THE RATIONAL METHOD IN READING: THIRD READER

New York: Silver, Burdett & Company, 1899. Hardcover. Very Good/No Jacket. In the 19th century, as well as today, a major issue in education was the best method for teaching children how to read. Several different ways were tried in various parts of the country starting in the 1820s and employing both sight (recognizing whole words instead of letters) and sound (phonics) as well as revised and even new alphabets. Ward, former superintendent of schools in Brooklyn, NY, created a series of four readers that utilized diacritical marks in the text to help beginning students with pronunciation. This is the third in that series. First edition. About 6 x 7 1/4 inches, 174 pages including index, with numerous b&w illustrations and full-color frontispiece. Bound in light brown cloth-covered boards with graphic design and front cover lettering in darker brown. Boards show light to moderate soiling and light wear and bumping at corners. No significant flaws or damage. Text edges show small stains and soiling with previous owner's name, town and date (1/9/14) in pencil on fep. Back pastedown has penciled doodle, o/w text is unmarked, clean and complete. No tears, no creases, no ink stamps or library pockets. A collectable copy. The series, in addition to the four readers also included a primer and a teacher's manual as well as phonetic cards.