How Does Montessori Teach Reading Differently

If you are looking to teach your child to read then you have likely realized how many different methods and programs there are to teach reading!

A lot of them are great, but the most important thing to think about is choosing a method that aligns with the science of reading and that aligns with your personal teaching style. 

So let's talk about the core principles of the Montessori reading curriculum!

1: Focus on Pre-Reading Skills.

While a lot of methods or schools believe that the beginning of learning to read starts with learning the alphabet, Montessori curriculum starts way beyond that by strengthening key pre-reading skills.

For example an important pre-reading skill is phonological awareness which is the ability to hear and manipulate the individual sounds in a word. This includes skills such as rhyming, syllables, onset and rimes, and phonemic awareness. It is estimated that phonological awareness is the best early indicator of a child's reading success and that at least 80% of poor readers lack phonological awareness.  There are many activities we can do to strengthen this skill at a young age. 

To learn more about phonological awareness and how to teach it check out my blog post Why is phonological awareness important?

The preparation is just as important as the instruction if you want your child to be a skilled reader. 

2: Follows a sequence of difficulty.

A huge component of the Montessori Method is isolating a concept and then building on that concept from simplest to most complex until the child has mastered the skill. 

For example, in a traditional classroom setting the teacher might start teaching letters by using uppercase letters and teaching the letter names. This is fairly common if you take notice of children songs, books, and shows focus on those aspects of the alphabet.

On the other hand, in the Montessori Curriculum we teach lowercase letters first and letters sounds instead of names first. This is because at least 80% of letters they are going to see are going to be lowercase. We teach uppercase letters later don't worry! When you thinking about a child learning to read the word "cat" they are saying the letter sounds not the letter names. In fact a child only needs to know the letter names for the vowels to learn how to completely read. The letter names are not helpful in immediately learning to read so we teach them later. 

3: Follows the child's needs and pace.

In a traditional school a reading lesson might look like all the children reading the same passage together or learning the same letter together. In a montessori classroom each child is learning to read at their own pace because of the independent work structure. 

This method of following the child's pace ensures that the child is mastering every concept and the teacher is able to keep progress on their individual needs. No child is left behind in curriculum. 

4: Multi-sensory learning

"What the hand does, the mind remembers." -Maria Montessori. There is a connection between brain development and sensorial experiences. Montessori curriculum uses sensorial materials to create better retention and a hands on learning experience. 

5: Phonics instruction

The science of reading shows that explicit phonic instructions is the best way to teach children to read. Phonics instruction teaches children the language rules they need to know to be able to decode any word. On the other hand some methods teach memorizing whole words, and guessing words based off of context which is strongly discouraged. 

If this teaching style aligns with your beliefs then check out my FREE Montessori Reading Masterclass where I give step-by-step instructions on implementing the reading curriculum at home!

Watch the Masterclass now: Click Here