Chicken Little Jane

Ritchie, Lily MunsellProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 2.1
Word count
340K words
Chapters
35

Tags

English Originals Children's Literature Campus LifeFamily BondsComing of AgeHeartwarming NarrativeParent-Child ReadingYouth Reading

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Chicken Little Jane by Lily Munsell RitchieAuthor: Ritchie, Lily Munsell,Language: English, Class: PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres, Release Date: Dec 21, 2007

Editor's review

Chicken Little Jane is a children's book by Lily Munsell Ritchie, classified as young people's literature. The title borrows the fairy-tale imagery of "Chicken Little," and the story revolves around the daily life of its young heroine, Jane, presenting small events of family and growing up from a child's perspective. The tone is gentle and the plot light, making it suitable as introductory English reading for children. As a public-domain e-book, its language is relatively plain and its length short, and the narrative pace suits young readers following along. Its value lies not in complex literary technique but in offering a friendly, safe English story environment where young readers encounter English expression naturally as the plot unfolds and experience the family atmosphere and childlike charm common to early children's literature. For parents looking for original English books for their children, it can serve as a transitional choice for shared reading or leveled reading; for English learners, it can also be used as light extensive reading material.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Not a good fit for

Reading tips

  1. For shared reading, have the parent read a passage first, then let the child retell the plot
  2. After each chapter, write one or two sentences about what happened to Jane
  3. Guess unfamiliar words from context first, then look them up together afterward
  4. Follow along with an audiobook to practice pronunciation and intonation

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
  29. 29
  30. 30
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
  34. 34
  35. 35

FAQ

What age is this book suitable for? In terms of language difficulty, it is best suited to upper-elementary students with some English foundation, or younger children reading with a parent. The exact age depends on the child's English level; try reading a page or two first to see whether the child can follow the plot.
Can it be used as an English textbook? It is better suited to extensive and interest-based reading than to systematic instruction. The language is plain and the plot simple, which helps readers become familiar with English narrative expression, but grammar and vocabulary practice are not systematic, so it is best used alongside a formal textbook.
Can parents with poor English read it with their children? Yes. The language is relatively simple, and parents can preview with a dictionary or translation tool, focusing on helping the child understand the plot and discuss the story. The key to shared reading is creating a reading atmosphere; there is no need to explain every word and sentence.

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About the author

Ritchie, Lily Munsell Author

Lily Munsell Ritchie is a children's author about whom very little is known; public information is limited, and her nationality, dates of birth and death, and educational background cannot be verified. Two works are confirmed under her name: Chicken Little Jane and Chicken Little Jane on the Big John. Judging from the titles, both center on a little girl named Chicken Little Jane and form a related series of children's stories, with subject matter close to children's daily life and growing-up adventures, and a narrative tone that is likely light and friendly, suitable for young readers. The survival and inclusion of these two works suggest she once held a place in the children's publishing of her time, but beyond that, the available material is insufficient to discuss her writing career, specific assessments of her style, or the social influence of her books, leaving these to be supplemented if more documents come to light.