Poets of Nature, Revelry, and Rhyme Nature, Revelry, and Rhyme    

Lesson 20: Jest 'Fore Christmas

by Eugene Field

Performer: Librivox - Alisson Veldhuis

Directions

Study the poem for one week.

Over the week:

• Read or listen to the poem.
• Review the synopsis.
• Study the vocabulary words.
• Read about the poet.
• Complete the enrichment activities.
• Discuss the review questions.

Synopsis

The poem narrator discusses how he is a mischievous troublemaker throughout the year with one exception - he's extra good right before Christmas to ensure he receives presents under the tree.

Vocabulary

Fellers: Fellows.
Fauntleroy: An excessively well-mannered or elaborately dressed young boy.
Chawnk (Chuck): Throw something carelessly or casually.
Castor-ile (Castor Oil): A pale yellow oil obtained from castor beans, used to incite vomiting.
Clipper Sled: Wooden snow sleds with metal rails.
Laff: Laugh.
Larrup: Thrash or whip.
Missionarer (Missionary): A person sent on a religious mission, especially one sent to promote Christianity in a foreign country.
Cannibuls (Cannibals): People who eats the flesh of other human beings.
Ceylon's Isle: The island of Sri Lanka, located off the eastern coast of India.
Prospeck (Prospect): An extensive view of landscape.
Vile: Extremely unpleasant or wicked.
Wild West Show: A show featuring fictionalized scenes and events from the American western frontier (e.g. cowboys on horses, American Indians, herding cattle).
Daniel Boone: An American frontiersman who explored and established a settlement on land that is now Kentucky.
Buff'lo Bill: An 1800s-era guide, pony express rider, buffalo hunter, and showman from the wild west of America.
Perlite: Polite
Bresh: Brush.
Pantaloons: Women's baggy trousers gathered at the ankles.

Concepts

1. Eugene Field was born in 1850 in Saint Louis, Illinois. See his picture below.

2. Zoom in and find Field's birth state of Illinois (IL) on the map of the continental United States.

3. Field was afraid of the dark as a boy and hated studying. His mother died when he was six, and his father sent him to live on his cousin's farm.
4. Field wrote his first poem on the farm about his cousin's dog, Fido.
5. Field married young and had eight children, five of which survived beyond childhood.
6. Field published poems beginning in 1879, when he was 29. One of his most famous poems is, 'Wynken, Blynken, and Nod'.
7. Field died of a heart attack at the age of 45 in Chicago, Illinois.

Enrichment

Activity 1: Recite the Title, the Poet's Name, and the Poem

• Each day this week, recite aloud the title of the poem, the name of the poet, and the poem.

Activity 2: Study the Poem Picture

• Study the poem picture, and describe how it relates to the poem.

Activity 3: Narrate the Poem

After reading or listening to the poem, narrate the poem events aloud using your own words.

Activity 4: Color the Poem   

• Click the crayon above, and complete page 22 of 'Poetry Coloring Pages for Second Grade.'

Activity 5: Map the Poem

• The narrator mentions his great uncle was a missionary in Ceylon's Isle, the present-day island of Sri Lanka.
• Study the map of south-central Asia below.
• Find Sri Lanka. What ocean surrounds the island of Sri Lanka?

Activity 6: Can You Find It?

The poem narrator expresses admiration for Buffalo Bill, who was an 1800s-era guide, pony express rider, buffalo hunter, and showman from the wild west of America.

Buffalo Bill and his rough riders toured the United States and Europe and put on Wild West Shows featuring settlers, cowboys, buffalos, and American Indians.

Zoom in and find the following in the Buffalo Bill poster below:

• Buffalo Bill
• Cowboys
• Cowboy Hats
• Handkerchiefs
• Boots
• Gun
• Holster
• Rearing Horse
• Galloping Horse
• Manes
• Saddle
• Bridle
• Stirrup
• Cattle
• Lasso

Review

Question 1

What is the title of the poem?

1 / 5

Answer 1

The title of the poem is 'Jest 'Fore Christmas.'

1 / 5

Question 2

What is the name of the poet who wrote 'Jest 'Fore Christmas?'

2 / 5

Answer 2

The name of the poet is Eugene Field.

2 / 5

Question 3

What happens in the poem?

3 / 5

Answer 3

A mischievous boy stops his troublemaking ways right before Christmas to ensure he receives presents.

3 / 5

Question 4

Who are the characters in the poem?

4 / 5

Answer 4

The main characters include the boy narrator, his friends, his mother, his father, his dog, his grandmother, and the grocery man.

4 / 5

Question 5

Does the poem teach us anything?

5 / 5

Answer 5

The poem teaches us that people will (temporarily) change their behavior to get what they want.

5 / 5

❮ ❯

1. What is the title of the poem? The title of the poem is 'Jest 'Fore Christmas.'
2. What is the name of the poet who wrote 'Jest 'Fore Christmas?' The name of the poet is Eugene Field.
3. What happens in the poem? A mischievous boy stops his troublemaking ways right before Christmas to ensure he receives presents.
4. Who are the characters in the poem? The main characters include the boy narrator, his friends, his mother, his father, his dog, his grandmother, and the grocery man.
5. Does the poem teach us anything? The poem teaches us that people will (temporarily) change their behavior to get what they want.

References

'Eugene Field.' Wikipedia. Wikipedia.org. n.p.

'Wild West shows.' Wikipedia. Wikipedia.org. n.p.

'Buffalo Bill.' Wikipedia. Wikipedia.org. n.p.