Montessori Language: Cursive First

Within the language curriculum, there is a lot of freedom. Did you know that Montessori only created THREE Montessori language materials? Yep. The sandpaper letters, the movable alphabet and the metal insets for handwriting preparation. She talked about reading games, oral language games and songs and poems many times throughout her writing, but she only created these three materials. In a phonetic language, like Italian, these materials, along with reading games, would be all you need. But English is definitely not phonetic. Cultural adaptions have been made and language, like practical life, is based on where you are in the world and what language is being acquired. I thought it would be helpful to launch a series to help parents better understand the Montessori approach to writing and reading since the information available can be overwhelming at times.

Today, I want to chat about cursive. In the schools I have taught at (one private, one public), cursive first was the convention. The sandpaper letters and movable alphabet were in cursive. These materials are for writing, both authorship and handwriting. This is definitely a personal preference. If you have materials for writing in print, that’s totally ok. Here are a few reasons behind my preference for cursive first.

• Every letter starts in the same place! When a child traces the cursive sandpaper letters, each letter begins at the bottom left and moves right. With print, letters begin all over the place—some at the bottom, some at the top. Cursive first supports correct formation of letters by taking some of the guesswork out for children.

• There are less letter reversals. Because each letter begins in the same spot, there is less room for writing letters backwards. It almost completely eliminates the b,d,p dilemma.

• Children are submerged in a print heavy culture. We know that because of their absorbent minds, children are taking in everything around them, which, in our society, is a lot of print. Cereal boxes, road signs, t shirts. This means that when we teach cursive first, they already have a strong foundation in print and it never has to be taught. They just pick it up. If we teach cursive later on, it can make it more difficult to acquire and can be frustrating to learn.

So, you may be thinking: how will they read in print if they are introduced to the sounds with cursive sandpaper letters? The answer: their absorbent minds! Like I said above, they are submerged in print. They see it multiple times a day. Children are also in their sensitive period for language. This means children not only have an unlimited capacity for vocabulary, but they have the ability to learn multiple languages with ease. Learning to write in cursive and read in print may seem difficult for an adult, but a child in their sensitive period for language can read in print with ease, even as they work with writing materials in cursive.

If you are working on handwriting at home and want to support cursive, I highly suggest you brush up on your own cursive handwriting. Let your children see you writing a grocery list or on the white board on the fridge in beautiful, careful cursive. Remember, children want to do what adults do. Modeling cursive may be just the thing to spark their interest.

Screen-Free Summer Travel

For a long time, I was a hard liner on screens. No screens for children under two. Limited screens for older children. For the longest time, we didn’t have a tv in our space. As my kids have gotten older, we’ve gotten more lax in our views of screens. We do movie nights, they have shows they keep up with and my oldest plays collaborative video games online with his friends. I’m finding a balance that works for our family.

One thing that I continue to notice with my own children is that when we cross the line into too much screen time, my kids’ behaviors are really out of character. We hear grumpy voices, arguing and a lot of anger when it’s time to turn it off. Because of this, we always travel with no screens (with the exception of my oldest, who uses his phone to listen to music). Traveling with kids is stressful and bringing devices adds unnecessary frustration and conflict. A show is a great way to pass the time on a road trip, but for us, the behaviors that can come along with it aren’t worth it.

The past two summers, we’ve made the 17 hour drive to Colorado. We’ve also made two seven hour trips to the beach in the past two years. Our kids are used to no screens when we travel, so it’s never an issue. The earlier you can start this convention, the easier it will be. Here are a few things we have found that make screen-free travel work for our family:

• Pack open ended art supplies. Choose items like coloring pencils or rock crayons to avoid any cleanup. A small notebook is easier to manage in the car than loose paper. Model magic clay in a zipper bag is also a great item to inspire some creativity on the road.

• Bring books. Choose books with engaging photographs or illustrations. For 4-6 year olds, I recommend I Spy type books. Where’s Waldo is a favorite in our family. For older kids, audio books are a great way to pass the time. On our last trip out west, we started the Harry Potter series. All five of us loved it and it made the drive so much fun.

• Play games. Children LOVE oral games and the car is a great place for these types of games. Play I Spy, games that involve license plates and billboards, and rhyming games. Count how many red cars you see. Not only will these games keep your children engaged, it will support their language development. These types of games can also be lifesavers when you feel the temptation to pull out a device at a restaurant.

• Take deep breaths. There will be whining and arguing and crying. And that’s ok. Pull over when you need to. Stretch legs. And don’t skimp on the snacks.

Prepared Environment: Movement

During her observations of young children, Montessori came to understand that movement is a key to supporting learning and development in young children. Montessori wrote over and over about the importance of linking the hand to the intelligence. In The 1946 London Lectures, she writes: “The problem is not to move, but to move in relationship with the intelligence.” She goes on to say: “The child gives us a beautiful lesson-that in order to form and maintain our intelligence, we must use our hands.” Movement is built into the Montessori classroom. Children refine their motor skills through the activities of practical life. Children put their work rugs far apart and bring quantities from across the room for math games. Children play distance games with sensorial materials. Children fetch the sandpaper letters as a review of their understanding. Intelligent movement is etched deeply into the curriculum and the environment itself.

Children in conventional classroom settings are often deprived of movement. Traditional settings find it necessary to prescribe movement breaks for children to get the movement their body needs. Children are asked to run laps or play silly games to get their energy out. Montessori is clear in her writings that if children need breaks for physical activity, there is not enough work for them in the classroom.

There are so many ways you can support the need for movement at home. Here are a few ways you can do this:

• Give your child opportunities to help. Let them peel potatoes and grate cheese. Let them wash the windows and fold the laundry and mop the floor. Let them dump and stir when you are baking. These activities provide support for gross and fine motor development in a meaningful way.

• Play outside. Let them play outside as often as possible, in all kinds of weather. Let them navigate walking on slippery, wet ground. Let them learn how to change their pace when the ground is hard or muddy.

• Provide heavy work. Let them carry heavy grocery bags. Let them carry the big laundry basket. Provide things for them to push and pull outside.

• Play games that involve movement. Have them bring you objects that start with certain sounds or are certain colors. Give them a number and have them collect that many of a certain item around your house. “Bring me four spoons.” “Bring me two pillows.” Games like this are engaging and a great way for them to have purposeful movement.