Our experience incorporating Montessori at Home with our 6 month old. Sharing our Montessori inspired play area and toys, Montessori activities, weaning table experience, outdoor play, and the Montessori things we have not incorporated into our lives yet.
Montessori with a 6 month old baby is a very fun time, this is around the time they begin to get a bit more mobile. Thus, they can access more materials and explore their environment a bit more.
This is also a great time to consider introducing a weaning table for meal times.
It was at 6 months old that we really started to incorporate Montessori into our home and daily life. Here are tips and ideas for doing Montessori at home with a 6 month old.
How We Began Montessori at 6 Months
At 6 months old our little guy was quite mobile and ready to start exploring the world around him.
So the first thing I did was design a Montessori styled play area for him in our dining room (middle of our home) so that I could keep an eye on him and still tackle household tasks throughout the day.
(THIS POST PROBABLY CONTAINS AFFILIATE LINKS. OUR FULL DISCLOSURE POLICY IS REALLY BORING, BUT YOU CAN FIND IT HERE.)
Montessori Play Area for 6 Month Old
In this play area he had access to 5 main toys.
All of varying texture, shapes, and colors.
To preserve my own sanity I made it simple and stored them all within this busy box we were gifted.
It would only take me 1 minute to quickly put them all in the box.
This made keeping this space clear at other times in the day very easy.
He had access to other objects and activities throughout the day. Materials such as playing with socks while I paired them while doing laundry and holding rubber spatula while I put dishes away were “practical life” activities.
Montessori doesn’t mean you have to buy all the pricey toys, it means choosing a select few with purpose and intention.
Less is more. It means more time to actually explore each toy individually.
The 5 Toys We Used in Play Area at 6 months old
1 | Rubbabu Soft Toy Train
This was selected as a tactile difference with it’s velvety texture.
2 | Wooden Nature Cards
This had a harder tactile feel, as well as realistic pictures.
3 | Brown, Soft Teddy
Another tactile difference with a soft texture and relatively realistic look by being brown.
5 | Busy Box
Now I will say that a busy box is often not considered “Montessori”.
As a “real life mom” who was kindly gifted this by a family member, I used it anyways.
Everything on the box was wooden and I could take the lid portion off for him to access the moving beads on the wires.
Our little guy decided to pull himself up to standing while he was 6 months old using his weaning table and busy box. We never got the chance to make him a pull-up bar. So for us, having the busy box worked out.
Let this be a reminder that if you decide to use Montessori methods at home you don’t have to strive to be “perfect”.
Weaning Table at 6 Months Old
What is a Weaning table?
Before I go into our experience, I will first quickly explain what a weaning table is for anyone not familiar.
A weaning table is a small table and chair designed for babies/toddlers to begin their first experiences eating solid foods. It is designed for their height and size, as well as their imbalance so that they cannot fall out of the chair.
Montessori is all about creating an environment that is tailored to the child so they have the opportunity to begin learning to be an independent individual right from the start.
This often means equipping your home with child-sized furniture such as a weaning table.
It allows for :
– Independence
– Ability to Start Table Manners
– Comfort
– Workspace at Their Height
If you are interested in learning more about the benefits of weaning tables check out The Kavanaugh Report .
✻ Related Post : Montessori Weaning table – What is it? Are there alternatives?
Our Experience with Weaning Table at 6 Months
I jumped in head first and went for it with the weaning table and weaning glass.
I looked up weaning tables online and got a good idea of what would suit a 6 month old, then looked in my local area.
Soooo, Australia does not have near as many options with Montessori items as other places in the world. The prices available were just not in our budget, so we did some DIY and made a weaning table and chair ourselves one evening out of one piece of board from Bunnings ( I will write a post on how soon!).
The little fella loved it and had no troubles eating and drinking his first meal at his weaning table. I was so excited! Woot Woot! #ParentWin .
It’s great when your kids actually use something you put a lot effort into, as this is not always the case as many of us know (I mean you Sophie the giraffe).
Weaning Cup at 6 Months Old
We could never get our little guy to take a bottle (despite trying a few when this mama would have liked to do some errands on her own). So going from exclusively breastfeeding to trying a weaning cup seemed a little daunting.
As often with kids, our little guy surprised us and took to it quite easily after demonstrating how to use it to him only twice. We demonstrated to use two hands to pick it up from table, drink, and set it back on the table.
He still was breastfeeding on demand, but at meals I would offer him use of the weaning cup.
We choose to use a shot glass as his first weaning cup. They are commonly used for this purpose as they are the perfect size for their hands and pretty darn durable.
There are other material options, such as stainless steel like above, which are also great options. A complete set like this will last you all through their baby and toddler years with durability.
Ikea I have read often has some great options if you are interested. (Our closest Ikea is 3 hours away….so didn’t make it while he was this young).
Other Montessori Activities We Do At Home
Our family loves being outside. I enjoy working in my veggie garden in the backyard and taking bike rides through our small town when the weather isn’t too hot.
A Scandinavian quote I have come to live by is,
” There is no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing.”
Sir Ranulph Fiennes
Having a baby did not stop us from doing what we enjoy.
We learned to modify our activities so that we could include the little fella.
Since he was 2 months old we have taken him to visit the snow, camping, fishing (with an infant life jacket), and hiking.
I still went on walks with the pram on rainy days, it’s what the rain cover accessory is for. Little guy was memorized by the rain drops.
Don’t let the weather limit you. Montessori promotes outdoor play just as must as indoor “work” activities.
Montessori Outdoor Play with 6 Month Old
I have a little blanket that I use for outside and put our little guy on it whenever I am outside gardening. If he decides to scoot himself to the edge and be in the grass, then I allow him to. The blanket is there in case he does not want to be on the texture of grass if it bothers him.
While on the blanket I allow him to explore the grass, leaves, and look at the trees. I have not found it necessary to bring toys out when there is so much nature to explore, touch, hear, and smell.
Fresh air is good for everyone, and it is a good time to get a little natural vitamin D.
Stroller Walks
Once or twice a day we go on a walk in the stroller to look at all the neighbors plants, animals, and cars.
I try to narrate and point at what we see as we are walking along.
What We Don’t Do
Everyone is different and will implement Montessori into their lives in the way that will best suit them. So what have we not incorporated yet?
The Floor Bed is the main thing that we have not taken to using that is a common Montessori home item. Our little fella sleeps in a cot, and I plan to keep it that way because he sleeps so well.
I personally don’t find it necessary to mess with children’s sleep. He naps wonderfully with no fuss and at night he sleeps great. If he is happy sleeping in a cot then I don’t feel like changing that routine right now.
Practical Life Activities are something I am preparing for in the near future. It is on my radar, and I have ideas, but at this stage I am letting him watch and explore. He is with me when I fold laundry and he can see me when I am cooking. I will say that’s what counts for now.
Related Post : Montessori Life at 7 Months Old { Montessori Shelf Time! }
That’s What Our Life Looks Like
I am so incredibly excited to have begun the adventure of Montessori at home with our little fella. My eyes have been opened by how much he is able to do having given him the opportunity.
I feel like I’m doing something truly transformative for our child as he works toward developing into a capable, confident, and independent person. I can’t wait to see what new adventures the coming months will bring!
Do you use Montessori in your home?
Are you interested in Montessori?
Please share your experiences and queries in the comments below!
This is such an informative article. Thank you for detailing what you went through. It encourages moms out there to try this for their little ones. This is very doable and realistic. There is a wealth of information in today’s internet world and I sometimes wonder if those writing articles are real moms themselves. Thanks for breaking it down.
Thank you for sharing! My little one loves nature and the one time we didn’t go out because it was raining heavily, it put a strain on her that she was stressed out for the next 2 hours! I’M curious— how do you deal with mouthing things? I want to keep my LO in the grass too!
Hi Kate! I just put a blanket out and started little one there. If he ended up by the grass I just kept an eye on him, he didn’t try to put many things in his mouth luckily. Though, the few times he did I just let him as long I knew it was safe (aka not sprayed with any chemicals like some parks). Keeping an eye on baby and being close to thwart anything you really don’t want in their mouth is best advice I can give you.
Hi, I wonder where and how do you put him so he is right beside you while you are handling chores?
It depends on the chore, so for something like folding laundry I would put basket on the floor and have the child by my side while I sort/fold. If something really catches the child’s eye I will hand it to them and let them feel/explore it. When gardening outside I lay a blanket or towel next to me and have child next to me on the towel as I plant/weed/harvest. Dishes is a chore I would use a high chair for (we used high chair at dinner sometimes with my first so that he could eat up with us at the dinner table). Vacuuming I would have them on the floor, but my boys liked that, some children might get frightened so it depends on your child. Putting groceries away is BIG favorite, again I have them on the floor next to me and say the name of each item and make eye contact with child, and then place item where it goes. With a toddler now, he loves to now assist me with putting groceries away and knows where things go. Hope this clarifies some options for involving little children in chores at home. 🙂