What have we been doing? The child plays. The fly sips. The parrot talks. The children of the second class turn these sentences into questions, and the first class recapitulate them. Mother. Now I shall accost or address the boy. What am I going to do? Boy-(The mother pauses awhile after this word) read! Children repeat. Mother. Whom do I address? After the word with which you address, you must pause as I have done, but you have spoken without any stop. What do I reprove you for? Children. That we, &c. Mother. You did so, because you only heard what, but did not observe how, I enunciated. That is the reason you could not speak with the proper tone. What is the reason? I will repeat the sentence once more. What have we done in this sentence? Children. We have addressed the boy. Mother. The bird sings. Turn this into an address. Children. Bird, sing! or, Sing, bird! Mother. The dog barks. Children. Dog, bark! Mother desires the children to repeat the three sentences. Change our three sentences into an address. The child plays. Children. Child, play! Mother. The fly sips. Children. Fly, sip! Mother. The parrot talks. Children. Parrot, talk! Mother. The boy reads. Does the boy read? Boy, read! In what do these sentences differ? Children. The first sentence stands in the affirmative; the second contains an interrogation; the third, an address. Mother. Now we will address the boy, and add a question. What are we going to do? Children. We are going to address the boy, and to join a question. Mother. Boy, do you read? Now I have done this; for, in saying, Boy, I address him; and in saying, Do you read? I put a question to him. She pronounces the sentence again, and after the word "boy," she pauses. What did you notice, when I repeated this sentence? Children. You paused at the word "boy." Mother. If you have paid attention, you will be able to tell me the reason. Children. Because "boy!" is an address, after which we ought to stop. Mother. Put now the addressing word last. Mother. The bird sings. Change this into an address and a question. Children. Bird! do you sing? or, Do you sing, bird? Mother. Dog! do you bark? or, Do you bark, dog? Which of you can manage our three other sentences in the same manner. Caroline. Child! do you play? Fly! do you sip? Parrot! do you talk? Mother. How do I speak, when I say: The boy reads? Children. In the affirmative order, or affirmatively. Mother. And when I say: Does the boy read? Children. In an interrogative manner, or interrogatively. Mother. And when I say: Boy, read! Children. In an address, or imperatively. Mother. And when I say: Boy! do you read? Children. In an address joined to a question. Mother. We have hitherto expressed our sentences in a fourfold manner. 1. Affirmatively. 2. Interrogatively. 3. In an address. 4. In an address joined to a question. Children repeat. Mother. Now let us express all our sentences in the affirmative order. Children. The boy reads. The bird sings, &c. Mother. Now interrogatively. Now in an address. Now in an address and question. Express the first sentence in a fourfold manner. Now the second. Now the third, &c. Simple sentences treated as before, but having their subject and predicate in the plural number. Mother. The boy reads. How many boys do I speak of? Children. Of one. Mother. The boys read. Do I now speak of one boy only? Children. No, of several. Mother. Repeat these two sentences. In what do they differ? Children. In the first sentence I say some thing of one boy only in the second, I say something of several boys. Mother. The bird sings. The birds sing. What difference is there between these two sentences? The dog barks. The dogs bark. |