Welcome Readers :)

Welcome readers !
Thank you for visiting 'Inside the child' and hope that your time spend reading my blog is educational. It includes my thoughts and approach to a child, based on the Montessori educational philosophy that emphasize on independence, freedom within limits and learning concepts of working with materials hands-on, rather than by direct instructions.

My favorite quote by Dr. Maria Montessori “There is in every child a painstaking teacher, so skillful that he obtains identical results in all children in all parts of the world. The only language men ever speak perfectly is the one they learn in babyhood, when no one can teach them anything!”
As a Children's House Montessori teacher, it is my pleasure to share my experience with children of ages 2 1/2 - 7 yrs old, and how small little things makes a big difference. Enjoy reading. Thank you.

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Sounds - Spirits of the Alphabets

The following is a list of letters and the phonetic sounds made by each, as represented in a phonetic word. Sounds, not names, should be taught very early in the Montessori classroom.

A as in ant said as 'ah' with your mouth stretch as if you were smiling.
B "   " bat    "   "  'b-ah'
C "   " cat    "   "  'c-ah'
D "   " dog    "   "  'd-ah'
E "   " red    "   "  'aeh'
F "   " fun    "   "  'ph'
G "   " gas    "   "  'gh'
H "   " hat    "   "  'hh'
I "   " it     "   "  'eh'
J "   " jump   "   "  'jh'
K "   " kiss   "   "  'kh'
L "   " lost   "   "  'el'
M "   " mud    "   "  'mm'
N "   " nest   "   "  'n'; it is not 'na', as I have seen lots of teachers presenting this way, yes, one has to remember the region as every country has it's way of speaking sounds. Still, I strongly think teaching correctly is very important. So, I say 'n' with the tip of my tongue touching the roof of the mouth right behind the teeth, let it stay there and make a sound 'n'. I do not leave my tongue until the sound 'n' is made, then close your mouth.
O "   " ox   said as  'oh'
P "   " pot    "   "  'p-ah'
Q "   " queen  "   "  'k' ; stretch your mouth as if you were smiling.
R "   " run    "   "  'rr'
S "   " sat    "   "  'ss'
T "   " top    "   "  't-h'
U "   " up     "   "  'uh'
V "   " van    "   "  'v-ah' ; stretch your mouth.
W "   " wet    "   "  'vh'; half mouth opened.
X "   " x-ray  "   "  'ks'
Y "   " yes    "   "  'y-ah'
Z "   " zip    "   "  'zz'

Now, I'd like to say that every child comes from a different family, with parents from different regions. Accent generally does not come from the way you learn the sound but the way you hear a complete sentence/word. There are parents with concerns for a child forgetting his/er regional accent or language. And, I always tell them that it's the environment that effects the accent not what or how the child is learning a sound. What I am trying to say is that one should not impose on a child to speak one way or the other. Let the child feel comfortable with his/er language. Create a happy and loving environment for a child and you see how quickly a child grows academically, physically and emotionally. Follow the child, observe him/er and then give directions with appropriate methods of learning.

All these sounds are presented with the Three Period Lesson, one by one. DO NOT rush to teach the sounds. Let the child have fun while learning. Check the lesson plan of presenting the sounds in my blog Language learning is FUN !

Have fun with sounds !

Sorry for adding this video last minute. It is a great song for children to learn letter sounds ! Enjoy !




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