Do the same with the other verses; if practical have the child learn this poem. See that he gets its true lesson:
"Thinking"
If you think you are beaten, you are;
If you think you dare not, you don't.
If you'd like to win, but think you can't,
It's almost a cinch you won't.
If you think you'll lose, you're lost;
For out in the world we find
Success begins with a fellow's will;
It's all in the state of mind.
If you think you're outclassed, you are;
You've got to think high to rise;
You've got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.
Life's battles don't always go
To the stronger or faster man;
But soon or late the man who wins
Is the one who thinks he can.
Poetry Easier Than Prose
To quote poetry is usually easier than to quote prose because in the former you have the added helps of rhyme and rhythm. See the pictures painted by Robert Loveman in the following verses; note the repetition, alliteration and the help of the rhyme and see how easily you can learn a few verses of this poem:
"April Rain"
It isn't raining rain for me,
It's raining daffodils;
In every dimpled drop I see
Wild flowers on distant hills.
The clouds of gray engulf the day
And overwhelm the town;
It isn't raining rain to me—
It's raining roses down.
It isn't raining rain to me,
But fields of clover bloom
When any buccaneering bee
May find a bed and room.
A health unto the happy,
A fig for him who frets;
It isn't raining rain to me,
It's raining violets.
See a man in the rain who points out the fact that it isn't raining rain, "but daffodils". See the daffodils. See big "dimpled drops" and paint upon them the "wild flowers on distant hills."
Repeat the picture a couple of times and then say the verse. Do the same with the other verses. Do not learn this by repetition. Be true to the method, make a picture and see it each time you review.