The highway smokes; sharp echoes ring, The farmer's horse, with steaming flank. The swallow dips beneath the eaves And flirts his plumes, and folds his wings; The caterpillar curls and clings. The bumblebee is pelted down Within, the baby claps his hands. And crows with rapture strange and vague; A dripping rooster on one leg. -James Whitcomb Riley From Rhymes of Childhood, copyright, 1890, 1918. Used by special permission of the publishers, The Bobbs-Merrill Company. Name the words in the poem which show action. Explain the meaning of the following expressions: scud thunder grim reverberates gasping highway smokes swallow dips curls and clings cowbells clank Oral assignment. Choose one of the subjects given on page 66 that you know about and tell just what you saw and what you did. Be sure to use vivid words. (Look up the meaning of vivid.) 1. A Dangerous Wind Storm 4. Returning in the Rain from a Picnic 6. A Sand Storm Written assignment. Select one of the stories told by another pupil and write it your way, or give a vivid picture of one of the following: A Rainy Day at the Fair The First Day of Spring Housecleaning A Fire Near My Home Before you begin your description, think over your subject and form a clear mental picture of the scene you wish to paint in words. Go over your work carefully to substitute more vivid words for those you have used. CHOOSING THE RIGHT WORD We learned in our study of Mr. Riley's poem that certain words have a special aptness. In order that you may grow more skilful from day to day in the right use of words, study the following list of verbs and be able to give the animal to which each verb is suited: Look at this list. Be prepared to write before each word the name of an animal or the animals that make Aurora, the goddess of the dawn, opens the eastern doors of the palace of the sun and strews the path of Apollo, the sun god, with roses. She appears just before sunrise, her rosy fingers tinting the misty clouds. Apollo mounts his chariot, the Hours harness the horses, a beautiful little boy holds a torch to light the path and with Aurora leading the way and strewing roses, Apollo and his horses gallop on their course. The birds stir in the trees and begin their sweet morning song. The leaves rustle and the flowers raise their heads to say "good morning." Little children, too, open their eyes happily for another day of play. The original of this famous allegorical picture by Guido Reni is in the Rospiglioso [Ros-pel-yo'sō] Palace, Rome. Guido Reni was one of the most eminent painters of his time, and his work is noted for its soft and harmonious coloring. He greatly loved the blue waters of the Bay of Naples, and it is this that is suggested below the figures in the painting of "Aurora." Each of us should know certain pictures as well as we know certain books, poems, and heroes. Let us see if we can answer the following questions about this picture: 1. What is the name of the picture? 2. Is it a landscape, a portrait, or a picture which tells a story? 3. Do these people look like real people? 4. What figure interests you most? 5. What is the name of the god who drives the chariot? 6. What is the name of the goddess who is leading the way strewing roses? 7. What is the duty of the Hours? 8. What do you like most about the picture? Why? 9. Who painted this picture? 10. Where is the picture now? The outline following may be used as a basis for the study of other pictures: 1. Name of picture 2. Kind (landscape, portrait, marine, etc.) 5. Who painted the picture? a. Name b. Nationality c. Life history d. Other pictures 6. Where is the original of the picture now? Some pictures all should know: |