Montessori Sensorial The Brown Stairs

So I gave in to my desire and bought Vito the brown stairs, and boy oh boy, I didn’t regret it!  Similar to the way he responded to the pink tower, Vito loves and enjoy using our Montessori brown stairs!  I realized that there’s so much more we can do when he used both of the materials, the extension activities are limitless and pattern making is even more challenging!

The brown stairs is a Montessori sensorial that comes in ten brown, wooden rectangular prism, square on two ends.  This material aims to:

• develop visual discrimination of differences in two dimensions
• develop a child muscular coordination
• prepare the child for later work in geometry
• indirectly prepare the child for the concept of numbers, demonstrating the unit difference in height and width

First we worked on the basic presentation which is arranging the prism into thinnest to thickest and the other way around.  Next, Vito wanted to use the brown stairs with the pink tower so I allowed him to work on it.  Now, the picture below is when he worked on both on his own, setting up the pink tower first and then matched the brown stairs with it.  Basically, he used the concept here of which brown prism matched the size of the pink block.

And he even made use of the Schleich animals, placed them on his stairs and asked me to take a photo of him. 

Then I asked him if we could make some patterns, he excitedly picked this pattern (you can get this from here) and we worked on this together.  To encourage your child, I highly suggest that you work on the materials together at first.  Once he’s familiar with it and has gained confidence in using the materials, he will start working on it independently.

Montessori sensorial materials provides the opportunity to concentrate.  I love his concentration here, making sure that each corner is perfectly connected!

The other day, I caught him using the materials in making towers and bridges.  Again, he was doing this on his own while I prepared dinner.  I hurriedly took the camera for some photos to document his work LOL.  This is a big NO NO in Montessori classroom though (Montessori materials are not toys), but hey, we are a home-schooling family and if this is his way of developing creativity then let it be.   I am more lenient in using the materials as long as they are taken cared of and are used in some “learning” activities through play.

         

Now this is such a surprise, because I’m thinking that this pattern is quite complicated for a 3 years old.  I was giving him a challenging pattern but I was expecting that we will do this together.  I presented the pattern, discussed how to assemble it as I  worked on it.  When I reached the second storey of the block, he immediately exclaimed “I get it!” and insisted that he’ll do it on his own.

I was completely surprised and blown away on how he managed to complete the entire pattern without me!  Come to think of it, it’s his first time to work on this and he can absolutely follow the pattern! 

      

When we’re done with the activity he asked if he could still play so I allowed him to work on the materials independently and look what he came up with!  The boy made a staircase again, covered it with his Magnatiles and played marble run! LOL.  The sound of the marble in the wooden staircase is just beautiful!  Have you tried this?

The marbles are actually wooden beads , it was in our shelf because we were practising how to lace them. 

And some more play extensions LOL.  He formed those Magnatiles into cubes and placed this plastic track which was by the way was already in my “to throw away” toy bin.  Kids are so resourceful!

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