TOPIC 07PRACTICAL MONTESSORI PARENT INSIGHT

Language Development

Talk less like a teacher. Talk more like a person.

Children don't need adults constantly testing what they know: “What colour is this?”, “What sound does B make?”, “How many apples are there?”, “What animal is that?”. A child may answer correctly and still not have had a particularly rich language experience.

Real conversation is different. Talk about what you are actually doing:

• “I'm cutting the apple. It's very crunchy.”

• “You found your red socks. They were under the chair.”

• “The rain is getting louder.”

• “You are trying very hard to open that box.”

Name what your child sees, hears and experiences; however, don't feel the need to fill every silence. Listening is part of language development too (Read together, Sing, Tell stories, Talk during meals, Let your child hear adults having real conversations).

And when your toddler says: “Doggy run!” you don't need to correct them with: “No, say, ‘The dog is running.’” You can simply respond naturally: “Yes, the dog is running!” You have modelled the richer sentence without turning the moment into a lesson. Remember: Children learn language by living in it.