Montessori Toys – the ultimate guide for at home (0-6 years old)

Discover the ultimate way to support your child’s development with Montessori toys!

Montessori toys are specifically created to align with the Montessori philosophy, giving your child the perfect blend of fun and learning. With a focus on simplicity, natural materials, and purposeful play, these toys are ideal for engaging your child’s senses, promoting self-correction, and developing essential skills.

We will be elaborating at the end on why and how to embrace the Montessori approach at home, but let me start with why we should get Montessori toys for our children and how to look for them! 

Why Montessori Toys at Home

Support holistic development.

Montessori toys cater to various aspects of a child’s development, including cognitive, motor, sensory, and social-emotional skills, leading to well-rounded growth.

Promote independence.

Montessori toys encourage children to engage in independent play and exploration. This will lead to self-confidence, decision-making skills, and the ability to focus and concentrate on activities.

Foster skills development

Montessori toys are designed to target specific skills and abilities at different developmental stages. They support fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, problem-solving, logical thinking, and language development.

Nurture curiosity and love for learning

Montessori toys stimulate children’s curiosity and innate desire to learn. Hands-on exploration, sensory engagement, and active learning experiences foster this lifelong love for learning.

Montessori Toys vs. Montessori Materials

There aren’t any official Montessori toys out there, but they are those that are inspired by Montessori’s philosophy and approach. Montessori toys are designed to promote specific developmental skills and foster independent play in children. They are also more widely available and affordable, making them more accessible to those practicing Montessori at home. 

Montessori materials are educational tools designed explicitly by Maria Montessori herself to facilitate self-directed learning and cater to sensitive periods of a child’s development. They are meticulously crafted and have a specific purpose. They are used in structured learning experiences for children to master skills and concepts step by step. 

Montessori Materials are harder to obtain, often costly, and primarily used in Montessori schools. However, nowadays, some Montessori Materials are easier to come by thanks to the internet, and some can be a valuable addition to your Montessori Toys collection at home!

What to look for when buying Montessori Toys

Let’s face it, getting Montessori materials at home can be costly, not to mention not easy to obtain. Therefore, it is more than fine for us to seek out Montessori toys that embrace the Montessori principles as closely as possible. 

Here are the key characteristics that can help you identify Montessori toys among all the choices out there:

• Purposeful Design – Montessori toys are intentionally designed to serve a specific purpose or skill development. 
• Simple and Minimalistic: Montessori toys have a simple design, allowing children to focus an essential focus. 
• Natural Materials: Montessori toys prioritize natural materials such as wood, metal, fabric, and sometimes even glass. They offer children a tactile and sensory experience while being durable and eco-friendly.
• Sensory Exploration: Montessori toys emphasize the development of the senses – touch, sight, hearing, and sometimes taste and smell. This sensory exploration supports the child’s cognitive and motor development.
• Self-Correcting – Montessori toys are often designed to be self-correcting. This means they allow the child to discover and learn from their mistakes, fostering independence and critical thinking skills. 
• Sequential and Progressive – Montessori toys are often organized sequentially and progressively. They are designed to support the child’s developmental progression, gradually increasing in complexity as the child grows. This sequential nature helps build upon previously acquired skills and knowledge.
• Real-Life Connections – Montessori toys often have a connection to real-life experiences and activities. They can simulate daily life tasks or objects, allowing children to engage in practical life skills or explore concepts from their immediate environment.
• Safety and Durability – Montessori toys prioritize safety and durability. They are typically made with non-toxic materials, are built to withstand regular use, and can be passed down to younger siblings or future generations.
• Child-Centered – Montessori toys are selected based on the child’s developmental stage, ensuring they align with their abilities and interests. They encourage active engagement and independent exploration, promoting self-directed learning. 

Types of Montessori Activities

Hand-eye Coordination

The toddler is constantly refining their grasp and practicing working with two hands together. We can look for new ways to challenge these movements. 

Examples of activities or Montessori toys for hand-eye coordination are threading toys, posting toys, and puzzles. 

Language

Montessori language activities expose children to rich language from the start and enforce their learning via tactile. First and foremost are the vocabulary baskets with authentic or replica objects, then the matching of 3D to 2D objects, and finally, vocabulary cards. 

Books are one of the most essential tools in language learning. Montessori encourages realistic books set in daily life and things the children know. It is also a good idea to read books we enjoy to our children to foster interest and fun. I also look for books that reflect diversity.

Music

We, humans, need to move, and all cultures enjoy singing and dancing. Making sounds, rhythm, and copying movement as we play, dance, or sing are great for children. 

We should provide simple musical instruments to children, from babies to toddlers to pre-schoolers! A music box that they can independently operate is perfect here, too. 

Movement

For movements, we can provide opportunities for them to run, jump, and skip, and the best is to take them outdoors or playgrounds for these. We can also introduce them to a trike, balance bike, and bicycle. Throwing and kicking balls are fun and important, too. 

We can also provide movement opportunities inside the home, such as with a Pikler triangle monkey bars or wobble board.

Practical life

Small children, in particular, love to help out at home, and the best time to foster these is to start early. Provide them with child-sized tools and furniture and invite them to help care for themselves and their home. 

Practical life at home includes plant care, food preparation, snack time, mealtimes, baking, cleaning, caring for pets, caring for themselves, and dressing and helping with the laundry. 

Laying a foundation to care for themselves, others, and the environment will help them be independent and responsible human beings. 

Arts and Crafts 

In Montessori, the process takes precedence over the product in arts and crafts. We foster creativity by encouraging self-expression, movement, and experiencing different materials. 

Types of arts and crafts are drawing, painting, cutting and gluing, play dough, clay, sewing, and even going to art museums for appreciation. 

Sensorial (age 3 – 6 years old)

Montessori sensorial activities are hands-on learning experiences designed to stimulate and refine the five senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. These activities develop their sensory perception, discrimination, and concentration skills.

Not only that, it also enables children to categorize their environment and establish order. It sets the groundwork for future learning by developing classification, sorting, and discrimination skills. All these are essential abilities in subjects like math, geometry, and language.

Math (age 3 – 6 years old)

In Montessori, children learn math via hands-on experience. Using manipulatives, children can touch and feel the concepts of quantity, making it easier for them to understand mathematical principles. 

At the preschool level, Montessori cultural activities encompass geography, history, general science, botany, zoology, music, and art. 

Culture (age 3 – 6 years old)

In the Montessori Culture, children explore subjects like arts, geography, science, the environment, national culture, music, and history. They learn about their community and the world around them. They discover similarities and differences and develop an understanding and appreciation for diversity and all living things. This sets the foundation for Cosmic Education to come. 

Montessori Toys for Babies

Montessori Babyspielzeug (0-6 months)

Montessori baby toys below 6 months old focus on supporting early developmental milestones and stimulating infants’ senses. These toys are simple, made with natural materials, and used for sensory exploration. 

In the early days, Montessori focused on visuals with the famous Montessori mobiles. Later, we look into budding motor skills with the Montessori ball and also often with bells to tickle the hearing sense. 

Here are our top Montessori baby toys below six months old:

Montessori mobile

Wooden Book

Interlocking discs

Montessori Baby Toys ab 6 Monate bis 12 Monate

As your baby moves more, the Montessori toys expanded to toys that promote movement, such as the pull-up bar. Simple and natural toys also focus on fine motor skills, from grasping with the palm to pincer grab.  

Here are our top 3 Montessori Baby toys ab 6 Monate: 

Hand-eye Coordination

Permanent Object box

Egg and cup

First puzzles

Spinning drum

Movement

Pull up bar 

Pikler

Balls

Walker

Galt toy

Montessori Toys for Toddlers (1 – 3 Years Old)

As infants become toddlers, their play transitions from sensorial exploration to purposeful play. Toddlers engage in activities with specific goals, such as building, sorting, and pretend play. Montessori toys support this transition by offering age-appropriate challenges and promoting problem-solving, fine motor skills, and cognitive growth. Purposeful play nurtures independence, curiosity, and concentration, setting the foundation for preschool.

Montessori Toys for 1 Year Old (12 – 18 Months)

As your little buddy takes their first few steps, their play universe is expanded by skills and space! We promote fine motor skills, coordination, and language development in this phase. We can also slowly incorporate a few practical life activities into the toy selection. 

Hand eye-coordination 

First puzzles

Posting – ball with drawer, coin slot with drawer

Threading 

Ball run

Hammer toys

Music and Movement

Drums

Music shake

Practical life

Small dustpan

Self-care station 

Arts and Crafts

Hand color

Playdough

Language

Schleich

Siku vehicles

Movement

Walker

Montessori Spielzeug 18 Monate bis 24 Monate

At 18 months, you will notice another developmental leap in your toddler. They can now express themselves and actively look for things that excite them. They move on to discover more about their bodies by doing more challenging coordination. 

Hand-eye coordination

Peg puzzle – five pieces 

Sorting box

Nesting boxes

Staking toy

Music and Movement

Trike

Music box

Pikler with slide

Practical Life

Cleaning tools

Apron

Arts and Crafts

Hand color

Chunky pencils

Gluing

Language

Schleich

Siku vehicles

Montessori Spielzeug 2 Jahre (24-36 Months)

Children are becoming more curious, independent, and capable of purposeful play at two years old. Montessori toys for this age group prioritize simplicity, sensory exploration, and fine motor skill development. Parents can nurture their children’s natural curiosity and creativity by providing age-appropriate Montessori toys while fostering essential skills for their overall growth and development.

Hand-eye coordination

Nuts and bolts

Sorting colors

Geoboard 

Puzzles – 16 pieces/layers

Threading

Lock box

Music

Music box

Movement

Balance bike

Balls

Arts and Crafts

Sewing

Montessori Spielzeug for Vorschulkind (3 – 6 years old)

From 3 to 6, your child is in the second half of their first developmental phase and is now called a preschooler! According to Maria Montessori, the child now acts consciously and voluntarily, indicating the development of their mind. It is an exciting time to observe how your child explores the world around them and learns.

Playing and exploring are incredibly important for children’s development, especially at this age. Through free play and exploration, children can develop critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity, fostering confidence and independence. This approach allows them to tackle new challenges and excel in different areas of their lives, promoting social skills, emotional intelligence, and curiosity.

Remember that your child has their own timeline of development and interest. Do check out the Montessori toys recommendation from the age before or after, where there might be something of interest to your child. 

Montessori Spielzeug 3 Jahre 

You will notice your child graduating from toddlerhood and becoming a little person at three years old! This is a major developmental leap for children, from unconsciously absorbing everything to consciously absorbing them. 

At this age, we focus on toys that foster problem-solving, promote creativity, and encourage independent thinking. 

Critical Thinking and Creativity

Blocks

Puzzles

Hammer Play

Movement

Balance bike

Scooter

Bicycle

Wobble board

Sensory Swing

Language and Mathematics

Sandpaper letters

Grimms pyramid

Practical Life

Cleaning set

Baking set

Garden set

Montessori Spielzeug 4 Jahre 

After our child turned into a little human at 3, you will find that now they are consolidating all the things they have learned till now. It also starts the phase where they have sensitive phases for a sense of order, coordination, refinement of physical skills, language, interest in small objects, mathematics, music, and grace/courtesy.

We can get Montessori toys that foster all these and more! 

Critical Thinking and Creativity

Marble run

Wooden Blocks

Puzzles

Magnet play

Kapla

Language, Mathematics, Cosmic Education and Culture

Movable Alphabets

Grimms pyramid

Globe

Planetarium projektor

Movement and Outdoor

Balance Bike

Bicycle

Montessori Spielzeug 5 Jahre 

At five years old, children love to engage in imaginative play. They become even more independent and ask lots of questions.  They also understand feelings and relationships better, showing empathy and caring towards others. Their language skills improve, allowing them to hold meaningful conversations with adults.

As they grow older, they also show different interest in different areas of things, and the Montessori toys list get incredibly long! Besides observing your child, you can ask your little one what he wants to learn or play more with. Montessori toys at this age focus more on learning language and math and discovering the world and space.

Language, Mathematics, Cosmic Education and Culture

Digital microscope

Planetarium projector

Dino projector torch

Rubik cube

Mathlink

Critical Thinking and Creativity

K’nex

Kapla

Cuboro

Outdoor

Camera

Head Lamp

Practical Life

Knife

Non Montessori Toys that are great for open-ended play and all ages

Dolls

Dollhouse

Duplo/Lego

Magnetic tiles

Montessori board games – cooperative games

In Montessori, cooperative board games will fit the approach and philosophy more. Cooperative board games in the home environment offer a multitude of benefits for children, such as: 

• Reduces competitiveness and fosters harmonious relationships.
• Introduces an alternative way of playing without winners or losers.
• Promotes group cohesion and identity.
• Develops fine motor skills and concentration.
• Provides opportunities to practice grace and courtesy.
• Boosts language and numeracy skills through collaboration.
• Encourages group strategic thinking and creativity.
• Builds trust among players.
• Supports healthy relationships.
• Alleviates fear and frustration of losing, making play enjoyable and stress-free.

From 2

Haba First Orchard

Hey Fishy Fishy!

Our Farm Game

From 3

Haba Orchard

From 4

Karuba Junior

From 5

Foxed

How to present Montessori toys at home

The materials are laid on shelves sequentially from easiest to hardest in a Montessori school setting. Each child works through the materials at their own pace and interest. The educator observes the child and introduces the following material when they have mastered it. 

Therefore, at home, we can replicate to the best of our ability in this manner, too. Present the toys from easiest to hardest, left to right, whenever possible. It’s just a best guess for me, who is not a trained Montessori educator. I also usually present the toys deconstructed, meaning puzzles taken apart and different parts of the toys in a separate container if needed. Also, try to arrange them to encourage movement from left to right when playing to assist in reading in the future. 

All these Montessori toys are set in trays where possible or use baskets when applicable and displayed clearly in rows on the shelf. Then, whenever we can find time, we sit back quietly and observe our children interacting with their Montessori toys.

Montessori toy shelf

Toys rotation

Toys rotation is helpful at home, not only to keep up with our developing child but also to give the toys a chance to be interesting again.  

Through observation, we take notes either to replace if it became too easy or boring or to keep those that are still engaging or challenging for them, and we also take out those that may still be too difficult, noting to bring back at a later time. 

Open-ended toys can be rotated, too, to keep their freshness and excitement. 

Montessori Philosophy at Home

Providing Montessori toys at home is just part of the Montessori way of life puzzle. Besides all the reasons above for having Montessori toys at home, adopting the Montessori philosophy at home will benefit children’s development and learning. 

Montessori education emphasizes the dynamic relationship between the child, the adult, and the learning environment. The child is in charge of their learning, supported by the adult and the environment. 

The objective of Montessori education is not to teach the child but to cultivate their natural desire to learn. This principle can be applied at home with our children. We support them in making discoveries for themselves, giving them freedom and limits. We set up the home environment so they can participate in our daily lives. 

How to Embrace Montessori at Home – The Principles

Here are some of Montessori principles that are useful for those who want to embrace the Montessori approach at home:

• Prepared environment – Set up activities and Montessori toys at the right level for the child – challenging to master but not so complex that they give up. Besides that, there is importance to setting up the home for practical life. Still, we will explore that in another article.

• A natural desire to learn – Maria Montessori recognizes the intrinsic motivation in children to learn. Children discover independently in a prepared environment with age-appropriate Montessori toys, which will build wonder and a love of learning.

• Hands-on, concrete learning – We integrate learning by using our hands, moving from passive learning (listening and watching) to active learning. Montessori toys are beautifully prepared to attract children to explore them with their hands, encouraging tactile learning that is best for young children. 

• Sensitive periods – Children have specific periods when they are naturally inclined to learn certain skills or concepts effortlessly. Examples include language, movement, order, exploration, and social interactions. By observing our child, we can provide appropriate Montessori toys that support their sensitive phases. 

• Absorbent mind – Children take in information without effort from birth to the age of 6. This stage is referred to as the absorbent mind by Dr.Montessori. They absorb everything around them with ease. That is why we should see it as an opportunity to feed them with rich language, learn how to handle things, treat others, order, and appreciate beauty. 

• Freedom within limits – At home, we can have a few rules for children to live by to learn respect and responsibilities for themselves, others, and the environment around them. Within these limits, the children have the freedom of choice, movement, and will. Examples are that they can choose what they want to wear as long as it’s appropriate for the season, choose their snack as long as they sit down to eat, and express themselves freely as long they do not hurt others or objects at home. 

• Independence and responsibility – With Montessori, children learn to be independent. They can do more and contribute to the family. Besides strengthening their skills with Montessori toys, they also love to take part in daily life with us and learn to be responsible for caring for themselves, others, and the environment. 

• Individual development – Every child has a unique developmental timeline. Montessori respects each child for their unique ways of needs and learning. That is why we observe and follow their interest and development when choosing appropriate Montessori toys. 

• Respect – At home, we treat our children with respect too, for example, asking them for permission before touching or lifting them. When needed, the adult can set a limit but respectfully and assertively. 
• Observation – This is the basis of the Montessori approach. All of the above can only come together if you observe your child and learn where they are. It helps to see what they are interested in, what they are mastering, what developmental change is taking place, and when needed, step in to help or limit. Observations also help us choose which Montessori toys to present to our child and when.