READING AS AN INTELLECTUAL PROCESS. 219 



behind it from that wholesome effort at expression so essential to 

 growth, and the clear apprehension of thought. For, without doubt, 

 an idea is more firmly grasped and retained, and becomes negotiable 

 only, by its clear enunciation. Generally speaking, " what we know, 

 but cannot tell," is held by a very uncertain tenure. Thus, while the 

 pupil should be urged to make his title good by the clear expression 

 of his thought, he should realize that the most perfect reading fails to 

 perceive the language consciously, or to retain it, leaving the thought 

 disembodied, as it were, until the exigencies of communication require 

 us to clothe it. 



In connection with this matter of attention, the primary school 

 affords abundant opportunity for remark. For instance, the habit of 

 miscalling words. From what does it arise ? Supposing the thought 

 and language to be easily within the child's comprehension, it arises 

 in this way : His attention has been exclusively occupied with indi- 

 vidual words, in his struggle to master them He has' failed to grasp 

 the thought, or so much of the thought as he might have grasped up 

 to the point of difficulty. Now, when circumstances bring the im- 

 pulse to articulate a certain word, he is entirely unable to perceive 

 whether or not the word coheres with what he has already uttered. 

 In fact, he does not think, and cannot think, in regard to the sentiment 

 of the sentence. His mind labors to recognize the words in their in- 

 dividual capacity only, and not at all in their connections. If he 

 actually grasped the thought, although he might announce a word 

 other than the one printed, still it would be impossible for him to an- 

 nounce a word which in the connection would be totally irrelevant or 

 absurd. Now, in such a case, what is the teacher to do ? To tell the 

 child the Avord ? To practically erase all the rest of the sentence, and 

 to impress that individual form upon his mind ? By no manner of 

 means. This, however, is the \iniversal practice ; and from this prac- 

 tice partly results the abominable failure of our schools to teach our 

 children to read fully and truly. It is the teacher's duty to get the 

 child's mind on to the thought ; to repeat the sentence, or to liave it 

 repeated, up to the point of difficulty, and to lead him by his own in- 

 tellect to suggest a word, or the word, which will harmonize with the 

 previous words. Indeed, he may not pronounce the word before his 

 eyes, but, with any proper training, he will be far from suggesting a 

 vocable which will present a solecism to his infantile perception. It 

 is impossible to conceive of learning to read without miscalling words ; 

 but it is possible to conceive of a child's learning to read without pro- 

 nouncing a word, among all his blunders, which his own powers are 

 able to see is entirely absurd in the connection. Could that much be 

 achieved, a great good would be done for us in after-life. One-half 

 of the want of perception and attention which we now exhibit would 

 be corrected. , 



Later in school-life teachers encounter this thing as a difficulty. 



