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This is a series of three books，intended for use of the junior middle school. The first book is a general introduction to the English language. The second and third are mostly on American and English daily life.
The series is suited to any school that offers a course of English comprising these subjects: pronunciation，penmanship，reading，dictation，spelling，conversation，language，grammar，sentence formation，letter writing，composition，and translation.
The age of pupils who take up this series should be above ten years. The number of hours a week is presumed to be five，and the number of weeks a year thirty-two.
This series of readers has been compiled in strict accordance with the principles of the direct method of teaching foreign languages. These principles are:
1. The first thing to be studied in a foreign language is not the more or less archaic language of literature，but the spoken language of ordinary conversation.
2. The teacher's first care should be to make his pupils perfectly familiar with the sounds of the language. To insure a correct use of the foreign sounds he will make use of a phonetic transcription，which should be employed to the exclusion of the traditional spelling during the initial stages.
3. The teacher's next aim should be to impart a perfecot command of the foreign language. To obtain this result he will use connected texts，dialogues，descriptions，and narratives，all as easy，natural，and interesting as possible.
4. Grammar will at first be taught inductively，by grouping together and drawing general conclusions from such facts as are observed in reading. A more systematic study is to be kept for a later stage.
5. The teacher will endeavor to connect the words of the foreign language directly with ideas they express，or with other words of the same language，not[entirely]with those of the mother tongue. Translation will therefore be replaced，as far as possible，by object lessons，picture lessons，and explanations in the foreign language.
6. When，at a later period，written work is introduced it will consist at first of the reproduction of matter already read and explained，then the reproduction of stories，etc.，which the pupils have heard the teacher tell ; free composition will come next；translation from and into the foreign language is to be kept till the end.
The prnciples stated above are quoted from “ The Principles of the International Phonetic Association. ”
The second principle，the one concerning the use of phonetic transcription to the exclusion of the ordinary spelling during the first stages of instruction，is not fully carried out in this series，simply because the science of phonetics is still a new thing in the eye of many language teachers. But the phonetic symbols are made use of in teaching pronunciation（Sections71 ， 75 ， 84 ， 87 ， 91 ， 95and 104），and in the transcription of words in the glossary.
Each of the thirty-two lessons in this book contains four sections. Every section is marked by a number (1 ， 2 ， 3 ， 4 ， 5 ， 6 ， 7 ，. . . )，and is intended to be finished in one hour. An exercise，intended for weekly review，is appended at the end of every lesson.
The following things are taught in the first book :
1. Things in the School and the Classroom
2. Numbers Up to One Thousand
3. Size and Shape
4. Everyday Actions
5. Hours，Days，Weeks，and Months
6. The Year and Its Seasons
7. Time
8. Seasons and Weather
9. Day and Night
10. Colors
11. The Parts of the Human Body
12. Family Relations
13. Articles of Clothing
14. Food and Drink
15. The House and Its Rooms
16. Animals and Plants
These topics come under the headings : (1) Vocabulary，(2) Pronunciation，(3) Penmanship，(4) Conversation，(5) Reading，(6) Dictation (7) Language，(8) Review of Words，and under several other headings.
1. The best way of teaching a vocabulary is not to use translation，but to show objects，to use pictures，and to dramatize. The vocabulary in the present book comes under the following sections： 1-19 ， 2l ， 23 ， 25-27 ， 29-31 ， 33 ， 37 ， 41 ， 45 ， 49 ， 53 ， 57 ， 61 ， 65 ， 69 ， 73 ， 77 ， 81 ， 85 ， 89 ， 93 ， 94 ， 97 ， 101 ， 105 ， 109 ， 113 ， 117 ， 121 ， 125 .
2. Pronunciation comes under these sections:71 ， 75 ， 84 87 ， 91 ， 95 ， 104 ， 116 .
A “ decent ” pronunciation，may be given to our pupils if a teacher has a little knowledge of phonetics. Phonetics is needed because imitation, one of the most natural ways of learning pronunciatiou is sometimes of no avail. An elementary knowledge of phonetics，which will be sufficient for a teacher of this book，may be easily obtained from the author's “ A Primer of English Sounds ” or Mr. T. T. Eugene Tseu's “ An Outline of English Phonetics ” (in Chinese).
3. Penmanship comes under these sections:1-21 ， 23 ， 24 ， 27.
In the earliest work in writing the pencil is preferable to the pen. The pen should come later，because it is more difficult to manipulate. The teacher ought to show pupils the proper position of body，head，hand，and pen in writing. Pupils should copy from the blackboard，either on paper (or a slate) at their seats，or sometimes on the blackboard. The teacher should criticize and correct the work of the pupils. Later，the boys and girls should copy in script the Roman words and sentences given in their books.
4. Conversation may be found under the following sections :34 ， 38 ， 42 ， 46 ， 50 ， 54 ， 58 ， 62 ， 66 ， 70 ， 74 ， 78 ， 82 ， 86 ， 98 ， 102 ， 106 ， 110 ， 114 ， 118 ， 122 ， 126.
Teachers who learned English long ago think that conversation is an independent branch of English. This is wrong；it should be regarded as the conversational treatment of the reading lesson. Conversation may be analyzed into its elements as follows: (1) Understanding spoken words phrases and sentences; (2) drill in pronunciation; (3) memorizing and oral expresion，or the reproduction of sentences that are heard. The most important of these is understanding what one hears.
5. Passages for reading are found under these sections:35 ， 39 ， 43 ， 47 ， 51 ， 55 ， 59 ， 63 ， 67 ， 79 ， 90 ， 96 ， 99 ， 103 ， 107 ， 111 ， 119 ， 123 ， 127.
Reading means an understanding of the written or printed words and sentences. Good reading comes only after correct pronunciation and right recognition of spelled words. Thus，it is plain that in the earlier stages the teacher must first present orally the new words (pronunciation)，and then make the students learn their forms (spelling)，before he allows them to read. In order to train the students'power of hearing，the teacher in doing this should have them close their books and (occasionally) their eyes. This will teach them right intonation，which insures correct and pleasing reading.
6. These headings contain dictation: 60，68，88.
Subjects for dictation ought to be chosen from reading lessons. Dictation can be analyzed into elements as follows: (1) Hearing and under-standing spoken English ; (2) drill in writing; (3) drill in spelling. Papers should often be inspected and corrected by the teacher but pupils should frequently exchange papers and correct one another's work. Another device for dictation work that has proved very satisfactory in practice is to have one boy write at the blackboard while the others write on paper or on their slates. After the exercise has been written，all the boys should examine the copy on the board，and those who find mistakes ought to go to the board，one at a time，and make corrections，until the board work is a model from which all can correct their own work.
7. The following sections contain exercises in language: 20，22，28，48，56，72，76，80，83，92，112，115，120，124.
In this book only very important grammatical forms are given. The teacher should exemplify these special forms in the lessons.
8. Review of words are found in sections:32 ， 64 ， 100 ， 128.
These sections give material for the teacher to drill the student not only in the meaning of words but also in their pronunciation and spelling.
1. Say “ Good Morning ” (or “ Good afternoon ” if your class is in the afternoon)，every time just when you are standing on the platform to face the class. This must also be done every time when you meet your student or students in other places either inside or outside the school. The phrases “ Good evening，”“Good-by，”and “ Good night，”must be said whenever you have an opportunity.And so it is with a dozen classroom directions; such as，“Be quiet ” ; “ fetch some chalk ” ; “ Go on ” ; “ Stop ” ; “ Repeat the whole once more ” ; “ Don't write with pencil，write in ink ” ; “ Write it with a capital letter ” (or “ a small letter ” ); “ Spell this word ” ; “ Not too fast ” ; “ Louder ” ; “ Try again. ”
2.If your class is large，try to make your students read (sometimes) in chorus. This insures better pronunciation and does away with bashfulness. In a very large class you should divide it into sections for chorus work.
3.Repetition is necessary for beginners. Do not think that this wastes time. It is rather a secret in preserving the stock of words that the students have learned.
4.Do not always call upon students in a fixed order. Promiscuous order gets better attention.
5.Questions must not be answered merely by “ Yes ” or “ No. ” The teacher should insist upon having complete answers.
6.Make frequent use of the blackboard. Use colored chalk if you can procure it. Good blackboard work helps students to remember new words as well as difficult grammatical forms.