Second Grade Read Aloud Banquet



Songs for October


Wynken, Blynken, and Nod

Wynken, Blynken, and Nod one night

Sailed off in a wooden shoe—

Sailed on a river of crystal light,

Into a sea of dew.

"Where are you going, and what do you wish?"

The old moon asked the three.

"We have come to fish for the herring-fish

That live in this beautiful sea;

Nets of silver and gold have we!"

Said Wynken,

Blynken,

And Nod.


The old moon laughed and sang a song,

As they rocked in the wooden shoe,

And the wind that sped them all night long

Ruffled the waves of dew.

The little stars were the herring-fish

That lived in the beautiful sea—

"Now cast your nets wherever you wish,—

Never afeard are we!"

So cried the stars to the fishermen three:

Wynken,

Blynken,

And Nod.


All night long their nets they threw

To the stars in the twinkling foam,—

Then down from the skies came the wooden shoe,

Bringing the fishermen home;

'Twas all so pretty a sail, it seemed

As if it could not be,

And some folks thought 'twas a dream they'd dreamed

Of sailing that beautiful sea—

But I shall name you the fishermen three:

Wynken,

Blynken,

And Nod.


Wynken and Blynken are two little eyes,

And Nod is a little head,

And the wooden shoe that sailed the skies

Is a wee one's trundle-bed.

So shut your eyes while Mother sings

Of wonderful sights that be,

And you shall see the beautiful things

As you rock in the misty sea,

Where the old shoe rocked the fishermen three—

Wynken,

Blynken,

And Nod.



  Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
Week 37 The Christening from The Little Lame Prince by Dinah Maria Mulock Socrates and His House from Fifty Famous Stories Retold by James Baldwin Jenny Wren's Cousins from The Burgess Bird Book for Children by Thornton Burgess WATER: THE SECOND STORY from The Forge in the Forest by Padraic Colum
King Fergus and the Water-Horse from The Forge in the Forest by Padraic Colum
Vasco da Gama's Great Voyage from The Discovery of New Worlds by M. B. Synge The One-Eared Bear (Part 1 of 2) from The Bears of Blue River by Charles Major The Cripple at the King's Table from Hurlbut's Story of the Bible by Jesse Lyman Hurlbut
A Crude Kind of Chimney from Richard of Jamestown by James Otis
Cooking a Turkey from Richard of Jamestown by James Otis
Candles or Rushlights from Richard of Jamestown by James Otis
Berries for Bluebirds from Outdoor Visits by Edith M. Patch The Lion and the Gnat from The Aesop for Children by Milo Winter I Discover a Wreck from Robinson Crusoe Written Anew for Children by James Baldwin The Forest Bailiff from Merry Tales by Eleanor L. Skinner Old Mrs. Possum Grows Worried from The Adventures of Unc' Billy Possum by Thornton Burgess The Seaweed Story from The Sandman: His Sea Stories by Willliam J. Hopkins
Where Go the Boats? by Robert Louis Stevenson The Sun Travels by Robert Louis Stevenson   John Grumblie, Anonymous The Song of Shadows by Walter de la Mare The Babie by Hugh Miller Lady Moon by Richard Monckton Milnes
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The Aesop for Children  by Milo Winter

Belling the Cat

The mice once called a meeting to decide on a plan to free themselves of their enemy, the Cat. At least they wished to find some way of knowing when she was coming, so they might have time to run away. Indeed, something had to be done, for they lived in such constant fear of her claws that they hardly dared stir from their dens by night or day.

Many plans were discussed, but none of them was thought good enough. At last a very young Mouse got up and said:

"I have a plan that seems very simple, but I know it will be successful. All we have to do is to hang a bell about the Cat's neck. When we hear the bell ringing we will know immediately that our enemy is coming."

All the Mice were much surprised that they had not thought of such a plan before. But in the midst of the rejoicing over their good fortune, an old Mouse arose and said:

"I will say that the plan of the young Mouse is very good. But let me ask one question Who will bell the Cat?"

It is one thing to say that something should be done, but quite a different matter to do it.


[Illustration]