 
 
 2. " M " growing old 
 
 3. " " " stupid 
 
 4. " " " unfit for office 
 
 5. " the rogues were not honest 
 
 8. Indicate the reason which tells why the Minister could 
 describe the pattern and colors so well. 
 
 1. Because he had seen it before 
 
 2. " " " helped to weave it 
 "3. " - " " listened closely 
 
 4. " wrote it on paper | 
 
 9. Where did the rogues put the gold and silk that was given 
 them? 
 
 on the looms in a chest in their pockets in the palace 
 10. Underline the word which tells who was the only honest one 
 in the story 
 
 emperor minister child rogues officers 
 
 Score values of questions in reading tests. In the usual 
 classroom examinations, the plan commonly followed in 
 grading is to give each question the same weight or value. 
 In treatises on scientific educational measurement, this plan 
 has been criticized on the basis that the questions in such 
 an examination are not of equal difficulty, and therefore 
 should not be given equal weight in grading or scoring. 
 In the construction of many scientifically made tests, the 
 authors either selected units of equal difficulty or assigned 
 values to the different units according to the difficulty of 
 the unit. The method of calculating the degree of diffi- 
 
274 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 culty and the value to be assigned to each unit on the basis 
 of its difficulty is somewhat complicated. l 
 
 Tests that have different score values for the different 
 units require more of the teacher's time in totaling the scores 
 than do tests that assign the same value to each unit. If 
 each exercise is given a value of one and the pupil's response 
 counted right or wrong, there is much less likelihood of 
 error in scoring and totaling the score. In the typical old- 
 fashioned classroom examination, where no effort was made 
 to see that the different questions were equal in difficulty 
 or in time required in answering, it is evident that we have 
 a very poor measuring instrument. But the more recent 
 studies go to show that, in a set of ten or more questions or 
 exercises formulated with a view of having them approxi- 
 mately equal in difficulty and in time required for answer- 
 ing, the units may be assigned equal score values without 
 impairing the accuracy of the measuring instrument to any 
 appreciable extent. 
 
 A teacher can refine her test in the following manner: 
 After the test has beer used with two or three classes, 
 determine the number of times each question has been 
 missed. In case the results show that a particular question 
 is too easy or too difficult in comparison to the other 
 questions, eliminate it, change it, or substitute another 
 question that will be more likely to fill the requirements. 
 
 II. A fifth-grade silent-reading test of both rate and 
 comprehension 
 For this test the following selection from The Riverside 
 Fifth Reader was used: 
 
 The Magic Mask 
 There was once a great and powerful prince. He had hundreds 
 of soldiers in his army, and with their help he had conquered vast 
 
 x Rugg, H. O. Statistical Methods Applied to Education, pp. 219-22. 
 JJoughton Mifflin Company, 1917. 
 
READING TESTS 275 
 
 strips of country, over which he ruled. He was wise as well as 
 brave; but, though all men feared his iron will and respected his 
 strong purpose, no one loved him. As he grew older, he became 
 lonely and unhappy; and this made him sterner and colder, and 
 more severe than ever. The lines about his mouth were hard and 
 grim, there was a deep frown on his forehead, and his lips rarely 
 smiled. (98) 
 
 Now it happened that in one of the cities over which he had 
 come to rule was a beautiful princess whom he wished to have for 
 his wife. He had watched her for many months as she went about 
 among the people, and he knew that she was as good and kind as 
 she was beautiful. But, because he always wore his armor and 
 his heavy helmet when he rode through his dominions, she had 
 never seen his face. (177) 
 
 The day came when he made up his mind that he would ask the 
 lovely princess to come and live in his palace. He put on his royal 
 robes and his golden coronet; but, when he looked at his reflection 
 in the glass, he could see nothing but what w T ould cause fear and 
 dislike. His face looked hard and cruel and stern. He tried to 
 smile; but it seemed an unnatural effort, and he quickly gave it up. 
 Then a happy notion came to him. Sending for the court magi- 
 cian, he said to him: (271) 
 
 "Make for me a mask of the thinnest wax so that it will follow 
 every line of my features, but paint it with your magic paints so 
 that it will look kind and pleasant instead of fierce and stern. 
 Fasten it upon my face so that I shall never have to take it off. 
 Make it as handsome and attractive as your skill can suggest, and 
 I will pay for it any price you choose to ask." (348) 
 
 "This I can do," said the court magician, "on one condition 
 only. You must keep your own face in the same lines that I shall 
 paint, or the mask will be ruined. One angry frown, one cruel 
 smile will crack the mask and ruin it forever; nor can I replace it. 
 Will you agree to this? " (404) 
 
 The prince had a strong will, and never in his life had he wanted 
 anything so much as he now wanted the princess for his wife. (430) 
 
 "Yes," he said, "I agree. Tell me how I may keep the mask 
 from cracking . ' ' (445) 
 
 "You must train yourself to think kindly thoughts," said the 
 magician, "and, to do this, you must do kindly deeds. You must 
 try to make your kingdom happy rather than great. Whenever 
 you are angry, keep absolutely still until the feeling has gone away. 
 
276 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 Try to think of ways to make your subjects happier and better. 
 Build schools instead of forts, and hospitals instead of battleships. 
 Be gracious and courteous to all men." (518) 
 
 So the wonderful mask was made; and when the prince put it on, 
 no one would have guessed that it was not his true face. The 
 lovely princess, indeed, could find no fault with it, and she came 
 willingly to be his bride in his splendid palace. (565) 
 
 The months went on; and, though at first the magic mask was 
 often in danger of being destroyed, the prince had been as good as 
 his word, and no one had ever discovered that it was false. His 
 subjects, it is true, wondered at his new gentleness and thought- 
 fulness; but they said, "It is the princess who has made him like 
 herself." (627) 
 
 The prince, however, was not quite happy. When the princess 
 smiled her approval of his forbearance and goodness, he used to 
 wish that he had never deceived her with the magic mask. At 
 last he could bear it no longer, and, summoning the magician, he 
 bade him remove the false face. (678) 
 
 "If I do, Your Royal Highness," protested the magician, "I can 
 never make another. You must wear your own face as long as 
 you live." (703) 
 
 "Better so," cried the prince, "than to deceive one whose love 
 and trust I value so greatly. Better even that she should despise 
 me than that I should go on doing what is unworthy for her sake." 
 (740) 
 
 Then the magician took off the mask, and the prince in fear and 
 anguish of heart sought his reflection in the glass. As he looked, 
 his eyes brightened and his lips curved into a radiant smile; for 
 the ugly lines were gone, the frown had disappeared, and his face 
 was moulded in the exact likeness of the mask he had worn so 
 long. And, when he came into the presence of his wife, she saw 
 only the familiar features of the prince she loved. (824) 
 
 Measuring the rate. At the end of two minutes a signal 
 was given. At this each pupil marked the last word read, 
 and then continued to complete the reading of the story. 
 After finishing, each pupil put his book in the desk and 
 waited until all had finished. Later, after the comprehen- 
 sion test had been tried, each pupil determined the number 
 of words read by the aid of the numbers entered at the 
 
READING TESTS 277 
 
 end of each paragraph, and divided by two to get the num- 
 ber of words per minute. This number constituted the 
 rate score. 
 
 Measuring the comprehension. For this a set of ques- 
 tions was formulated and tried with one class. A revised 
 form was tried with another class in an effort to get a set 
 of questions of about equal difficulty. A third form, which 
 follows, was given to a room of forty pupils, and the value 
 assigned to each question was approximately according to 
 the difficulty of the questions. 
 
 Comprehension questions on " The Magic Mask." The 
 numbers in parentheses following each question are the 
 values finally determined upon for the question, the total 
 of values for the paper being 100. 
 
 The Magic Mask 
 
 1. Underline the one word below which best describes the face 
 of the prince at the beginning of the story. (5) 
 
 Good beautiful cruel sad serious kind 
 
 2. Underline the one reason below which tells why the prince 
 did not want the princess to see his face. (5) 
 
 (a) Because he wanted to hide his face 
 
 (b) Because he was afraid she would not marry him 
 
 (c) Because the princess was rich and powerful 
 
 (d) Because the prince was shy and timid 
 
 S. Mention one thing the magician told the prince not to do to 
 keep from ruining the mask. (15) 
 
 The prince was told not to ■ ■ 
 
 4. Mention one thing the prince was told to do to keep the mask 
 from cracking. (15) 
 
 He was told to 
 
 5. Write two words used in the story to describe the princess. 
 
 (a)- (5) (b) (10) 
 
 6. Underline the one reason below that tells why the prince 
 was not quite happy. (5) 
 
 (a) Because he deceived the princess by wearing the mask 
 (6) Because he had the mask taken off 
 
278 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 (c) Because the princess was popular with the people 
 
 (d) Because he was rich and powerful 
 
 7. Whom did the people think had caused the great change in 
 the prince? (10) — — 
 
 8. Because he was not quite happy, what did he have the 
 magician do in regard to the mask? (5) 
 
 9. Underline the one of the words below which describes the 
 face of the prince at the close of the story. (15) 
 
 cruel good kind sad serious beautiful 
 10. Underline the one reason below which explains why the mask 
 is called the magic mask. (10) 
 
 (a) Because it had a winning face 
 
 (b) Because no one could see the mask on the prince 
 
 (c) Because it was a false face 
 
 (d) Because the mask did not break 
 
 Summary of conclusions regarding testing in reading. 
 From our study the following conclusions seem to be 
 warranted: 
 
 1. Attainment in silent reading has not been checked up 
 in an objective way as it should be. Occasional tests 
 of rate and comprehension, devised by the teacher, 
 should be given. 
 
 2. The usual classroom tests or examinations are seri- 
 ously inaccurate as measurements of ability and attain- 
 ment, (a) because teachers differ widely in grading the 
 same set of papers, and (b) because the plan of assign- 
 ing equal values to questions that vary widely in 
 difficulty gives an inaccurate measure. 
 
 8. Classroom tests4n comprehension may be improved, 
 (a) by a clearer wording of questions; and (b) by 
 using some of the types of responses used in scientific 
 tests, such as checking one of a number of listed 
 answers, placing a line or cross correctly on a drawing; 
 (c) by using questions upon which there will be a 
 minimum of disagreement in grading; and (d) by 
 considering answers wholly right or wholly wrong. 
 
READING TESTS 279 
 
 4. A more accurate grading or scoring will be secured, 
 (a) by having all the questions of equal difficulty, or 
 (6) by assigning values to the questions according to 
 difficulty. 
 
 5. It is sometimes better to separate the tests upon 
 different phases of comprehension, such as the knowl- 
 edge of the facts, the understanding of the rational 
 relationships expressed, and the grasp of the central 
 idea or the essential total meaning or effect. 
 
 6. Rate should be tested in terms of the number of words 
 read per minute. Pupils should compare their rates 
 with standard rates, and note progress from time to 
 time. Rate tests should always be followed by some 
 definite check on comprehension, to ensure that the 
 pupils really do the reading reported. 
 
 7. Use of Reading Tests in Rural Schools 
 
 Standardized reading tests may be very economically 
 used in rural schools, because all but the youngest pupils 
 may be tested at the same time. The small number of 
 pupils in a class makes it possible for the teacher to examine 
 carefully the individual results for evidences of weaknesses. 
 There is more opportunity for remedial treatment in ac- 
 cordance with individual needs. There is excellent op- 
 portunity in the one- or two-room school for grouping 
 pupils, according to results shown by the tests, for train- 
 ing exercises in silent reading. The administrative problem 
 of permitting a fifth-grade excellent reader to be grouped 
 with eighth-grade readers of equal reading ability is easier 
 in a rural school than in a graded school with one or more 
 rooms for each grade. 
 
 But little work has as yet been done in measuring results 
 in our rural schools. In so far as studies have been made, 
 
280 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 it is very evident that rural schools are more in need of the 
 teaching and testing of silent reading than are city schools. 
 The following is a summary of conclusions drawn from a 
 study in silent reading in the rural schools of Santa Clara 
 County, California, made by Richard Zeidler, 1 and may be 
 taken as typical of conditions which a more general use of 
 standardized tests would in all probability reveal. Mr. 
 Zeidler draws the following conclusions from his study: 
 
 1. The rural schools of this county fall below the standardized 
 scores in reading, especially in the lower grades. 
 
 2. The rural schools in the county compare favorably with the 
 city schools of San Jose in the rate of reading, but both fall 
 below the standard. 
 
 3. The rural schools of the county fall below the San Jose 
 schools in the number of points reproduced from the material 
 read. 
 
 4. A great variation of ability is shown between individual 
 pupils in every class and grade. 
 
 5. Progress from grade to grade is irregular, and even a very 
 noticeable retardation occurs from the seventh to the eighth 
 grade. 
 
 6. The one- and two-teacher schools do inferior work in read- 
 ing, as compared with the larger schools, which are better 
 organized. 
 
 FACTUAL QUESTIONS 
 
 1. Name the two elements measured by the Gray Oral-Reading Test. 
 
 2. Name four points to keep in mind in selecting a silent-reading test. 
 S. Name two vocabulary tests. 
 
 4. Name four group silent-reading tests discussed in this chapter. 
 
 5. Name a silent-reading test that measures rate of reading of the more 
 rapid type. 
 
 6. Name two silent-reading tests that do not measure rate. 
 
 7. What does the Jones test measure? 
 
 8. What does the Thorndike Vocabulary Test measure? 
 
 9. Enumerate three difficulties that teachers have in framing questions 
 for testing comprehension, other than mere factual comprehension. 
 
 1 Zeidler, Richard. " Tests in Silent Reading in the Rural Schools 
 of Santa Clara County, California"; in Elementary School Journal (Sep- 
 tember, 1916), vol. 17, pp. 55-62. 
 
READING TESTS 281 
 
 PROBLEMS FOR STUDY AND DISCUSSION 
 
 1. There are twenty points in the above set of questions. Give yourself 
 a test, crediting 5 per cent for each point correct. 
 
 2. Why is rate an important factor in testing oral reading? 
 
 3. What reason might be advanced against using the Gray Oral-Read- 
 ing Test regularly for classroom testing? 
 
 4. Devise a simple plan for a classroom test of oral reading that will be 
 economical in time expenditure, fairly accurate, and that would 
 provide data for follow-up remedial work. 
 
 5. What value do you place upon testing the ability to get the meaning 
 from listening to oral reading? 
 
 6. Criticize the questions for the Gray Silent-Reading Test. 
 
 7. What are the two essential differences between the Monroe and the 
 Courtis tests? 
 
 8. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the Burgess test. 
 
 9. Give an adverse criticism on the Monroe test. On the Courtis test. 
 On the Thorndike-McCall test. On the Haggerty-Noonan test. 
 On the Burgess test. 
 
 10. What is the essential difference between the Jones Vocabulary Test 
 and the Thorndike Vocabulary Test? 
 
 11. Report upon the advantages you have noted in the use of standard- 
 ized reading tests in your classroom or school. 
 
 12. In what respect is the Monroe test superior to the Courtis test as a 
 measure of comprehension? 
 
 13. Discuss essential differences between scientific tests and the usual 
 type of examination. 
 
 14. Is it possible to modify the usual type of classroom examination to 
 conform more nearly to scientific tests? How? What are the chief 
 difficulties in doing this? 4 
 
 15. Do you think the use of a story for testing purposes, such as "The 
 Magic Mask," will be likely to be a hindrance to the child's apprecia- 
 tion of the story? 
 
 16. Of the group silent-reading tests discussed, which one is best adapted 
 for use in a one-room rural school? Why? 
 
 Note: Since this chapter was written the author and Miss Lucile C. 
 Murphy have devised a series of Narrative-Reading Scales for the middle 
 and upper grades, which are published by the Public School Publishing 
 Company, Bloomington, Illinois. 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
 INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES, AND SPECIAL INDIVIDUAL 
 AND GROUP INSTRUCTION 
 
 Individual differences in reading ability. The use of 
 scientific tests, especially in connection with school sur- 
 veys, has directed the attention of educators to the very 
 great individual differences in reading ability within a 
 grade or a class. In a very interesting and important vol- 
 ume on reading, Dr. Judd makes the following interest- 
 ing observation x as to the individual differences in reading 
 ability which recent studies have revealed: 
 
 There are many pupils who are forward in their reading. In 
 the second and third grades they show a power of comprehen- 
 sion and a rate which compare with those of many an upper- 
 grade pupil. 
 
 1. Individual Differences among Sixth- Grade Pupils 
 
 A study of variability. The large variability to be found 
 in almost any intermediate-grade class is clearly illustrated 
 by the accompanying table (Table iv; see page 283), which 
 shows the results of a test of the pupils of four sixth-grade 
 classes, a total of eighty pupils. 
 
 What these tables show. The table for rate should be 
 read as follows: In the sixth-grade first-quarter class, 1 
 pupil was in the 140-149 rate-group; in the second-quarter 
 class, 1 pupil; in the third-quarter class, 9 pupils; and in the 
 fourth-quarter class, 1 pupil — malgng a total of 12. Read- 
 
 1 Judd, Charles H. Reading. Its Nature and Development. Chapter vin 
 deals with the problem of individual differences. 
 
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES AND INSTRUCTION 283 
 
 Tajble IV. Showing Records of Four Sixth-Grade Classes 
 on the Monroe Silent-Reading Tests, May, 1920 
 
 No. pupils 
 
 No. pupils 
 
 Standard 
 
 
 Quarter 
 
 
 s 
 
 
 
 Standard 
 
 Medians 
 
 
 ~* 
 
 »e 
 
 Quarter 
 
 -^ 
 
 Medians 
 
 Oct., 1920 
 
 Rate 
 
 
 "8 
 
 y 
 1 
 
 
 1 
 
 Oct., 1920 
 
 Grade 
 
 Rate 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 Score Grade 
 
 
 
 110-149 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 9 
 
 1 
 
 12 
 
 45-49 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 
 VIII 
 
 133 
 
 130-139 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 40-44 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 VII 
 
 130 
 
 120-129 
 
 4 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 3 
 
 9 
 
 35-39 
 
 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 1 
 
 3 
 
 
 VI 
 
 116 
 
 110-119 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 5 
 
 4 
 
 12 
 
 30-34 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 28.2 VIII 
 
 
 
 100-109 
 
 7 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 4 
 
 18 
 
 25-29 
 
 2 
 
 4 
 
 3 
 
 1 
 
 10 
 
 26.0 VII 
 
 V 
 
 9S 
 
 90-99 
 
 1 
 
 3 
 
 2 
 
 3 
 
 9 
 
 20-24 
 
 5 
 
 4 
 
 8 
 
 G 
 
 23 
 
 18.1 VI 
 
 
 
 80-89 
 
 4 
 
 3 
 
 3 
 
 3 
 
 13 
 
 15-19 
 
 7 
 
 3 
 
 6 
 
 6 
 
 22 
 
 17.2 V 
 
 IV 
 
 77 
 
 70-79 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 3 
 
 10-14 
 
 5 
 
 2 
 
 3 
 
 3 
 
 13 
 
 13.3 IV 
 
 III 
 
 63 
 
 60-69 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 4 
 
 5-9 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 6 
 
 8.3 III 
 
 
 
 Total |21 
 
 15 
 
 24 
 
 20 
 
 80 
 
 Total 
 
 21 
 
 15 
 
 24 
 
 20 
 
 80 
 
 
 ing down the column on rate we see that for the 60-69 group 
 there was 1 first-quarter pupil, 2 second-quarter pupils, and 
 1 fourth-quarter pupil. Likewise, in the table for compre- 
 hension, in the 25-29 group there are 2 first-quarter pu- 
 pils, 4 second-quarter pupils, 3 third-quarter pupils, and 1 
 fourth-quarter pupil. Studying the individual classes, we 
 note that the pupils of the first quarter range from 140 to 
 60 in rate, and from 30 to 5 in comprehension. 
 
 The tables show a wide variability in attainment in both 
 rate and comprehension in each of the four classes. The 
 fourth-quarter class has the widest variation, considering 
 both rate and comprehension. These four classes represent 
 the pupils of two rooms. They constitute the complete 
 sixth grade of the school. It will be noted that the attain- 
 ment in rate ranges from third-grade attainment to above 
 eighth-grade attainment. The comprehension ranges from 
 
284 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 third-grade attainment to an attainment very much above 
 eighth-grade attainment. 
 
 The question naturally arises as to what variability 
 would be found within this group of eighty sixth-grade 
 pupils, considering both rate and accuracy of comprehen- 
 sion. In about an hour's time the writer examined these 
 eighty papers, and made the following grouping: 
 
 Group Number 
 
 of pupils 
 Rapid and Accurate 
 
 (Rate, 113-140; Accuracy, 75-100 per cent) 8 
 
 Rapid and Inaccurate 
 
 (Rate, 113-140; Accuracy, 60 per cent or below) 18 
 
 Medium in Rate, or Comprehension, or in both 36 
 
 Slow and Accurate 
 
 (Rate, 0-80; Accuracy, 75-100 per cent) 8 
 
 Slow and Inaccurate 
 
 (Rate, 0-80; Accuracy, 60 per cent or below) 10 
 
 Special classification for reading. In so far as one can 
 judge from the data of one test, it is apparent that the 
 pupils in this grade are in need of widely different methods 
 of treatment in so far as this type of reading ability is in- 
 volved. No doubt a great deal more could be accom- 
 plished in a month's time, in improving the rate and ac- 
 curacy in reading of the pupils of this grade, by a special 
 regrouping of the pupils than could be accomplished in the 
 same time by maintaining the regular classification. Of 
 course, additional data, including the teacher's judgment of 
 the pupil, should be taken into consideration in making 
 such a special reclassification. But, presuming the above 
 grouping to be approximately correct for the type of reading 
 represented in the Monroe test, the two teachers could re- 
 group the pupils according to the above scheme and differ- 
 entiate the content and the method of the reading to their 
 great advantage. The group of eight very superior read- 
 
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES AND INSTRUCTION 285 
 
 ers could well be permitted to read independently for their 
 own pleasure, or occasionally to work as a team and give 
 a report of their reading, or a dramatization to the other 
 groups. The group that is slow and accurate undoubtedly 
 needs speed drills, and large amounts of the extensive type 
 of reading. The group that is rapid and inaccurate needs 
 training exercises for carefully checking comprehension. 
 Those who are slow and inaccurate very likely need to be 
 given simpler reading material, and to be instructed under 
 methods more akin to the primary reading methods. 
 
 2. Special Grouping within a Room 
 
 Individual differences in rooms. In almost any graded 
 school, sufficient individual differences in reading attain- 
 ment will be found to justify a grouping different from that 
 of the two regular classes in the room. To illustrate how 
 this may be done an account will be given of how a two- 
 class room of seventh-grade pupils and a two-class room of 
 fourth-grade pupils were each reclassified into three groups 
 for reading instruction. 
 
 It was thought that the grouping in the intermediate and 
 upper grades should be done principally upon the basis of 
 silent-reading accomplishment. Three factors were taken 
 into account : the teacher's judgment, as indicated by the 
 pupil's rating in reading as shown on the pupil's scholar- 
 ship record; the pupil's scores in careful silent reading, as 
 measured by the Monroe test; and the pupil's scores in 
 more rapid silent reading, as measured by " The Magic 
 Mask " test, described in the preceding chapter. 
 
 /. Two seventh-grade classes regrouped for reading 
 
 The seventh-grade room consisted of forty-seven pupils. 
 The following gives an idea of the grouping of these, and of 
 
286 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 the data used in making the regrouping. Only the scores 
 for the highest and lowest pupil in each group are given. 
 
 Table V. Data for Regrouping Two Seventh-Grade 
 
 Classes in Reading 
 
 
 
 Monroe Test 
 
 Magio Mask Test 
 
 Teacher s Grade 
 
 Group 
 
 Rank 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Rate 
 
 Corny. 
 
 Rate 
 
 Comp. 
 
 a, b, c, d\ e 
 
 A 
 
 1 
 
 162 
 
 41 
 
 403 
 
 90 
 
 G 
 
 11 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 pupils 
 
 11 
 
 133 
 
 30 
 
 233 
 
 80 
 
 a 
 
 B 
 
 1 
 
 133 
 
 27 
 
 234 
 
 100 
 
 c 
 
 20 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 pupils 
 
 20 
 
 101 
 
 11 
 
 178 
 
 80 
 
 c 
 
 C 
 
 1 
 
 133 
 
 19 
 
 233 
 
 80 
 
 d 
 
 16 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 pupils 
 
 16 
 
 73 
 
 5 
 
 115 
 
 40 
 
 c 
 
 In the main, the rating one would give a pupil on the 
 basis of the results of the two tests would be about the same 
 as the teacher's rating made previous to the giving of the 
 tests. But there are occasional exceptions, as are indicated 
 in the tabulation above. For instance, by far the best 
 pupil in the room, in so far as the tests indicate, was given 
 a grade of c, or average, just a few weeks previously. 
 Likewise, the poorest pupil in the room in the tests had been 
 given a grade of c by the teacher, while a number of other 
 pupils had been given d and one pupil e. In all cases 
 where the rating by tests and the rating by the teacher 
 differ considerably, special scrutiny should be given to the 
 pupil's responses in recitation. In some cases check tests 
 should be given. 
 
 Any special regrouping, as indicated in the above table 
 
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES AND INSTRUCTION 287 
 
 of results, should, of course, be subject to an easy shifting 
 of pupils from one group to another as the future progress 
 of the pupils seems to indicate as desirable. After several 
 lessons it was evident that two or three of the pupils from 
 the C group should be placed in the B group, and one or two 
 shifted from the B group to the C group. 
 
 Classwork after regrouping. A brief account will be 
 given of the plan of handling the classwork after the re- 
 grouping. The departmental program provides for two 
 eighty-minute periods a week in reading for the room. 
 Thirty minutes was given to each of the B and C groups, 
 and twenty minutes to group A. During the sixty min- 
 utes that groups B and C were reciting, group A did in- 
 dividual reading or group preparation, in an unused room, 
 for a dramatization or report to be rendered to the pu- 
 pils of the other groups. This phase of the plan has been 
 especially stimulating to the forward group, and has served 
 to bring interesting examples of accomplishment before the 
 backward group. The following is a partial list of the 
 .possible reading activities of a forward group of this type: 
 
 1. Individual reading of books and individual brief reports to 
 the other pupils of the room, giving reasons for recommending 
 a particular book to them. 
 
 2. Group reading of a story, and telling the story to the other 
 pupils. 
 
 S. Group reading of a story, and dramatizing for the other 
 pupils. 
 
 4. Group reading of a short play, and dramatic reading from 
 the books for the entertainment of the other pupils. 
 
 5. Group reading of a book, each pupil reporting briefly upon a 
 chapter or section to the other pupils. 
 
 6. Group vork on illustrative projects, for exhibition during 
 oral reading or reporting. 
 
 Most of the pupils in group C are slow readers, and in- 
 ferior or poor in comprehension. In addition to training in 
 
288 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 comprehension, this group is being given speed drills of the 
 various types given in Chapter VIII. They have been 
 given the Thorndike Visual Vocabulary Test and lessons for 
 vocabulary training are being planned. 
 
 Very much easier material than that usually given 
 seventh-grade pupils, too, was found necessary for this 
 group. Material from The Riverside Fifth Reader (fifth 
 grade) has proven to be very interesting, and quite difficult 
 enough for experiential content lessons for this group. 
 The Intermediate-Grade Series of Lessons in Community 
 and National Life l have been used to good advantage for 
 training in attacking study problems. An assignment 
 containing a series of questions on the sections and para- 
 graphs of the different lessons, similar in form to the one 
 given on page 176, can be made up on any of these lessons 
 to increase the interest in it and to aid in the comprehen- 
 sion of it. These Lessons are also very useful for silent- 
 reading tests of an informational character. 
 
 II, Two fourth-grade classes regrouped for reading 
 The tabulation (Table vi; see page 289) shows a similar 
 regrouping for a fourth-grade room of forty-one pupils, 
 again only the scores for the highest and lowest pupil in 
 each group being given. 
 
 Compare line one in the above tabulation, which is the 
 record of the best reader in the room, with the last line, 
 which is the record of the poorest reader. The former 
 makes an average seventh-grade showing, while the latter 
 is below a third-grade average. Such wide individual 
 differences within a class make special individual or group 
 instruction necessary in order to administer effectively to 
 the individual needs of the pupils. 
 
 1 See footnote, page 77. 
 
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES AND INSTRUCTION 289 
 
 Table VI. Data for Regrouping Two Fourth-Grade 
 
 Classes 
 
 
 
 Monroe Test 
 
 Magic Mask Test 
 
 Teacher's Grade 
 
 Group 
 
 Rank 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Rate 
 
 Comp. 
 
 Rate 
 
 Comp. 
 
 a, b, c, a\ e 
 
 A 
 
 8 
 pupils 
 
 High 
 
 95 
 
 20.6 
 
 215 
 
 80 
 
 b 
 
 Low 
 
 90 
 
 13.4 
 
 166 
 
 90 
 
 b 
 
 B 
 
 19 
 
 pupils 
 
 High 
 Low 
 
 95 
 61 
 
 15.9 
 11.3 
 
 151 
 100 
 
 60 
 20 
 
 b I 
 
 d 
 
 C 
 
 14 
 pupils 
 
 High 
 Low 
 
 76 
 41 
 
 13.4 
 
 6.7 
 
 123 
 
 99 
 
 40 
 10 
 
 e 
 e 
 
 Needed treatment of the problem presented. The oral 
 reading as well as the silent reading of this fourth-grade C 
 group indicated that these pupils were still in the primary 
 reading stage. Consequently, considerable amounts of 
 oral reading and phonetic analysis should be done. There 
 may be exceptional pupils in this group who will not be 
 helped by oral reading. But all of the reports of special 
 remedial instruction with this type of pupil indicate that 
 the phonetic method quite generally proves helpful. 
 
 The objection is sometimes raised that it will be difficult 
 to get interest in a group of this kind owing to the absence 
 of those who respond readily. This is likely to be the case 
 unless there is a radical readjustment of content and 
 method. The writer observed this group in one of the 
 most lively reading recitations he ever visited. The teacher 
 had wisely secured a set of attractive second readers, and 
 given the group the story of " Peter Rabbit " to read. 
 There was no difficulty in arousing interest or enthusiasm 
 
290 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 in the discussion that followed. It was interesting to 
 observe that only one of these pupils had ever read this 
 story before. The first essential with a group of this kind 
 is to provide simple, easy, and interesting material. As 
 the group improves in fluency in oral reading, the amount 
 of silent reading may be increased. Training exercises in 
 rate, in comprehension, and in vocabulary should be used 
 frequently. 
 
 Group B of this fourth-grade room has passed beyond 
 the primary reading stage. These pupils need only small 
 amounts of oral reading. During one recitation period this 
 group was carried well into a long story from Grimm, and 
 during the following study period they completed reading 
 it, a total of about eight thousand words. While some 
 training exercises were given to this group, the experiential 
 content type of silent reading predominated. 
 
 111. How to handle the reading in a specially regrouped 
 second-grade room 
 
 In almost any second- or third-grade room, we shall find 
 fluent oral readers with a ready grasp of the content. We 
 shall also find the pupils who are more or less characteristic 
 of the immature oral reader and who show little ability in 
 getting thought from the printed page. Standing between 
 these two groups will be a somewhat larger group of about 
 normal attainment. A rearrangement of the pupils into 
 these three groups makes it possible for the teacher to 
 provide more effective reading activities, experiences, and 
 training for each of these three types of pupils. 
 
 Using reading tests. While the teacher's Judgment of 
 the pupils will be the main factor in determining the group 
 each child should be in, certain tests should be given to 
 provide supplementary evidence, such as the Pressey group 
 vocabulary test, and the Courtis, the Monroe, or the 
 
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES AND INSTRUCTION 291 
 
 Haggerty-Noonan silent-reading test. The Gray oral- 
 reading test and the Gray " Tiny Tad " silent-reading test, 
 both of which are individual tests, should be given to 
 pupils particularly in need of special diagnostic study. 
 
 The reading work of the upper group. The upper group 
 consists of those who have attained a smooth fluent oral 
 reading. There should be a minimum of oral-reading 
 experience and a maximum of silent-reading experience for 
 this group. The following types of work are among those 
 that are feasible. 
 
 1. Extensive rapid silent reading of long units and of books. 
 
 2. Careful silent reading of exercises requiring written response 
 to fact questions and to problems. 
 
 3. Careful silent reading of exercises requiring a drawing, a 
 construction, or a similar type of response. 
 
 4. Audience reading to the room preceded by group confer- 
 ence and practice. 
 
 This forward group is capable of profiting by more non- 
 recitation individual and group activity than the other two 
 groups, if the teacher uses the recitation time, allowed this 
 group, mainly to direct and stimulate such activities. The 
 result of this plan for the forward group will be of much 
 greater educational value than the result for them under the 
 usual two-class procedure. 
 
 The work of the middle group would be about that for the 
 second grade in the chapter on the primary grades. 
 
 The work of the slow group. There will be a maximum 
 of phonetic and oral-reading work with the slow group, 
 with a variety of plans for building up meaning concepts 
 for the printed words, phrases, and sentences. It will be 
 necessary to study the individual deficiencies and apply 
 suitable remedial treatment. Very easy simple reading 
 material should be used until the pupils have improved in 
 fluency in oral reading and a ready grasp of the content. 
 
292 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 3. The Reading Problem in the Special or Ungraded 
 
 Room 
 Many progressive school systems separate the seriously 
 backward pupils from the regular classes, and place them in 
 special or ungraded classes or rooms. Lack of ability to 
 read is one of the reasons for pupils not being able to suc- 
 ceed in the content subjects. A large percentage of the 
 pupils placed in ungraded classes because of failure to do 
 the work of the regular classes are poor readers. The 
 following is the record of some poor readers in an ungraded 
 room: 
 Table VII. Record of Poor Readers in an Ungraded Room 
 
 
 Age 
 
 From 
 Grade 
 
 Teacher's 
 Grade 
 
 Standing as shown by tests 
 
 . Pupil 
 No. 
 
 Gray's 
 
 Monroe 
 
 Magic Mash 
 
 
 OralR. 
 
 Rate 
 
 Comp. 
 
 Rate 
 
 Comp. 
 
 1 
 
 14 
 
 4A 
 
 poor 
 
 20 
 
 101 
 
 10 
 
 88 
 
 10 
 
 2 
 
 14 
 
 6A 
 
 inferior 
 
 
 
 29 
 
 4 
 
 48 
 
 10 
 
 3 
 
 12 
 
 4B 
 
 poor 
 
 35 
 
 54 
 
 8 
 
 124 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 13 
 
 5B 
 
 average 
 
 
 
 101 
 
 15 
 
 174 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 13 
 
 6B 
 
 inferior 
 
 20 
 
 43 
 
 10 
 
 66 
 
 50 
 
 r 6 
 
 13 
 
 4B 
 
 poor 
 
 
 54 
 
 10 
 
 112 
 
 70 ! 
 
 Pupils 1 and 2 have speech defects which account for 
 their inability to read orally. Pupil 5 was examined in the 
 Psycho-Educational Clinic at the age of ten. He was 
 reported as normal in intelligence, but as probably having 
 visual aphasia, or word-blindness. 1 All of these pupils are 
 in need of special expert training in reading. 
 
 1 For an interesting account of cases of this type see Schmitt, Clara. 
 "Congenital Word-Blindness, or Inability to Learn to Read"; in Ele- 
 mentary School Journal (May, 1918), vol. 18, pp. 680-700. 
 
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES AND INSTRUCTION 293 
 
 Remedial instruction. With over-aged pupils whose 
 reading achievement is still in the primary stage, phonics 
 and oral reading of easy material have been found to be 
 helpful. 1 Some of the pupils whose records are given in 
 Table vn have reached only first- or second-grade at- 
 tainment in reading. It would not be advisable, though, 
 to give them first and second readers. It will be better to 
 use books with short sentences, printed somewhat on the 
 order of a primer or first reader, but with a content of 
 interest to older pupils. The following are some books of 
 this type: 
 
 The Four Wonders; Cotton, Wool, Linen, Silk, Shilling. Rand 
 ;' McNally Company. 
 
 Weavers and Other Workers, Hall. Rand McNally Company. 
 Eskimo Stories, Smith. Rand McNally Company. 
 Stories of the United States for Young Readers. Ed. Pub. Co. 
 
 In addition to considerable amounts of phonics and oral 
 reading, there should be a great deal of retelling of what 
 is read and discussion of simple problems. Every effort 
 should be made to find out the interests of such pupils and 
 provide silent reading that will appeal to them. There 
 should be plenty of easy, interesting material for silent 
 reading. In the regular classes, these pupils have been 
 attempting to read material far beyond their level of reading 
 ability. Training exercises for increasing rate, improving 
 
 1 The following references give perhaps the best help we have at the 
 present time on methods of improving the reading of seriously backward 
 and retarded pupils: 
 
 1. Judd, Charles H. Reading; Its Nature and Development, chap, v, 
 "Special Experiments in the Training of Pupils." 
 
 2. Anderson, C. J., and Merton, Elda. "Remedial Work in Reading"; 
 in Elementary School Journal (May and June, 1920), vol. 20, pp. 685-701, 
 772-91. 
 
 3. Gray, William S. "Individual Difficulties in Silent Reading in the 
 Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Grades"; in the Twentieth Yearbook of the Na- 
 tional Society for the Study of Education, part n. 
 
"294. SILENT AND ORAL READING 
 
 comprehension, and increasing the silent-reading vocabu- 
 lary should be used. 
 
 Every effort possible should be made to provide specific 
 purposes for reading. In the manual work, give the boy 
 who is interested in making a mechanical toy the printed 
 instructions and drawings, and let him try to work out the 
 meaning of the reading matter. 1 
 
 Individual differences in rural schools. The principles 
 of classification according to reading achievement, as de- 
 veloped in this chapter, may readily be applied in one-room 
 rural schools. The reading work must necessarily be by 
 small groups. The grouping need not be according to the 
 regular grade grouping. The ungraded rural school has 
 some advantage in this respect over the school of one or 
 more rooms to a grade. A pupil who may be regularly 
 counted as a fifth-grade pupil in the one-room school should 
 be allowed to take reading with the seventh-grade group if 
 a series of tests shows him to be of seventh-grade reading 
 achievement. 2 
 
 PROBLEMS FOR STUDY AND DISCUSSION 
 
 1. Explain what is meant by individual differences by giving some 
 illustrative examples. 
 
 2. In regrouping an upper-grade room of pupils for reading instruction, 
 why is it better to use silent-reading ability as a basis rather than 
 oral reading? 
 
 3. Give arguments against grouping pupils according to ability. 
 Give arguments for grouping pupils according to ability. 
 What appears to be the main issue in the debate? 
 
 4. Why would one silent-reading test not be sufficient as a basis for 
 grouping pupils for reading instruction? 
 
 1 The following is an excellent book for this purpose: The Boy's Book of 
 Mechanical Models, by William B. Stout. Little, Brown & Company. 
 
 2 For an interesting account of the use of tests in rural schools see the 
 following: "Using Standardized Tests in Rural Schools for Grading 
 Purposes," by Supt. Samuel S. Brooks; in Journal of Educational Re- 
 search, November, 1920. 
 
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES AND INSTRUCTION 295 
 
 5. Select three standardized reading tests that would give the best 
 combined record to use as a basis for grouping third-grade pupils for 
 reading instruction. For grouping eighth-grade pupils. 
 
 6. Rank your pupils in order of silent-reading ability. Then give them 
 two silent-reading tests and rank them according to the results. 
 Compare your subjective ranking with the objective ranking. In 
 the cases of marked differences in ranking make a careful study of 
 these pupils, and decide which of the rankings is the more nearly 
 correct. 
 
 7. Write a brief summary of this chapter. 
 
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 Bolenius, Emma Miller. Teachers' Manual for the Boys' and 
 Girls' Readers. Houghton Mifflin Company. 1919. 
 
 Has valuable suggestions on both silent and oral reading. 
 
 Briggs and Coffman. Reading in Public Schools. Roe Peterson 
 Company. 1908. 
 
 In many respects the best special method book on reading, 
 but the treatment of silent reading is entirely inadequate. 
 
 Burgess, May Ayres. The Measurement of Silent Reading. 
 Russell Sage Foundation, New York. 1921. 
 
 A very important study, with the construction of a new scale. 
 
 Gray, William S. "Principles of Methods in Reading, as Derived 
 from Scientific Investigation"; in Eighteenth Yearbook of the 
 National Society for the Study of Education, part n. Public 
 School Publishing Company, Bloomington, 111. 1919. 
 
 The best brief summary of general principles without illus- 
 trative details. Contains latest findings on hygiene of mechan- 
 ical make-Up of readers. 
 
 Haliburton, Margaret W., and Smith, Agnes G. Teaching Poetry 
 in the Grades. Houghton Mifflin Company. 1911. 
 
 The best brief treatment. Has illustrative lessons for each 
 grade. 
 
 Huey, Edmund B. The Psychology and Pedagogy of Reading. 
 The Macmillan Company. 1908. 
 
 An excellent general treatment of silent reading based on the 
 early .scientific investigations. 
 
 Jenkins, Francis. Reading in the Primary Grades. Houghton 
 Mifflin Company. 1915. 
 
 Judd, Charles H. Reading : Its Nature and Development. Sup- 
 plementary Educational Monographs, vol. n, no. 4. Depart- 
 ment of Education, University of Chicago. 1918. 
 
 Gives the results of a number of research workers. An excel- 
 lent analysis of the underlying problems of reading instruction. 
 
 Kendall, Calvin N., and Mirick, George A. How to Teach the 
 Fundamental Subjects, chap. II. Houghton Mifflin Company. 
 1915. 
 
298 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 MacClintock, P. L. Literature in the Elementary School. The 
 
 University of Chicago Press. 1907. 
 
 The best treatment of the different types of literature and 
 
 their use in the different grades of the elementary school. 
 McCall, William A. How to Measure in Education. The Mac- 
 
 millan Company. 1921. 
 National Society for the Study of Education. Report of the 
 
 Society's Committee on Silent Reading, Twentieth Yearbook, 
 
 part ii. Public School Publishing Company, Bloomington, 
 
 111. 1921. 
 O'Brien, John A. Silent Reading. The Macmillan Company. 
 
 1920. 
 
 An account of an extensive research study including a special 
 
 method of training for speed development. 
 The St. Louis School Survey, vol. n, part 4. Board of Education, 
 
 St. Louis, Mo. 1916. 
 
 Gives the findings and recommendations as determined 
 
 through the Gray Oral- and Silent-Reading Tests, and by class- 
 room observations. 
 
INDEX 
 
 Ability, to think logically, improving, 
 178; individual differences in read- 
 ing, 282. 
 
 Accident prevention, need of reading 
 material in, 77. 
 
 Action cards, 204. 
 
 Action, literature of, 138. 
 
 Action sentences and directions, 169. 
 
 Adventure, literature of, 138. 
 
 ^Esthetic values, appreciation of, 82. 
 
 Aims, specific, 3; and methods in 
 primary grades, 33 ; of instruction, 
 
 ! in elementary school, summary, 
 37; in the intermediate grades, 71. 
 
 Amount and difficulty of literary 
 selections, 76. 
 
 Analysis of narratives, 191. 
 
 Application of reading ability to 
 everyday problems, 5. 
 
 Appreciation and rate in reading a 
 story, 42; how to develop, 80-86; 
 of poetry through oral reading, 35. 
 
 Appreciation of literature, 5, 80. 
 
 Appreciation lesson, general method, 
 84. 
 
 Articulation and recognition of print- 
 ed words, improvement in, 25; 
 and comprehension, 26; and rate 
 in silent reading, 27. 
 
 Assignments, importance of care in 
 making, 121; suggestions for def- 
 inite, 122; in illustrative lesson, 
 148; in dramatization, 152; speci- 
 men for relational thinking, 176. 
 
 Association of meanings, in memo- 
 rizing, 91. 
 
 Attainment, variability in the inter- 
 mediate grades, 69; variability in 
 upper grades, 74. 
 
 Audience reading, as an aim, 38; in 
 the primary grades, 57; in the in- 
 termediate grades, 71, 72; in the 
 upper grades, 78; types, 100-110; 
 books for, 105, 106. 
 
 Barnes Primer, 170. 
 
 Barnes Second Reader, 58, 260. 
 
 Barr Diagnostic Test in American 
 
 History, 181. 
 Beginning stage, problems of, 38. 
 "Bells, The," vocabulary lesson on, 
 
 Poe's, 197. 
 Blackboard steps, 41, 43. 
 Bobbitt, Franklin, quoted, 67, 68, 
 
 74, 75. 
 Bolenius, Emma M., 88, 185, 186, 
 
 189, 192, 223. 
 Bolenius Readers tests, 263. 
 Boys' and Girls' Readers, 88, 185, 
 
 186, 189, 192, 223, 263. 
 Briggs and Coffman, 115, 150, 154, 
 
 192. 
 Bryant, Sara Cone, quoted, 155. 
 Burgess Scale, for measuring ability 
 
 in silent-reading, 230. 
 Buswell, Dr., upon relation between 
 
 oral and silent reading, 15. 
 
 Cards, flash-, 30, 214; for phrase- 
 flashing, 56; third -grade drill, 204 
 -206; paragraph, 214. 
 
 Cautions, in matter of developing 
 appreciation, 85. 
 
 Cedar Rapids silent-reading exer- 
 cises, 209. 
 
 Central thought, training to grasp, 
 193. 
 
 Charters, W. W., 81, 139. 
 
 Children's Classics in Dramatic 
 Form, 106, 156. 
 
 Chubb, Percival, quoted, 76, 89. 
 
 Cobb, Irvin, quoted, 138. 
 
 Class use, books for extensive read- 
 ing by grades, 140. 
 
 Classification of silent-reading les- 
 sons, 118; special, 284. 
 
 Community life, readings in, 77. 
 
 Comprehension and rate, 16; and 
 rapidity, 16; and articulation, 27; 
 
300 
 
 INDEX 
 
 emphasis in second and third 
 grades, 60; plans for improving, 
 168; three main forms of, 172; an 
 experiment in factual, 174; pupils' 
 difficulties in, 179; of organization, 
 training in, 183; of words and 
 phrases, lesson to test and develop, 
 210; measures of, 226, 230, 235, 
 238, 241, 243, 277. 
 
 Confusion, due to failure in recogni- 
 tion, 9. 
 
 Content, problems concerning, 3; 
 of beginning lessons, 39; emphasis 
 on, 65; types in the intermediate 
 grades, 67; in the upper grades, 74, 
 77, 78. 
 
 Content silent-reading lessons, 112, 
 119. 
 
 Content lessons, compared with 
 training lessons, 161. 
 
 Content-value, choosing material 
 for, 76. J 
 
 Contrast, between content and train- 
 ing lessons, 161. 
 
 Courtis's silent-reading test, 21, 236. 
 
 Criterion for choosing literary units, 
 75. 
 
 Cumulative story, the, 172. 
 
 Current events, 77. 
 
 Curves of progress in rate — Gray, 
 Courtis, and Starch, 22; O'Brien, 
 23; significance of Gray's, 69; sig- 
 nificance of O'Brien's, 73. 
 
 "Cut-up story," the, 108. 
 
 "Daffodils," Wordsworth's, 92. 
 
 Definite assignments, suggestions 
 upon making, 122. 
 
 Developing appreciation, general sug- 
 gestions upon, 85. 
 
 Differences, between oral and silent 
 reading, 117; individual, 69, 282; 
 in rural schools, individual, 294. 
 
 Difficulty, and amount, of literary 
 selections, 76. 
 
 Dime-novel age, the, 139. 
 
 Direction sentences, for silent read- 
 ing as seat work, 169. 
 
 Dramatic audience reading, 106. 
 
 Dramatization, problems in silent 
 reading, 152; value of, 153. 'ft 
 
 Drawing correlation of illustrations 
 with, 148. 
 
 Drill work in third-grade silent read- 
 ing, motivated, 204; on words, 212; 
 on phrases, 56, 161, 213. 
 
 Earhart, Lida B., quoted, 80. 
 
 Early primer methods, 39. 
 
 Eighth grade, problem silent-reading 
 lessons, 135, 149; lesson in out- 
 lining, 187; reading exercise in his- 
 tory, 181; silent reading in gram- 
 mar exercises, 182; books for 
 silent reading, 139, 142; poems to 
 memorize, 96. 
 
 Elson Grammar-School Reader, 146, 
 162. 
 
 Emphasis on developing speed and 
 improving comprehension, 69; 
 where to be placed in silent read- 
 ing, 119. 
 
 Environment, introductory reading 
 matter related to the child's, 45. 
 
 Errors, types in oral reading, 53. 
 
 Examination, Haggerty-Noonan 
 reading, 242, 244. 
 
 Experiment, in factual comprehen- 
 sion, an, 174; in relation to rate 
 and comprehension, 16. 
 
 Exposition, summing up, 184. 
 
 Expression, development of oral, 37; 
 reading with, 53. 
 
 Extensive reading, in second and 
 third grades, 59; in middle and 
 upper grades, 66, 74; list of books 
 for class use in, 140. 
 
 Eye-movements, importance of, 6; 
 good and bad contrasted, 8; illus- 
 trations of, 10, 11, 12, 13; oral 
 reading in relation to, 35, 53 ; devel- 
 opment of proper habits, 55, 162. 
 
 Eye-pause, or fixation, 7, 8, 11. 
 
 Eye- voice span, the, 12-14 . 
 
 Factors affecting silent reading, 19; 
 in the development of speed, 20. 
 
 Factual comprehension, an experi- 
 ment in, 174. 
 
 Factual questions, 172. 
 
 Failure to awaken appreciation, 
 causes of, 80. 
 
INDEX 
 
 301 
 
 Fifth grade, illustrative silent-read- 
 ing lessons in, 128, 165, 185, 192; 
 book for silent-reading lessons, 
 141; illustrative problems, 144; 
 silent-reading test of rate and com- 
 prehension in, 274. 
 
 First grade, silent reading in the 
 58; Pressey-Skeel group test for 
 measuring reading vocabulary in, 
 249. 
 
 Fixation, or eye-pause, 7, 8, 11. 
 
 Formulation of problems, impor- 
 tance of, 123. 
 
 Fourth grade, radically different 
 methods in, 64; a dramatic audi- 
 ence-reading lesson in, 106; illus- 
 trative silent-reading lessons in, 
 125, 126, 157, 164, 184, 289; illus- 
 trative problems, 144; illustration 
 of cuttings, opposite 150; silent- 
 reading test in, 265; classes re- 
 grouped for reading, 288. 
 
 Freeman, F. N., quoted, 26, 44. 
 
 Game, drill, 205. 
 
 Gardenville School, St. Louis, re- 
 sults of use of tests, 254. 
 
 General method, of appreciation 
 lesson, 84. 
 
 Geography, silent-reading lesson in 
 sixth grade, 180. 
 
 Grades, problems in second and third, 
 54; silent reading in first and sec- 
 ond, 58; extensive reading in sec- 
 ond and third, 59; extensive read- 
 ing in middle and upper, 66; vari- 
 ability in reading attainment in 
 upper, 74; books for class-room 
 use in extensive silent reading, 
 140; Haggerty-Noonan test for 
 primary, 242. 
 
 Grammar exercises, silent reading in, 
 182. 
 
 Gray, C. T., quoted, 30. 
 
 Gray oral-reading test, 219. 
 
 Gray Silent-Reading Tests, 234. 
 
 Gray, Dr. William S., quoted, 22, 49, 
 52, 60, 64, 112, 114, 293. 
 
 Group reading, 155; special plans for, 
 156. 
 
 Group Tests, 253. 
 
 Group work, in making paragraph 
 
 headings, 190. 
 Grouping, special, 285. 
 Group-to-group audience reading, 
 
 101; recitation, 103. 
 
 Haggerty-Noonan reading examina- 
 tion, 242, 244. 
 
 Haliburton and Smith, referred to, 
 87, 90, 99. 
 
 Headings, making and matching, 
 190; training in reading newspa- 
 per, 190. 
 
 Hearing — reading tests, 223. 
 
 History, silent reading exercise in, 181. 
 
 Holley sentence vocabulary scale, 
 249. 
 
 Holton Primer, 170. 
 
 Horn, Ernest, referred to, 117. 
 
 "How I Killed a Bear," Warner's, 
 131. 
 
 Huey, E. B., referred to, 6, 28. 
 
 Humorous, appreciation of the, 83. 
 
 Illustrated audience reading, 108. 
 
 Illustrating nursery rhymes, direc- 
 tions for, 207. 
 
 Illustration, selection of units suit- 
 able for, 151. 
 
 Illustrations, types of, 147; purposes 
 of, 147; correlated with drawing, 
 148. 
 
 Illustrations made by groups of pu- 
 pils, reproductions, opposite 150. 
 
 Illustrative silent-reading lessons, 
 125, 128, 131, 135. 
 
 Importance of oral reading, in the 
 lower grades, 33. 
 
 Improvement, through use of tests, 
 254. 
 
 Improving comprehension, plans for, 
 168. 
 
 Increase of rate, re-reading for, 161, 
 166; devices for, 161-168; O'Brien's 
 types of training for, 167. 
 
 Individual and group-reading, 155- 
 159. 
 
 Individual differences, 69, 282; in 
 rural schools, 294. 
 
 Individual needs, grouping by, 70, 
 284. 
 
302 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Individual Tests, 254. 
 
 Informational material, 67, 77, 172. 
 
 Inner speech, the natural tendency 
 to suppressed tone in silent read- 
 ing, 26. 
 
 Interesting books for boys, lists re- 
 ported by largest cities, 139. 
 
 Interest, problem of securing, 4. 
 
 Intermediate and Upper Grades, 
 teaching reading in, 64. 
 
 Intermediate grades, oral reading in, 
 70, 77; summary of work in teach- 
 ing reading, 71; literature chosen 
 for, 75; Haggerty reading exam- 
 inations for, 243; variability in, 
 282. 
 
 Iowa City silent reading exercises, 
 209. 
 
 Jenkins, Frances, referred to, 28, 30. 
 Jones vocabulary test, 222. 
 Judd, Charles H., 9, 16, 69, 115, 199, 
 258, 282, 293. 
 
 Kendall and Mirick, quoted, 59, 62, 
 77, 113, 115. 
 
 Language Response Cards, 205. 
 
 Lessons in community and national 
 life, 77, 288. 
 
 Lewis and Roland Silent Readers, 200. 
 
 Library, use of room, 159. 
 
 listening powers, how to test, 223. 
 
 Lists, of poems for memory work, 93 ; 
 of books for group-to-group audi- 
 ence reading, 105; of books most 
 popular with boys, 139; of books 
 for class use in extensive : reading, 
 140; of selections for silent read- 
 ing, arranged by grades, 142. 
 
 Literature, appreciation of, 5; choice 
 of, in intermediate grades, 75. 
 
 McCatl, William A., referred to, 241. 
 McMurry, F. M., quoted, 124. 
 "Magic Mask, The," 274. 
 "Man without a Country, The," 
 
 Hale's, 135. 
 Meaning, expression in first grade, 
 
 53; association of, 91; training to 
 
 grasp essential, 193. 
 
 Measurement, Burgess theory of, 
 230. 
 
 Measuring comprehension, 226, 230, 
 235, 238, 241, 243, 277. 
 
 Measuring rate, 227, 235, 238, 276. 
 
 Measuring understanding of sen- 
 tences, Thorndike scale, 240. 
 
 Memorization, 80, 90; lists of poems 
 for, 93. 
 
 Merrill Fourth Reader, 152. 
 
 Merrill Primer, the, 43, 44. 
 
 Method, early primer, 39; of appre- 
 ciation lesson, 84; in teaching po- 
 etry, references for, 87; in teaching 
 memorizing, 90; memorizing, con- 
 trasted, 91; combined, 92. 
 
 Monroe, W. S., referred to, 20, 178, 
 259. 
 
 Monroe Standardized General Sur- 
 vey Silent-Reading Tests, 225. 
 
 Monroe Standardized Reading Tests, 
 206. 
 
 Mother-Goose type of primer, 42. 
 
 Motivated drill work in silent-read- 
 ing, third grade, 204. 
 
 Motivation, 4. y 
 
 National life, readings in, 77. 
 
 Natural Method Primer, 42. 
 
 Natural Method Readers, 88. 
 
 Nature of appreciation, the, 81. 
 
 Nature phenomena, appreciation of, 
 84. 
 
 Newspaper headings, training in 
 reading, 190. 
 
 Newspapers, class exercise with, 191. 
 
 Norms, comparison of rate, 21. 
 
 Notes, making running, 189. 
 
 Nursery-rhyme type of primer, 43. 
 
 Nursery rhymes, directions for il- 
 lustrating, 207. 
 
 O'Brien, Dr. John A., conclusions as 
 to effect of increased speed upon 
 comprehension, 18; quoted, 72, 
 167. 
 
 One-word response cards, 205. 
 
 Oral and silent reading, relation be- 
 tween, 15; relative value of, 33; 
 essential differences between, 115, 
 117. 
 
INDEX 
 
 303 
 
 Oral exercise in English, 182. 
 
 Oral reading, a slower process than 
 silent, 24; importance of, in lower 
 grades, 33; poetry, 35; social value 
 of, 36; errors in, 53; types of, 55, 
 99 ; in the intermediate grades, 70, 
 in the upper grades, 77; over-em- 
 phasis of, 114. 
 
 Oral-reading stage, the, 52. 
 
 Oral reading test, Gray's, 219. 
 
 Organization, training in compre- 
 hension of, 183-195. 
 
 Outline, specimen of, 192. 
 
 Outlines, 184, 187. 
 
 Over-emphasis of oral reading, 114. 
 
 Paragraph cards, 214. 
 
 Paragraph headings, making and 
 
 matching, 190. 
 Parker, S. C, referred to, 91. 
 Pauses per line, 9. 
 Perception in reading, visual, 27. 
 Perspective view of whole poem, 87. 
 Phonetic rules, 212. 
 Phonic drill, the danger in, 51. 
 Phonics, 49-51. 
 Phrase-flashing, 56, 161, 213. 
 Phrases, drill on, 213. 
 Pintner, R., referred to, 26. 
 Plans, for the silent-reading lesson, 
 
 119; for grouping, 156; for im- 
 proving comprehension, 168. 
 Poems, in oral reading, 35 ; studied by 
 
 parts, 88; for memory work, lists 
 
 of, 93. 
 Poetry, the teaching of, 87. 
 Poor method in silent reading, 129. 
 Poor reading habits, the result of 
 
 undesirable type of lessons in 
 
 school, 113. 
 Pressey-Skeel group test, first grade, 
 
 249, 252. 
 Pretense cards, 205. 
 Primary stage, the, 52. 
 Primary grades, Haggerty-Noonan 
 
 test for, 242. 
 Primer, the simple-story, 40. 
 Primer methods, 39. 
 Primers, summary of conclusions 
 
 regarding, 44. 
 Problems in reading instruction, 2; 
 
 of the beginning stage, 38; of sec- 
 ond and third grades, 54; charac- 
 teristic of good, 120; formulated 
 by pupils, 123; illustrative state- 
 ment of, 131; solution, 132. 
 
 Progressive Road to Reading, 41. 
 
 Pronunciation, ten phonetic rules of, 
 212. 
 
 Proportion of time, given to silent 
 reading, 115-116. 
 
 Pupils, formulation of problems by, 
 123. 
 
 Purposes of training lesson, 161. 
 
 Questions, difficulties in formulating 
 test, 265. 
 
 Questions and answers, specimen^ 
 with criticism, 269, 271. 
 
 Questions in reading tests, score 
 values of, 273; specimen compre- 
 hension, 277. 
 
 Questions, problem and factual, 120. 
 
 Rapidity and comprehension, 16. 
 
 Rate, and comprehension, 16, 18; of 
 reading, standards in, 20; of silent 
 reading, 19; and articulation, 27; 
 in oral reading, 52, 221; devices 
 for increasing, 161-168; re-read- 
 ing for increase of, 166; meth- 
 ods of measuring, 227, 235, 238, 
 276. 
 
 Rate norms, comparison of the O'Bri- 
 en, Gray, Courtis, and Starch, 21. 
 
 Reading to pupils, 110. 
 
 Reading ability, individual differ- 
 ences in, 282. 
 
 Reading tests, 217; selection of, 253; 
 score value of questions in, 273 ; in 
 rural schools, 279; in second-grade, 
 290. 
 
 Reading-Literature Primer, the, 40. 
 
 Recall, as a factor in memorizing, 92. 
 
 Records, time on reading outside of 
 recitation, 166. 
 
 Red-blooded material, value of, 138. 
 
 Regressive movements, of the eye, 9. 
 
 Relation between oral and silent 
 reading, 8, 15, 25, 33. 
 
 Relational questions, proper state- 
 ment of, 176. 
 
304 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Relational thinking, training in, 175. 
 
 Relationship between words, drill of 
 pupils in, 202. 
 
 Remedial instruction, 293. 
 
 Remedial training work, types of, 
 212. 
 
 Remedial treatment, suggested by- 
 study of tests, 258. 
 
 Representation, problems of illustra- 
 tive, 147. 
 
 Reproduction and silent reading, 
 171. 
 
 Re-reading, for increase of rate, 166; 
 verifying answers by careful, 178. 
 
 Results in reading, more satisfactory 
 in primary than in middle and 
 upper grades, 1. 
 
 Rhythmical movement, of the eye in 
 reading, 9. 
 
 "Rip Van Winkle" an illustrated 
 eighth-grade lesson, 149. 
 
 Riverside Readers, 88. 
 
 Riverside Primer, the, 40, 44, 61. 
 
 Riverside First Reader, the, 61. 
 
 Riverside Fourth Reader, 126, 164, 
 265. 
 
 Riverside Fifth Reader, 165, 274, 288. 
 
 "Robin Hood," series of silent read- 
 ing lessons in, 128. 
 
 Room, special grouping within a, 285. 
 
 Room library, use of, 159. 
 
 Rugg, H. O., referred to, 274. 
 
 Rules of pronunciation, listing words 
 according to phonetic, 212. 
 
 Rural schools, use of reading tests in, 
 279 ; individual differences in, 294. 
 
 St. Louis, Course of study in reading, 
 
 36, 60, 110, 114; report of school 
 
 survey, 16, 53, 112. 
 Scale, of reading ability for first four 
 
 grades, 208. 
 Scale, Holley sentence vocabulary, 
 
 the, 249. 
 Scale, Thorndike-McCall, the, 240. 
 Scales, Thorndike visual vocabulary, 
 
 246. 
 Schmidt, W. A., referred to, 8. 
 Schmitt, Clara, referred to, 292. 
 Score values of questions, in reading 
 
 tests, 273. 
 
 Seat work, 169. 
 
 Second grade, silent reading in, 58; 
 extensive reading in, 59; impro- 
 vised silent-reading test in, 259. 
 
 Second and third grades, main prob- 
 lems in, 54. 
 
 Second-grade classes specially 
 grouped for reading, 290. 
 
 Selection of poems, the, 97. 
 
 Selections for silent reading, ar- 
 ranged by grades, 142. 
 
 Sentence vocabulary scale, Holley, 
 249. 
 
 Series, of fifth-grade silent reading 
 lessons, illustrative, 128; of eighth- 
 grade recitations, 135. 
 
 Seventh-grade, silent-reading lessons 
 in, 131, 151, 197; study of re- 
 grouping of two classes in, 285; 
 books for silent reading lessons, 
 141; illustrative problems, 145; 
 poems to memorize, 96. . 
 
 Sharp, Dallas Lore, nature series, 
 104. 
 
 Silent reading, 58; importance em- 
 phasized, 2; exercises in latest 
 type, 204; Cedar Rapids and Iowa 
 City, exercises in, 209; rate of, 19; 
 should predominate in the middle 
 grades, 64; training in, 68, 130; 
 extensive, 74; proportion of time 
 given to, 115; method, more than 
 training exercises, 117; group work 
 in, 155; individual, 157; and re- 
 production, 171; in grammar ex- 
 ercises, 182; factors in testing, 224; 
 Monroe, tests in, 225; Burgess 
 scale for measuring ability in, 
 230; Gray, tests in, 234; Courtis's 
 test in, 236; improvised test, for 
 second grade, 259; fourth-grade 
 test, 265; rate and comprehension r 
 fifth-grade test in, 274. 
 
 Silent-reading lessons, in primary 
 grades, 58, 169, 207, 209 ; classfied, 
 118; third grade, 204; fourth grade, 
 125, 126, 157, 164; fifth grade, 128, 
 
 185, 192; sixth grade, 174, 180, 
 
 186, 189, 198, 200; illustrative, 
 seventh grade, 131, 151, 197; 
 illustrative, eighth grade, 135, 
 
INDEX 
 
 305 
 
 149, 187; in geography, ISO; in 
 history, 181; O'Brien's, 167; selec- 
 tions, by grades, 142. 
 
 Simple-story primer, the, 40. 
 
 Sixth grade, silent-reading lessons, 
 174, 180, 186, 189, 198, 200; study 
 of individual differences, 282; 
 books for silent-reading lessons, 
 141; illustrative problems, 145; 
 poems to memorize, 96. 
 
 Skimming, 166. 
 
 Slow-approach primers, 41, 42. 
 
 Social studies, directions for illus- 
 trating, 208. 
 
 Social value of oral reading, 36, 82. 
 
 Socialized study and recitation, 37. 
 
 Span, eye-voice, analysis of, 14. 
 
 Special grouping, 285. 
 
 Speed, and comprehension, experi- 
 ment in observing, 17; O'Brien's 
 conclusions as to effect of increased 
 speed, 18; factors in the develop- 
 ment of, 20; development of, in 
 the upper grades, 72; O'Brien's 
 three types of training for, 167. 
 
 Stages of development in reading 
 ability, 3. 
 
 Standards in rate of reading, 20. 
 
 Standardized tests, studies of the 
 results of use, 254. 
 
 Starch, Daniel, referred to, 235. 
 
 Steps in illustrating reading lessons, 
 148. 
 
 Stories, directions for illustrating, 
 207. 
 
 Story-Hour Primer, 42. 
 
 Stray er and Norsworthy, quoted, 
 82, 85, 92. 
 
 Studies in Reading, 88. 
 
 Study, and reading, the close relation 
 between, 5, 68; and silent reading, 
 130. 
 
 Suggestions, on developing apprecia- 
 tion, 85; on when to use oral or 
 silent reading method, 118. 
 
 Summary, of conclusions regarding 
 primers, 44; upper-grade work, 78. 
 
 Summers Primer, the, 45. 
 
 Survey, St. Louis, 16, 53, 112; Cleve- 
 land, 16. 
 
 Suzzallo, Henry, quoted, 34. 
 
 Synopsis, study of, 192. 
 Synthesis, in study of a poem, 90. 
 
 Teaching of Reading, the, 122. 
 
 Telling the story, 171. 
 
 Testing, in oral and silent reading, 
 3; silent-reading, factors in, 224; 
 reading, summary of conclusions, 
 278. 
 
 Tests, use in improving reading, 217; 
 of silent reading, necessity of using 
 several, 225; Haggerty-Noonan, 
 242; vocabulary, 222, 243, 246, 
 249; Pressey-Skeel, 249; reading, 
 comparison of, 253; improvised 
 silent-reading, for second-grade, 
 259; Bolenius, 263; fourth-grade 
 silent-reading, 265, 272; score 
 values of questions in reading, 
 273; of rate and comprehension, 
 fifth-grade silent-reading, 274; in 
 rural schools, reading, 279; in sec- 
 ond-grade, 290; lists of, 217-219. 
 
 Thinking, in reading and study, 178. 
 
 Third grade, extensive reading in, 
 59; motivated drill work in silent 
 reading in, 204. 
 
 Thorndike, E. L., 173, 178. 
 
 Thorndike scale, the, 240. 
 
 Thought units, increasingly larger, 
 61. 
 
 Time limit, reading under a, 163. 
 
 Timing the pupil's reading, 165. 
 
 Too-slow group, the, 60. 
 
 Topical audience reading, 107. 
 
 Topical outline, 185. 
 
 Toys, directions for constructing, 
 208. 
 
 Trabue, M. R.', quoted, 248. 
 
 Training, for speed. O'Brien's three 
 types of, 167; in relational think- 
 ing, 175; in comprehension of or- 
 ganization, 183. 
 
 Training exercises in silent reading 
 in geography, 179. 
 
 Training lessons in silent reading, 
 161. 
 
 Types, of oral reading, 55, 99; of 
 comprehension reading, 172; of 
 Silent-Reading Exercises, Latest, 
 204 ; of remedial training work, 212. 
 
306 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Ungraded room, the reading prob- 
 lem, 292. 
 
 Units suitable for illustration, 151. 
 
 Upper Grades, the, 72, 78; Hag- 
 gerty reading examinations for, 
 243. 
 
 Use of reading tests in improving 
 reading, 217. 
 
 Value, relative, of oral and silent 
 reading, -33; of questions in score, 
 273. 
 
 Values, emphasis on the major, 65, 
 119. 
 
 Variability, in attainment, 74; in 
 intermediate grades, 282. 
 
 Verifying answers, by careful re- 
 reading, 178. 
 
 Visual perception in reading, 27. 
 
 Visual vocabulary scales, Thorndike, 
 246. 
 
 Vocabulary, problems concerning, 
 4; in primary grades, 34, 61; word- 
 study for meaning, 66; training 
 lessons in, 195-203; growth 
 through experience, 195; problem 
 lessons, 196, 198; scales and tests 
 — Jones, 222; Haggerty, 243; 
 Thorndike, 246; Holley, 249; 
 Pressey, 249. 
 
 Vocabularies, building up, 214. 
 
 Vocalization, 26. 
 
 Vocational interest, 77. 
 
 Voice, improvement in use of, 37. 
 
 Word study, systematic, 66, 198. 
 Words, meanings of, 177. 
 Written reproduction, 171. 
 
 Yearbooks, of National Society for 
 study of education, referred to, 6, 
 19, 22, 45, 49, 72, 209, 223. 
 
RIVERSIDE 
 TEXTBOOKS IN EDUCATION 
 
 General Educational Theory 
 
 PSYCHOLOGY FOR NORMAL SCHOOLS. 
 
 By L. A. Averill, Massachusetts State Normal School, Worcester. 
 
 EXPERIMENTAL EDUCATION. 
 
 By F. N. Freeman, University of Chicago. 
 
 HOW CHILDREN LEARN. 
 
 By F. N. Freeman. 
 
 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF THE COMMON BRANCHES. 
 
 By F. N. Freeman. 
 
 DISCIPLINE AS A SCHOOL PROBLEM. 
 By A. C. Perry, Jr. 
 
 AN INTRODUCTION TO EDUCATIONAL SOCIOLOGY, 
 
 By W. R. Smith, Kansas State Normal School. 
 
 TRAINING FOR EFFECTIVE STUDY. 
 
 By F. W, Thomas, State Normal School, Fresno, California, 
 
 AN INTRODUCTION TO CHILD PSYCHOLOGY. 
 
 By C. W. Waddle, Ph.D., Los Angeles State Normal School. 
 
 History of Education 
 
 THE HISTORY OF EDUCATION. 
 
 By E. P. Cubberley. 
 
 A BRIEF HISTORY OF EDUCATION. 
 By E. P. Cubberley. 
 
 READINGS IN THE HISTORY OF EDUCATION. 
 
 By E. P. Cubberley. 
 
 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN THE UNITED STATES. 
 By E. P. Cubberley. 
 
 Administration and Supervision of Schools 
 
 HEALTHFUL SCHOOLS: HOW TO BUILD, EQUIP, AND MAIK 
 TAIN THEM. 
 
 By May Ayres, J. F. Williams, M.D., University of Cincinnati, and T. D 
 Wood, A.M., M.D., Teachers College, Columbia University. 
 
 PUBLIC SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 By E. P. Cubberley. 
 
 RURAL LIFE AND EDUCATION. 
 
 By E. P. Cubberley. 
 
 HEALTH WORK IN THE SCHOOLS. 
 
 By E. B. Hoag, M.D., and L. M. Terman, Leland Stanford Junior University, 
 
 MEASURING THE RESULTS OF TEACHING, 
 By W. S. Monroe, University of Illinois. 
 
 1926 a 
 
EDUCATIONAL TESTS AND MEASUREMENTS. 
 By W. S. Monroe, J. C. DeVoss, Kansas State Normal School; and F. J 
 Kelly, University of Kansas. 
 
 THE SUPERVISION OF INSTRUCTION. 
 By H. W. Nutt, University of Kansas. 
 
 STATISTICAL METHODS APPLIED TO EDUCATION. 
 By H. O. Rugc, University of Chicago. 
 
 CLASSROOM ORGANIZATION AND CONTROL. 
 
 By J. B. Sears, Leland Stanford Junior University. 
 
 A HANDBOOK FOR RURAL SCHOOL OFFICERS. 
 
 By N. D. Showalter, Washington State Normal School. 
 
 THE HYGIENE OF THE SCHOOL CHILD. 
 By L. M. Terman. 
 
 THE MEASUREMENT OF INTELLIGENCE. 
 By L. M. Terman. 
 
 Test Material for the Measurement of Intelligence. Record Booklets for the 
 Measurement of Intelligence. 
 
 THE INTELLIGENCE OF SCHOOL CHILDREN. 
 By L. M. Terman. 
 
 Methods of Teaching 
 
 TEACHING LITERATURE IN THE GRAMMAR GRADES AND HIGH 
 SCHOOL. 
 
 By Emma M. Bolenius. 
 
 HOW TO TEACH THE FUNDAMENTAL SUBJECTS. 
 By C. N. Kendall and G. A. Mirick. 
 
 HOW TO TEACH THE SPECIAL SUBJECTS. 
 By C. N. Kendall and G. A. Mirick. 
 
 SILENT AND ORAL READING. 
 By C R. Stonb. 
 
 THE TEACHING OF SCIENCE IN THE ELEA1ENTARY SCHOOL. 
 By G. H. Trafton, State Normal School, Mankato, Minnesota. 
 
 TEACHING IN RURAL SCHOOLS. 
 By T. J. Woofter, University of Georgia. 
 
 Secondary Education 
 
 THE JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL. 
 
 By Twos. H. Briggs, Columbia University. 
 
 THE TEACHING OF ENGLISH IN THE SECONDARY SCHOOL, 
 By Charles Swain Thomas. 
 
 PRINCIPLES OF SECONDARY EDUCATION. 
 By Alexander Inglis, Harvard University. 
 
 PROBLEMS OF SECONDARY EDUCATION. 
 By David Snedden, Columbia University. 
 
 HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY 
 
 iv6b 
 

 
 The Boys f and Girls* Readers 
 
 By EMMA MILLER BOLENIUS 
 ** Train your Pupils in Silent Reading** 
 
 Fourth Reader Sixth Reader 
 
 Fifth Reader Teachers' Manual 
 
 C A series of basal readers for the Fourth, Fifth, and 
 Sixth Grades — • the crucial years in gaining skill in silent 
 reading, and fluency in oral reading. 
 
 C Miss Bolenius, widely recognized as an expert, has been 
 guided by her study of the most authoritative and up-to-date 
 reports, investigations, courses of study, and surveys. 
 
 C. In the three Readers there is full study equipment 
 with each article, story, or poem. Into this equipment, 
 the editor has succeeded in bringing her own personal touch* 
 She makes reading a delight for both pupil and teacher. 
 
 C Four major objects of the Bolenius Readers are: 
 
 (i) To direct silent reading, (2) To motivate oral reading, 
 (3) To develop the reading habit in children, and (4) Tc 
 broaden the child's outlook on life. 
 
 €L Practical everyday reading of various kinds is stressed. 
 The illustrations are full of teaching value and appeal. 
 Typographical aids make reading easier for the child. How 
 to study is given special attention, and supervised study 
 has been developed in an entirely new way. 
 
 H In the Teachers' Manual there is help so concrete that 
 even inexperienced teachers will secure results. It presents 
 a practical methodology for silent reading. 
 
 HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY 
 
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
 021 775 092 1