How to use 3 Part Cards
for Language Learning
3 part cards are a key activity in the Montessori method. I want to talk about how to use them for language learning, but first, let’s learn about what these cards are all about.
3 Part Cards
3 part cards are made up of 3 cards.
- The control card has the picture and the name
- The object card is just the picture
- The label card is just the name
Montessori 3 part cards are designed to be used with a guide (a parent in this case) who helps the child initially. In a proper Montessori classroom the child can then work by themselves, using the control card to check their work. Montessori classrooms are typically pretty quiet due to the emphasis on quiet, independent work. More on this later.
Stages of use
There are 4 stages to using these cards, starting with stage 1. If your child is very young and not developmentally able to recognize/read words yet, then they will probably only be able to do stage 1 and 2.
Stage 1: Matching the control card with the object card
Stage 2:Matching the control card with a 3D object
Stage 3: Matching the control card with the label card
Stage 4: Matching the object card with the label card.
How to use them for Language
Since we are using these cards to learn how to talk in a new language, we want to encourage speech. Which means we need to deviate from the traditional way of using these cards. We want to use these cards in a group of 2 or more to encourage conversation (in Portuguese).
Language learning works best when it’s used in real life. Each activity comes with Portuguese sentence frames for you to use throughout the activity in order to start the process of integrating Portuguese dialog into your real life. You can find these sentence frames in the “Sentence Frame” Document of your download.
Feel free to use English and Portuguese during these sessions. It’s important to only use one language per sentence, never mix languages within the same sentence.
Sample dialog:
Parent: Okay, are you ready to play?
Child: Yes!
Parent: Let’s start with two fruits. *Places the apple control card on the table*
Parent: *Points to the apple* A maçã
Child: A maçã
Parent: *Places the banana control card on the table, points to banana* A banana
Child: . A banana
Parent: Qual é a maçã? (Which one is the apple?) *emphasize the “a maçã” part*
Child: Here! *points to apple*
Parent: Aqui! *points to apple*
Child: Aqui!
Parents: *Holds out both object cards for the child to choose*
Child: *chooses the correct card and matches it to the apple control card.
Parent: You did it! Whoop whoop!
In this example we only used the control and object card (stage 1). You would do something similar with the other stages.
Modeling Language
It’s important to model the language you want to hear. Notice how the child said “here” when they found the apple. The parent modeled the Portuguese version of the word, “aqui”, for the child to repeat. This will encourage your child to speak Portuguese as oppose to just understanding it.
Active participation
Children can become resistant to speaking a new language. It is extremely common and happens for a variety of reasons. In order to get your child to actively participate (vs passively participate), you may need to hold the cards in your hands and not allow your child to have free rein of the cards.
And, of course, have fun!