Fourth Grade Read Aloud Banquet

The Brook

I come from haunts of coot and hern, 
I make a sudden sally,
And sparkle out among the fern, 
To bicker down a valley.

By thirty hills I hurry down,
Or slip between the ridges;
By twenty thorps, a little town,
And half a hundred bridges.

Till last by Philip's farm I flow
To join the brimming river;
For men may come, and men may go, 
But I go on forever.

I chatter over stony ways,
In little sharps and trebles, 
I bubble into eddying bays,
I babble on the pebbles.

With many a curve my banks I fret
By many a field and fallow, 
And many a fairy foreland set
With willow-weed and mallow. 

I chatter, chatter, as I flow
To join the brimming river,
For men may come, and men may go, 
But I go on forever.

I wind about, and in and out,
With here a blossom sailing,
And here and there a lusty trout,
And here and there a grayling,

And here and there a foamy flake 
Upon me, as I travel,
With many a silvery water-break 
Above the golden gravel,

And draw them all along, and flow 
To join the brimming river,
For men may come, and men may go, 
But I go on forever.

I steal by lawns and grassy plots, 
I slide by hazel covers;
I move the sweet forget-me-nots 
That grow for happy lovers.

I slip, I slide, I gloom, I glance,
Among my skimming swallows; 
I make the netted sunbeam dance
Against my sandy shallows.

I murmur under moon and stars
In brambly wildernesses; 
I linger by my shingly bars,
I loiter round my cresses;

And out again I curve and flow
To join the brimming river;
For men may come, and men may go, 
But I go on forever.

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
Week 40	Real Robbers Seize the Box of Gold from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain	George II—The Story of Flora MacDonald from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	Effects of the Thunderbolt from The Story Book of Science by Jean Henri Fabre	Rainolf and the Palace Pages from Our Little Frankish Cousin of Long Ago by Evaleen Stein	The Death of Nelson from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	Blue Beard from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	Saint Edward the Confessor from Our Island Saints by Amy Steedman
	Joan of Arc from Heroes of the Middle Ages by Eva March Tappan	Along the Highway of the Fox from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	"The Vindicator of Congress" from Four American Patriots by Alma Holman Burton	The Merchant and His Iron from The Tortoise and the Geese and Other Fables of Bidpai by Maude Barrows Dutton	The Meeting of the Three Patriots from Stories of William Tell Told to the Children by H. E. Marshall	How the Nest Looks Inside from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	How Prince Giglio Behaved Himself from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
		Jaffár by Leigh Hunt	This Is My Letter to the World by Emily Dickinson	Autumn—A Dirge by Percy Bysshe Shelley	The Sparrow's Nest from Poems by Mary Howitt	Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll	The Ghosts of the Buffaloes by Vachel Lindsay
Week 41	Trembling on the Trail from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain	The Story of the Black Hole of Calcutta from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	Clouds from The Story Book of Science by Jean Henri Fabre	A Bit of History from Our Little Frankish Cousin of Long Ago by Evaleen Stein	A Second Charlemagne from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	The Blue Rose from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	The Last Supper from Hurlbut's Story of the Bible by Jesse Lyman Hurlbut
	A Child of Long Ago from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett The Young Troubadour from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett	In the Toadfish's Shoe from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	"The Little Lion" from Four American Patriots by Alma Holman Burton	The Lean Cat and the Fat Cat from The Tortoise and the Geese and Other Fables of Bidpai by Maude Barrows Dutton	The Gathering on the Rutli from Stories of William Tell Told to the Children by H. E. Marshall	The Yellow Jackets from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	How Giglio and Angelica Had a Quarrel from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
		Battle Hymn of the Republic by Julia Ward Howe	Sir Galahad by Alfred Lord Tennyson		La Belle Dame Sans Merci from Poems by John Keats		Oct 9
Week 42	In the Lair of Injun Joe from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain	George II—The Story of How Canada Was Won from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	The Velocity of Sound from The Story Book of Science by Jean Henri Fabre	The Palace School from Our Little Frankish Cousin of Long Ago by Evaleen Stein	The Rise of Wellington from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	The Princesses Who Lived in a Kailyard from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	The Olive Orchard and the High Priests Hall from Hurlbut's Story of the Bible by Jesse Lyman Hurlbut
	The Young Soldier from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett To Arms! from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett	A Chapter of Things To See This Fall from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	Washington's Aide-de-camp from Four American Patriots by Alma Holman Burton Hamilton the Patriot and Arnold the Traitor from Four American Patriots by Alma Holman Burton	The King, the Hermit, and the Two Princes from The Tortoise and the Geese and Other Fables of Bidpai by Maude Barrows Dutton	William Tell and His Great Shot from Stories of William Tell Told to the Children by H. E. Marshall	Queens and Drones from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	How Gruffanuff Picked the Fairy Ring Up from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
	Jack Frost by Hannah Flagg Gould	The Kitten and Falling Leaves by William Wordsworth	Autumn by Emily Dickinson	Three Bugs by Phoebe Cary			Oct 16
Week 43	Huck Saves the Widow from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain	George III—The Story of How America Was Lost from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	The Experiment with the Bottle of Cold Water from The Story Book of Science by Jean Henri Fabre	Dinner from Our Little Frankish Cousin of Long Ago by Evaleen Stein	At the Cape of Good Hope from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	Where To Lay the Blame from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	The Crown of Thorns (Part 1 of 2) from Hurlbut's Story of the Bible by Jesse Lyman Hurlbut
	The New Road from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett "The Other Life Is as My Life" from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett	Whipped by Eagles from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	The Lawyer from Four American Patriots by Alma Holman Burton	The Two Travelers from The Tortoise and the Geese and Other Fables of Bidpai by Maude Barrows Dutton	The Escape of William Tell from Stories of William Tell Told to the Children by H. E. Marshall	Wasp Flowers from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	How Betsinda Got the Warming-Pan from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray How King Valoroso Was in a Dreadful Passion from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
		Jack Frost by Hannah Flagg Gould	Lady Clare by Alfred Lord Tennyson	Song from "The Culprit Fay" by Joseph Rodman Drake		The Duck and the Kangaroo by Edward Lear	To a Mouse by Robert Burns
Week 44	Tom and Becky in the Cave from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain	George III—A Story of a Spinning Wheel from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	Rain from The Story Book of Science by Jean Henri Fabre	Malagis and the Boys from Our Little Frankish Cousin of Long Ago by Evaleen Stein	The First Australian Colony from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	The Many-Furred Creature from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	The Crown of Thorns (Part 2 of 2) from Hurlbut's Story of the Bible by Jesse Lyman Hurlbut
	Father and Son from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett "Lady Poverty" from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett	Thanksgiving at Grandfather's Farm from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	The Statesman from Four American Patriots by Alma Holman Burton	The Lion and the Hare from The Tortoise and the Geese and Other Fables of Bidpai by Maude Barrows Dutton	Tell's Second Shot from Stories of William Tell Told to the Children by H. E. Marshall	Underground Paper Palaces from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	What Gruffanuff Did to Giglio and Betsinda from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
		The Mountain and the Squirrel by Ralph Waldo Emerson	Crossing the Bar by Alfred Lord Tennyson				Oct 30
Week 45	Found and Lost Again from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain	England Expects That Every Man Will Do His Duty from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	Volcanoes from The Story Book of Science by Jean Henri Fabre	A Boar Hunt and a Music Lesson from Our Little Frankish Cousin of Long Ago by Evaleen Stein	Story of the Slave-Trade from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	Clever Peter and the Two Bottles from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	Saint Hugh of Lincoln (Part 1 of 2) from Our Island Saints by Amy Steedman
	The Bird Sisters from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett Brother Wolf from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett	A Chapter of Things To Do This Fall from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	The Federalist from Four American Patriots by Alma Holman Burton	The Crane and the Crab from The Tortoise and the Geese and Other Fables of Bidpai by Maude Barrows Dutton	How Castle Rossberg Was Taken from Stories of William Tell Told to the Children by H. E. Marshall	The Hunters from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	How Betsinda Fled, and What Became of Her from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
	Israfel by Edgar Allan Poe	The Children's Hour by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow	I'm Nobody! Who Are You? by Emily Dickinson	I Remember, I Remember by Thomas Hood			La Belle Dame Sans Merci by John Keats
Week 46	"Turn Out! They're Found!" from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain	George III—The Battle of Waterloo from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	Catania from The Story Book of Science by Jean Henri Fabre	The Minnesinger Tells of Roland from Our Little Frankish Cousin of Long Ago by Evaleen Stein	The Defence of Saragoza from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	Southwest Wind, Esquire Interferes from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	Saint Hugh of Lincoln (Part 1 of 2) from Our Island Saints by Amy Steedman
	The Three Robbers from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett Nurse and Patient from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett	The Muskrats Are Building from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	The First Secretary of the Treasury from Four American Patriots by Alma Holman Burton	The Ass, the Lion, and the Folk from The Tortoise and the Geese and Other Fables of Bidpai by Maude Barrows Dutton	How Castle Sarnen Was Taken from Stories of William Tell Told to the Children by H. E. Marshall	Polistes from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	How Queen Rosalba Came to the Castle of the Count from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
			The Oak by Alfred Lord Tennyson	Hunting Song by Sir Walter Scott	Down to Sleep from Poems by Helen Hunt Jackson	The Table and the Chair by Edward Lear	The Sands of Dee by Charles Kingsley
Week 47	The Fate of Injun Joe from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain	George IV—The First Gentleman in Europe from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	The Story of Pliny from The Story Book of Science by Jean Henri Fabre	Presents for the King from Our Little Frankish Cousin of Long Ago by Evaleen Stein	Sir John Moore at Coruna from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	The Proceedings of the Three Brothers from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	The Darkest Day of All the World from Hurlbut's Story of the Bible by Jesse Lyman Hurlbut
	With the Crusaders from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett The Christmas at Greccio from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett	The North Wind Doth Blow from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	The Inspector General of the Army from Four American Patriots by Alma Holman Burton	The Crow, the Jackal, the Wolf, and the Camel from The Tortoise and the Geese and Other Fables of Bidpai by Maude Barrows Dutton	How the Emperor Albrecht Met His Death from Stories of William Tell Told to the Children by H. E. Marshall	Strange Nests from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	What Became of Giglio from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
			Precious Words by Emily Dickinson	The Pumpkin by John Greenleaf Whittier	Sir Patrick Spens from Poems, Anonymous		The Skeleton in Armor by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Week 48	Floods of Gold from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain	William IV—Two Peaceful Victories from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	The Boiling Pot from The Story Book of Science by Jean Henri Fabre	Rainolf in the Writing-Room from Our Little Frankish Cousin of Long Ago by Evaleen Stein	The Victory of Talavera from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	How Mr. Hans Prospered from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	The Brightest Day of All the World from Hurlbut's Story of the Bible by Jesse Lyman Hurlbut
	La Verna from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett The Troubadour's Last Song from God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi by Sophie Jewett	An Outdoor Lesson from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr from Four American Patriots by Alma Holman Burton The Duel from Four American Patriots by Alma Holman Burton	The Camel Driver and the Adder from The Tortoise and the Geese and Other Fables of Bidpai by Maude Barrows Dutton	The Battle of Morgarten from Stories of William Tell Told to the Children by H. E. Marshall	Miners from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	We Return to Rosalba from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
			In Memoriam, VII by Alfred Lord Tennyson				Nov 27
Week 49	Respectable Huck Joins the Gang from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain	Victoria—The Girl Queen from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	Seasonal Story	Christmas Day of the Year 800 from Our Little Frankish Cousin of Long Ago by Evaleen Stein	The Peasant Hero of Tyrol from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	How Mr. Schwartz Prospered from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	Seasonal Story
	Seasonal Story	Leafing from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	More Wasp Stories from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	How Hedzoff Rode Back to King Giglio from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
	Old Christmas by Mary Howitt	Seasonal Poem	The Snow by Emily Dickinson	Seasonal Poem	Seasonal Poem	Seasonal Poem	Seasonal Poem
Week 50	Seasonal Story	Victoria—When Bread Was Dear from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	The Empire at Its Height from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	How Little Gluck Prospered from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	Seasonal Story
	Seasonal Story	A Chapter of Things To Hear This Fall from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	The Carpenters from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	How a Tremendous Battle Took Place and Who Won It from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
	While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks by Night by Nahum Tate	Seasonal Poem	Seasonal Poem	Seasonal Poem	Seasonal Poem	Seasonal Poem	An Ancient Christmas Carol, Anonymous
Week 51	Seasonal Story	Victoria—Peace from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	The Shannon and the Chesapeake from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	The Worker in Sandalwood from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Upon the Rock by Lisa M. Ripperton	Seasonal Story
	Seasonal Story	Honk, Honk, Honk! from The Fall of the Year by Dallas Lore Sharp	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	Winter Wasps from Will o' the Wasps by Margaret Warner Morley	How They All Journeyed Back to the Capital from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
		Seasonal Poem	Winter by Alfred Lord Tennyson	Seasonal Poem	Seasonal Poem	Seasonal Poem	A Christmas Carol by Christina Georgina Rossetti
Week 52	Seasonal Story	Victoria—War from Our Island Story by H. E. Marshall	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	Napoleon's Retreat from Moscow from The Struggle for Sea Power by M. B. Synge	The Little Match-Girl from Fairy Tales Too Good To Miss—Across the Lake by Lisa M. Ripperton	Seasonal Story
	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	Seasonal Story	And Now We Come to the Last Scene in the Pantomime from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray Summary from The Rose and the Ring by William Makepeace Thackeray
		Seasonal Poem	The Death of the Old Year by Alfred Lord Tennyson	Seasonal Poem	Seasonal Poem	Seasonal Poem	An Old Christmas Carol, Anonymous
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The Aesop for Children by Milo Winter

The Lark and Her Young Ones

A Lark made her nest in a field of young wheat. As the days passed, the wheat stalks grew tall and the young birds, too, grew in strength. Then one day, when the ripe golden grain waved in the breeze, the Farmer and his son came into the field.

"This wheat is now ready for reaping," said the Farmer. "We must call in our neighbors and friends to help us harvest it."

The young Larks in their nest close by were much frightened, for they knew they would be in great danger if they did not leave the nest before the reapers came. When the Mother Lark returned with food for them, they told her what they had heard.

"Do not be frightened, children," said the Mother Lark. "If the Farmer said he would call in his neighbors and friends to help him do his work, this wheat will not be reaped for a while yet."

A few days later, the wheat was so ripe, that when the wind shook the stalks, a hail of wheat grains came rustling down on the young Larks' heads.

"If this wheat is not harvested at once," said the Farmer, "we shall lose half the crop. We cannot wait any longer for help from our friends. Tomorrow we must set to work, ourselves."

When the young Larks told their mother what they had heard that day, she said:

"Then we must be off at once. When a man decides to do his own work and not depend on any one else, then you may be sure there will be no more delay." There was much fluttering and trying out of wings that afternoon, and at sunrise next day, when the Farmer and his son cut down the grain, they found an empty nest.

Self-help is the best help.