Description

In Montessori education, letters are introduced by phonics, a method of teaching that emphasizes letter-sound relationships, rather than letter names.  They are not introduced in the order of the alphabet, instead, they’re introduced in an order that allows the child to make many words with the letters s/he has learned.

The Animal Alphabet Mat creates interest, whether used as a matching floor exercise, or hung on the wall (with Prestik/Blu Tack®) when not in use.  The attractive and unusual animals featured, fascinate children, encouraging them to ask the teacher, “what animal is this?”.  This provides teachers with a teaching opportunity.  By sounding out (with emphasis), the initial letter of the animals’ name, they are teaching the relationship between the sound and the letter of the alphabet.  This helps develop the Child’s phonological awareness.  Phonological awareness refers to the Child’s understanding that spoken words are made up of sounds and exposes the Child to the phonemes and preparing their ear for reading.

Objectives of the Animal Alphabet Mat

• it is light enough to hang on the wall, in line with the Child’s line of vision.  This prompts the Child to continuously think about the animals and to ask questions, “what is this?”, “where do they live?”, “what do they eat?”.   To answer these questions, the Child is prompted to look for the globe or atlas to find out where in the world the animals live and to do further research.
• as a mat on the floor, the Child has access to various matching exercises –
  • matching – the images to the mat
  • the letters of the alphabet to the mat
  • the letters of the alphabet to the images
  • make sure that the Child works with the lower case letters first
  • only work with the upper case letters once the lower case are mastered
  • sounding out the initial letter of the animals’ name, phonically
• the Child will instinctively work with the images they recognise first
• similarly, they will sound out the letters they know
• each exercise builds the Child’s vocabulary, inspiring an interest in the world around them.

Do not rush the Child, let them progress at their own speed.  The Child learns phonetically and not in a set order.

Features of the Animal Alphabet Mat

• printed on VXMat which can be washed and ironed.
• separate images and letters are printed on VXCard, a non-tear card, printed with eco-friendly inks.  The cards do not require lamination.
• if soiled, wipe the cards clean.  Iron them to flatten any inadvertent creases.
• supplied with a plastic folder to store on the shelf.

Size

• Mat – 195 x 19 cm / (77″ x 7.5″)
• Image Card – 13 x 9 cm / (5″ x 3.5″)
• Letter Card – 4.5 x 4.5 cm / (2″ x 2″)

Related Products

• Alphabet Picture Matching Game
• The Small Movable Alphabet
• The Pink Reading Series
• Objects for Pink Reading Series

Further Reading and Resources

“What the hand does the mind remembers.” Maria Montessori

“When the child pronounces the sounds of the consonants he experiences an obvious pleasure. This series of sounds so varied and so well known, which come to life in the presence of an enigmatic symbol like a letter of the alphabet, are a novelty for him. There is a mystery about it that arouses in him an intense interest. ” The Discovery of the Child p.213

Phonological Awareness – A Guide to Teaching Reading and Writing