If you would like to incorporate the Montessori method in your homeschool TK-3 classroom, here are some recommendations to get you started! Materials are typically recommended for ages 3-6 and ages 6-9.
English/Language Arts
The sandpaper letters are a great way to introduce sounds and proper letter formation using a kinesthetic or tactile approach for younger children (3-6). The video shown here demonstrates the proper usage of sandpaper letters. The sandpaper letters can be ordered through Alison’s Montessori beginning letter sounds with objects that start with that letter.
Initial Sound Booklets allow for beginning sounds practice. Students match up beginning letter sounds with objects that start with that letter.
Waseca Reading Program: For emergent and beginning readers (6-9) who are familiar with all letters and letter sounds, I recommend the Waseca Reading Program which introduces phonetic and non-phonetic elements. You can read this blog post by east2westmama which gives a complete description of the material and its uses. This material can be ordered through Waseca. You can order the digital version, which is very inexpensive, and cut out and organize the materials yourself, which she talks about in her blog, or order the full set of reading materials with or without the wooden drawers. You will also need to order a movable alphabet to use in conjunction with the Waseca curriculum.
Waseca Grammar Box Cards (6-9) introduce and demonstrate the functions of the 9 parts of speech. Just like the Reading Program, you can order the grammar box cards alone or add the Grammar Box Cabinet. You will also need a grammar stencil in order to symbolize the nine parts of speech.
Waseca Sentence Building (6-9) is for the students to build sentences to describe illustrations with words based on the phonetic elements they have mastered. The color-coded sentence building lessons follow the same color coding as the reading program, so that students can extend their learning to include sentences as they master each phonetic lesson.
Word Study Towers or Skyscrapers are a 6-9 curriculum used to teach language concepts such as vocabulary, synonyms and antonyms, alphabetizing, classification, contractions, homophones, and more.
Math
I really like this blog post by The Montessori-Minded Mom for an explanation of Montessori math materials.
Number Rods (3-6) teach the association of quantity to numbers (1:1 correspondence). See the demonstration video posted on this page to see how to use this material.
The Sandpaper Numbers (3-6) are similar to the sandpaper letters above and engage a child’s tactile sense.
The Spindle Boxes (3-6) are designed to give children a “muscular impression” of the quantities of 0-10.
Numbers and Counters (3-6) are a visual and tactile way of building quantities and recognizing written representations of numbers. They also introduce odd and even numbers.
Colored Bead Bars (3-6, 6-9) reinforce the quantities between 1-9. Each number is represented by a different color and can be used to teach the concept of “counting on.”
Golden Bead Material (3-6, 6-9) are one of the better known Montessori manipulatives and is used to teach an understanding of the numbers 1-1,000, place value, and even the decimal system. It introduces the use of the terms units (ones), tens, hundreds, and thousands, and is used to demonstrate how to regroup in addition and subtraction. See the introductory video for younger students and the demonstration video for older students posted on this page.
The Stamp Game. (6-9) Once students have an understanding of the number system and place value, they can transition to The Stamp Game which is more abstract and solves equations using color-coded tiles. See the demonstration video for The Stamp Game posted on this page.