What is language with regards to montessori?

Question

What is language with regards to montessori?

Answer 1

What is language? Well Montessori doesnt see language differently to anyone else...how they think child develop language is whats different.

-Children learn through 'doing' and trying for themselves.

-Curiousity 'drives' them to learn language

-Through relationship with adults around them.

-Through play and activities.

Really its quite similar to most other approaches...it's the way children 'learn' that is most different eg: the activities, the equipment, layout etc. They place emphasis on child on their own rather than the social side.

Answer 2

The infant years begin with something psychologists began calling the "Birth Terror."  This is the first true test in an infant’s life.  The child goes through a lot of work during labor as well and is exhausted, but is also being brought into a new and different world.  As Maria Montessori points out,"Let us never forget that the tiniest babies are able to experience fear."

The stage of development in Montessori truly begins at birth.  Nature gives the mother an instinct to hold the baby close, to carry it, to love it.  This is an important instinct for a mother to have.  It is what the child needs at the time.

Through the infant years, we see a sensitive period for movement.  The development of movement, language, and order progress in the following ways.  All ages are not set in stone exactly:

Birth – 6 months :  A time when there is enormous brain movement (more on that later).  The child learns to control the head and begins to learn how to hold the head on the shoulders comfortably.  A child of 6 months will usually be able to sit up with a little help.  Between the ages of 3-6 months, a child also develops an interest in his hands.  The child progresses from grasping objects to studying his hands to beginning to grab new objects willingly.  Piaget also observed something similar and theorized that children at this age develop what we know as schemas.  A child will grasp one thing and have knowledge that he or she can grasp that object.  He does not transfer that knowledge to other objects in the early stages.  Once the child grabs a hold of another object, he has another schema in his mind that he can also grasp that object.  Language at this age begins mostly in the auditory senses for the first three months.  A child may make some noises, but babbling language develops after this age.  At 2 months, children will begin to turn to hear voices, which shows a direct connection that something is happening with more selective hearing.  At about 4 months, the child begins to show a strong interest in forming his or her own language, as the child watches mouths moving as people are talking.  By about 6 months, the child generally speaks a specific syllable constantly as if it is his or her "favorite" syllable.

6 months – 1 year.  Between the ages of 6 months and 1 year, a child’s development in both language and movement become very noticeable.  In about a month time period, a child learns how to sit with help to sitting without help.  This is the first stage (of 4) towards walking.  At 9 months, the child can often stand, but still crawls when moving.  This is the second stage in the development of walking.  If helped, a child this age can walk, but generally on his toes and not with his foot flat on the ground.  Language also develops at this time with a formation of a babbling language.  At the age of 10 months, a child discovers something.  "When we talk to him fondly, the baby begins to realize that these words were meant for him, and he begins to grasp what we are saying intentionally."[4]  The child is beginning to learn that language serves a purpose and communicates our ideas.  At 1 years old, the child says his first purposeful word.

1 – 2 years old:  By the age of 1, the child has begun two big processes:  He learned he is able to walk (although not perfectly and not without help) and he has learned about the meaning of language.  The child is now seeking to attain these two skills.  This brings us to stage 3 and 4 of learning to walk.  At about 1 year old, the child can place his foot firmly on the ground and this is the third stage towards walking.  The child can walk with help, but it requires much less help than before.  By about 15 months, a child can walk on his own.  18-24 months, the child is engaged attaining a maximum level while walking - holding heavy objects, going up staircases, and holding on to heavy objects while climbing.  Other purposeful movement happens in this age as well and the child begins to gain an independence as his old interest in grabbing has now turned into a more purposeful movement, such as sorting, dusting, or cleaning.  Language begins to develop then, at about a year and a half, the child learns about the noun:

"At about a year and a half, the child discovers another fact, and that is that each thing has its own name.  This shows that, from all the words he has heard, he has been able to single out the nouns, and especially the concrete nouns.[5]"

By the age of 2, a child is putting together entire phrases.  Their language in the last half of this year increases from simple phrases or one word to a suddenly sophisticated development with adjectives, prepositions, and verbs.

2-3 Years old:  Anyone who says there is not an explosive growth of movement in the 2-3 year old age is lying.  This is usually the biggest complaint among parents of this age group.  "I cannot keep up," they say.  And they’re right.  Children this age have movements that lead them to independence.  They take a stronger interest in activities such as washing.  They now run with a purpose and with a high level of confidence.  The child now begins to learn how to use language to express complete thoughts and ideas.

3-6

"What (the child) wants to do is to master his environment, finding therein the means for his development."[6]

This is the period where the absorbent mind changes from a subconscious act, where the child is not aware of this happening, to a more conscious understanding of what is happening and decisions are made by the child to meet his or her own needs.  

We see more of a refinement stage at this age of previously acquired skills.

--Spoken language:  The language vocabulary increases very rapidly in this 3 year time period.  A child will also seek to perfect the sounds of the language, the first step in forming words.  

--Written language:  Children are able to form words before they are able to read words.  There is a fascination with the child of this age to take what they know as spoken words and, at about the age of three or four, desire to form their own written words.  They see a connection between the symbols of letters and language.  Later, children are more able to discern reading.