What Montessori Activities to Do with 12 - 15 Months Old Toddler
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Your baby has officially entered the stage of toddlerhood. Big and obvious changes are happening during this stage of your child’s development. Your child is working hard on their gross motor skills. Furthermore, their ego is developing rapidly, and they show us that they’re ready for more autonomy. We’ll look at a few ways how to support their needs below.
What is your toddler working on?
MOVEMENT
Walking - taking first steps, practicing walking. Walking frees your child’s hands and he will want to use them to explore. Your child might be so engrossed in working on their gross motor skills that they won’t show any interest in their toys. Remember that this is okay, and accept where your child is at in their development.
Carrying large and heavy things - around 15 months, your child might show interest in carrying large and heavy things. It’s very common during this stage that your child will put their strength to a test. It can be concerning to see your toddler carry something twice their size. But try not to discourage them. They’ll carry as much as they are capable of carrying.
Walking upstairs and downstairs - this was Emma’s favorite thing to do outside. She would find stairs and walked (crawled) upstairs and downstairs many times in a row.
Climbing, swinging, and many others
GRASP REFINEMENT AND EYE-HAND COORDINATION
LANGUAGE - your child starts to use their first intentional words. Language explosion is common during this stage. Your toddler is learning a lot of new words and enjoys repeating words you use. Model rich and proper language when talking to your child.
How can you support your child’s desire for autonomy?
GIVE THEM CHOICE - begin giving them choice from 2 options. They need to be age-appropriate and logical. For instance, let them choose between 2 t-shirts to wear or between two different books to read. When you give your child a choice, you not only support their independence. You give them an opportunity to practice making the right choices for themselves.
Age-appropriate choice: “Would you like an apple or a banana for a snack?”
Not age-appropriate choice: “Would you like to stay at home or go to the park?” In this case, we give him too big a decision to decide. A young toddler can’t possibly assess the situation as we would (we know being outdoors is healthy), and make the best choice in this situation.
OFFER TODDLER CLOSET - clothes accessible to your child will help them to decide what they want to wear.
BEGIN TOILET LEARNING - once your child is walking, you can start toilet learning.
INCLUDE THEM IN PRACTICAL LIFE ACTIVITIES - for example unpacking groceries, putting clothes in the laundry basket..
Montessori Toys for 12 - 15 Months:
Top shelf left to right: Ball Hammering, Puzzles. Floor left to right: Small Drum, The Pull Toy (Ducks), Horizontal Dowel - Serpentine
The Peg Box (not pictured)
This toy helps to develop fine motor skills such as grasping, hand-eye coordination, and shape discrimination. We introduced the Peg Box to Emma when she was 12 months old. This is one of the toys Emma used repeatedly. She enjoyed pulling out the pieces and putting them back.
Ball Hammering
This toy helps to develop your child’s motor skills and hand-eye coordination. Put the hammer aside and let your child push balls through holes using her hands. This strengthens her fingers and palms. You can add the hammer later once your child's hands are more coordinated.
I introduced this toy to Emma when she was 11 months old. In the beginning, it was too difficult for her. I waited and reintroduced it later. Around 12 months, she was able to push the balls through the holes. She figured out that when she stood up and pushed using her whole body, it would work. You can introduce this toy between 10-12 months.
The puzzles help to develop hand-eye coordination and early STEM skills. We introduced these puzzles around 14 months.
We keep providing more experience with music and new musical toys (instruments). A small drum provides a fun auditory experience for your growing musician. We introduced this drum around 14 months.
We introduced this pull toy to Emma around 14 months. She started walking at 11 months so she was ready for it. If your child isn’t walking yet, put this toy aside for now. And introduce it once your toddler is walking. This toy challenges the coordination of your child’s whole body and works on the development of both their gross and fine motor skill.
This Montessori toy helps to strengthen hand-eye coordination and hand movements. It also allows you to see if your child is able to cross the body’s midline. Crossing the midline is a significant developmental skill your child needs to perform many tasks such as writing.
I ordered this toy during the pandemic, and it has never arrived. So I have decided to move on to the horizontal dowel - serpentine that I already had at home. Emma’s hand was ready for the more advanced version of this toy. But if you can, offer both.
After enough practice with discs on the horizontal dowel, you can offer horizontal dowel - serpentine that provides more challenge to the child. It helps the child to develop hand, wrist, and finger control.
Note: Our shelf is here just for your inspiration. You don’t need all these toys, and your toddler might not enjoy all of them. Observe your child first and see what she needs and what she is interested in. Also, remember that your toddler might be ready for some of the toys earlier or later.
What are your toddler’s favorite toys? Please share them in the comments.
More Montessori activities: