Montessori Toddler Closet

Our latest Montessori project has been to finally complete Henry's closet. Ever since we completed his Montessori toddler bedroom, the closet has been sitting empty -- except for a few toys that I rotate in and out for his quiet time. During this time, his clothes have still been in the baby dresser in the closet of our tot school classroom.

Since we need the baby dresser for baby things, we finally had to get the motivation to finish up the closet. I'm so happy we did, and so is Henry. For the short time that the closet has been done, he has loved picking out his outfits. Henry always had the choice to pick his outfits before, but it was significantly harder to see all the choices when things are folded in a drawer.

For this renovation, we moved an Ikea Expedit shelving unit into the space. This unit holds everything that can't easily be hung up. Baskets make it easy for Henry to get what he needs and to help put away his own laundry. Everything on the shelf is completely accessible for Henry allowing for total independence.

The other big change we made was moving the hanging bar much lower. Its at the perfect height for Henry to hang/unhang clothes. On one side of the shelf are his pajamas and the other side are his shirts. We're still working on teaching him how to put clothes on the hangers, but he can take the clothes off. He also quickly figured out how to hang clothes up on the bar by himself.

On the walls of the closet, I hung pictures I took of Henry dressing. I looked for a set of other children dressing, but I couldn't find anything I liked. These pictures add a little beauty to the space, and will hopefully give Henry the confidence to try to dress completely on his own -- something he struggles with.

The other parts of the closet -- two built in shelves -- are used for toy storage. These are things that Henry can ask to play with at quiet time or are occasionally rotated to his play shelves. Overall, I'm very happy with how the space turned out, and I'm excited to give Henry a space to practice essential care-of-self skills!

The Ultimate Montessori Toy List -- Birth to Five -- UPDATED 2020

When you are interested in Montessori, it can be difficult to know exactly what types of products you should get for your home. Or which types of "Montessori" materials are really worth the price. There are no rules about types of products can use the name Montessori which can add to the confusion. Not to mention, every toy manufacturer slaps the word "educational" on the package for good measure! 2021 UPDATE: Please be patient with links this year, with supply chain issues things are selling out faster and restocking slower. I anticipate some of the specialty toys will not restock once they are gone. So, with this post, I'm going to try to help with this confusion! Here's a list of Montessori-friendly toys and materials for babies, toddlers and preschoolers. First, let's clarify that there is no such thing as a "Montessori toy." Montessori never created toys, but only works for classroom settings. While there are many work

Montessori Toddler: Favorite Toys and Activities 18 to 20 months

I've been putting off this post for a little while because I felt a little disappointed that I didn't have more to share. See, Teddy just isn't that into materials, especially those on the shelf. He tends to return to a couple of favorites over and over again and ignore all other attempts at shelf work. But, really that's my own adult feelings getting in the way of Teddy's own interests, and developmental path. It's also me subconsciously valuing fine motor skills and stillness as more important than gross motor play and movement. I working hard not to do that, and want to normalize that all toddlers are different. All children have different interests and that concentration doesn't have to mean sitting still for long stretches of time. This post contains affiliate links at no cost to you. With all that said, here are some of Teddy's favorites over the last couple of months. Favorite Montessori Toys 18 to 20 Months I'm listing the toys that have be

Our Kids' Montessori Gift Lists 2020

With the holiday season upon us we've been making lists and gathering gifts for the Kavanaugh children. It's always a fun process of observing my children, seeing what they would really be interested in and making some decisions based on what I see. This year is different because I'm also making decisions knowing that we are looking at a very long and quiet winter ahead. So that's influencing the amount I will buy and the specific choices I will/have made. Henry and Nora are also at the point, being into the second plane of development, where they heavily influence the items on the list and what is ultimately purchased. So, you'll see that while Montessori influences what I will purchase and what goes on their list, so does their own preferences and personality. This post contains affiliate links at no cost to you. Theodore Teddy is 14-months-old right now and as the fourth baby, we have so many toddler things. But, there are a few things I've still found tha

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