Oh I just love Montessori toddlerhood. There is so much goodness in watching your child perfect all the skills that they have learned up until this point. Walking through life with so much confidence, having such strong convictions, and just so much energy.
Penelope is coming down to her final months as a 2-year-old. As excited as I am to watch my baby move on into the next phase in her development, I'm savoring these last few months with a toddler-toddler. And we are just slowly living life here at home. I thought I would share a few of the things that keep us both busy all day at 2.
Montessori Toddler Favorites at 2-years-old
I can't possibly share everything she does. But, I have broken down into a few areas and I'm hitting her favorites that she comes back to time and time again. Remember that this is specific to Penelope and might look different to your 2-year-old. Use this as inspiration but take time to observe and prepare your environment specifically for your child.
\Practical Life
I've said it before and I stand by it, 2-years-old is the golden age of practical life. They are just so interested in participating in practical tasks and are really starting to become actual helpers. This is the age where I'm introducing so many new skills and she's soaking them all in. A few of her favorites lately include:
- Making and drinking tea (tea cup and pot)
- Washing windows
- Getting dressed and undressed
- All sorts of baking
Language
Explosion doesn't quite even explain how much Penelope has grown in her expressive language. She is one of my most chatty toddlers, and has hundreds - thousands? - of words. She tells stories, jokes, and memories. She believes she's in charge of her siblings and tells them that often! Some language milestones lately:
- Reading longer picture books. Favorites lately Big Snow, City Moon, Lola series
- Recognizing letters as words. "What does this say!?" is a common phrase whenever she sees words around the environment. She's made the connection that letters, mean something.
Toys and Materials
Penelope really is a strong worker when she gets into something. But often she is tagging along with a bunch of older kids playing their games. She loves pretend playing with them, although on her own chooses that less. Here are some of her favorites lately:
- Block Play: starting to build small structures on her own especially with acrylic blocks
- Returning to materials: She has been returning to a lot of materials she used earlier as a toddler but now for different reasons. Where the ring counter was about color matching, now it's for counting. The tree stacker she's using to recognize the lengths and build correctly.
- Puzzles: Lots of puzzle use lately, 2-3 piece jigsaws and vintage frame puzzles without pictures under the pieces have both been her favorite lately
- Fine Motor: lots of screwing and threading beads
- Art: This is definitely Penelope's favorite and she will spend a long time with any art material. Right now she is very interested in cutting with scissors, paint sticks, markers, and stickers
Like I said, this isn't everything Penelope does on a day to day basis, but a good look at a lot of her favorites. As a Montessori mom, I want to make sure I'm offering lots of opportunities for exploration based on my observations.
What have you noticed in your toddler lately? What kinds of things is your 2-year-old interested in?
What have you noticed in your toddler lately? What kinds of things is your 2-year-old interested in?
