THE MONTESSORI METHOD - online book

Scientific Methods As Applied To Child Education In "the Children's Houses"

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	148             THE MONTESSORI METHOD it correctly, we send him to the right, if badly, to the left. Those who have difficulty with the word, are then encour­aged to repeat it several times. The teacher takes note of the age of the child, and of the particular defects in the movements of the muscles used in articulating. She may then touch the muscles which should be used, tapping, for example, the curve of the lips, or even taking hold of the child's tongue and placing it against the dental arch, or showing him clearly the movements which she herself makes when pronouncing the syllable. She must seek in every way to aid the normal development of the move­ments necessary to the exact articulation of the word. As the basis for these gymnastics we have the children pronounce the words: pane — fame — tana — zina — stella — rana — gatto. In the pronunciation of pane, the child should repeat with much force, pa, pa, pa, thus exercising the muscles producing orbicular contraction of the lips. In fame repeating fa, fa, fa, the child exercises the movements of the lower lip against the upper dental arch. In tana, having him repeat ta, ta, ta, we cause him to exercise the movement of the tongue against the upper dental arch. In zina, we provoke the contact of the upper and lower dental arches. With stella we have him repeat the whole word, bring­ing the teeth together, and holding the tongue (which has a tendency to protrude) close against the upper teeth. In rana we have him repeat r, r, r, thus exercising the tongue in the vibratory movements. In gatto we hold the voice upon the guttural g.