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Mackfam
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| Posted: Jan 12 2009 at 7:51am | IP Logged
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I've got a 10 month old toddling everywhere right now. My home is set up with a very open floor plan...which means everything down low had to go up. Over Advent and Christmas I put some real thought into creating toddler play centers and spaces for her throughout the home.
I used to have a big laundry basket for toys, but found that it just got dumped out everywhere. Instead, I collected bins and baskets from around the house and sorted the toys by themes (these are toys we already had). Some of our play centers:
**Things that go
**Things to stack/nesting cups
**Things to take apart and put together
**Block sorting
**Bowling with stuffed animals
**Balls, balls, balls
**Ball rolling track
**Gumball machine
**Push me/Pull me
**Favorite stuffed animals and soft toys that have favorite tags to fiddle with.
**Kitchen toys
**Book center
**Block center
**Playsilks
These are great, and the baby loves roaming from spot to spot to find new toys to explore. And, I feel like she's playing with more of the toys now because they're not all in one big basket and overwhelming.
I would love to add to these ideas though! I'm always looking for ways to make family spaces safe and fun for baby.
How have you done this in your home?
What baby spaces did you set up?
Do you have any favorite baby/toddler toys that would be great to set out?
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19 , ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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vmalott
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| Posted: Jan 13 2009 at 8:17am | IP Logged
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Great topic, esp. since I also need to rethink how our space is arranged for learning materials and toys. I found this TotSchool site to be interesting and inspiring as far as being more intentional about how the littles ones play/work. Enjoy!
For my little one (1yr), I have a shelf for him with the bead rollercoaster (wire thing you see at doctor's offices), ball and hammer, stacking/nesting blocks, peg shape sorter/stacker and knobbed puzzles. Right now, much of it just gets dumped. Maybe I need less set out at once???
Valerie
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Valerie
Mom to Julia ('94), John ('96), Lizzy ('98), Connor ('01), Drew ('02), Cate ('04), Aidan ('08) and three saints in heaven
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violingirl
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| Posted: Jan 13 2009 at 12:45pm | IP Logged
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I really like your idea of having several different places with collections like that! My youngest is 18 months now and he was constantly trying to get to his brother's montessori shelves. I set up a few things for him on his own shelves and that has mostly solved that problem. :)
We have out wood jenga blocks- they're a great size for his hands and easy to stack. He has bean bags and a bucket to throw them in, a cube puzzle, nesting boxes, and a few baskets of things: one of Little People and animals for his farm, one with cars, one with wood train tracks. I think there's another basket but I can't remember what is in it.
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Angel
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| Posted: Jan 13 2009 at 2:54pm | IP Logged
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Hmmm. I think mostly I have just whittled things down. My almost 17 month old just wants to be big like his brothers, so it doesn't matter what I put out specifically for him, he'll always abandon it for something his brothers' have. OR my 3 yo twins will play with his stuff. Anyway, if there's too much separation of stuff there, it's just way too much stuff that is always dumped all over the floor. The twins and the baby are only 22 months apart, though, so that might have something to do with it.
We do sort of have centers, though, because we don't have a room big enough to contain ALL the toys or ALL the books or ALL the school - etc. Our rooms all have several purposes, for better or worse. Anyway, what we have that interests my littlest guy:
1. Block corner -- several baskets of wood blocks and Duplos, played with by all the little boys.
2. Kitchen cabinet housing pans that is unlocked. The pans are in use every day by small people pretending to cook Duplos, so I think this counts as a center  .
3. Toy kitchen - not as popular as the real pots and pans.
4. Cars and trucks in low basket.
5. Play silks, tied and ready to go in dress-up bin. (He can reach in there, too.)
6. Push-arounds (carts, walkers, etc.)
7. A few easy puzzles.
I tried to put out a shape sorter, but he just carried the shapes to the far corners of the earth and lost them all.
That's about what he does every day -- well, in addition to climbing on the furniture and eating crayons.
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Angela
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Milehimama
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| Posted: Jan 13 2009 at 8:33pm | IP Logged
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We have lots of littles, and our playroom (supposed to be LR, but face it, with 7 kids play room makes more sense!) is divided in "zones" using those cheap, put it together bookshelves from Target.
Our "block" area has an kid table, and houses dishpans of Bright builders, wooden blocks, Lincoln logs, Legos (on the top shelf, LOL) and foam blocks. We also have a desk/table thing for Duplos.
The "baby" shelf has his stackers, a small bin of snap beads, the shape sorter, etc. laid out Montessori style. He's 22 months so it also has a clothespin basket and finger puppets.
What I call "living life vicariously" shelf (couldn't think of a better name, LOL!) has our Little People, doctor set, and other pretend play type stuff. It's right next to a corner with dress up clothes.
We don't have a toy kitchen, but I made one with a side table that had a cabinet under it. Play food, pots and pans, cash register, etc. goes there.
Having zones makes it easier to put the toys away, at least!
My current "problem" is the baby with the markers. He always finds any stray marker left out by the olders!
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Milehimama in Houston
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Mackfam
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| Posted: Jan 13 2009 at 8:51pm | IP Logged
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These are great ideas, ladies! I'm trying to think of some other "centers" I can put together to rotate in and out for the "newness factor" which wears off after approximately 15 minutes. This time doesn't last that long, but it's challenging right now!
I hadn't thought about the little people in a basket...thank you violingirl! 
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19, ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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Mackfam
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| Posted: Jan 13 2009 at 8:53pm | IP Logged
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Milehimama wrote:
What I call "living life vicariously" shelf (couldn't think of a better name, LOL!) |
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 You're killin' me, Milehimama!
Resolution: Tomorrow, I WILL set up a living life vicariously shelf!!!
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19, ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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mooreboyz
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| Posted: Jan 15 2009 at 8:28am | IP Logged
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I started this with my youngest about the same time you are, Jennifer. He really enjoyed a music basket with a small wooden xylophone, maracas, egg shaker, and a few other things and still does. I went ahead and bought a set from Melissa and Doug and he's had it nearly a year and everybody uses it. I had a basket too with different things to feel like soft, furry, hard, rough, etc. Oh! and a mirror. He loved a mirror at that age.
At 18 months I remember things became much more challenging as he wanted to be in brothers' things. So, this is when I started with more shelf work. He caught on right away that this was his special stuff and worked with it throughout the day. I had and still do have 3 areas. One is near the kitchen and has things like color sorting, fine motor one to one coorespondence and vocabulary work. Another is in our dining/music room and has things like building blocks, puzzles, open and closing work, several books, and living vs nonliving sort. I set up a 3rd area in our "school room" which doesn't get a lot of use as he is just too distracted by brothers in there to work now...but I had a mix of things there and also a little desk that he kept a color and paper in.
At 20 months I set him up with his own table and chair in the kitchen and his own low cabinet with plates, cups, fork, etc. I was really scared of taking him out of the confines of his high chair to do this (visions of food everywhere...spaghetti smeared on the walls) but it worked fantastically! He is becoming very independent by setting his own table, clearing it after he's finished, puts his dishes away, wipes his table. I just love it. He also uses this table to bring his montessori work to to work while I am in the kitchen cooking/cleaning. I am amazed and wish I would have known about Montessori long ago. I can see such a difference in my younger 2. They are so confident and able to do things on their own. I actually trust my 4 year old more in pouring a glass of milk than my 7 year old because I taught him from early on how to do it properly.
Oh, by the way. Remember to use very solid shelving as it won't be long before your youngest tries to climb the shelf and you wouldn't want it to topple on her. I actually use various odd things to save money and for sturdiness like 2 crates 2/3 feet apart with a solid piece of plywood on top. This allows for things to nest in the crates because you point out the open side and an area in the middle and area on top for baskets, etc. It's the perfect height when they are able to stand and for quite a while thereafter.
Have fun!
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Jackie
7 boys - 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 15, 17 years
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4Real Forums : Nurturing the Years of Wonder
Topic: Early, Early Childhood - Toddler Spaces
