Does anyone else remember these gradeschool spellers? They were the common spelling textbooks used all across Canada in the 1950s, 60s, and possibly the 70s.
The spellers were written by Frank M. Quance, dean of the College of Education at the University of Saskatchewan, here in Saskatoon where I live. Here's an article about Quance from the U of S Archives.
http://scaa.usask.ca/gallery/uofs_events/articles/1947.php
And here's a review of a book on Literacy in Western Canada in the period 1946 to 1960, which encompasses the history of such textbooks as the "Dick and Jane" readers and Quance's Canadian Spellers.
http://www.historyliteracy.org/scripts/sea...p?Article_ID=14
The covers of the textbooks for Grades 1 to 4 featured a large-diameter wooden pencil, and the ones for Grades 5 to 8 featured the above penholder and inkwell. The cover for each year had a different color scheme comprised of lively primary colors, and the lessons were profusely illustrated with black-ink drawings. Each volume had a section at the back with a miniature, illustrated dictionary of all the words introduced in all the lessons. They had a definite look that's very redolent of the 50s style. I can almost taste and smell the memories.
I have a penholder and nib that is the spitting image of the one in the later covers, but I am still looking for an inkwell that looks exactly like the one in those covers.
George.
