"The development of language is part of the development of the personality, for words are the natural means of expressing thoughts and establishing understanding between people."

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The Montessori environment provides rich spoken language including conversations, stories, poems, songs, and fingerplays. Sandpaper letters help children link the sounds and symbols of our written language so that they begin to write before they read. Earlier activities of Practical Life and Sensorial have prepared the hand and fingers for the act of writing. With the familiarity of the sounds of the letters, children discover that they can read back labels and messages. They are introduced to further keys to support the irregularities of reading English and to explore the function of words and the structure of sentences. Children develop fluency and a deep appreciation of what they read. The classroom community also fosters meaningful communication and expression and includes enriched literature.