Montessori at Home for the infant can be a bit tricky given their lack of fine and large motor skills, but with just a little mindfulness you can offer your baby a great deal! First things first, be aware of the types of toys you are offering them – because beauty in the Montessori environment is part of the philosophy, I try to offer my nearly 4 month old natural, wooden, simple toys. Partly because they are beautiful and partly because I don’t want her to be overstimulated by anything too bright or loud. Our entire house is calmer when our toys are calm.

I’ve also noticed that she seems content for much longer when she just has one thing in front of her as opposed to sticking her in front of a handful of things. At her age she is just starting to grasp toys and gum on them, but not being able to sit up or fully roll over limits her a bit in what she can do right now.

Another great thing for baby as early as a day old is a low level wall mirror. You will always find a child level mirror in a Primary Montessori setting for care of self practice and in an infant setting, they are wonderful as well. They make tummy time and independent play so much more enjoyable – the wall mirror gives baby a chance to see and study their own face, see the room in a new way and turn and lift their heads in ways they may not otherwise.

An important part in setting up your home environment is knowing that it will constantly be changing based on your child’s development, abilities and learning. So if something doesn’t seem to be working or is not of interest to your child, that’s okay. Try again in a few weeks and you might see a totally different outcome!

A few quick and easy things you can do at home, right now:
-Turn on quiet, classical music for your baby while they play.
-Lay a blanket in the grass and allow them to look up at the trees and feel the breeze.
-Put some of their toys out of eye sight so they are not overstimulated and overwhelmed by too many things.
-Read to them in a peaceful tone of voice.

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