1. What is particularly interesting in this letter? 2. Are the heading, greeting, and ending correctly written and punctuated? 3. Is the body of the letter correctly separated into paragraphs ? 4. Does every sentence begin with a capital letter and end with the proper punctuation mark? 5. Is the meaning of every sentence clear? 6. Should any two or three simple sentences be combined, or any of the compound sentences be changed to complex sentences? 7. Can the English in any sentence be improved? 8. Does each proper noun begin with a capital letter? 9. Are all plural nouns correctly written? 10. Are all the possessive forms of nouns correctly written? 11. Are there any mistakes in spelling? 12. Are there any mistakes in punctuation? 13. Can you suggest better words for some of those used by the writer? 2. Business Letters Written Exercise. Write a short business letter. Let it be about some subject of your own choosing. If you have difficulty in deciding what to write about, perhaps the following paragraphs will help you. If your class is divided into two groups, the pupils of one of these groups may write one or more of the letters suggested below, the pupils of the other group writing the answers. A class post office and postmaster would be of use in this exchange of letters. 1. You have left your umbrella on a street car. Write to the main office of the street-car company, describe your umbrella, tell as nearly as you can at what time you were on the car, and ask the company to let you know whether it has been found. 2. Write an order to a poultry farm for a setting of eggs. 3. Write to a mail-order house, asking whether you can buy from them the materials for a canoe that you wish to make. 4. Write to a dealer in stamps. You wish to buy some and you wish to sell your duplicates. Besides, you are interested in buying a new stamp album. 5. Write to a railroad, asking whether there will soon be a special excursion rate to Yellowstone Park. After having looked it up in your geography, explain to the company through what cities you would like to pass in going and returning. 6. Write for your mother to a hardware dealer, inquiring about prices of oil stoves. 7. Write for your father to the publishers of a magazine which he takes. Explain that you are moving, and ask that the magazine be sent to the new address. Be sure to mention the old address too. Why is this necessary? 8. Write to a tentmaker, describing the kind of tent you would like to buy. Ask whether that kind is kept on hand or has to be made to order. Ask about prices. 9. You have seen a new alarm clock or a new wrist watch advertised, but you cannot find it at the watchmaker's in your city. Write directly to the manufacturer and ask him for complete information, including prices. 10. Order a book from the publishers. Give its name and the author's and tell what edition you wish. Inclose enough money to cover the cost of the book and the postage. Group Exercise. Several of the letters called for in the preceding exercise may now be criticized as were the letters in the foregoing section. 3. Word Study Oral Exercise. Fill each blank in the following selection with the noun that seems to you to express the meaning best. Try to find several nouns for each blank, and then choose the most suitable one. But do not write it in the book. It was on Friday morning, the 12th of October, that Columbus first beheld the new. As the day dawned he saw before him a level and to be lost in island, several leagues in extent, and covered with trees like a continuo The were seen coming from all of the woods and ru ning to the shore. As they stood gazing at the ships, they appeared their Columbus made signal for t ships to cast anchor, and the boats to be manned and armed. He enter one of the richly attired in scarlet, and holding the royal ( landing, he threw himself on his knees, kissed the earth, and return thanks to God with tears of· The - of the island gazed in tim and splendid - of the Spa at the complexion, the shining iards. The admiral particularly attracted their of authority, his his from his comman of scarlet, and the whi ing was paid him by his ; all which pointed him out to be the WASHINGTON IRVING, "The Life and Voyages of Columbus" (Adapte Written Exercise. When the selection above has been rea aloud by several pupils, each supplying the blanks with the nour he thinks most suitable, and these have been criticized by the clas copy the selection and fill the blanks with the nouns which yo consider best for these places. the se Correction Exercise. Your teacher will then show you lection as written by Irving, so that you may compare your copy It will be interesting to learn the nouns that Irving himself used. Group Exercise. Several pupils' compositions may now b studied by the class as was the selection from Irving." 4. Speaking from Outlines 73 Have you ever noticed that it is easy to pay attention as som pupils speak but hard to listen to others? Of course there ar several reasons for this. Some pupils have interesting thing to say; some speak in a clear and pleasant voice, pronouncing their words distinctly. But there is still another reason. Some pupils arrange their ideas in good order before they try to tell them. Oral Exercise. Think a few minutes about one of the subjects in the list that follows. Then explain to the class into how many parts your talk about the subject would be divided and what each of these parts would be about. Do the same with other subjects in the list. Group Exercise. The teacher will write your outline on the board; other pupils will criticize it and give outlines of their own. It is possible to speak about the same subject in different ways. Thus, the following are two outlines for a talk about the first subject in the list on page 174. You can probably make another that will fit your own ideas better than either of these. OUTLINE FOR TALK 1. What my brother proposed that we do. 2. What my mother advised. 3. What we actually did after talking plans over. 1. How to Spend a Rainy Saturday 2. What "Safety First" Means 3. My First Day at School 4. My First View of Mountains 5. My First Visit to the Ocean 6. The Indian's Life Contrasted with the White Man's Life 7. My First Railway Journey 8. Two Old Men I Know 9. Summer and Winter in Florida (or any place about which yo wish to speak) 10. Going to New York by Water and Returning by Land 11. Making a Butterfly Collection. 12. The Adventures of a Ten-Cent Piece Oral Exercise. Choose a subject about which you think yo can give your classmates useful and entertaining information Plan what you wish to say about it. Write your outline on th board. Then, turning your back to the outline, give your talk If it is a good outline you will have no difficulty in rememberin it.74 As you speak, your classmates will watch to see whether stick to your outline. yo Perhaps the following list will suggest a good subject to you 1. How to Put Shoe Laces in Shoes 2. How to Make Oatmeal Porridge 3. Why It Is Necessary to Put Stamps on Letters 4. How a Burglar Alarm Works 5. How My Caterpillar Turned into a Butterfly 6. What It Means to Be a Boy Scout 7. What It Means to Be a Camp-Fire Girl |