Montessori Reading Method

Montessori Language Education

• Language acquisition is a sub-conscious process that takes place in the deepest layer of the child's sub-conscious, and it develops and fixes itself as a permanent acquisition.
• Montessori posits that there is a mechanism that exists, which allows children to understand language, similar to the nativists' idea of Universal Grammar (UG) and Language Acquisition Device (LAD).

Early Language Acquisition

• The relationship between the two psychic centers for receptive and expressive language and the senses and physiological components necessary for communication evolves as the child acquires more facility with language.
• Montessori distinguishes between two periods in the child's development of language: the first period is characterized by the development of articulate language, and the second period is characterized by the development of the superior language (dictorium).

Classroom Language Environment

• The Montessori classroom offers a language-rich environment with a robust assortment of written materials and opportunities for discourse.
• Guides present lessons orally and read to students, introducing them to new vocabulary, and children converse freely and spontaneously with their peers and the guide.

Didactic Materials

• Montessori materials must exhibit seven qualities: aid in the development of the child, be limited in quantity, lend themselves to action, isolate one quality, progress from simple to complex and concrete to abstract, contain a built-in control of error, and be aesthetically gratifying.
• Examples of Montessori materials include the pink tower, which contains all the necessary qualities, and the sandpaper letters, which help children develop fine motor skills and understand geometric planes.

Mechanical Writing

• Preparation for mechanical writing lessons begins with practical life and sensorial exercises that help children develop a capable pincer grip.
• Guides demonstrate a series of lessons using the metal insets and sandpaper letters, which include tracing frames and insets, and filling them in with straight lines.
• The three-period procedure is used to teach children new vocabulary, where the guide presents the material, asks the child to recall it, and finally asks the child to identify it.

Composition

• The moveable alphabet is used to help children compose words, and the three-period procedure is used to teach children new vocabulary.
• The significance of the method is that it prepares the child separately for the psycho-physiological acts that unite to establish reading and writing.

Reading

• Reading is the interpretation of an idea from written signs, and children who recognize words composed of cardboard letters and can tell what they mean are considered to be reading.
• The guide helps children practice reading by preparing cards with written words, and the child translates the written word into sounds, gradually increasing in speed and accuracy.

Speech

• Guides should pronounce words correctly to help children correct imperfections in their speech, and the guide's clear speech arouses the child's curiosity and prevents imperfections.
• Speech imperfections can be corrected through exercises in silence, distinct pronunciation, graphic language, and gymnastic exercises.

Grammar

• Grammar study begins with indirect preparation, and during this period, essential abilities are formed.

• The child absorbs grammar ideas from speech, and by the time they are ready to think about them more abstractly, they are equipped with many repetitions and examples.

• Direct study of grammar may begin once the child has learned to read and write, and it is accessible to children in the Children's House when they are ready to engage with it.### Montessori's Approach to Elementary Work

• A child is ready for elementary work when they can think and express themselves through written language, regardless of age or circumstance.

• Elementary grammar work begins with analyzing parts of speech, such as nouns and articles, and word study, including suffixes, prefixes, compound words, and singular and plural forms.

Writing Before Reading

• Dr. Montessori believed that writing is simpler than spoken language and is more accessible to education.
• Writing is a motor action that corresponds with heard speech, making it a more direct and accessible skill for children to acquire.
• The sensorial materials, particularly the metal insets, prepare children in the Children's House to acquire writing skills.

Cursive Writing

• Montessori observed that children's spontaneous drawings are characterized by long and variously interlaced curves, not straight lines.
• Reproducing cursive letters is easier for children than recreating geometric figures.
• The up and down stroke is one of the most difficult pen movements, making it more practical to start with cursive writing.
• Children are more eager to write when they can complete an entire letter, as it gives their work greater significance.
• Montessori believed that children should be allowed to write independently, without analyzing the alphabetical signs or separate execution of letter parts.

Test your knowledge about the Montessori reading method and the techniques used to teach children to read and recognize words. Explore how Montessori prepared cards to aid the reading process and learn more about her approach to early childhood education.