Morning Time Baskets.

I first heard of Morning Baskets while reading about Charlotte Mason. She was a British educator who believed (among other things) that a child is a whole person. She encouraged outdoor time, an appreciation for nature, art and music, and believed children could show what they knew through exercises like journaling, copy work, nature studies and narration (rather than just straight memorization out of text books.) There are many ways, the Charlotte Mason philosophy complements Montessori (and some that don’t.) As with anything, it’s possible to pick out what you enjoy from a particular pedagogy and adapt it to your home. That’s what I decided to do with Morning Baskets.

Morning Baskets encourage everyone coming together. Typically, Morning Baskets hold a collection of books for everyone in the household. This quiet, intentional and purposeful start of the day promotes reading, learning and connection. Everyone, no matter their age, listens to the same story — though developmentally, the takeaways will be different. 

In Montessori, there’s a large emphasis on concrete learning materials, as well as giving children only what is developmentally appropriate for them. Our work period is a time when everyone is learning — but definitely, not all together. At any given time, I could have children sweeping in the kitchen, doing math problems in the play room, and painting in the art area. My whole house is their prepared environment and sometimes it’s hard to be pulled in three different directions. 

I decided I wanted to change things up for the summer! I thought it would be nice to have a home-base first thing in the morning before everyone started their own thing (be it summer camp, or a science project, or playing outside.) Enter: Montessori-inspired Morning Baskets.

HOW OUR MORNING BASKETS WORK:

Each morning after breakfast, each child pulls out their basket and gets to work. They can choose the order they’d like to complete the activities. They don’t need to do every activity every day. I split my time between helping and reading. Typically, everyone wants their books to be read to them so that’s a main focus. I also help my younger two, set up their activities since they are used to shelf work and the basket is a new concept. They are done when they choose; I’ve noticed it’s typically after 45 minutes. When they are done, they brush their teeth and get dressed for the day. It’s been two weeks and I haven’t changed out the items in each basket, though I may this week.

SOME IDEAS FOR ACTIVITIES: These are affiliate links at no cost to you however if you make a purchase I may earn a small commission.

FIVE YEAR OLD:

His basket is the one that is the most self-explanatory; lots of handwriting practice! He uses the small bears as counters for 4 digit math problems. I’ve also been writing a message each night in his Summer Journal and he responds in the morning. In addition to these things, he has his book picks from the Library.

BOB books / Lunchbox notes: jokes / Summer journal / Brain Quest workbook / Brain Quest questions/answers / Handwriting without tears / Colored pencils / Sandpaper Letters / Counting bears / Pencils / Pencil sharpener / White basket

THREE YEAR OLD:

This basket has a variety of activities including my daughter’s Speech Therapy “homework”. I keep the bowls, and a tray in the basket so she can set up her own workspace and keep her materials contained. She has some pattern work, counting and sound work, some fine motor activities and her library books, too.

Here are some similar suggestions:

Counting bears / Unicorn chopsticks / Pom poms / Chalkboard / Chalk / Play-doh / Lacing activity / Object/picture matching / One to one correspondence / Crayons / Sandpaper Letters / Stamp set 

18 MONTH OLD:

While my older kids use their Morning Basket for nearly an hour, my youngest comes and goes and developmentally that’s expected. But I still offer her activities to keep her engaged (and out of the older kids’ baskets.)

Here are some similar suggestions:

Dot markers / Dot stickers / Dust pan and brush / Silicone mold / Pop it sensory toy / Touch and feel animal cards / Lovevery toys / Posting / Bolt Block / Pop up toy / Wooden peg puzzle 

It was important to me that these Morning Baskets, while inspired by Charlotte Mason, were Montessori-inspired. So I included activities that were purposeful, interesting to each child and helped them build on their skills while being mostly independent. The materials support their freedom of choice — since they are choosing in which order to work, and for how long. I also wanted them to be transportable so that they each had a small “prepared environment on-the-go” for when we’re traveling this summer — even if it’s just to the backyard. I really like that their activities aren’t confined to our shelves and can be moved from place to place.

Will you include Morning Baskets into your day?