Search results for 'FIRST LANGUAGE LESSONS'

In the Beginning is the first of two courses devoted to manuscript (printing) style handwriting. Young students will strengthen their basic penmanship skills as they trace shapes, draw lines, and finally work on letters. Designed to fit the attention span of a kindergartener, each lesson is designed to take only about 15-20 minutes per topic. Children will work on following oral directions through interspersed games and activities; penmanship motor skills are strengthened through circling or crossing out objects, and finally moving on to tracing both upper and lower-case letters. This text uses a modified version of the Palmer method. Practice lines are 3/4" in height Recommended for kindergarten. From Christian Liberty Press. Learn More

For sheer storytelling delight and pure adventure, Treasure Island has never been surpassed. From young Jim Hawkins’s first encounter with the sinister beggar Pew to the climactic battle with the most memorable villain in literature, Long John Silver, this novel has fired readers’ imaginations for generations. A rousing tale of treachery, greed, and daring, Treasure Island continues to enthrall readers of all ages. 240 pages Learn More

Stephen Crane’s immortal masterpiece about the nightmare of war was first published in 1895 and brought its young author immediate international fame. Set during the Civil War, it tells of the brutal disillusionment of a young recruit who had dreamed of the thrill and glory of war, only to find himself fleeing the horror of a battlefield. Shame over his cowardice drives him to seek to redeem himself by being wounded—earning what he calls the “red badge of courage.” Praised for its psychological insight and its intense and unprecedented realism in portraying the experience of men under fire, The Red Badge of Courage has been a beloved bestseller for more than a century. 160 pages. Learn More

A timeless story of adventure begins. One family will emerge alive from this terrible storm: the Robinsons—a Swiss pastor, his wife, and four sons, plus two dogs and a shipload of livestock. Inspired by Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe, this heartwarming tale portrays a family’s struggle to create a new life on a strange and fantastic tropical island. There each boy must learn to utilize his own unique nature as their adventures lead to difficult challenges and amazing discoveries, including a puzzling message tied to an albatross’s leg. But it is in the ingenuity and authenticity of the family itself, and the natural wonders of this exotic land that have made The Swiss Family Robinson, first published at the beginning of the nineteenth century, one of the most enduring and imitated stories of shipwreck and survival. 338 pages. Learn More

Tucker is a streetwise city mouse. He thought he’d seen it all. But he’s never met a cricket before, which really isn’t surprising, because, along with his friend Harry Cat, Tucker lives in the very heart of New York City—the Times Square subway station. Chester Cricket never intended to leave his Connecticut meadow. He’d be there still if he hadn’t followed the entrancing aroma of liverwurst right into someone’s picnic basket. Now, like any tourist in the city, he wants to look around. And he could not have found two better guides—and friends—than Tucker and Harry. The trio have many adventures—from taking in the sights and sounds of Broadway to escaping a smoky fire. Chester makes a third friend, too. It is a boy, Mario, who rescues Chester from a dusty corner of the subway station and brings him to live in the safety of his parents’ newsstand. He hopes at first to keep Chester as a pet, but Mario soon understands that the cricket is more than that. Because Chester has a hidden talent and no one—not even Chester himself—realizes that the little country cricket may just be able to teach even the toughest New Yorkers a thing or two. The Cricket in Times Square is a 1961 Newbery Honor Book. Learn More

Fifteen-year-old Charles Wallace Murry, (whom readers were introduced to in A Wrinkle in Time) has a little task he must accomplish. In 24 hours, a mad dictator will destroy the universe by declaring nuclear war--unless Charles Wallace can go back in time to change one of the many Might-Have-Beens in history. In an intricately layered and suspenseful journey through time, this extraordinary young man psychically enters four different people from other eras. As he perceives through their eyes "what might have been," he begins to comprehend the cosmic significance and consequences of every living creature's actions. As he witnesses first-hand the transformation of civilization from peaceful to warring times, his very existence is threatened, but the alternative is far worse. Reading level ages 9-12. Paperback. Learn More

When the Time Traveler courageously stepped out of his machine for the first time, he found himself in the year 802,700–and everything has changed. In another, more utopian age, creatures seemed to dwell together in perfect harmony. The Time Traveler thought he could study these marvelous beings–unearth their secret and then return to his own time–until he discovered that his invention, his only avenue of escape, had been stolen. H.G. Well’s famous novel of one man’s astonishing journey beyond the conventional limits of the imagination first appeared in 1895. It won him immediate recognition, and has been regarded ever since as one of the great masterpieces in the literature of science fiction.128 pages. Learn More

This classic story of a shipwrecked mariner on a deserted island is perhaps the greatest adventure in all of English literature. Fleeing from pirates, Robinson Crusoe is swept ashore in a storm possessing only a knife, a box of tobacco, a pipe-and the will to survive. His is the saga of a man alone: a man who overcomes self-pity and despair to reconstruct his life; who painstakingly teaches himself how to fashion a pot, bake bread, build a canoe; and who, after twenty-four agonizing years of solitude, discovers a human footprint in the sand... Consistently popular since its first publication in 1719, Daniel Defoe's story of human endurance in an exotic, faraway land exerts a timeless appeal. The first important English novel, Robinson Crusoe has taken its rightful place among the great myths of Western civilization. 304 pages. Learn More

What Your Kindergardner Needs to Know, Fundamentals of a Good Kindergarten Education is the first volume in the Core Knowledge Series by E.D. Hirsch. What Your Kindergardner Needs to Know, Fundamentals of a Good Kindergarten Education is the first volume in the Core Knowledge Series by E.D. Hirsch. Designed for use by parents and teachers, this groundbreaking first volume in the Core Knowledge Series provides kindergartners with the fundamentals they need to prepare them for a lifetime of learning. It sets out the elements a parent or educator should look for in a good kindergarten program and introduces activities that help a child take the first steps in learning to read and write. This revised and updated edition of What Your Kindergartner Needs to Know features a new Introduction and filled with age-appropriate questions and suggestions that stimulate thinking and build vocabulary. Learn More

What Your First Grader Needs to Know, Fundamentals of a Good First-Grade Education is the second volume in the Core Knowledge Series by E.D. Hirsch. What Your First Grader Needs to Know, Fundamentals of a Good First-Grade Education is the second volume in the Core Knowledge Series by E.D. Hirsch. What will your child be expected to learn in the first grade? How can you help him or her at home? How can teachers foster active, successful learning in the classroom? This book answers these all-important questions and more, offering the specific shared knowledge that hundreds of parents and teachers across the nation have agreed upon for American first graders. Featuring a new Introduction, filled with opportunities for reading aloud and fostering discussion, this first-grade volume of the acclaimed Core Knowledge Series presents the sort of knowledge and skills that should be at the core of a challenging first-grade education. Learn More

As Jane Austen's debut novel, "Sense and Sensibilty," romantic Marianne and level headed Elinor are immersed in a web of marriage and heartache that luckily turns out all right in the end, but not without plenty of humor and drama. Learn More

First published in 1851, Herman Melville’s masterpiece is, in Elizabeth Hardwick’s words, “the greatest novel in American literature.” The saga of Captain Ahab and his monomaniacal pursuit of the white whale remains a peerless adventure story but one full of mythic grandeur, poetic majesty, and symbolic power. Filtered through the consciousness of the novel’s narrator, Ishmael, Moby-Dick draws us into a universe full of fascinating characters and stories, from the noble cannibal Queequeg to the natural history of whales, while reaching existential depths that excite debate and contemplation to this day. Learn More

The Declaration of Independence was the promise of a representative government; the Constitution was the fulfillment of that promise. On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress issued a unanimous declaration: the thirteen North American colonies would be the thirteen United States of America, free and independent of Great Britain. Drafted by Thomas Jefferson, the Declaration set forth the terms of a new form of government with the following words: "We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." Framed in 1787 and in effect since March 1789, the Constitution of the United States of America fulfilled the promise of the Declaration by establishing a republican form of government with separate executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The first ten amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, became part of the Constitution on December 15, 1791. Among the rights guaranteed by these amendments are freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, and the right to trial by jury. Written so that it could be adapted to endure for years to come, the Constitution has been amended only seventeen times since 1791 and has lasted longer than any other written form of government. 100 pages. Softcover. Learn More

H.G. Wells's science fiction classic, the first novel to explore the possibilities of intelligent life from other planets, it still startling and vivid nearly after a century after its appearance, and a half-century after Orson Wells's infamous 1938 radio adaptation.

The daring portrayal of aliens landing on English soil, with its themes of interplanetary imperialism, technological holocaust and chaos, is central to the career of H.G. Wells, who died at the dawn of the atomic age.

The survival of mankind in the face of "vast and cool and unsympathetic" scientific powers spinning out of control was a crucial theme throughout his work.

Visionary, shocking and chilling, The War Of The Worlds has lost none of its impact since its first publication in 1898.

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Considered one of English literature’s first and greatest satirists, Jonathan Swift possessed a timeless genius for pointing out the foibles of human nature that still has the power to provoke, amuse, and, at times, even outrage our modern sensibilities. This representative collection of Swift’s major writings includes the complete Gulliver’s Travels as well as A Tale of a Tub, “The Battle of the Books,” “A Modest Proposal,” “An Argument Against Abolishing Christianity,” “The Bickerstaff Papers,” and many more of his brilliantly satirical works. Here too are selections from Swift’s poetry and portions of his Journal to Stella. Swift’s savage ridicule, corrosive wit, and sparkling humor are fully displayed in this comprehensive collection. 656 pages. Learn More

Demetrius and Lysander both want Hermia but she only has eyes for Lysander. Bad news is Hermia's father wants Demetrius for a son-in-law. On the outside is Helena, whose unreturned love burns hot for Demetrius. Hermia and Lysander plan to flee from the city under cover of darkness but are pursued by an enraged Demetrius (who is himself pursued by an enraptured Helena). In the forest, Oberon and Titania (King and Queen of the fairies) are having a fight over a servant boy. Then, Oberon's head mischief-maker, Puck, runs loose with a flower which causes people to fall in love with the first person they see. Learn More

A Charming little story of a house built in the country and the changes around it as the big city moves closer and closer. Recommended for first grade reading level. Softcover. Delightful illustrations. Learn More

Mike Mulligan & His Steam...In this story of Mike and his steam shovel, kids will learn that old isn't always outdated. Recommended for the first grade reading level. A classic story children will love. Softcover. Delightfully illustrated. Learn More

Fully updated for the twenty-first century, The New First Dictionary of Cultural Literacy lists essential facts in twenty-one subject areas to promote successful learning in kids. Child education expert E. D. Hirsch Jr. cuts through the wealth of information available today to highlight terms that a child should be familiar with by the end of sixth grade. With nearly 3,000 concise definitions and including 250 new entries, this popular sourcebook makes it easy for children to become literate in mythology, literature, U.S. history, science and technology, and more. 320 pages. Softbound. Learn More

Have you ever wished you could pick up the phone and ask Dr. Beechick your homeschooling question? This question-and-answer format is almost like that phone call. Editor Debbie Strayer selected the questions most asked of Dr. Beechick at conventions and in her magazine column. She organized and indexed thoroughly so you can find Beechick's comments on all these important topics. One chapter contains questions on high school, which comprises Beechick's first major message to homeschooling families of high schoolers. Find the famous common sense help on every page of this practical book. Learn More

Begins with the alphabet. Moves to simple one-syllable words such as cat and fox, then on to more difficult one-syllable words such as horse and spring. Illustrated with the charming original drawings. Mott Media's McGuffey's Readers are the 1830's version and are printed with Gold Embossed Bindings and the Original Woodcut Artwork. Can be used in First and Second Grades. 60 pages, Hardbound Learn More

Most words are phonetically regular. A few have silent letters. The words get as hard as "would" and "stalked" and "engaged." Includes stories of children who want to please God and who love to learn. Use in the second and third grades. Mott Media's McGuffey's Readers are the 1830's version and are printed with Gold Embossed Bindings and the Original Woodcut Artwork. 153 pages, Hardbound Learn More

The book that started it all! Little House in the Big Woods is the first book in Laura Ingalls Wilder's treasured Little House series, which was based on her life growing up as an American pioneer. This edition features Garth Williams' interior art in vibrant full color. Told from four-year-old Laura's point of view, this story begins in 1871 in a little log cabin on the edge of the Big Woods of Wisconsin. Laura lives in the little house with her Pa, her Ma, her sisters Mary and Carrie, and their trusty dog, Jack. Pioneer life is sometimes hard for the family, since they must grow or catch all their own food as they get ready for the cold winter. But it is also exciting as Laura and her family celebrate Christmas with homemade toys and treats, do the spring planting, bring in the harvest, and make their first trip into town. And every night they are safe and warm in their little house, with the happy sound of Pa's fiddle sending Laura and her sisters off to sleep. And so begins Laura Ingalls Wilder's beloved story of a pioneer girl and her family. The nine Little House books have been cherished by generations of readers as both a unique glimpse into America's frontier history and a heartwarming, unforgettable story. Ages 8-12. 256 pages. Learn More

For the first time in the history of the Little House books, this new edition features Garth Williams’ interior art in vibrant, full color, as well as a beautifully redesigned cover. Laura Ingalls Wilder is beginning life with her new husband, Almanzo, in their own little house. Laura is a young pioneer wife now, and must work hard with Almanzo, farming the land around their home on the South Dakota prairie. Soon their baby daughter, Rose, is born, and the young family must face the hardships and triumphs encountered by so many American pioneers. And so Laura Ingalls Wilder's adventure as a little pioneer girl ends, and her new life as a pioneer wife and mother begins. The nine Little House books have been cherished by generations of readers as both a unique glimpse into America's frontier past and a heartwarming, unforgettable story. 160 pages. Ages 8-12. Learn More