This textbook is for use in a seventh-grade English course. Lessons are presented to develop pupils' ability to speak and to write effectively. They offer (1) opportunity for the child to express himself on important subjects close to the interests of his everyday life; (2) a well-organized series of constructive exercises to enrich his vocabulary and to train him in those habits which make for skill in speech and writing; and (3) well-graded corrective drills on commonly misused oral and written forms. Minimum essentials of English grammar are presented in Part Two of this volume. At intervals throughout the volume, practice exercises are introduced to enable the pupil to see definitely the relation between the grammar studied and the use he may make of grammar. This series of readers is the result of schoolroom practice. Every lesson has been developed in actual teaching both by the author and by teachers under his supervision. The lessons come as the result of experiment under conditions varying from the ungraded rural school to the most advanced graded schools. [For the accompanying Teachers' Manual, see ED623421.]