Montessori Must Haves — liza dora books

OK.

Maybe not “must-haves,” but strongly encouraged haves?

These are the items we use several times each week, if not daily. We are not a strictly Montessori family, but we are Montessori-style. So don’t freak out if some of things items are completely traditional materials. My husband’s job has us move fairly frequently, so schools, and learning styles, and standards tend to change. What I like about Montessori-style learning is that is goes with us.

Why?

Because our kids go with us, and Montessori learning is child-led.

Here are the products I recommend to my friends. Some links are affiliate which means I may get a commission based off the sale of that particular product, but I don’t recommend things we don’t already have and use. I’ve broken them down into two categories: Materials and Toys. I know this implies that one is for learning and the other is for play, but those lines are a little blurry in the Montessori school of thought. You might see a child in a sandbox scooping sand into a container and be likely to say the child is “playing” in the sandbox. A Montessori POV would call that “work.” Play being the work of children. So don’t ignore the “toys” they are so hugely important.

Materials:

Montessori Movable Alphabet (affiliate) I’m working on a free moveable alphabet for you to print, but to be quite honest this is waaaaayy better. We’ve had this wooden alphabet for 3 years and it is used at least weekly and many times unprompted. Kids love to use manipulative and these are beautiful and have lasted the test of time. This alphabet is a worthwhile investment—especially if you have multiple children.

CVC Word Spinners (affiliate) OK. I totally made up that name, but that’s what we use these blocks for. They are fantastic for early readers. You can use them for phonetic spelling (sounding out words), teaching short letter vowel sounds, and as prompts for writing exercises.

Hundred Board (affiliate) Great little counting board. Comes with a key and a little bag to keep your number tiles. We used this a lot more when my daughter was learning to count by 1’s and now we use the tiles when counting by multiples. I like the quality of this board.

Language Objects (affiliate)To be fair, I am a little obsessed with language objects. These are objects your child can use as they are learning simple letter sounds. They are miniature and adorable and highly interesting to your kiddo because of that. We’ve built up a set over time. You can buy entire sets but they are crazy expensive and I don’t love the quality from pictures I’ve seen. The link in the section is from Micheals. We’ve had great luck using miniatures from their collections and building up our own set. Another money-saving idea is using decorative buttons. Cheaper and way fun!

Sandpaper Letters With Boxes (affiliate) I tried to make these and it was stupid. Super tedious and I got a zillion tiny scratches. Get this set instead. After a year of our raggedy letters I upgraded to these and haven’t looked back. I thought my daughter might outgrown them before they got major use but I was wrong. I think we forget how much our kiddos like different textures. She is also looking like a kinesthetic learner like her daddy so any learning “experiences” I can give her will be beneficial.

Pattern Blocks and Boards (affiliate) I’m calling this a material and not a toy for two reasons. One, we use this for shapes in math A LOT. Two, it’s great for color practice. I know. It looks fun—and it is! But I’m still calling this a material.

BOB Books (affilaite) These may not be super Montessori either, but our Montessori teacher at our last school recommended them so its Montessori by proxy. Or something. This series is wonderful. My daughter learned to read this year in kindergarten, but these were something we used again and again. They are great for CVC words and wonderful for confidence. We made it through 5 sets before she “outgrew” them.

Cleaning Set (affiliate) I know! Totally look like toys, but this set is perfect for Montessori practical life lessons. Both my kids 6 and 2, run for these anytime there’s a mess or a spill. So much of what kids learn comes through imitation. A set this size is easy for them to use and they can “help.” Such a win-win.

Cookery Set (affiliate) This is another great set for practical life. Yes, it is sized down but very realistic and much easier to step over when it’s scattered across your kitchen floor as you and “your helper” cook dinner.

Toys:

Amazon Large Wooden Blocks (affiliate) Santa brought these at Christmas as a sharing toy and they get used daily. You can use them to stack and build, but they also make great tracks for cars and train sets. Sturdy, but light these are a great product.

Stepping Stones (affiliate) These are plastic which is pretty non-Montessori-ish but I love them. We have a more expensive brand, but the next set I buy will be these guys. I like the colors better and on all other points they seem to be the same. I saw these used in a special education setting and was floored. They are so great for texture, elevation, and coordination. We also use them on Rainey days to get the wiggles out. I splurged and bought a more expensive brand because of the grips along the bottom and then we moved into a house with carpet so…whatever.

Waldorf Balance Board (affiliate) So this is NOT Montessori because it’s technically Waldorf, but it’s still awesome. These boards are expensive, and it took some convincing because my husband didn’t want me spending over $100 on “a piece of wood,” but the kids use it every single day and it the most coveted spot in the house. Also, it cost $99.00 so…