Since this week was the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day, I wanted to challenge myself to create Nature Themed Montessori Activities for Babies and Toddlers.
Montessori pedagogy really encourages love and respect of our Earth from day one. In Dr. Montessori’s studies, she found that if we expose our babies to the beauties and wonders of Earth from infancy, they are likely to have that wonder for our planet as they grow.
And how amazing will it be if our babies love our Earth as much as we do… and they grow to be positive contributors to our gorgeous planet!
I personally find so much joy and peace in nature, so I have always tried to incorporate elements of nature in my classroom and home Montessori environments so my babies can experience it as well!
Here are my 5 DIY Earth Themed Montessori Lessons for Babies and Toddlers
Tactile Nature Mobile
(For non mobile or newly mobile babies)
Creating a tactile nature mobile is such a fun and easy way to create a developmentally beneficial sensorial experience! You can create a nature mobile out of pine cones, feathers, leaves, flowers, etc.
You’ll just need to find a sturdy stick as the base, gather your materials outside, clean them, and hang them with string and glue! So simple and yet, babies LOVE exploring these tactile nature mobiles!
Nature Themed Art Project
Art projects can come in all forms in the Montessori world. You may observe a child painting on an easel, coloring on a tray, or even gluing materials!
These art projects are so simple yet so loved. To create this lesson, cut a child size paper. Then use a black marker to draw a simple earth themed picture. Finish by setting up your Montessori art tray or station and let you child paint away!
Sorting Earth Pieces
Sorting is a great and effective way to introduce nature and build your child’s mathematical mind. And you don’t necessarily need a wooden Montessori sorting tray to sort! I wanted to challenge myself to use what I have around my house. So I happened to find small bowls and placed them on a tray for my sorting activity.
I had large rocks and sea shells on hand to use for my sorting materials. If you don’t seem to have anything on hand, you (or your child) can always collect various nature items that you find on your daily walks to sort later.
Care of Plants
Care of plants can look so different at various stages of infancy. That said, the more our children interact with flowers and plants, the more they recognize the positive impact they can have nature!
In small infants, this can look like laying on a quilt outside and observing the trees. (After all, Montessori always said that trees are nature’s mobiles 🙂 )
In mobile babies, this can look like opportunities to gently feel the (safe) plants or crawl through the grass.
In babies with more of a refined grasp, this can look like watering plants or washing/dusting leaves.
And in young toddlers this can look like flower sorting and germinating.
Nature Language Lessons
Everyone loves a good Montessori language lesson! That said, offering a language lesson is another great way to incorporate nature into your baby’s Montessori activity list.
Did you know that arranging the lesson can be as simple as printing out photos onto index cards?! Typically, I would laminate them (to extend their life span), but if you don’t have access to a laminator it’s okay!
(If your baby attempts to put your non-laminated language cards in their mouth, my suggestion would be to redirect to a teether or or healthy snack item and then come back to the material after.)
When creating your language cards, my biggest suggestion would be to categorize your language lessons. So instead of having a mix of random items, perhaps you have a set of various trees, flowers, oceanic animals, etc. that you present at different times.
And that’s it! Have you tried any of these types of lessons with your babies?! Let me know in the comments below!! Hope everyone is safe and well. 🙂