Montessori children's wardrobes come in all shapes and sizes (#montessoriwardrobe) but the purpose remains the same. The aim of the Montessori children's wardrobe is to support: independence - the child can easily access their clothing. order - everything has a place, the child can easily see their clothing, the child knows where everything goes. choice - the child is able to choose from a small selection of seasonally and developmentally appropriate pieces of clothing to wear. problem-solving skills - in selecting the clothing and in self dressing the child will encounter problems to solve. child's sense of self - the... Read more →
Do your children have toys or materials in their bedrooms? I was recently told that Montessori bedrooms do not have toys in them so I thought I would explore this idea further. 🤔 In Montessori from the Start Polk Lillard and Lillard Jessen suggest that for an infant Montessori bedroom parents consider four main areas including areas for sleeping, changing, feeding, and for activity. Polk Lillard and Lillard Jensen go on to suggest parents create a bedroom that encourages concentration and that furthers self-formation "into complete human beings capable of independence, coordinated movement, language and will". For a child in... Read more →
Someone needs to write a Montessori/Ikea blog as it feels like you can almost create an entire Montessori home using products from Ikea! I recently visited Ikea and found so many new and interesting children's products. Here are a few that I love for a Montessori home. MÃ…LA Portable Drawing Case - This is new at our Ikea store this week and I love it. It's suitable for my toddler and for my older children. It comes empty but it is a great travel case for paper and pencils and other craft materials. It's good for taking around the house,... Read more →
Over the weekend we put a new arm-chair into Otto's room so I had to move things around to make it fit. I also put back in a little table and chair for Otto to work at. Otto is growing so fast I thought it was a good time to document this space. Want to see more of his room? This layout is similar to his room in the UK. Low shelves, wardrobe, bed, and a table. The idea is always the same, to create a child-centred space that is warm, comfortable, and cozy. A stool so that he can... Read more →
Otto (2.5 yrs) has finally mastered self dressing! It helps that our weather is mild and he usually only wears a loose t-shirt and pants. Dressing has been a huge point of frustration for us so I want to share how we have got to this point. Why do we want a toddler to dress themselves? Out of respect for the child. To support the child's independence and developing autonomy. To help develop the child's sense of self and to develop self esteem. To teach practical life skills including fine motor skills. Because they can, they are capable if we... 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 →
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 →
I've been reading Creative Children's Spaces: Fresh and imaginative ideas for modern family homes by Ashlyn Gibson. It's not Montessori in approach but there are floor beds featured (house beds) and good art display options. I love the idea of using a restaurant tab (or check) grabber for displaying art, or prints, or photographs so much that I ordered some straight away. A young child can use them easily and independently. I am also a fan of the slightly industrial looks. Perhaps in our next house I will put one in the kitchen, or living area or near the children's... Read more →
Floor beds are becoming more popular!! By two years of age many children have also transitioned to a toddler bed. So before Otto gets any older (he's currently 27 months) I want to share some pictures and note what his floor bed set up looks like. At two years (27 months) we currently use: Cot Sized Floor Bed - c/o Sprout, we have one high side and one low side. Fitted sheet - we don't use a top sheet as it restricts movement. A fitted sheet is really important for the toddler as it doesn't bunch or come off. Hand... Read more →
You can see Montessori in almost every area of our home. I want to provide, as much as I can, an overall picture of what our home looks like room by room. Every space changes, it develops as the children get older however most of these spaces are the same from when our toddler was around 18 months to present at 26 months. Our home is far from perfect but it is a process of observing our children and making changes to meet their needs. Kitchen (above) - kitchen helper so that my toddler can reach the kitchen sink and... Read more →
Our toddler wardrobe isn't a minimalist wardrobe, it is an age-appropriate, developmentally appropriate wardrobe. Perhaps your child can manage with more clothes, perhaps less. "Clothing that is easy to remove and to put on oneself enables the child to practice these skills. These are things to consider when picking out any clothing, from shoes to pajamas, to coats, for young children. A child's efforts at picking out her own clothes and dressing herself are satisfied if the parents hang up, within the child's reach, just two outfits, letting the child decide between them when she dresses in the morning. This... Read more →
"If we had to live just one day in an environment such as the one we prepare for our children, I believe we also would find it painfully uncomfortable...If these mothers prepared an environment at home for the child that conformed to his size, to his energy and to his psychic faculties, the child would be at liberty and a great step would have been taken toward the resolution of the educational problem - the child would have his own environment." - Maria Montessori, The Child in the Family. "We must give the child an environment that he can utilize... Read more →
Today was a public holiday so I've just written a short post sharing some of the materials Otto has on his bedroom shelves. I like to have a few materials in his room for him to use before and after bedtime. The wonderful part of having a floor bed is that when he wakes he can turn on his own music, read a book or play with some toys. Also when he is getting sleepy he can play with his toys and slowly make his way to bed. We don't rotate the materials or books in Otto's bedroom as often... Read more →
Otto is almost 18 months old and it feels like a good time to revisit some of our Montessori home spaces. I'll explain how they work and how we troubleshoot. Our spaces are fluid, always changing. I hope these posts will give you a few ideas for your home environment. At almost eighteen months Otto can: Put on/take off socks independently - only loose socks, not socks that are tight. Wool socks are great. Put on/take off boots independently - only his rain boots and not always on the right feet. He can also take them off. Put on/take off... Read more →
I really wanted to write this post as this is may be the smallest house we will live in as a family. There are a few things unique about our current situation. We are living overseas for two years, so we don't have a lot of our things with us and our accommodation is temporary, we can't make any changes to our house. But there might be others in a similar situation or some of these ideas might apply to others renting or living in small spaces. It is so important for us to remember that bigger isn't better, we... Read more →