How can we help children learn to read and write at home while following Montessori principles? This talk will give parents concrete ways to support the development of reading and writing skills for children ages 2-6+ as well as a basis in understanding why we teach writing before reading, why we call letters by their sounds and not their names, and whether we should focus on spelling when a child first learns to write. We will also explore ways to support language development in bilingual and multilingual children.