202 VOWELS AND CONSONANTS Written words are made of letters; spoken words are made of sounds. The letters you write stand in place of the sounds you say. Some of the letters of the alphabet, like some Poor A has to stand people, have so much to do! for seven different sounds! Listen: āte, ăt, äre, all, ask, câre, senâte. Look in a reader or a dictionary for the sounds of a, e, i, o, u. Not all the letters are so overworked, however. Some, like k, p, t, when they stand alone in a word, always have the same sound; and very little sound they have, just a breath. To show this difference in the sound of letters, the names vowel and consonant are used. Study this list:— Vowels: a, e, i, o, u, (w), (y). Consonants: b, c, d, f, g, h, j, k, l, m, n, p, q, r, s, t, v, (w), x, (y), z. No English word is without at least one vowel, but some words, like a, I, and O, have no consonant. O moon! in the night I have seen you sailing You were bright! ah bright! but your light is failing- You moon, have you done something wrong in heaven That God has hidden your face? I hope, if you have, you will soon be forgiven, And shine again in your place. -JEAN INGELOW. SYLLABLES 203 THE WORDS A, AN 187 Be careful in using the little words a and an. sound. An is used before words beginning with a vowel sound. Exercises. Use a or an with the following: 1. arrow, bow; ear, hand; end, beginning; image, statue; ox, cow; order, signal; upper, lower. Read these words thoughtfully; say them carefully: 1. thought 4. care 2. thought ful 3. thought ful ness 5. care less 6. care less ness Spell the first word. Find the same combination of letters as a part of the second word; of the third. The part selected is a syllable in each word. Study the words 4, 5, 6, in the same way. Thought and care are words of one syllable. How many syllables in the numbered words? How many in each word in this lesson? Is the above scene one in our country? Why do you think so? the picture? What season of the year is shown in What time of day? What kind of people and things do you think the artist likes to paint? Do you care for such scenes? Exercises. 1. Name every object in the picture. Tell:- What it is; what it does; how it appears. II. Tell all you can about the uses of the cow; of milk. TESTS IN SPELLING 189: 206 TESTS IN SPELLING Write from dictation the following:· The cow belongs to the region of good, green grass. She is the true grazing animal. That broad, smooth, always dewy nose of hers is just the suggestion of greensward. She caresses the grass; she sweeps off the ends of the leaves; she reaps it with the soft sickle of her tongue. She crops close, but she does not bruise or devour the turf like the horse. She is the sward's best friend, and will make it thick and smooth as a carpet. JOHN BURroughs. Milking Time When the cows come home the milk is coming; And the deer live safe in the breezy brake; 207 WHAT IS A BIRD? A Reading Lesson Read this conversation. Observe the punctuation. Close your book and repeat all that you can. "Who can tell me exactly what a bird is? You all may think you know, but can you put your thoughts into words?" said Grey Lady. "A bird isn't a plant; it is an animal," said Tommy Todd. "Yes, but a cat is an animal, and a snake, and a horse; and we are animals ourselves." "A bird is a flying animal," returned Sarah. 66 Very true, but so is a bat, and, as you know, a bat has fur and looks very like a mouse, and a bird does not,” said Grey Lady. Then she added :— “Ah, you give it up. Very well, listen and remember. A bird is the only animal which has feathers! With his hollow bones filled with buoyant warm air, and covered with these strong pinions, he rows through the air as we row a boat through the water with the oars, balancing himself with these wings, also steering himself with them and with his tail made of stiff feathers and shaped to his particular need. His small feathers laid close, overlapping each other like shingles, and bedded on an overcoat of down, are his clothes, protecting him from heat, cold, and wet." - MABEL OSGOOD WRIGHT. Written Exercises.-I. Write the first five lines from dictation. Correct them by comparison with the book. II. Write a paragraph telling what a bird is. |