Montessori Activities: 0-3 Months Old.

A few weeks ago, I posted about the baby year. That’s definitely the post to check out if you’re looking for Montessori baby must-haves. This post is going to be more about specific activities you can do with your baby! Since an infant’s development changes so much during the first year, I’ll break up this topic into different posts sorted by age.

Truthfully, there isn’t much of a need for toys for babies so young. So often I’m asked what toys are great for newborns? It might be an unpopular opinion — but I don’t think ANY toys are necessary for newborns. So then I’m asked — then what should I do with him/her all day? 

Maria Montessori believed that a sensitive period was a period of time, a “window”, in which a child absorbed knowledge and was most capable of acquiring a certain skill. This doesn’t mean that if that time passes, a child will never learn the skill — just that there’s a certain ease, and that it’s natural, for a child to learn certain things at certain times in their development. The first two sensitive periods are movement and language. So it’s no surprise that my recommendations for this age group are focused on these two sensitive periods.

Here are some Montessori Activities for babies 0-3 months old:

1. Movement area: Freedom of movement is just as important for newborns as with toddlers and preschoolers. Movement areas typically contain a soft blanket or mattress your baby lays on (different from their actual bed)… and that’s it! The main objective is not to confine an infant into a baby container (like a swing or a rocker.) This is so they can freely move their limbs since that’s how they’ll gain strength and learn to move about on their own following their natural rhythm. You can also add a mirror to this space so they can see their reflection (and everything going on in the room around them) and some mobiles to hang above them for them to look at and admire. 

2. Rich language: The sensitive period for language acquisition begins at birth which means it’s important to talk to your baby! This is an activity! No need to buy, make, or prepare anything. Simple conversations are the best gift you can give your baby because speaking to your baby fires up the important synapses in your baby’s brain that handles language. Here are some ways it can look: 

– Talk: Have conversations with them, use real words, no baby-talk.

– Explain: Talk about what you’re doing as you’re doing it — “I’m getting a diaper and I’m going to change you” or “we have to go to the grocery store, so I’m going to put you in your car seat”. 

– Tour: Give tours of your home, and focus on vocabulary — “this is a table”, “this is a rug”.

– Begin making connections: “this is the dishwasher, it cleans our dishes”, “this is the vacuum, it cleans the floor”, “this is my bedroom, I sleep here”.

– Focus on the senses: Point out sounds you hear “I hear a siren, do you?”, point out smells in the air “I’m cooking, do you smell garlic?”, notice textures “My shirt is soft, can you feel it?”

– Include: Include your baby in conversations you’re having with other people; spouse, siblings, etc. Make eye contact; they’ll soon realize they are a part of the action.

– Read: Pick up a book, a newspaper, a magazine, even the cereal box and just read. You can also hold a book in front of them and just point out illustrations, “this is a cat… this is a house”.

– Sing: Nursery rhymes, pop songs, it really doesn’t matter. Just get your voice out there.

Many people feel strange talking to a baby who doesn’t talk back! But it’s vital to their growth. 

Typically newborns have “wake windows” of between 30-90 minutes, so feed them, change them, talk to them, snuggle them and let them observe and absorb their environment. Toys will come… but they aren’t needed yet.