Prairie School Teacher Guide | Memoria Press

Memoria Press Literature Guides are well-organized, user-friendly, and academically challenging. These guides equip students to be active readers through thoughtful and purposeful study. Formatted similarly, each guide includes

• Vocabulary, taken straight from the original texts
• Comprehension/discussion questions for independent reflection and group discussion
• Direct quotations to analyze
• Composition prompts for short and long essays
• Literary analysis that increases in depth throughout the study and grade ranges
• Varied activities to engage with the readings

Beginning in 2nd grade, Memoria Press Literature Guides are organized around the Trivium with activities grouped into Pre-Grammar, Grammar (K-5: preparation and presentation), Logic (6-8: reasoning with facts, elements, and features), and Rhetoric (9-12: expression). Background information on the author and book is also included in the introductory materials.

Student Guides for Grades 2-8 are consumable. Each book/story/poem is approached in much the same way, although with increasing depth. Beginning in Grade 9, the guides transition to a smaller (6” x 9”), non-consumable format. Page numbers provided throughout will guide students for reference. Students are encouraged to create a personal Literature Notebook, where they will document all answers, research, and projects.

Teacher Guides provide valuable teaching information and full-text answer keys at all grade levels. Discussion talking points, reproducible quizzes, and final tests (with answers) are included in numerous guides, especially at the upper levels. The early grades differ a little bit in content to be more suitable for young learners. The Teacher Guides afford a more teacher-student approach to literature and are beneficial for co-op settings.

StoryTime Treasures and More StoryTime Treasures incorporate real books, rather than controlled readers, to advance phonics and reading skills once a student has learned basic phonics. Student Guides at this level are different compared to the guides for 2nd grade and up. Featuring a horizontal orientation for ease of writing, worksheets focus on vocabulary and comprehension. There’s writing involved (7/16” lines with dotted midline) but the top binding makes it easy for either right- or left-handed students. The teacher will need to take a quick peek at two pages at the beginning that give the plan for the Word Study, Read, Comprehension, and Language (introductory grammar) segments of each lesson. 

• StoryTime covers four classic children’s books in 14 lessons and 2 optional Christmas lessons
• More StoryTime provides another 15 lessons and seven children’s books

Teacher Guides for StoryTime and More StoryTime include a model lesson plan, an overview, daily assignments for each lesson (which highlight phonics and vocabulary activities), and answers to the student pages. Optional lesson plans are available.

Grade Level Packages are available for your convenience and align with the Memoria Press Literature and Poetry grade level packages. Components are also available separately. For additional literature options from Memoria Press, please see the Alternate Literature or the Classical Literature options.