CHOICE LITERATURE - BOOK ONE - FOR PRIMARY GRADES - Preface and Reader Notes

Aug 26, 2026

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A curated primary-grade literature collection designed to teach children what to read while deliberately building a taste for good literature. The preface argues that reading instruction often begins too late and forms an unhealthy reading preference before high school. Selections are carefully chosen and graded to match age and maturity, avoiding trashy material or texts beyond comprehension. The volume includes notes and brief statements about the purpose of the selections and encourages teachers to guide out-of-school reading through small personal libraries.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLiterature

FormatPDF

Pages151

Reading Time3 h 53 min

AccessFree to download

PREFACE

TO THE READER

Notes on selected tales

SCHOOL OF EDUCATIONLIBRARYLIBRARIESThe retail price of this book is $………… # CHOICE LITERATURE BO0K ONE FOR PRIMARY GRADES COMPILED AND ARRANGED BY SHERMAN WILLIAMSBUPERINTENDENT Or sCHOOLs,GLENS FALLS,N.Y. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONLELAND STANFORBTENIOK UNIVERSITY BU'TLER,SHELDON &COMPANYNEW YORK.PHILADELPHIA CHICAGO BOSTON ~ 588269 CoPYRTGHT,1898,BYSHELDON AND COMPANY.6 # PREFACE CHARLES DUDLEY WARNER once said,“To teach achild to read,and not teach it what to read,is'to put·a dangerous weapon into its hands.” There can be no doubt as to the truth of this state-ment.High schools now very generally have courses inreading and literature;but the great majority of pupilsnever reach the high school,and those who do haveformed a taste for reading before that period,very oftena taste for reading that is decidedly bad,and only occa-sionally for that which is really excellent,so that in thisparticular the work of the high school becomes largelythat of reformation,instead of formation,a very difficultwork that need not have been necessary. This procedure utterly ignores the needs,so far as thestudy of literature is concerned,of ninety per cent of thepupils,and begins the work too late with the others.Tosome extent desultory work is being done in many pri-mary and grammar schools,through the use of supple-mentary readers;but this cannot be very effective informing a taste for good reading,because the expensenecessary to provide a sufficient amount and variety ofbooks will be so great that few schools can meet it,andstill fewer will.Too often the supplementary readersused are intended merely to furnish information.As3 4PREFACE the result of this condition of affairs,with the exceptionof here and there a school,no effective effort is beingmade to create and foster a taste for good literature ingrades below the high school.Much supplementaryreading is being done,but there seems to be no clearlydefined plan,no definite end aimed at. This is probably due to the fact that there is no seriesof readers well adapted to the carrying on of this work.The compiler of this series has attempted to meet thiswant.The selections are carefully made and graded,and are believed to be those suited to the age and ma-turity of the pupils for whom they are intended.Theyare all good of their kind,and it is believed that theselection of trashy matter on the one hand,or matterbeyond the comprehension of the pupils on the other,hasbeen avoided. Each volume of the series has been made with a defi-nite purpose in view,and in each will appear a brief state-ment in regard to the selections made and the end aimedat.There will be such notes and explanations as seemto be necessary.This series can be used to excellent ad-vantage in teaching children how to read,but it shouldbe borne in mind that the primary purpose of the seriesis to teach what to read,to create and foster a 'taste forgood literature;therefore many selections for whichroom cannot be found,will be suggested,to aid indirecting the out of school reading of the pupils.Itis hoped that teachers will encourage pupils to formlittle libraries of their own.Many suggestions will bemade that will aid in such work. 6TO THE READER old Teutonic allegory,the red hen being the sun,themoney bags the rain,and the harp the winds. “Bluebeard”is from the tales of Perrault,which werepublished about 1697.Dr.C.Taylor thinks Bluebearda type of the Castle Lords of the days of Knight Errantry.Some think Bluebeard was intended to represent Henrythe Eighth.Another solution is that Bluebeard wasCount Conomar,and the young wife,Tryphyna,daughterof Count Guerech.Count Conomar was a lieutenant ofBrittany in the reign of Childebert.The incident of thekeys and the doors is similar to that mentioned by“TheThird Calendar."in the“Arabian Nights.” The story of“Whittington and His Cat”is found insubstance in an old Persian story.Several solutions ofthe story have becn given.One suggests that a“cat”is a bri

FAQs

Why does the preface emphasize teaching children what to read, not just how to read?

It argues that without guiding what children read, reading ability becomes a dangerous tool. High school reform is often too late for most pupils, since tastes are formed earlier.

How are the selections in this series chosen and organized for primary grades?

Selections are carefully made and graded to suit the age and maturity of the intended pupils. The compilation aims to avoid both trashy material and content beyond learners’ comprehension.

What guidance does the series provide to teachers and students for reading outside school?

The primary purpose is to create and foster a taste for good literature. The volume suggests additional selections not fully accommodated in the book and encourages teachers to have pupils form small libraries of their own.

Aug 26, 2026

Upload by Connor