Have children look up vocabulary words and choose appropriate definition.
Children can also copy quote for their handwriting exercise. The first
12 quotes show the character traits of Bobbie.
Chapter 1: Mother writes poems for birthdays. Have children
write a poem for a friend or relative's upcoming birthday. Vocabulary:
calamity, melancholy, draughty Quote: "Oh Mother,"
she whispered all to herself as she got into bed, "how brave you
are! How I love you! Fancy being brave enough to laugh when you're feeling
like that!" --The Railway Children By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 2: The children go to the rail station. Find out
about rail stations in the 1900's. Read pages 22-23 in The Railway.
Visit a train station. Vocabulary: countenances, telegraph,
remembrance, indignantly Quote: "Oh don't!" said
Bobbie. "Can't you decide now what you'll do to us? It's our fault
just as much as Peter's."--The Railway Children By E.
Nesbit.
Chapter 3: The children met several different railroad workers.
Read pages 20-21 in The Railway. Vocabulary: sensible, eau-de-cologne,
sweetbrier Quote: ...Bobbie understood a little bit the thoughts
that were making Mother so quiet - the thoughts of the time when Mother
was a little girl and was all the world to her mother. --The
Railway Children By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 4: The children make a model of the railroad using flowers.
Have children draw what they think the model would look like. Bobbie
inadvertently ends up on an engine and gets to learn all about the engine.
Have children learn about how train engines work. Read pages 8-9 in
The Railroad. The
how stuff works website has some good information about steam engines.
You could also go on a train ride. Vocabulary: hereabouts,
extravagant, engineering, fortifications Quote: "That
was awfully jolly decent of Peter because I know he didn't mean to.
Well, the broken half shall be my half of the engine, and I'll get it
mended and give it back to Peter for his birthday." --The
Railway Children By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 5: The children play a game of advertisements while
in the station. Make up your own game of advertisements. Vocabulary:
besieged, obliged, inquisitive, reluctantly, ceremoniously Quote:
"Oh don't!" said Bobbie; "don't you see how frightened
he is? He thinks you're going to shut him up. I know he does, -- look
at his eyes!" --The Railway Children By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 6: The children try to cheer the Russian. Brainstorm
with your children some things you can do to cheer someone without talking
to the person. Choose one and do it for someone. Vocabulary:
mysteriously, consented, petticoat, heroic, ingenuity Quote:
"O dear," said Bobbie, with a sigh, "I do believe
you're cross." --The Railway Children By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 7: The author talks about Bobbie's quality of empathy.
Discuss with children what empathy is and how Bobbie has shown this
character trait throughout the book. The old gentleman compares
the children's mother to the good Samaritan. Look up that story in
the book of Luke, chapter 10, in the Bible. Vocabulary: enthusiastic,
commemoration, presentation, examination Quote: And she started
the race, though she hated doing it. You know why Bobbie did that. --The
Railway Children By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 8: The children ride the barge up the river. Research
life on river barges in the 1900's. Vocabulary: soothingly,
staggering, knickerbockers, acquaintances, anxiety, disentangled, incoherent
Quote: "Do, please, don't be cross with Peter. Of course,
if it's your canal, we're sorry and we won't any more. But we didn't
know it was yours." --The Railway Children By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 9: The clergy man said the children showed loving kindness
for Perk's birthday. Have children write a story about a time when
someone showed loving kindness to them. Vocabulary: anticipate,
confidential, charity, perambulator, grudgingly Quote: "No,"
said Bobbie, "I should like every one to have one. Only we know
when his is." --The Railway Children By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 10: After a quarrel, the children agree to "bury
the hatchet". Have children find out what this saying means
and look up other sayings. The
Phrase Finder has sayings and their meanings. Vocabulary:
indignantly, quarrelling, rubbish, drivel Quote: Bobbie had
felt almost from the first that for some strange miserable reason these
questions hurt Mother and made her sad.--The Railway Children
By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 11: The children watch a paper chase. Have children
research what a paper chase is. Do a search at Wikipedia
using the term "paper chase". Have children play a game of
paper chase. Vocabulary: evidence, traitor, parapet
Quote: "Mother, will it make you more unhappy if you
tell me all about it? I want to understand." --The Railway
Children By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 12: The children rescue a boy with a broken leg. Have
your children learn about basic first aid. Read The Kids' Guide to First
Aid: All About Bruises, Burns, Stings, Sprains and Other Ouches. The
Red Cross also offers Basic First Aid courses for children. Vocabulary:
bleating, affection, bearable, interval Quote: "Yes,"
said Bobbie, - and she saw by her Mother's face how right she had been
to bring home the wounded hound in the red jersey. --The Railway
Children By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 13: While talking to Peter, Mother talks about how nice
it is that they are in a book of God's writing. Work with your children
to come up with a list of Bible verses that confirm what she said.
Vocabulary: splints, grievously, sternly, writhe Quote:
"Don't you think it's rather nice to think that we're in a book
that God's writing? If I were writing the book, I might make mistakes.
But God knows how to make the story end just right - in the way that's
best for us." --The Railway Children By E. Nesbit.
Chapter 14: Have children write and act out a play showing
what happened inside Three Chimneys after the book ends. Vocabulary:
ornamented, fluttery, contemptuous, disposition Quote: "I
knew something wonderful was going to happen," said Bobbie, as
they went up the road, "but I didn't think it was going to be this."--The
Railway Children By E. Nesbit.
The children in this story made many friends by being kind and polite.
Discuss how the story would have been different if the children had
not acted this way.
Have children draw a train using Train
Worksheet.
Disclaimer: All links
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agreement with or endorsement of that site. Because of the changing nature
of the internet, always preview a site before viewing it with your children.
