Notes of Lessons: Narration, Class II

[We have thought that it might be of use to our readers (in their own families) to publish from month to month during the current year, Notes of Lessons prepared by students of the House of Education for the pupils of the Practising School. We should like to say, however, that such a Lesson is never given as a tour de force, but is always an illustration or an expansion of some part of the children’s regular studies (in the Parents’ Review School), some passage in one or other of their school books.—Ed.]

Subject: Narration • Group: English • Class II • Time: 20 minutes

By K. Loveday
The Parents’ Review, 1904, pp. 469-470

Objects

I. To increase N_____’s and J_____’s powers of

(a) narration.

(b) imagination.

II. As N_____ and J_____ have just been moved up into the second class, and have not read the first part of Morte d’Arthur; my object is to increase their interest in King Arthur, by reading to them the tale of how he became king.

Lesson

Step I.—Ask the children whether they know anything about King Arthur, and who he was. Although we cannot believe all that is told us in the stories about King Arthur, yet we know that he really existed. He was a British chief, and lived in the sixth century. He was slain in a battle against the Angles. The conquered Britons fled to Wales, and carried with them tales of the heroic deeds of Arthur, out of which the legend grew.

Step II.—Show the children on a map the position of Caerleon, the seat of King Arthur in the legend.

Step III.—Ask the children whether they understand the title of their book—Morte d’Arthur, and why it is in French. The Britons of North France were of the same race as those in England, and had the same legends. These were for a long time only traditional, and a good deal was added from time to time. Later on they were written down, first in Welsh, then in French, and afterwards in English and other languages. The author of the book we are using got most of his information from the French, and kept the title of one of the versions, Le Morte d’Arthur.

Step IV.—Read once, slowly and distinctly, from The Book of Romance, the tale of Arthur drawing the sword, putting the names on the blackboard and explaining if there are words that the children do not understand.

Step V.—Show illustrations of the scene.

Step VI.—Let the children narrate in turn what has been read to them.