Does your child know their tibia from their fibula? Puzzles can teach us so much about the world. For toddlers in particular, I love floor puzzles. They are big and chunky and promote movement. Large floor puzzles can also be fantastic for colour recognition, language develepment and even mathematics (including counting). Most of all they are good for developing the child's sense of spatial relationships, visual discrimination, coordination and for building concentration. When used with a friend or sibiling, (or parent) they can help build collaborative skills. For a young toddler, they can also help with completing a cycle of... Read more →

If you have read about Montessori or have children at a Montessori school chances are you've heard the term "freedom within limits". It's a term that can be applied equally to the home as to the Montessori classroom. Children in a Montessori classroom have much greater freedom than those in most traditional classrooms. Children at Montessori schools can freely move around the classroom, they are free to choose the work they want to do, in many schools children are free to move inside and outside. With these freedoms come limits. Children are required to respect their environment, walk quietly and... Read more →

Today Otto (2yrs) attended his first toddler art class. The studio was beautiful, amazing and vibrant. I felt so inspired that I made some adjustments to our art shelves as soon as we got home. But what had me thinking was the focus on process art and how many product driven arts and crafts my other children did at the same age. I know that product driven art and crafts can be useful for a variety of reasons and are often used around cultural events (Easter, Christmas, at school fairs). But do children in the first plane of development need... Read more →

Today I'm sharing five things we've enjoyed this week along with a few links and interesting Montessori inspired home tours. 1. Otis' (8 yrs) favourite podcast. He is naturally inquisitive but this podcast really gets him thinking and he often has more questions after listening to an episode!! I often subscribe him to new podcasts for him to try but this remains his favourite. Some of the others include Tumble, Wow in the World and Fun Kids Science Weekly. 2. Caspar (12yrs) is currently reading speeches that changed the world, he loves the section on Gandhi. 3. Moving house means... Read more →

"The hands are the instruments of man's intelligence." - Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind. Hand strength is essential for activities like writing and using scissors but it is also essential for daily living tasks like doing up buttons, pulling on shoes, tying a bow or pouring a drink. Often we focus on coordination, the pincer grasp and the refinement of movements and touch, which are incredibly important but developing the strength of the entire hand is fundamental. How do our toddlers in the precious first three years of life spend their days? Are our lifestyles becoming too passive? Are our... Read more →

A dedicated reading area in your home, classroom or toddler community is a great way to support young readers. It can also provide a moment of respite from the busy home or classroom. It can be a quiet space, a comfortable space. A space where the child can come to catch their breath and gather their thoughts, perhaps regroup, perhaps even lose themselves in the pages of a good book. Here are some inspiring reading areas from various Montessori environments that I'm sure you'll love! Simplicity is key here (isn't it always)! Simple shelf and mattress with a few cushions.... Read more →

I don't like a lot of toys in the bath. It drives me crazy when I have to move them or clean them up. We usually only have a couple of toys out at a time. But I find bath toys almost essential. They are so, so useful. We have a couple of toys in the children's bath but now I also have a few toys in our ensuite shower. Our shower is large (it's the size of a double) so it's easy for me to keep out a few things for my toddler (2yrs) to play with. Our usual... Read more →

You know how some children love to 'post' things. Some children also love to hang things. There is this repetitive fine and gross motor movement that they find satisfying that can help cement their learning and increase concentration. When I first noticed the Language Tree I knew that Otto would enjoy it. He loved our ornament tree at Christmas which uses a very similar hanging motion. I asked Andrea O’Halloran of Montessori Materials to tell me a little more about the Language Tree: "When I taught at Forestville Montessori School, we introduced the concrete example of an object to a... Read more →

There are some brands that you can just trust. There are brands that I feel very well aligned with and these are the ones I seek out over and over. When I opened our first Lovevery box I loved everything inside it. When I looked closely I could see that their stage-based approach was spot on and it closely mimicked what I had done with my children, from cute black and white cards, small rattles, to interlocking discs and play socks. It was everything I was looking for. I've been sharing my experience with Lovevery for a while but recently... Read more →

Our family has been through a huge transition. With Christmas, traveling and moving back to Australia my older children have just started going back to school. When we go through transitions or difficult times I always seek out opportunities for my children to concentrate. I find concentration grounding and calming. It's like finding some stillness and quiet in the chaos. Also, it's something that you can't force, you can't make a toddler concentrate, but you can allow for it and provide opportunities for it. When travelling we continue to seek out opportunities for our toddler (2 years) to participate in... Read more →

Want to see some really lovely Montessori toddler spaces? These are all such good examples of a little space in the home (and one community) set aside for the toddler's toys and materials. I love the format of these shelves. This is an adorable version of the Sprout Luce Shelves. These would be super useful if you had a crawling or pull-to-standing infant. These shelves really do grow with the child. The rug is really cute too! This is from a toddler community in Chicago. It is a great account to follow especially for Montessori toddler teachers. The space is... Read more →

The first room I set up when we moved into this new house was Otto's bedroom. We had spent almost four weeks in hotel rooms and apartments. I knew that Otto needed his own space. Space to be himself, to play, to roll around on the floor. To learn, grown and concentrate. To play uninterrupted. He needed his very own refuge and safe space. He needs minimal supervision in his room as we've made it a 'yes' space. There are no toys with small parts. There are no large pieces of furniture. We have three puzzles on his shelves that... Read more →