Height adjustable furniture
Problem Solved - Height Adjustable Children's Table
Wonderful post by How we Montessori
Until recently Otis (7 yrs) didn't have a work area downstairs, he would often work at the dining table which really wasn't suitable, he often wanted to use it around dinner time and didn't want to pack up his work. It was an unhappy situation.
Until recently Otis (7 yrs) didn't have a work area downstairs, he would often work at the dining table which really wasn't suitable, he often wanted to use it around dinner time and didn't want to pack up his work. It was an unhappy situation.
If I was going to create a space for him downstairs, it was going to have to be a dynamic space, it would need to be flexible and suitable for everyone to use. It would have to be somewhere Caspar (10 yrs) and Otto (10 months) could comfortably work too. Perhaps it could be a creative area for Otis but also a table we could use for snacks for Otto's playdates or a homework table for Caspar and his friends.
I measured Caspar and Otis' desks upstairs and found the perfect solution, an adjustable children's table. I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner.
l Iooked online and found this table (similar US) it has a good height range of 19 to 30 inches. It's a bit too tall to use as a weaning table (ours are 14-15 inches) but Otto can comfortably stand at it to join in with colouring, playdough or snack (it's not at the lowest setting in these pictures). There are many occasions when all three boys want to work on a project together. It's large enough to seat 2-4 children at once, and it is durable.
Although I love the all wooden tables, I know this one would last, even with one child it's easy to adjust to the perfect height. If you have a small space that needs to work for more than one child, perhaps an adjustable children's table is worth considering.
Tidy Montessori Bookshelf Ideas + Discount Code
Books! We all have them. Some of us have a lot of them. How do we best store them? We want to protect the books, we want to display them beautifully and we want them to be easily accessible to our children. For babies, toddlers and preschoolers it's definitely best to display them forward facing, so the child can see the cover. It's also best to avoid overcrowding or overwhelm, you can observe your child but it's never a good idea to overcrowd a bookshelf! In a Montessori environment, we want bookshelves that:
- Protect our books, keep them safe.
- Keep our children's spaces tidy, make it easy for the child to put away their books and maintain order in their environment.
- Display the books forward facing, this makes it easier for the very young child to identify their books or find the book they are looking for.
- Are easy for the child to access, reach and use independently.
- Look beautiful!
For babies and toddlers, I also look for bookshelves that:
- Are really safe, stable and are able to be used for the child to pull to standing or hold for support.
- Will display board books and small-sized books where the child can see the cover.
- Will hold or display a smaller amount of books. To maintain order in their environment I suggest only a few perhaps 6-12 books in an infant/toddler room.
- Have low or no VOCs, are ethically made and are well made/strong, that will last.
For Otto (at 10 months) we have just moved from a book basket and displaying books on his shelves to a little book box, this one works perfectly in his environment. Our book box is c/o Tidy Books and I have a discount code for you (UK, US & EU) at the end of the post.
Although this book box can hold a lot of books I put six at the front and six on the other side. You could put the book box in the middle of a space or at a 90° angle to the wall so the child can easily access it both sides, but it's working for us like this. It is entirely child/infant/toddler sized so it works well in his room.
Tidy Books are designed by a UK mum who wanted a better style bookshelf for her children, you can read about her Montessori approach here and a few Montessori testimonials here.
Tidy Books have a good range of bookshelves to suit Montessori home or school environments including Montessori Style (with lower case, red/blue letters), Original (with no letters), Alphabet (lower case with plain or coloured letters) or Personalised. For Babies and Toddlers, I like the book box.
What are Montessori Infant / Baby Shelves?
For the first time parent who may wonder what are Montessori infant shelves and how are we supposed to use them?
The shelves promote independence as the child is able to access them by themselves, and they promote order, the child is able to see all of their materials and when they are slightly older will be able to put them back where they got them from! The shelves can be in the child's room or in a shared space such as a living room or playroom.
The shelves are:
- Low. So that the crawling infant can see the materials on the top shelf. So that the infant can use the shelves to pull to standing and cruise around them.
- Safe, solid and stable. We want the infant to use the shelve to pull to standing, for this reason they must be solid and stable.
- Wooden. Because we prefer to use natural materials where possible.
- Open. This is personal preference, I prefer open shelves that are light in appearance, let lots of natural light in.
- Beautiful. Add some interesting art work above the shelves not only to beautify the environment but to provide a point of interest above the shelves.
- Simple in design.
- Clean and not cluttered.
- Long Lasting. Can be used right through toddlerhood and even for preschoolers.
The materials are:
- Developmentally and age appropriate.
- Chosen specifically to follow the infant's interests. An example of this is Otto (top image, at ten months) like to bang things, so we have a little drum and xylophone. He likes object permanence boxes and activities with balls so we have the ball run.
- Purposeful. Carefully chosen.
- Functional. Beautiful. Made from natural materials where possible.
- Rotated to keep the infant's interest.
- Low in number. We perhaps have too many out at the moment. For an infant under 12 months, I would put out no more than eight activities on shelves like this but six might work better.
- Safe. If any of the materials have small parts, store them up high and only use them under direct supervision.
Tips:
- If the child just throws all of the materials off the shelves, don't worry this is completely normal behavior. Observe the child and see what happens next. Often Otto (top image, at ten months) will remove all of the materials from the shelves and then... he will sit down and use them. One by one he will use the stacker, then use the puzzle and so on. It's lovely to observe.
- Model using the materials when necessary but do so with deliberate and slow actions. Initially just use movement and add words later. If you talk too much the infant will start watching your mouth not your hands.
- Observe. Observe. Observe. You may see that your child has no interest in the materials. Remove the materials and perhaps rotate them back in later. You may observe that your child doesn't have the coordination for the materials. Again remove the material and rotate back in when you think they may be ready.
- Leave materials on the shelves that your child is really into/interested in. Watch for repetition.
- Enjoy. When your child is concentrating and working hard with the materials, it can be a really beautiful moment.
- Allow the child to access the shelves and select and use the materials independently. Observation and supervision are important but you don't need to be playing with or using the materials with the child.
- I like to have the shelves in place from birth. The shelves give the child a target, something to move towards, which is particularly useful in the bedroom if you are using the floor bed. Often when the infant wakes they can then crawl to their shelves to play.
The shelves in the top two images are c/o Sprout.
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