The Montessori Language Materials

The Spoken Language to the Wonder of Reading

Before learning to read or write, the child must organize his world before he can express or receive written ideas about it. He must also come to the realization that there are many things in his world that have a name and meaning in their own right, without being in relation to him.

 The first language materials in the Montessori curriculum are created to help the child to organize the vast impressions in his life, by enabling him to place them in simple and clear categories, awakening in him ideas about his world. The classroom is infused with vocabulary and discussion, with a richness and precision of communication. The sensitive ear of early childhood is awakened by sound activities in the sensorial area, and sound games like ‘I spy’ direct his attention to component sounds in his language. The eye is prepared by matching and pattern activities and the hand is strengthened and trained by touching, spooning, tonging, tweezing, pinching, and tracing within geometric borders.

When the moment is right, the child is provided with the bridge between speech and the written word – the symbols and sounds of the alphabet. At this point, the writing and reading activities are conducted simultaneously as the two processes naturally complement each other.