Amazingly, Aiden just turned one year old! From 11-12 months, he really started pulling up much more frequently and became interested in exploring multiple rooms in the house. Also, since he can pull up much more confidently now, he also spent a lot of time observing and investigating the activities Asher does on his table. Welcoming all of the tips for space-sharing with an infant/young toddler and older toddler now!
The sensitive period for movement really lasts from 0-4 years, but I particularly love this period of gross motor acquisition. I love to observe how babies learn and experiment when they realize that they’ve pulled up onto something, but aren’t quite sure how to get back down, or, the different ways that they problem-solve when something is in their desired path (Aiden mostly goes with the baby Hulk approach). He’s not really showing much interest in walking yet, and he still seems pretty content with his scootch-crawling method for getting around! As far as shelf work goes, he developed some specific interests and skills this past month. He really enjoyed posting, putting objects into and out of baskets and boxes, and tapping/hammering.
Here are some of the Montessori-inspired shelf activities he enjoyed at 11 months:
Wooden Tool Box
I rediscovered this old tool set I had purchased for Asher at a Mom2Mom sale and pulled it out for Aiden this past month. I observed how interested he had been in exploring Asher’s tool set, and thought he’d enjoy having his own tools out on his shelf. He mostly carried them around with him but he also started trying to hammer and use the screw driver with the wooden screws on Asher’s tool bench. He’s learning so much just from watching big brother!
Wooden Blocks in a Basket
These blocks were a big hit this month. Asher plays with a set of wooden blocks that my dad made and Aiden is always interested in them, so I put a few of his own in a basket at 11 months. He liked tapping them against each other, putting them in and out of the basket, and knocking down towers that I built.
African Animals
I’ve done a few Montessori-inspired animal figure baskets for Aiden in past months, including a farm animals basket and a dogs basket. We’ve been reading Little Gorilla at nighttime (not Montessori-friendly, but so adorable) so I decided to put together an African animals basket (lion, elephant, zebra, giraffe) to go along with that. He loved pointing at the animals and hearing me make their noises. He also tried copying the sounds a lot!
Lock Box
My dad made this awesome lock box with Asher when he was younger. Aiden’s fine motor interests expanded to smaller objects and switches around 11 months, so I included it on his shelf. He was so engaged with this! He liked exploring the different locks and finding surprise objects inside the box when we opened it together.
Puzzle
This was the first month that I introduced a classic puzzle to Aiden. He started with this simple knobbed puzzle with three pieces. These puzzles are excellent for beginners because the knobs make it easier to hold and manipulate the pieces. As many other Montessori bloggers have suggested, I leave the puzzle pieces out of the puzzle and in a basket because it creates more of an invitation for him to work on the puzzle.
Balls in Muffin Tin
This one is a Pinterest favorite for babes and certainly not my original idea, but I love it! I noticed that Aiden was having a lot of interest in taking things in and out of bowls and baskets, so I set this up. I used a mini muffin tin and our Grimm’s Marbles, but any balls or small objects would work well. Aiden loved this work and it’s great foundation for one-to-one correspondence down the road.
Piano
This small piano was another great Mom2Mom sale find when Asher was younger. It’s pretty simple, but great for older babies. Aiden enjoyed hearing the different sounds the piano keys would make when he pressed on them.
Beginning Posting
Aiden started showing interest in posting work so I put this work together for him with a few things I had on hand. I used paper straws and an old spice container with the lid off. As he gets ready for more challenging work, I will add the lid back in so that he can use the large “pour” side of the lid for posting, and then move on to the “sprinkle” side of the lid. I love that this work will provide three different levels of posting work as his abilities change! I also love that this Montessori-inspired activity could be put together with things I had around the house!
Coin Box
The coin box is a more classic Montessori-inspired option for infant/toddler work. It’s excellent for fine motor development and an understanding of object permanence! Aiden wasn’t quite ready for the challenge of getting the coins in the slot yet, so I just removed the drawer from the box and set it out with the coins next to it. He loved putting all of the coins in the drawer, dumping them out, and then doing it all over again!
Basket of Sensory Balls
Aiden had these textured balls out on the shelf with his 9 month activities as well, mostly for holding the balls, exploring different textures, and rolling them around the house. I brought them back out at 11 months because he developed a lot of interest in throwing balls (probably because of all the time he spends watching Asher do this). He used these for throwing them to one of us over and over, and he used them for throwing into an empty basket. Great practice for hand-eye coordination! This was definitely a favorite.
These were some of Aiden’s 11 month, Montessori-inspired favorites! What activities did your baby love at 11 months?
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Amanda says
I love these ideas. My 17-month old would love them, and I”m sure my 3-year old would want to join, too. Open-ended play has no age limit!
You mention “posting” several times. What is that? (assuming of course you don’t mean posting something online! HA!)
KMenko says
You’re so right, that’s one thing I love so much about Montessori- older kids can join right in with littles! Posting basically is just putting or dropping an object through or into a container- there’s tons of variations for it- toothpicks into spice containers, letters into a mailbox, coins into a coin box. A cheap option is using an oatmeal container and cutting a hole in the lid so that toddlers can drop craft sticks, bottle lids, blocks, buttons, really anything through it. My boys could both do those posting activities allll day. 🙂
Betty says
We are semi practicing montessori at home and have some of these “toys”! My kids especially like the lock box and love to unlock and lock all day.
KMenko says
Oh, that’s awesome! The lock box is so much fun, and so great for fine motor!
Jackline A says
These are great ideas. I am always looking for ideas to keep my 14 month old busy and learning.
Tricia Brockway says
These are all great activities and what is nice is the siblings can join in on the fun too! Great post 🙂