The Language Curriculum
Language - The Montessori Way
Our Approach to Language
At the end of their Montessori primary schooling it is our goal that every child will be literate we place high value on literacy as a skill for life. Through a variety of traditional Montessori stories we look at how words and language have come about and their importance to our development as a community. We also discuss how different languages are constructed and how languages help convey culture, including our own, Te Reo Maori.
Children learn to read through a phonetic-based approach using principles of science of reading and also have independent reading activities to develop reading fluency and skills. Some children may also benefit from computer based activities to reinforce ideas or communicate. We use science of reading based activities such as Nessy and Steps Web to help Dyslexic students or students with language delay to support the Montessori programme.
The study of grammar in the Montessori classroom is unique. Children study the parts of speech in detail. What work does a pronoun do and how is it related to the verb? If its place is changed in the sentence, does the meaning remain the same? Each part of speech has a distinctive, colourful symbol. Children place these symbols above the words of a sentence or story. Later, they begin to analyse the style of different writers using the grammar symbols.
Visits to the Porirua library give the children opportunities to find out more about language and as places where people can gather and share knowledge.
Oral Language
- Speaking to others
- Turn taking in conversation
- Presenting key points in order in a conversation
- Story telling or retelling
- Valuing the importance of story telling in different cultures including Te Ao Māori
Written Language
- The History of Writing (A montessori great story)
- Key lessons on the history of writing (pictographs, hieroglyphics, alphabets, printing press)
- Writing in different genres (e.g. Recount, Report, Narrative)
- Handwriting
- Spelling and mechanics of writing using a phonics or structured literacy approach
- Word Processing and Typing
Grammar and Word Study
Grammar including
- Parts of Speech
- Sentence Analysis
- Kinds of sentences (simple, compound, complex)
- Parts of the sentence (subject, predicate, direct and indirect objects)
Word Study including
- Root words and affixes
- Compound words
- Synonyms and antonyms
- Homonyms, Homophones, Homographs
- Word families
- Etymologies of words and names
- Idioms
Reading
- Explicit Phonics and phonemic awareness learning of individual sounds, digraphs, blends and spelling rules in a sequential manner
- Developing fluency (ease and speed of reading)
- Reading using decodable texts
- Children have many opportunities to practise reading skills across the curriculum through the Montessori equipment that is on the shelves, particularly with nomenclature (naming cards), 3-part cards, booklets and self-correcting matching activities.
- Group lessons to teach explicit skills such as inferring, finding the main point, working out author bias, context clues, locating answers, fact and opinion.
