A childe shall learne of the better of them,
that, which an other daie, if he be wise, and cum to iudgement,
he must be faine to vnlearne againe.
_The first booke for the youth._ 183
There is a waie, touched in the first booke of _Cicero
De Oratore_, which, wiselie brought into scholes, // 1. _De Or._
truely taught, and constantly vsed, would not
onely take wholly away this butcherlie feare in making of
latines, but would also, with ease and pleasure, and in short
time, as I know by good experience, worke a true choice and
placing of wordes, a right ordering of sentences, an easie
vnderstandyng of the tonge, a readines to speake, a facultie to
write, a true iudgement, both of his owne, and other mens
doinges, what tonge so euer he doth vse.
The waie is this. After the three Concordances learned,
as I touched before, let the master read vnto hym the Epistles
of _Cicero_, gathered togither and chosen out by _Sturmius_, for
the capacitie of children.
First, let him teach the childe, cherefullie and plainlie, the
cause, and matter of the letter: then, let him
construe it into Englishe, so oft, as the childe may // The order
easilie carie awaie the vnderstanding of it: // of teaching.
Lastlie, parse it ouer perfitlie. This done thus, let the childe,
by and by, both construe and parse it ouer againe: so, that it
may appeare, that the childe douteth in nothing, that his
master taught him before. After this, the childe must take
a paper booke, and sitting in some place, where no man shall
prompe him, by him self, let him translate into Englishe his
former lesson. Then shewing it to his master,
let the master take from him his latin booke, and // Two pa-
pausing an houre, at the least, than let the childe // per bokes.
translate his owne Englishe into latin againe, in an other paper
booke. When the childe bringeth it, turned into latin, the
master must compare it with _Tullies_ booke, and laie them both
togither: and where the childe doth well, either in chosing, or
true placing of _Tullies_ wordes, let the master // Children
praise him, and saie here ye do well. For I // learne by
assure you, there is no such whetstone, to // prayse.
sharpen a good witte and encourage a will to learninge, as is
praise.
But if the childe misse, either in forgetting a worde, or in
chaunging a good with a worse, or misordering the sentence,
I would not haue the master, either froune, or chide with him,
if the childe haue done his diligence, and vsed no trewandship
184 _The first booke teachyng_
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