It can be hard to figure out which toys are best for your toddler. There are so many options out there – and way too many companies marketing their toys as “educational” when they’re anything but.
So, to help you put together a meaningful collection of Montessori-friendly toys your toddler will love, I put together this lil guide!
I’ve been working with toddlers for the past 10 years. So, I know a thing or two about which toys actually encourage active learning and engaged play and which toys tend to sit untouched on the shelf.
Below, you’ll find the best Montessori-inspired toys and materials for your little one, sorted by category to help you find exactly what you’re looking for. Keep reading to check it out!
But first… What is a Montessori toy?
To keep it simple, Montessori toys – usually called materials – are toys that encourage hands-on play and self-guided exploration.
They meet children where they’re at, allowing little ones to learn how they should learn: Through play!
Montessori toys also help children develop focus and mastery over important developmental skills. From fine and gross motor skills to independence, communication, and everything in between.
So, how do Montessori toys help children learn? Well…
- Little ones need to use their senses to explore and experiment.
- They need to physically manipulate objects to develop hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills.
- They need to be creative and problem-solve.
- They need to learn practical, real-life skills and gain independence.
- And they need plenty of opportunities to challenge themselves by engaging in a variety of fun and interesting activities.
Montessori toys check off all of these boxes to help support your child’s learning and development!
Okay, so what makes a good toy?
Good toys are simple and passive. Nothing flashy or electronic. Let your child do the work!
When you’re shopping for toddler toys, you’ll also want to look for materials that help your little one practice age-appropriate skills, like fine and gross motor skills, self-help skills, and sensory exploration.
Finally, look for attractive toys made with natural materials, like wood or natural fibers, when possible. Beautiful materials will draw your child to them (and they’ll look nicer in your home, too).
Ready to get started? Let’s go!
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The Best Montessori Toys For Toddlers
Fine Motor
If this term is new to you, don’t worry. Fine motor skills just refer to your child’s ability to use the small muscles in their hands, wrists, and fingers. From using a spoon, to zipping a zipper, to learning to write, fine motor skills are a critical part of daily life. That’s where these toys come in!
Look for: Toys that let your little one practice grasping, releasing, pinching, twisting, and manipulating objects with their hands and fingers. Peg boards, coin boxes, and lacing toys are some classic options. You’ll also want to make sure fine motor toys are the right level of difficulty for your child – not too easy or too hard.
Movement & Music
Movement and music toys are important for your child’s gross motor development. They can help your child develop physical skills like strength, balance, and coordination. Plus, they’re a lot of fun for little ones and can help your child stay active from an early age!
Look for: A variety of movement toys to help your child practice different physical skills – from climbing, balancing, and swinging, to pushing, pulling, and moving to music. Some good options are toddler climbers, balance boards, push toys, and musical instruments.
Stacking Toys & Blocks
Block play and stacking games are a great way to introduce your child to basic math concepts, like spatial relationships, sizes and shapes, and problem-solving. Working with stacking toys and blocks also helps children develop hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills.
Look for: Simple, wooden blocks and stacking toys in a variety of shapes and sizes. Interesting, nature-inspired choices – like rainbow stackers or animal blocks – can add fun and whimsy to your child’s block collection.
Puzzles
Puzzles inspire focus, concentration, and perseverance in young children. By working with puzzles, little ones also develop spatial awareness, problem-solving abilities, and fine motor skills. Basically, puzzles are kind of a big deal.
Look for: A few simple, high-quality puzzles that are challenging – but not impossible – for your child to complete. For younger toddlers, knobbed puzzles and puzzles with fewer pieces (3-4) are better. Older toddlers often enjoy more challenging puzzles.
Practical Life
For toddlers, practical life activities – like cooking and cleaning – are a critical part of Montessori. And don’t be fooled: Just because these household chores sound boring to you doesn’t mean your toddler won’t love cutting an apple or sweeping up with their own little broom!
Look for: Tools that help your child participate in daily household activities. Think wooden, child-safe knives or a Montessori helper tower to help your little one reach the kitchen counter safely. Your child might also enjoy working with realistic, everyday tools like hammers, screwdrivers, or latches to find out how they work.
Language & Early Literacy
The best thing you can do for your toddler’s language development is talk to them! Have a conversation. Read a book. Sing together every day. Make these simple activities a part of your daily routine. Montessori language materials are another good way to help your child develop language skills.
Look for: Simple language cards with realistic photos of people, animals, places, and objects. When your child begins showing interest in letters (usually around 2.5 – 3.5 years), you can also offer your little one simple alphabet materials to explore. For pre-writing, try working with a sand tray or exploring sensory letter-tracing materials.
Dramatic Play
During the toddler years, children begin engaging in imaginative and pretend play. They like to copy activities they see adults doing around them in their everyday life, like cooking, talking on the phone, or caring for a baby.
Look for: Open-ended pretend play toys that let your toddler act out realistic, everyday activities. (Play food > princesses!) As per usual, natural materials are best when available.
Sensory
Sensory activities are always a favorite with toddlers. This makes sense because young children learn primarily by exploring with their senses. You can help your little one’s development by offering them a variety of interesting sensory materials.
Look for: Materials that engage all of your child’s senses. Sensory tables and bins are a great homebase for sensory activities. So are toys and materials with interesting textures, toys that make sound when your little one shakes them, and beautiful objects your child will be drawn to explore.
The magic of Montessori
As you work on introducing more Montessori materials to your home, you might notice some big changes.
- Maybe you’ll catch your toddler playing peacefully for longer chunks of time, giving you a little more time and space to just breathe.
- Or maybe you’ll be surprised (and proud!) to see your little one make a breakthrough or master a task after practicing it 100x, again and again…
- Maybe you’ll even find yourself making more intentional choices as you work to plan a beautiful and practical home environment where your child can explore, play, learn, and grow.
That’s the magic of Montessori.
As you get started with Montessori, I hope this guide helps you find the perfect Montessori toys to support your little one’s learning adventure!
♥ Meg
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There are still SO MANY options to choose from and most are quite pricey. How do you narrow it down even further? How do you know which ones to choose from each category?
Hi, Cami! Choosing toys can definitely be an overwhelming process. I would start by observing your child throughout the day to see what they’re interested in and which skills they’re currently working on. If your child spends most of their time engaged in physical activity (totally normal for a toddler), it would be best to focus on movement toys and materials for now and hold off on investing in fine motor materials until they’re ready. On the other hand, if your child often seeks out opportunities to build, bead, twist, lace, post, or so on, you could look at materials that allow them to practice these kinds of skills.
A lot of the materials are pricier because they’re handmade and designed to last for a long time. Many of the toys were also chosen because they can be used by a young toddler, as well as an older child, meaning materials don’t have to replaced as often. Blocks, puzzles, movement scarves, and climbers are a few examples of toys that can “grow” with your child. That doesn’t mean that you have to (or should!) get a ton of toys for your child. For most toddlers, I would start with a small selection of 5-7 materials that are available at any given time. That includes any DIY materials you make at home, real tools (like locks and keys), as well as inexpensive options like “treasure baskets” filled with natural objects or household items.
TLDR: Observe what your child is interested in and “follow the child” by choosing materials that help them practice the skills they’re most interested in right now. For younger toddlers, that’s most likely movement and music toys, blocks, sensory materials, and practical life activities. Older toddlers often gravitate toward fine motor activities, puzzles, and pretend play activities in addition to the above, but naturally every child is different. Feel free to reach out if you have any additional questions!