SANDPAPER LETTERS-MONTESSORI

The sandpaper letters are one of the key materials found in the language area of the classroom. They are the letters of the alphabet (lower case script) cut out and each mounted on a separate piece of wood. The consonants are mounted on blue wood and the vowels on pink.
From the earliest levels, students are introduced to letters and sounds, and sandpaper letters begin differentiating between consonants, vowels, and key sounds that are not covered by single letters. Each letter of the alphabet is formed from sandpaper and mounted on a square tile. Consonants and vowels are mounted on different color tiles. Students begin to internalize the shapes of the letters, the sounds, and the differences between the groups.

Age

3 1/2 – 4 years.

Exercises

Trace the letter in the air and have the child say its sound.
Trace the letter on the child’s back and have them say its sound.
Trace the letter in the child’s palm to have him go get that specific letter from the box.

Purposes

– To further heighten the child’s awareness of the sounds in words
– To unite these sounds by means of muscular and visual memory to the appropriate symbol.
– Preparation for writing and reading

Control of Error

In the sandpaper. If the child’s fingers slip away from the sandpaper he notices the different feeling by the surface.

The Sandpaper Letters are one of Dr. Maria Montessori’s most brilliant materials. Tracing the letters gives children the foundation for beautiful penmanship. Working with the Sandpaper Letters, children learn how the sounds they hear are written. Montessori emphasized that writing comes first, then reading. Later, by blending these sounds together, children begin to read phonetic words without laborious effort. This method, which engages three senses — visual, auditory, and tactile — contrasts sharply with the traditional approach of looking at letters to memorize them.

“Thus it was that we shared in the moving experience of the first developments of writing
among our children… We felt as if we…had assisted at some miraculous events.”
—Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind.