El Montessori method has crossed borders and there are already many places where it takes place. Dr. María Montessori has observed the different stages that human beings go through until they acquire their adult self, and has proposed different learning methods to those that have been used in a classical way. To a greater or lesser extent, we can apply many of its techniques to teach the little ones.
Although Montessori is a didactic method, today we will talk more specifically about Montessori letters, what they are and how they can be used to help children learn. We will also know what the famous Montessori Method that has reached the whole world consists of.
What is the Montessori Method
El Montessori method focuses on creating an orderly and prepared environment for children's learning from different points. Within a Montessori environment you can find different elements, and all of them will have their reason for being. In a Montessori classroom they focus on ages grouped into three years to distinguish the different learning moments of children.
What really distinguishes this method from others is that the adult does not teach and is in control of learning. The adult in this case only guides and helps the child, which will be in continuous learning by itself. In this way, children become more self-confident and independent, learning on their own and at their own pace.
This method also divide the person's ages according to development that takes place in them. Until the age of six there is an absorbing mind that learns from everything around it. From six to twelve the mind is reasoning so it tries to explore the world. From twelve to eighteen the mind is humanistic, trying to understand humanity and its role in it. From eighteen to twenty-four the mind is a specialist appropriating its place in the world.
Montessori Letters
Within this method there are different dimensions, focusing on the early years in learning of practical life, of the exploration of the senses, of language and of mathematics. In these fields the child will explore his environment, the world known through the senses, will also acquire the notions of language and logical and abstract thinking with mathematics. In this case we will see how to start in the field of language with Montessori Letters, a material designed for children to begin to know their language and each of the letters.
These letters are also called sandpaper letters because they are made with a rough material in sandpaper. They can be bought ready-made or made at home with various types of cardboard, one of them with a rough texture to be able to make the letters. The background must be of another color highlighting the letters. These backgrounds should be a color like blue for vowels, red for consonants, and another shade for double consonants, like green. In this way they will recognize them and remember everything according to their tone.
In rural areas of India, families in charge of a blind minor frequently isolate and deprive him/her of the care and attention they provide to their other children; such situation becomes even more severe among lower-caste families, orphans and if the blind child is a girl. Montessori letters are also made of cut wood and painted in different colors. With these letters what is wanted is that the child can learn the sound of the letters and their shape using different senses such as touch due to the way they feel when touching wood or sandpaper, sight thanks to colors and hearing with the sounds we teach them.
How Montessori Letters are used
The knowledge of the letters is done in three times. It starts choosing three letters that differ in sound and appearance, to make it easier for the child to distinguish them. The child has to follow the letter with the fingers to better recognize its shape and thus record it with the senses. It can also be tested by closing your eyes so that you can visualize it. Next you have to make the sound of the letter, since in this method the letters are not called by name but phonetic is used. That is, the letter M would not be the 'eme', but the 'mmm', reproducing its sound. It is somewhat less confusing for them. You can change the letters and ask him later what is a certain letter so that he looks for it. It is about playing with them so that they learn to distinguish the letters and their sounds in a natural way.
With this method a natural and more autonomous learning is achieved by the child. You will get to know the letters, their sounds and some sets, since you can evolve within the game. The adult will only help him when he gets confused or makes a mistake, guiding him in the game.