Many people would say there is no need for practical life trays in the home. However, I find there are plenty of examples where the work is best presented on a tray. A tray keeps all the materials together and defines the work area. For a young preschooler, it also helps to satisfy their need for order, everything they need for the activity is on the tray. Here are four trays that we used today. The key for me is to keep the practical life trays as real as possible. There is a lot of transferring work here and it's... Read more →
Q: We recently moved. We spent weeks travelling and staying in hotels. During this time we co-slept with our toddler. Now we are getting settled into our new home and understandably he doesn't want to sleep in his own bed. It is a new bed for him, a new bedroom and new surroundings. He is sleeping very well when he co-sleeps. We are happy to continue to co-sleep but would prefer for him to begin sleeping in his own bed again. How can we best support our toddler to sleep in his own bed in his room? A: Remember that... Read more →
How are you feeling? We have been feeling a little sombre, a little quiet. Today Otto and Otis decorated our Easter tree. It was nice and fun and lighthearted. We haven't been doing a lot of Easter activities so decorating the tree felt special. It's the first year that Otto (2yrs) has been able to participate. We are having a very low key weekend. In case you need some weekend reading, here are a few articles and things that I've been enjoying. A Montessori Toddler's Room at Fishies in a Row. This is cute and practical! How to create an... Read more →
Do you have a pipette or dropper in your cupboard or drawer? Let's put it to use! Using a pipette or dropper can help the child's developing fine motor skills including building hand strength and coordination. I've given my toddler (2yrs) a choice of pipettes and basters and he mostly chooses the Twisty Droppers and the clear pipettes. When he was younger he would often use the Jumbo Droppers. Our Twisty Droppers are c/o Modern Teaching Aids. Australian Sources: 1. Clear Pipettes, 2. Jumbo Droppers, 3. Plastic Baster, 4. Giant Blue Pipette, 5. Twisty Droppers, 6. White Melamine Trays, 7.... Read more →
I know a lot of you are looking for ideas of activities and materials to use with your children. Here are a few baskets and trays that Otto (2yrs) has used in the last two weeks. Not all of these are out at once. Some of these are easy for him and some are hard, but they all hold his interest and concentration! As usual we have matching work, puzzles and lots of materials for developing fine motor skills. I hope you enjoy this selection. Toddler Geoboard Matching Community Workers Feel and Find Game (c/o MTA) Farm Puzzle Community Workers... Read more →
How have you been? We have been busy with school work and lots of arts and creative play. We have been getting of the house at least once a day for exercise and we are incredibly grateful for a backyard and nice weather! Here are a few small things that I've enjoyed this week. Above Matching Community Workers. Otto (2 yrs) loves learning about community workers. We are using Community Helpers Pocket Cards with some Wooden Model Workers. This is great for language development. It was also initially challenging as the models are not identical to the cards. For example... Read more →
I want to share something that will make you smile! I was recently looking for high quality photographic books for my children when I discovered the Photo Ark project by National Geographic Photographer Joel Sartore. If you haven't seen Joel's work before be prepared to be wowed. The Photo Ark is stunning. Joel's aim is to photograph all of the approximately 15,000 animal species living in the world’s zoos and wildlife sanctuaries. He has photographed 9,844 to date. Joel travels the world to photograph animals. He spreads a conservation message through public speaking, publishing books with National Geographic and producing... Read more →
I have used a few Montessori methods and materials to teach my toddler about shapes. We have used the three period lesson and some matching cards you can see us using here. While these are fantastic for language development and learning what shapes look like, I wanted to show and teach my toddler about how shapes interact. I felt so strongly about this I tried with wooden shape tiles and patterning blocks but what I found most successful was using shapes on a magnetic board. The young child can put the shapes on the board and they stay there, they... Read more →
I hope you and your family are well. It's been such a stressful week for everyone. Here are a few things that I've been enjoying. 1. Juicing oranges. We love our electric juicer. For a toddler this really helps to set them up for success. Otto (2yrs) can make enough juice for the whole family, and it's a lot of fun too! Highly recommend! 2. Growing Beans! This is a fun activity for young children as the beans sprout and grow so quickly. Unlike when they are grown in soil, the child able to see the roots and all of... Read more →
We know that good hand washing is critical in protecting our children from COVID-19 and the flu. Like most parents I've been supervising my children's hand washing especially when they've come in from outside. My older children know how to wash their hands but I've found myself constantly reminding them to "use more soap', "wash for 20 seconds". I knew there was a better way, a visual way of getting the message across and I pulled out some hand wash training lotion and a UV light. The idea is the child puts the hand wash training lotion on their hands,... Read more →
Today I want to share with you twelve really easy Montessori activities that use materials you may already have at home. Most of these activities are best suited to toddlers and preschoolers. Many of these activities I do with my toddler but an older child may like to do them independently. It's great to take time to set them up but don't worry, you are a busy parent at home, they don't need to be presented the same way they would be in a Montessori classroom. If you find your child/ren really like some of these activities, many of them... Read more →
These are very difficult times. Slowly our city is shutting down and life is changing. I've been asked several times to write about how we can talk to toddlers about the virus in a Montessori way. We haven't approached the topic with Otto (2yrs), we are more vigilant with hand washing and we have stopped going out. Our explanations to Otto have been brief, "we need to wash our hands really well with lots of soap and bubbles to get them clean", "there is no art class today, the art studio is closed". But if your circumstances are more extreme... Read more →
Wow! What a week! Today I want to share five things that have brought me joy, a little spark of happiness in recent days. 1. A Sea Themed Playdough Tray. I'm encouraging Otto to mix the colours but so far he likes to keep them separate. Here we have some model animals, shells, starfish, seaside stamps and green and blue playdough. 2. A Story Basket for Reading Outside. We are taking so much of our learning outside in the shade. This magpie is so loveable and is perfect for cuddling while reading a story. 3. A Toddler Geoboard. Otto has... Read more →
Bedtime is all about relaxing and unwinding, in our home it is also a key time for connection. My three children go to bed at the same time so we need to we need to be flexible and juggle things a little but I try to get just a few minute of one-on-one time with each of them. Caspar (12yrs) will read or sit with Otto (2yrs) while I put Otis (8yrs) to bed. Out of my three children Otis needs the most one-on-one time at night. I read to Otis almost every night and I just can't read long... Read more →
We are starting to spend more time at home. While we aren't in total lockdown (my older children are still at school) Otto and I are home most of the time. Luckily we have a smallish but safe backyard to play in and the weather has been gorgeous. I have been heavily influenced by some of the process art I've seen at our toddler art classes. Our classes have been cancelled for now so along with a lot of other work, I'm making sure I offer some interesting art experiences. I love the idea of a painting texture wall. We... Read more →