How to Make Montessori Picture and Word Cards for Beginning Readers

Picture and word cards can be used in poster form or more like a series of matching flashcards.

Beginning readers need a wide variety of lessons and practice opportunities in order to refine and advance with their new skill. A good way to incorporate a great deal of diversity into a beginning reader's life while also helping keep her motivated to continue practicing and learning is to provide a large number of picture and word cards that she can enjoy viewing while practicing phonetic reading and word recognition.

Things You'll Need

• Contact paper
• Magazines
• Scissors
• Black marker
• Unlined notecards
• Posterboard
• Paper clip
• Glue stick

Instructions

1. Cut beautiful, bright pictures out of the magazines. You should cut out at least six, but the more variety you provide, the more your child will enjoy practicing reading and continue to be excited by the skill. The pictures should all have names that are three letters and phonetic. For example, dog, hat, man, pot, mop, cat, kid and fan. It is important that the pictures are visually appealing and realistic. Avoid cartoon drawings if possible.

2. Glue six pictures to each piece of posterboard. Make sure that you leave enough room underneath each picture for the word cards that you will be making later. You will need a minimum of three inches underneath each picture.

3. Trim the notecards if necessary. If you have left sufficient room to place the entire notecard underneath each picture, then you will not need to do this. The notecards should be left large enough to read your writing clearly and easily once you have written the words on them.

4. Write the words that match the pictures on the unlined notecards. Use the black marker. Write clearly and correctly, following all the rules that students must follow in order to form their letters correctly.

5. Laminate the posterboards and the notecards. Use the scissors to trim off the excess plastic once you have done so.

6. Clip appropriate sets of notecards to each picture board. Use the paperclips for this. Some people like to place the cards in plastic bags as well, but this is up to you.

Tips & Warnings

• Picture boards and word cards can be used independently by the students once they have explored the lesson with an instructor's guidance. If you make these for use at home, then make sure that you work with your child's instructor to make sure that your home teaching is complementary to your child's school learning. Also, make sure that the activities are easily accessible--just as in a montessori school--so that your child can practice whenever he likes.