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April 01, 2013

Montessori Home: Toddler's Bathroom

As I'm pretty sure every parent of a young child knows, parent's of toddlers get stuck in the bathroom with a toddler kind of a lot. The popular meme says it best: 


To combat this problem and to help further introduce Montessori principals more into our home. I've created a tray to help Henry become a little more independent in the bathroom and to help keep him occupied those times when he just needs to be in there with me.







The tray includes:

1. A basket with a few small hand towels. These provide a chance to learn a practical life skill -- folding -- but also give Henry something to dry his hands with, or something to clean up the messes he makes.

2. Child sized brushes. Henry loves to comb his hair and brush his teeth. These brushes are small so he can easily use them and now he can access them whenever he wants or needs to. 

3. A small glass for drinking. 






In addition to the tray, the bathroom also has a small potty and step-stool. The step-stool allows him to access the sink easily to wash his hands, face, or teeth. It helps him do tasks that he is fully capable of doing without any help from me. 






The potty, well we're kinda-sort-almost potty training. The small potty will eventually allow him to go without assistance when he needs to. Along with the potty, I've also placed a small basket of diapers, wipes, and big-boy undies in the bathroom. I hope these will help to get Henry more interested in toileting and keep him active in his care-of-self.



Do you have a Montessori inspired toddler bathroom? Have any tips? 



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Comments

Anonymous
Anonymous said…
Those are great ideas. I would worry about the glass getting broken on the tile. Henry might be more careful than my toddler though :P
Meggerz
Meggerz said…
Yeah, I was going to say the same thing about the glass. Nolan would have that thing shattered into a million pieces. I think it's a great idea, though, since I can rarely go to the bathroom solo anymore. It would be nice to keep him occupied with something besides the toilet paper. :D
Aubrey @ Montessori Mischief
Beautiful presentation! We have the tiniest bathroom ever (no cabinets), so a tray is not doable for us, but if I had an available shelf or counter, this is exactly what I'd do! Love it! Also, my opinion on toddlers and glass is that YES the glass will probably get broken. You can choose to deal with it when it happens and trust that he will learn (that's Montessori philosophy, and in a Montessori classroom, you bet there is broken glass!) or you can use plastic until your child is a bit older. If you are going with glass, get the thickest you can find! I have had good luck with votives.
The Pajama Mama
The Pajama Mama said…
Looks great! We also have a faucet extender in place at one of the sinks to help my tiny Mango reach the water.
Anonymous
Anonymous said…
We also that a tiny bathroom. So I made a 6" wide shelf to go behind my 11 month olds potty. It is just enough width to hold his toothbrush and holder, his comb and his soap & dish. As for glass, yes Montessori encourages the use of "real" materials whenever possible.
Kirstylee
Kirstylee said…
I love your idea to have all of those things under the sink. My toddler would finally be able to reach everything if it belonged under the sink. Now I just need to clean it out under our sink. ;)
Rebekah
Rebekah said…
My son has a plastic tervis tumbler.