montessori inspired activities for little ones

Now that West is almost two, I've been putting a lot of thought into how to homeschool with him in the room and how I want to structure his time. As tempting as it sounds to stick him in front of Sesame Street so I can do math and language arts with the girls in peace, that's just not something I'm comfortable with. And having him on my lap, crying or grabbing at the girls' pencils while trying to work math problems isn't an acceptable option either. I really want him to feel like he has something worthwhile to do too and that we don't just push him to the side. So the last few weeks I've put a lot of time into rearranging our school area and shelves to incorporate special spaces for both the boys and age appropriate "work" activities for them.

I've also been doing a lot of reading up on Montessori methods as I've planned all along to homeschool preschool with a Montessori approach. I love how it builds self esteem, initiative and independence and gives the child something meaningful to do rather than something to just distract them. It doesn't hurt that I now have my own advisor as my sister is studying to be a Montessori teacher and just got a job in a Montessori children's house (AKA preschool) in Portland.

Here are just of the few practical life activities I've created for West to be rotated weekly or as needed.

Garlic press sponges (as seen in photo above and an idea I got from this blog). Saturate sponges with water and let child squeeze into a bowl.

Discovery baskets - also seen in photo above. These are baskets with 30-50 various objects in each basket. For example one is a nature basket with shells, feathers, small pieces of driftwood, etc. and another is random, interesting metal kitchen utensils.

Pins and pin cushion. West loves this one. Bowl of pins and toddler puts pins (they learn to be careful real quick) into pin cushion.

Cracking nuts

Juicing an orange

Clothes washing and mini clothesline. Perfect for a warm spring day or summer. We also do it inside in the winter but without wet clothes. West enjoys hanging the clothes on his mini clothesline strung between two chairs in the living room with little clothespins. This keeps him busy for at least 30 minutes.

Drying dishes

Polishing with Bi-Carb Soda paste and small felt cloths.

Coffee grinding with mini grinder

Grating (with mini grater) nutmeg or wine corks

Beading with big wood beads and pipe cleaners

Sewing/lacing cards

Pouring/transferring water (with towels under tray and under his chair)

Peeling (with mini peeler) carrots

Making play dough with mom

Nuts and bolts activity

Hammering and nails (child set)

Tea time party (setting up - carefully - real porcelain children's tea set) and serving "tea"

Sweeping and mopping. West uses his children's broom every morning while helping the girls with chores.

Musical instruments basket

For Silas, I created a special little corner for him with a thick foam mat, a mirror at his level and I made a few mobiles for him to interact with. The one above was inspired by this blog and I have some other ring style ones that he can use to pull on and also kick. I also have a basket with a few special grasping toys and teethers.

If you're looking for more ideas to involve your toddler in meaningful activities this site and this post are great resources and this WSJ article is also very interesting. Teaching Montessori in the Home: The Preschool Years is also a great book to have on hand.

farm chores

Mira (10) has her first job. She's been "hired" to be a farm helper for some friends when they are out of town. They walked her through the daily morning and evening chores, left her with a typed list, told her she'd be paid $10 a day and left for the beach.

She's taken this new job very seriously, pouring daily over the checklist which she put in a special protective cover. I've been so impressed with how responsible she's been and how she's insisted on doing it all herself, even though that means doing things outside her comfort zone like having goats bigger than her jumping on her. It will get interesting in the fall when the goat has its baby and milking in on the chore list.

right now

 

Right now I'm:

more than a little obsessed with my newest hobby, embroidery. And french knots? Oh how much fun they are! I'm loving these cute patterns from Sarah Jane.

making up for a terrible week last week by making these yummy and healthy truffles for a little Valentine's Day treat (recipe below).

enjoying turning my built-in in the dining room into my craft cupboard. Out goes the china, in goes the yarn and fabric.

loving the quiet pace of Mondays when Shane is home and he and the girls work on Bible Study Fellowship together in the afternoon.

making this citrus cleaner and looking forward to making these canning jar soap dispenses too.

planning some new sewing project from this book and looking for the perfect pattern for peasant dresses for my girls.

thinking about and planning some homeschool writing classes that I may be teaching in the fall.

loving the way I feel since I cut out grains and increased my veggies by 50%. I finally got the green smoothies just right and that combined with a hard boiled egg make the perfect breakfast. And I'm loving the challenging of  making old favorites grain free (like mini pizzas on butternut squash rounds instead of dough or lasagna with zucchini noodles instead of pasta, or baked spaghetti with spaghetti squash "noodles"). Fifteen pounds down (since Jan 1) and I feel so much more energetic too.

Healthy Chocolate Truffles
1 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup coconut butter or coconut cream
Unsweetened shredded coconut

Melt together honey, coconut oil and coconut cream/butter. Mix in cocoa powder. Put in freezer for 20 minutes (not longer or it will get too hard). Scoop out and roll into balls. Roll in unsweetened shredded coconut and store in fridge

{this moment}

{this moment} - Joining with Amanda today for this Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

work as play

Having a toddler (and a boy) has been exhausting and a real test of my patience.  As West nears his second birthday, I've been thinking a lot about how to incorporate him into our family routine and give him the attention and focused activities I think he needs. 

 I've tried setting up blocks, playing cars (complete with fancy roads, houses and trees to add to the "fun"), various toddler toys, puzzles and games. Yet, again and again he turns from the toys - the stuff - to follow me around and break a few eggs in the process.

 

I've come to a point where I've stopped trying to distract him with toys, forts and puzzles and instead find ways to incorporate him into what I'm doing.  If I'm cleaning a toilet you can bet there's nothing he'd rather do than have a turn with that scrub brush, or if I'm changing Silas' diaper West is ready with the wipes.

His self confidence is unwavering and his determination impressive. As I've started to allow him to participate more in my basic routines our rhythm feels natural and I've come to appreciate his constant companionship (and even his help at times!). I've stopped feeling badly because he doesn't play with cars or toys like other boys his age, and I am seeing the value of allowing life and meaningful work to be his play.

 I know this isn't a new concept, I've long been a Montessori fan, but I never really understood, until now, how important purposeful play is to the young child. This, this and this article are great reads for how to facilitate meaningful work for toddlers.

 And guess what? When West's second birthday rolls around next month he won't be getting any cars, blocks or Lego's. Nope, he's getting his own little broom and dustpan and maybe some child size gardening tools.

Side note: the little pants the boys are wearing are just a few of the Quick Change reversible trousers I made over the weekend from Anna Maria Horner's book,  Handmade Beginnings. The sweaters are the 5 Hour Baby and the 7 Hour Toddler sweaters. Details on Ravelry. Oh, and the cute little mini poster can be downloaded for free from Sara Jane Studios here.

saturday morning

Happy weekend! We're enjoying a crafty morning after Saturday chores like bath time. And if sunshine, a pile of new fabric and time to sew isn't already enough goodness for one weekend, Shane and I even get the chance to go out tonight in Portland. Alone! Well, Silas will be coming along if you count a darling three month old baby.

Sunny Days

The last few days have been so unbelievably sunny that I am feeling spoiled. If you know Oregon, you now that usually our winters mean lots and lots of rain. Spring does come early in Oregon though and in less than a month the daffodils will be in bloom and the cherry trees that line our street will start to blossom. Before you know it summer will be here.

We've been soaking up these days with lots of walks, playing in the dirt, drawing in our nature notebooks and trips to the library for toddler story time.  I have a stack of crafting books and am so looking forward to spending the weekend on some sewing projects.

Annah spent the morning making this sweet little cardboard book called, "What you can do on a farm" and West has been his busy usual self as you can see in the photos above where he is attempting to unroll the beeswax candles the girls worked so hard on.