Returning to McGuffey Readers

I discovered McGuffey's Eclectic Readers years ago when I was looking for free resources to teach my oldest child Language Arts. These books were used in the American school system as textbooks for close to a century. My son enjoyed what he was reading and I liked how the stories taught morals and made references to God.

What I Wish I'd Known Then
However, when I attempted to use the readers I felt that it wasn't enough for a complete Language Arts program. My son would read the passages in just a few minutes and then it seemed that he was done. But I recently learned that you can use these texts for: reading comprehension, copy work, dictation, recitation, spelling, and studying poetry. 

There is a free guide available that teaches you how the originators of the readers intended for them to be used - The Eclectic Manual of Methods for the Assistance of Teachers. I read over the section on readers and it is now clear to me that these books can be our entire English curriculum. Also, I believe that they can be used in a way consistent with a Charlotte Mason style of homeschooling. 

Reading Levels

After doing some additional research I also realized that I probably hadn't started my son in the right book. Each reader encompasses roughly two grade levels. It works out this way.


McGuffey's Eclectic Primer: K - 1st grade
McGuffey's First Eclectic Reader: 1st - 2nd grade
McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader: 3rd - 4th grade
McGuffey's Third Eclectic Reader: 5th - 6th grade
McGuffey's Fourth Eclectic Reader: 7th - 8th grade
McGuffey's Fifth Eclectic Reader: 9th - 10th grade
McGuffey's Sixth Eclectic Reader: 11th - 12th grade


Of course, this is merely a guide to assist in finding the right level for your child. Now that I have a better understanding of how these resources work, I plan on giving these books another try this coming school year. I will have my children read out loud certain portions of the books so that I can determine where to start them. I am not opposed to starting in the middle or towards the end if that is what's needed.


All of the readers are in the public domain and are freely available on Google Books and Archive.org. 

Serfronya Wallace
 The six loves of Serfronya Wallace's life are God, her husband, and her 4 children - whom she homeschools. Serfronya enjoys sharing educational tips and writing about her family's homeschooling journey at Cookie's Domain.

 

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