Excerpt from The Thompson Readers: Manual for Teachers This manual is not based upon the assumption that the teacher needs to be directed in every detail of every lesson. It takes as its basis the belief that the teacher is the school and that her intelligent application of knowledge and principles is the only desirable procedure in any school. Therefore, the principles derived from the psychology and pedagogy of reading are stated as simply and as clearly as possible, and the incidental knowledge related to the various selections is also given. A few devices are suggested, but in general the invention of devices is left to the teacher. The Manual is for the teacher. A book on Word Building is in preparation. By the proper use of these, the pupil's prog ress may be greatly accelerated, but it should always be borne in mind that The Thompson Readers are so gradual in their grading and contain selections so interesting to children, and so attractively illustrated, that pupils will gain unusual facility in reading simply by reading without the assistance of any devices or formal methods. Learn to read as you learned to talk is the idea upon which they are based. Devices and methods will help the child to learn to talk, they will help him to learn to read; but they are not absolutely necessary in the learning of either. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.