English in service

Preface

A TEXTBOOK in composition should include those principles of rhetoric, grammar, and mechanics which will be immediately useful to the pupils who are to use it — all of these principles and no others. Accordingly, the authors of English in Service have carefully reviewed their own teaching experience and studied the various reports on "essentials" to determine just what technical instruction pupils in the seventh, eighth, and ninth grades find profitable. The plan of revealing to the pupils their need of each principle before asking them to learn it has acted as a further check upon the selection of such material. It may be confidently asserted that nothing of major importance has been omitted and that the body of technical information presented is all valuable to the children who will study the book and is as extensive as they will have time really to master.

A textbook should harmonize with the best methods of teaching. The authors of English in Service take it for granted that

1. Pupils learn best when they are most interested;

2. They are most interested when they are attempt-

ing to realize purposes of their own;

vi PREFACE

3. As a rule junior high-school youngsters can be

more deeply interested in actual communicating than in developing technical skill in language;

4. The surest way to give any idea the associations

which will assure its recall is to use that idea in solving a problem or realizing a purpose;

5. The more the purposes formed and the conditions

under which they are carried out are hke those of extra-school life, the more likely the solutions are to be used on proper occasions outside the classroom;

6. The way to develop initiative in children is to

give them opportunities for its exercise;

7. The best means of training children for democracy

is to train them in democracy.

The entire books, the chapters, and the individual sections have been organized in accordance with these principles.

The arrangement of the materials in English in Service may best be revealed by an examination of the structure of the chapters. First in each chapter some undertaking in communication is presented as attractively as possible, means of carrying out the undertaking are considered, provision is made for the actual speaking or writing involved, and the learners are led to estimate the degree of their own success and to discover so far as possible the causes of success and failure. From this consideration of the effective and the undesirable in the pui)ils' expression the second part of the chapter develops a specific problem of form, and helps the learners to work out its solution. When the nature of this solution permits.

PREFACE vii

there is provided formal drill in its application sufficient to make the learners certain in their knowledge of what is right. Since formal drills will never set up habits likely to function in informal — or, better, natural — situations, no attempt is made to use them for that purpose. The third step in each chapter is the presentation of more composition undertakings. Shortly, as the fourth step, a second problem of form is developed and solved. In most chapters one of the problems lies in the field of rhetoric and the other in that of grammar or of mechanics. The fifth and last portion of the chapter — usually more than half — consists of further practice in actual communicating, so chosen as to call for the use of the principles taught in the second and fourth steps and so conducted as to make evident the usefulness of the principles in those activities.

This text gives unusually detailed directions for the conduct of class activities. These directions introduce into the classroom the procedures employed by successful speakers and writers the world over. They are well calculated also to develop initiative, originality, and self-control in the pupils by allowing them to form purposes rather than to obey directions, to seek out means of accomplishing these purposes, and to cooperate with others almost constantly. Such suggestions in the body of the text and in the margins have been made complete enough to make possible genuinely socialized work with out requiring the teacher to do anything more than merely keep order. This, of course, for the sake of overburdened and inexperienced teachers. Those viii PREFACE

who desire to introduce variations in assignments, in emphasis upon technical principles, or in procedures will find the text quite adaptable to their needs; in many cases such variations are positively invited by the language of the directions given.

The character of the assignments deserves notice. These undertakings in which the pupils are asked to engage are not just themes but real attempts to entertain, inform, or persuade real persons. English in Service is more than a title: it is an expression of the fundamental character of the book. Just as swimming motions practiced while the novice poses horizontall}^ on a chair have proved of little aid in mastery of the water, so formal drills in mechanics and "practice" in composition through *' themes" must give way to genuine use of language in the classroom. The art of communication is best learned through attempts to communicate, with a moderate amount of systematic coaching. English in Service is planned to stimulate pupils to such attempts and to supply whatever counsel will be useful.

BOOK I Chapter I FULLNESS OF DETAIL

THE SENTENCE SENSE

NIT PAGE

1. New Circumstances {Oral narrative) . 2

2. Roundcheeks or Barebones? (Need of details) 6

3. 'Putting on Flesh (Supplying details) . . 12

4. A Story Circle (Oral Narrative)

5. The Sentence Sense (Oral periods)

6. A Second Chance (Oral Narrative)

7. A Surprise (Oral narrative) .

8. Another Story Circle (Oral narrative) . 26

9. A Fair Exchange (Written narrative. Com-

pleteness of sentences) 30

10. A Good Play (Oral narrative) .... 36

11. Better Speech (Discussion) .... 39

12. An Incident from a Book I am Reading

(Oral narrative) 41

13. A Guide to Reading (Written narrative) 44

14. \^henl Learned (Oral narrative) ... 48

CONTENTS Chapter II

RELEVANCE OF DETAIL

NUMBER OF VERBS SUBJECTS AND OBJECTS

PAGE

15. Do Animals Reason? {Oral narrative.

Choosing details) 54

16. Money and Human Nature (Oral narra-

tive) 60

17. How Many.^ {Number: the verb be) . . 62

18. Practice {Written drill) 66

19. A More General Rule {Number: all verbs) 68

20. Practice {Oral drill) 70

21. More Practice {Oral drill) .... 71

22. One at a Time (Each of, either of) . . 74

23. Profitable Play {Language game) . . 76

24. For Want of a Shoe {Oral narrative) . . 78

25. A Difficulty Downed {Oral narrative) . 81

26. In Mother's Shoes — or Father's {Oral nar-

rative) 85

27. Subject or Object {Nominative and objec-

tive cases of pronouns) 87

28. Another Name for the Same Thing {Pred-

icate nominative) 91

29. Parties by Proxy {Oral narrative) . . 94

30. My Creation {Oral narrative) .... 95

31. The Rescue {Written narrative) ... 97

32. ys'\\oVs-As\i? {Language game) ... 100

33. Tit-for-Tat {Oral narrative) .... 101

34. The Land of Counterpane {Oral narrative) 104

35. Vsholhii^li'^ (JMnguagc game) ... 107

36. I Told You So {Oral narrative) ... 108

CONTENTS xi Chapter III

SOCIAL LETTERS COMPOUND SUBJECTS AND PREDICATES

37. Writing for Fun (Social letter. Letter form) 109

38. Complications {Compound subjects and ob-

jects) 115

39. Gone but not Forgotten (Social letter) 118

40. A Letter to Mail (*Socia/ Z^^/er) ... 120

41. Please Come! (Informal invitation) . . 121

42. The Answer (Social Letter. Formal invi-

tation) . . 123

43. Tell Me, Please (Written inquiry) . . 124

44. I Recommend (Social letter) . . . . 125

Chapter IV

CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER PREDICATE ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS

45. Lost and Found (Oral narrative) . . . 126

46. My Loss (Oral narrative) 127

47. Good or WeW? (Predicate adjective or adverb) 128

48. The "Ly" Words (Adverbs in general) . 130

49. Practice (Oral drill) 132

50. More Practice (Oral sentence analysis) . 133

51. Practice Again (Oral drill) . . . . 134

52. A Grammar Match (Written and oral drill) 135

53. Pure Fiction (Written narrative) . . . 136

54. Misjudged (Written narrative) . . . 141

55. An Army or ISisLvy Hero (Oral narrative) . 142 xii CONTENTS

PAGE

56. More Fiction (Written narrative) . . 144

57. Historical Anecdotes (Orai narra/tVe) . . 148

58. Jokes {Oral narrative) 1^1

59. A Partnership Story {Written narrative) . 157

LOGICAL ORDER IN EXPLANATION ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS

60. How to ^tudy {Oral explanation) ... 159

61. A Business Meeting {Written and oral ex-

62. More Adjectives and Adverbs {Modifiers

of adjectives and of adverbs) .... 164 63 Useful and Harmful Plants {Oral explanation) ^^^

64. TheBuiionVs'eed {Order in explanation) . 171

66. Favorites {Oral explanation) .... 175

Chapter VI

COMPLETENESS IN EXPLANATION PREPOSITIONS

67. I wonder {Oral explanation . Completeness) 178

68. Giving Orders (Om/ea:p/anafio7?) ... 182

69. InterestingInsects(Ora/^a-p/a^m/7O70 . • 185

70. One More Use of Pronouns {Prepositions

and their objects) ^^

71. A Train Letter (Socio/ /e/M .... 195

CONTENTS xiii

BOOK II Chapter I VIVIDNESS THROUGH DETAIL CO-ORDINATION AND SUBORDINATION

PAGE

1. An 'EmhsLTYSissmg'NLcYaeiit (Oral narrative) 1

2. A Letter of July 4, 1776 {Written narrative) 5

3. Hank Banta's Ducking (Combination and

subordination) 8

4. Equals and Dependents (Compound and

complex sentences) 10

5. Practice (Written) 13

6. A Lively Combination (Written narrative) 14

7. Righteous Indignation (Oral narrative) . 17

8. Placing Modifying Clauses (6Vo2i2^ ^/W?/) . 18

9. Practice (Oral and written) 20

10. A Sample Incident from My Book (Writ-

ten narrative) 22

11. An Old Story (OraZ narra/ne) .... 24

12. Grandfather's Story (WWiiten narrative) . 25

13. Your Own Paper (Discussion) .... 29

Chapter II EFFECTIVE INITIAL SENTENCES THE COMMA

14. First Impressions (Oral narrative) ... 31

15. Beginnings (Effective initial sentences) . . 36

16. Comedies (Oral narrative) 37

17. Choosing a Vocation (Discussion) ... 39 xiv CONTENTS

UNIT

18. The Series Comma (Punctuation study) . 43

19. VCovk 1 'Enjoyed {Written riarrative) . . 47

20. Quoting (Punctuation study) .... 49

21. An Instance of Courage (Written narrative) 53

22. Marking the Members (Punctuation study) 59

23. I'dLiketo DO IT Again (Written narrative) 61

24. ^\im.Y>u\g\he^\xm.^?> (Efective endings) . 63

25. Once Only (Written narrative) .... 64

26. Revising the OutHne (Discussion) . . .65

27. Planning the Procedure (Discussion) . 68

28. Illustrated Lectures (Oral Narrative and

explanation) 70

29. Our Opportunity (Oral argument) ... 72

THE BUSINESS LETTER THE COMMA

"0. Arranging an Interview (Business letter form) 75

31. The ne\)\y (Business letter) .... 80

32. Mild Parentheses (Punctuation study) . . 81

33. Inquiring (Business letter) 84

34. Merely Explanatory (Punctuation study). 85

35. Your Opinion of Him (Letter of recommen-

dation) 89

36. A Summary (Comma rules) 92

37. A Vacat ion Order (Order letter) .... 92

38. Substituting (Business letter) .... 95

39. Refusing (Business letter) ..... 98

40. ^Jlieater lockets for Two (Order letter) . 99

41. A Possible Case (Sales letter) .... 101

CONTENTS XV Chapter IV

TENSES

42. The Influence of Our Feelings {Oral nar-

rative) 103

43. Marking the Time {Tenses: "present and

past) 104

44. An Explosion {Oral narrative) . . . . 107

45. A'Reminder {Oral explanation. Vocations) 109

46. A Dip into the Future {Written narrative) 109

47. Up Till Now {Present perfect tense) . . 112

48. Practice {Oral and written drill) . . . 117

49. Trouble Makers {Principal parts of verbs) 118

50. Practice {Verb game) 123

51. The Time Before {Past perfect tense) . . 124

52. Progressives {Progressive verbs) . . . 125

53. A Summary {Verb tenses) 127

54. Vocations Again {Oral explanation) . . 128

55. The Best Policy {Written narrative) . . 130 5Q. Thrillers {Written narrative) . . . 131

Chapter V PASSIVE voice

EXCLUDING THE IRRELEVANT

57. Some Strange Histories {Oral explanation) 135

58. Common Scientific Phenomena {Oral ex-

planation. Passive voice) 140

59. Science in Industry {Oral explanation) . . 146

60. A Mystery Solved {Oral explanation) . . 149

61. A Faulty Narrative (/rre/e?;ance) . . . 151 xvi CONTENTS

6*2. Some Common Figures of Speech (Oral explanation) 154

63. A Clever Idea (Oral explanaiioti) . . . 157

64. fleeting ^emergencies (Oral explanation) . 159

Chapter VI

EVIDENCE AND ENTHUSIASM IN ARGUMENT COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS

66. An Opinion fleeting (Oral argujnent) . . 166

67. \Miat Counts ]\Iost.^ (Effectiveness in argu-

ment) 170

68. How ShainVe Celebrate.^ (Oral argument) 174

69. Comparison (Comparative and superlative

degrees) 178

70. Success (Oral argume?it) 180

71. Should the School Term be Changed.^

(Written argument) 183

72. A Debate (Formal argument). . . . 185

73. Investments for Young People (Oral argu-

ment) 186

BOOK III Chapter I FOCUSING narratives AND ARGUMENTS

1. Reason for Pride (Oral narrative) ... 1

'2. A Boomerang (Oral narrative. Focusing) . 3

3. A Bold Bluff (Oral narrative). ... 11

CONTENTS xvii

PAGE

4. Air Castles {Oral narrative) .... 16

5. A Thrilling Contest {Oral narrative) . . 17

6. A Real Young People's Book {Written

narrative) 22

7. Tiresome! {Written narrative). ... 26

8. Keeping Up With the Times {Discussion.

Club organization) 29

9. In Strange Surroundings {Written narrative) 36

Chapter II

THE TOPIC SENTENCE REVIEW

10. Effective Study {Written explanation.

Topic sentence) . . . . . . . 42

11. Practice {Written) 48

12. Adopting a Policy {Discussion) ... 51 13 Would You Like to Try This.^^ {Newspaper

14. Prominent Personalities {Written descrip-

tion) 56

15. Setting Up Standards {Oral explanation.

Review) 58

16. Pooling Information {Oral explanation) . 59

17. Advertising Your School {News writing) 62

18. A Cartoon {Oral description and explana-

tion) 63

SPECIFIC DICTION

19. An Old Topic {Written description. Image-

ful words) 67 xviii CONTENTS

20. A Sensation {Written description) ... 72

21. ^\oTdYoTtT^iiis (Oral or uritten description) 75

22. A Vocabulary Match (Ga 7??^) .... 80

23. Oh, So Good! (Written description) . . 81

24. A More Difficult Vocabulary Game . . 85 26. Christmas Eve (Written narrative) . . 86

26. Sharing a Pleasure (Written description) . 89

27. Unpolished (Written narrative) ... 95

28. A Tenderfoot (Written narrative) . . 97

Chapter IV SENTENCE VARIETY ADVANCED PUNCTUATION

29. A Childish Quarrel (Written Narrative.

Dialogue form) 99

30. Earning a CrowTi (Variety of sentence struc-

ture 102

31. Rapid Movement (0/Y//7?flrra//rr) . . 105

32. Variety (Participial phrase) . . . 108

33. Your Own City (Written report) 111

34. A Useful Construction (r/z^fife?-?/??^) . 115

35. ^Xishes (Oral narrative) 116

36. FourV('d\s to ^iiylX (Infinitives) ... 120

37. Future Progress (Written narrative) . . 123

38. A Means of Brevity (The appositive) . 125

40. Vigorous Points (E,rclamation point and

41. A (\)ming Event {Written explanation) . 132

42. Connna's Big Brother (The semicolon) . 1-5

CONTENTS xix

43. Confusion: Comedy or Melodrama (Writ-

ten narrative) 138

44. The Colon (Study and drill) 140

45. A Competition (Written explanation) . . 142

PERSONALIZING ARGUMENT

46. Philanthropy (Oral argument) . . . . 146

47. Arguments that Count (Emphasis) . . 149

48. An Improvement (Oral argument) . . 153

49. A Class Responsibility (Oral argument) . 157

50. Getting Your Way (Impromptu argument) 159

51. More Class Business (Oral discussion) . 160

52. A Mock Trial (Oral argument) . . . . 161

53. Excuse Us! (Written argument) . . . 162

Appendix

Summary of Grammar ....... 164

ENGLISH IN SERVICE BOOK ONE