Have you tried observational drawing with your children? My three-year-old has been enjoying a lot of observational drawing so I want to share some of my thoughts about it. I want to encourage you, no matter your child's age, to give it a go. Why try observational drawing? Observational drawing can: help strengthen memory - as the child looks at the object and remembers what they see. develop fine motor skills. develop spatial awareness. develop concentration and focus. develop observational skills - the child will look closely at the object and notice certain details, sometimes what the child notices are... Read more →

Today I'm sharing a few magnetic activities that I've used with my preschooler. Sorting Magnetic and Non-Magnetic items is a well known Montessori activity but what else can children learn about magnets in the early years? Wand Magnet & Iron Filings - the child can use the wand magnet to attract the iron filings and move them around the case and out of the red coloured sand. Wand Magnet with DIY Cases - including paper clips, short lengths of chenille twistable stems (pipe cleaners), and metal rings. The child can use the magnet to attract and move the items in... Read more →

Otto (3yrs) asks to paint almost every day. Getting the paints out is such a hassle I was starting to feel bad about saying no. So I decided to do something about it and set up a painting station. This painting station is on our back deck. Although it's undercover we need to put most things away when it rains or gets windy, so everything here is easy to move. We don't have any space inside for large-scale easel painting, so it works to do this outside. It's nice too that we can also move this painting station into the... Read more →

Have you heard of the term scaffolding - scaffolding skills, scaffolding learning, Montessori scaffolding, or Vygotsky scaffolding? Initially, I thought it was as simple as building one skill on the other, building the child's skills gradually one step at a time, but there really is more to it. Scaffolding in Montessori is also about providing the child just as much support as they need. The right support at the right time. Just like in building or construction, the scaffolding is a temporary structure used to support the workers to build the next level, when the structure is strong the scaffolding... Read more →

Today I want to share with you the most beautiful Montessori toddler classroom I've ever seen. When I first entered this room I was overcome with emotion, it is just that striking. The natural timber furniture, the huge windows full of green, and the bright colourful materials are breathtaking. Before you take a look around I need to tell you there is something special about this environment. This is a Montessori Parent-Toddler Classroom that has RIE and Pikler influences. Director of the Parent Toddler and Nido program at Cameragal Montessori School, Peta Gibson has an AMI Assistants to Infancy (0-3)... Read more →

We love to use play dough. We always have a play dough tray on our art shelves but our tray is often cluttered, full of cookie cutters, rolling pins, and other random items. Sometimes my child spends more time looking in the tray than playing with the play dough. So I was considering what a play dough tray looks like in Montessori environments. I've only seen play dough trays in Montessori toddler classrooms (18months-3yrs). The play dough trays I've seen present the play dough with only one tool, usually some kind of stamper or cutter. Presenting the play dough with... Read more →

We traveled to the Gold Coast this long weekend. It's our first time flying since COVID hit last year. I flew alone with Otto (3yrs) and Otto also spent a lot of time watching his brothers' sporting events. So before leaving home I put together eight activities to take with us. These activities are generally open-ended activities that promote concentration and calm, that are also quiet and clean. The activities I prepared include: Colour-blast - we also love Water Wow. Colour-blast uses a special marker that only works on the paper provided. Water Wow is also fantastic as the water... Read more →

If you don't have a lot of space in your home, a cleaning caddy may be a good way to store some of your children's cleaning supplies. A cleaning caddy keeps everything together and it's easy to move around the home. Often I hear from parents concerned about the cost of Montessori. So I set myself the challenge of creating a Children's Cleaning Caddy for under $10. I took my time looking around our local stores and I found a lot of great materials like a small dustpan for $1 and an art caddy for $3, but I couldn't get... Read more →

Teeth brushing can be a battle in our home. My three-year-old Otto loves to brush his teeth but he resists fiercely when I try to have a look in his mouth and when I try to follow up with adult brushing. At three years we allow him to lead the process, but there is no way to get around that we still need to brush his teeth. We haven't conquered this, but as dental hygiene is so important I still want to discuss our overall approach. How do you approach teeth brushing in your home in a respectful and peaceful... Read more →

Have you considered introducing a handsaw to your home or classroom woodworking area? Introducing a saw into a Montessori or other child-led environment requires careful forethought and planning. Montessori parents who have already introduced their children to real knives in the kitchen may find it easier to introduce a saw in the woodworking area as the principles are similar. Our focus is on supervision, preparing the environment, and scaffolding skills. Benefits from using a saw with children include: allows the child to cut different lengths of wood and having greater creative control over their work. can provide a sense of... Read more →

1. / 2. / 3. / 4. / 5. / 6. / 7. I feel strongly about providing children with the opportunity to draw, scribble and make marks. Before we start I want to note there are a lot of reasons to provide crayons and pencils before markers. Crayons and pencils provide more feedback to the child, they may be easier to clean off surfaces and they are by far more eco-friendly. But as our children age, we may find ourselves introducing markers into our classrooms and homes. Many children love using markers, the colours are often super bright and... Read more →

Today I'm sharing four art activities that we've tried this week. I often share activities using commonly found household objects or items from nature, however, these activities all require specific art materials. All of these activities help to develop fine motor skills. I would recommend them generally from 3.5 years+. Wikki Stix Modelling - we love to use Wikki Stix (AU here) and presenting them on a tray helps to keep them all together and saves the table from getting all waxy. I also like to present them with scissors so my child can cut them to size. As much... Read more →

We wanted to upgrade Otto's (3yrs) bed to a full single-size bed. His previous bed served us well, the Montessori floor bed in this room was made specifically to fit into a small nook in his UK bedroom. His bedroom here in Australia is much larger but I still wanted a bed low to the ground. A mattress direct on the floor can work wonderfully especially for those in the infant or early toddler stages, but lots of families like to have their children's beds just off the ground for ventilation or to avoid spiders and bugs, and I also... Read more →

Today I'm sharing a few of our new practical life trays that are for older three-year-olds to four-year-olds. Otto pictured here is 3yrs and 8months (44 weeks) and these are all new to him, I would not have introduced them sooner as they require a bit of strength and coordination, but you know your child best. A couple of weeks ago I introduced filling the pepper mill and my child loved not only filling but using the pepper mill. So I've expanded on this mill/grinding type of activity. I hope you find some of these ideas useful! This Spice Mill... Read more →

Many activities in art or sewing rely on the child being able to tie a knot, or rely on an adult being available to tie the knots. At Forest School we often make nature mobiles or garlands which needs lots of knots. Sewing buttons, embroidery work, beading also requires knots and my three year old gets frustrated when he needs help to complete the work. Rope is also a fun loose parts material that can be used in construction, block building or building forts. I decided to present knot tying (as above) as an independent, isolated activity. This is to... Read more →