At the Laren school in the Netherlands, Maria Montessori continued to delve deeper into the study of children's language. As on so many other occasions, it all began with the careful and constant observation of the children's work. From this observation, she developed grammatical symbols, seeking to give them a concrete sensory basis and to help the child analyse the parts of speech in tangible ways. In this task, she had the support of her assistant, Anna Fedeli, a scholar of the Italian language.

Grammar studies each part of speech and its function. Traditionally, this study is often presented as something abstract and tedious. Montessori, however, approached it differently: considering both the functional nature of language and the age at which it is presented to the child.

In her book Psychogrammar, Montessori writes that the study of the function of words is a way of penetrating the language that already exists in the child; it only needs to be refined and consolidated. At this age, children learn primarily through action. Montessori applied this principle to all areas of the school curriculum. She justified her approach as follows: children can begin learning grammar before they begin to read and write. Therefore, grammar is not presented as a series of rules to memorize, but as an active exploration of the language the child already uses daily.

Montessori points out that children can begin to approach grammar even before learning to read and write. Every time we speak, we speak grammatically. It is for this reason that from the age of four, children can be offered some grammatical support while they are refining their language, their mechanisms of expression, and enriching their vocabulary, providing favourable conditions for their work.

The Succession of Levels

The child's grammatical development does not occur suddenly; it unfolds gradually throughout childhood. In the first years, between zero and three, the child absorbs language unconsciously, appropriating its structures without realizing it. Later, between the ages of three and six, children begin to refine the language that already exists within them, using it with increasing awareness. Finally, between the ages of six and twelve, the desire arises to analyse and understand it more deeply, exploring the different functions that words perform within a sentence.

Because they are so engaging for children, the materials created by Dr. Montessori continue to be used today in Montessori schools around the world, supporting psychogrammar-based learning. Since the beginning of the 20th century, these materials have allowed children to explore language in an active and sensory way.

One of the most significant activities involves drawing grammatical symbols. This simple gesture encourages the child to read and reread words, phrases, and sentences reflectively. This reflective activity is combined with active work by pausing at each carefully read word: the child stops, thinks, rereads, and decides which symbol it relates to. The goal is not to study grammar in order to memorize the parts of speech, but to offer an incentive for rereading and reflecting on language. Just as the child previously analysed each sound that forms a word, now they begin to analyse the function of each word within the sentence. They perform two simultaneous activities: a quiet manual activity—drawing the symbols—and a deeper intellectual activity—rereading the sentence several times to understand its structure, gradually exploring the language they already possess.

Each of the grammatical symbols that Maria Montessori associated with the parts of speech has a very clear and defined story that further deepens the concept and awareness of the function of the part of speech being studied. The design of the grammatical symbols combines three variables: shape, colour, and size.

Each of the symbol stories contains a message and a deeper meaning, bridging the gap between symbolism and the abstract dimension of grammar. 

The Grammatical Symbol of the Noun

The word noun comes from “substance,” that which is spoken about. The act of naming is one of humanity's oldest realities. Everything that exists has a name: people, countries, objects, elements of nature, flora, and fauna. Even feelings and emotions receive a name that endures through time. Names remain. Generations of people are born and die, but names continue to accumulate.

For this reason, Maria Montessori chose the symbol of a black pyramid for the noun. The pyramid is considered one of the most fundamental constructions, one of the oldest structures created by humankind. Its square base is solid and stable, and its shape rises slowly toward the top.

Imagine a pyramid made of heavy stone. Imagine how long it could last! Wind, water, and lightning could not destroy it. The pyramids of Egypt and those of the

Mayan civilization have stood for centuries and will likely continue to exist for many more.

In the same way, the names remain.

The black colour of the symbol also has a particular meaning. One of the oldest materials formed by nature is coal, a product of the decomposition of plants that existed millions of years ago (this information is related to the Timeline, which is extremely interesting for children). Coal, like the name, is very ancient.

For all these reasons, Montessori described this symbol as "a solid pyramid par excellence." In the material used by children, only its shadow is represented, resulting in a large black equilateral triangle.

The Grammatical Symbol of the Article

The word "article" comes from the Latin "articulus," which is the diminutive of "artus," meaning limb or joint.

The article is a small extension of the noun, defining whether it refers to one or more nouns. In some languages, it also defines its gender.

The article always accompanies the noun, like our arm accompanies the body. An arm separated from the body loses its meaning; the same happens with an article without a noun—it has no meaning.

The symbol for the article is a light blue pyramid, smaller than the one for the noun. It represents a small extension of the noun, something that depends on it and always appears beside it. We will also use its shadow: a small light blue equilateral triangle.

The Grammatical Symbol of the Adjective

The word "adjective" comes from the Latin "adicere," which means "to add." Add to whom? To the noun. The adjective tells us what the noun is like.

Objects are distinguished by their qualities. It is not enough to say that something is big or small, red or blue; we should not limit ourselves to one quality, because language can open broader horizons for us to define things more precisely: elegant, slender, old, broken, striped, and so on.

The symbol for the adjective is a medium-sized navy blue pyramid. As in the previous cases, we will also use its shadow, representing it with a medium-sized navy blue equilateral triangle.

The Impressionist Posters of the Noun Family

These impressionist posters give the child a very clear idea that these three functions—article, noun, and adjective—usually appear together forming a phrase. They are earthly and immovable symbols. The poster of the three pyramids of Egypt represents the large noun family; they are solid, stable, and very ancient.

In another poster, Montessori presents this family as a family scene. The mother represents the noun. In her arms, she carries the article, represented by a baby who is completely dependent on her. Holding her hand is the adjective, a child beside her who may or may not accompany her.

The Symbol of the Conjunction

The conjunction connects, unites. Currently, its symbol is a pink dash, as if it were uniting what was separated. It is like one hand taking another and saying: “You are not alone, stay with me.”

The symbolism evokes the hand that unites, that holds, the universal hand that establishes bonds.

Originally, Maria Montessori had chosen another symbol: two joined circles resembling two intertwined rings, as an emblem of marriage.

The Symbol of the Preposition

The preposition orders, puts things in their place, and establishes relationships between them. It joins words and phrases that would otherwise remain isolated.

This is why Maria Montessori represented this function as a bridge crossing a river and connecting two nations. It is a primitive bridge, covered with green leaves and vines. The preposition allows us to continue our discourse; prepositions give us the order of things. Have you ever tried speaking without prepositions? Instead of saying, “I put my book on the table near the door,” it would sound like, “I put my book the table the door.” Nonsensical, right?

The Grammatical Symbol of the Verb

The word “verb” comes from the Latin “verbum,” which means “the word par excellence.” Maria Montessori draws a comparison with the Gospel of John: “In the beginning was the Word…” (John 1:1-17). The verb appears as a principle of life, an original energy that sets everything in motion.

Represented by an incandescent sphere like the Sun, red like its flames, Maria Montessori then devised the symbol of the verb: a fundamental element in nature, since its presence makes life possible.

The verb is action, movement, energy. Everything we do can be expressed through verbs.

If we compare the symbol of the noun with the verb, we find a very clear contrast: the verb rotates effortlessly in all directions, while the noun is static, remaining stable. This is the contrast between objects and actions, between what is and what happens. We will also use only its shadow: a red circle.

The Grammatical Symbol of the Adverb

Derived from the Latin “adverbum,” meaning next to the verb; the adverb tells us how, when, where, or in what way the action occurs, so it usually remains close to it.
Its symbol is an orange sphere smaller than that of the verb. The color orange can be imagined as a softened red, as if it were receiving sunlight.

Maria Montessori compared the verb to the Sun and the adverb to the Moon. Just as the Moon reflects sunlight, the adverb depends on the verb and finds its meaning alongside it.

In the material, we will use its shadow, a medium-sized orange circle. The relationship between the verb and the adverb is similar to the relationship between the noun and the adjective. Their symbols have the same shape (triangles or circles) because they belong to the same family. The noun and the verb have a more intense color and a larger size, as they are the most important in their family.

The Grammatical Symbol of the Pronoun

Pronoun comes from “pro” (instead of) and noun; the pronoun appears when a word takes the place of the noun.

To represent this function, Maria Montessori chose a pyramid similar to that of the noun, since both are closely related. However, the faces of the pronoun pyramid are isosceles, with a smaller base than that of the noun.

Despite having a smaller base, the pronoun is taller. We could imagine it standing upright on its tiptoes, trying to make itself noticed, since it occupies the place of the noun.

To explain the function of this symbol, an allegory is presented in which it is recounted that the pronoun is taller than the noun, since it considers itself very important and wants to be more noticed than the noun; it stands on its tiptoes. Its colour is violet, which is the colour of the rage it feels toward the legitimate principal: the noun. It is a usurper, ungrateful and arrogant.

I remember that, when I worked with the children in Workshop I and told them this story, saying to someone “you are a pronoun!” could become the worst insult they could say! The same thing happened with the oblique line, which “wasn’t honest since it was neither vertical nor horizontal.” Saying to someone “you are oblique” was a total insult!

Impressionist Posters of Grammatical Families

After learning about the symbols and the stories that reveal the function of each word, we can observe how these parts of language are organised with each other. Maria Montessori showed that words do not exist in isolation: they form families, and within each family there are clear relationships that help the child understand the structure of language.

Thus, grammatical families appear, groupings that reveal how certain words relate to each other and fulfil similar functions within the sentence. The first grammatical family is the noun family. The second grammatical family is the verb family. To represent this second family, a well-known poster in Montessori Psychogrammar is used.

The poster for the verb family includes the Sun, the Moon, and the Comet. The verb is represented as the Sun; the adverb as the Moon that receives its light; and the pronoun appears as a Comet that, wanting to take the place of the noun, ends up serving the verb. The adverb is related to the verb, and so is the pronoun; for this reason, these three parts of language constitute the second grammatical family, the verb family, which gives the group its name and occupies its central place.

Another Impressionist poster illustrates the relationship between the verb and the adverb. We know that the adverb does not have a life of its own, but rather depends on the verb; however, this dependence allows it to influence the action itself.

The action—the verb—and the way in which it is carried out—the adverb—are represented by two gears in motion. The larger gear represents the action; the smaller one, the adverb. When both are related, they form a unique mechanism: the speed of the movement changes as the smaller gear increases or decreases its momentum. Thus, we can walk slowly or quickly, depending on the adverb that accompanies the verb.

The Grammatical Symbol of the Interjection

Interjection comes from the Latin “inter” (middle) and “iacere” (to throw, to launch), that is, a word thrown in the middle of a sentence without maintaining a direct relationship with the discourse. The interjection is a cry, an exclamation that arises as a result of an unexpected reaction of the human spirit: pain, astonishment, impatience, indignation, joy. Unlike other functions, the interjection does not have a role within the structure of the sentence; it is independent, since it exists on its own.

It can express an emotion in a rudimentary way. Due to its natural character, it exists in all languages; in this sense, it can be considered a universal human expression. 

They are spontaneous manifestations of the human spirit. For this reason, Maria Montessori used the symbol of an antique, gold-coloured lock. It is the union of the verb and the noun, since it can represent both categories. It is a door that opens to joy and the fullness of life. It is gold because it symbolizes the spirit of the child, in which we find enthusiasm.

Maria Montessori tells us:
“Today, people try to avoid using interjections in their language, while they are only present in dialects; it seems to be interpreted as bad taste. In the 18th and 19th centuries, people were ashamed to show their emotions.”

Interjections are a characteristic of instinctive language; they are found naturally in a child's vocabulary. 

The Grammatical World

Maria Montessori finally presented a large impressionistic poster that brings together this entire symbolic universe: Earth and Sky.

On the surface of the earth (brown in colour) are the noun, the article, and the adjective. These are words that refer to matter, to the concrete things of the world. In the sky (represented in blue) appear the verb, the adverb, and the pronoun. These words are related to energy, action, and movement. The conjunction and the preposition function as linking elements within these word families, establishing connections between them. The interjection, on the other hand, constitutes a special case.

In her psychogrammar lessons on grammatical families, Maria Montessori invites guides to tell this fable to children:

“In language understood as a whole, there are two heads of families, the noun and the verb. Both are the centre around which all the words that express our feelings and thoughts are organised.

Each is like a king with his court or a star with its planets.

That is why it is good to classify the parts of speech not as adjacent, but as if they lived around these centres.”

Thanks to this representation, the child can see a pattern that, explained in words, would be more complicated to understand.

Once the child has the knowledge, putting it into practice becomes natural. Describing people is part of their daily life. Now they can give meaning to words such as tall, short, slender, or to actions such as eating, sleeping, thinking. “The grammatical exploration of language not only aids reading, but also produces intellectual satisfactions because it makes them aware of the language they already possess, whereas reading books makes them concentrate on thoughts that come from outside.” With the movable alphabet we can write all the words of our language, and with grammatical symbols we can recognize and classify them, thus understanding the function that each one performs in the language.

Gabriela Ortega, AMI 3–6 Trainer