I would like to ask marnonyahoo- how does the montessori and reggio emilia approach teach language/literacy?

Question

I am working on a Literacy center and is very much interested to know how is the language/literacy development done in both the montessori and reggio emila philosophy. I hope marnonyahoo could enlighten me.

Answer 1

I'm not of the Montessori philosophy, although I have studied it a bit and do see its value. I am very much a follower of Reggio. Language is an element of everything we do! When we speak to children, we give them sentence structure and new vocabulary. When they respond to us, they learn social communication cues and have the chance to practice their skills. Writing is incorporated into nearly every project so that children are seeing teachers write (making lists on boards, for example) and writing themselves (journalling, detailed plans, descriptions, etc.).

In Reggio philosophy, we learn by doing - children are active participants who use their environment and the tools provided to construct their knowledge. They work cooperatively, and they are viewed as capable, intelligent beings. I would say that in Reggio Emilia, and in Reggio inspired schools in other areas of the world, language/literacy isn't "taught" - it is learned through experience, which is the only useful way to learn something!