Idli Making - Montessori Inspired Practical Life Activity & Importance For Toddlers (VLOG)

Practical Life Activities are of great importance in Montessori philosophy, specially for young children of 2 - 6 years. We love practical life activities in our home. My toddler is always ready to help me in the kitchen & other household chores. Read on to know what is practical life activity & its importance in early life.

What is Practical Life & Practical Life Activities In A Montessori Environment For Toddlers?

Practical : means basic, useful, purposeful

Life : means the way of living

Practical life exercises are exercises for the child to learn how to do daily routine chores & activities in a purposeful way.

Children, specially toddlers & kindergartners are naturally interested in daily chores. Hence, Dr. Montessori began to use practical life exercises to allow the child to do activities of daily life & therefore adjust himself in his culture & society.

All the materials & supplies of practical life activities should be real, familiar to the child, breakable (if applicable) & functional.

Involving you child in the kitchen is a great practical life activity!

Are you trying to find a way to peacefully cook and also engage your toddler constructively without iPads, TV and screens?

Involve your toddler in the kitchen! It's a great fine motor skill and teaches them life skills. This indirectly also helps in preparing those little fingers for writing, a great pre-writing activity.

We are a great fan of practical life activities and my son loves them.

Watch my 32 month old son making idlis out of the batter. 

You might also like 

Toddler making Omelette
Baking with toddlers
Doing laundry with toddlers
Toddler cutting potatoes for French Fries

Benefits & Importance Of Practical Life Activities In Montessori

The practical life exercises are a beginning point in the Montessori environment. They help the child in his whole development - physical, mental and moral.

• To develop the child's concentration
• To develop fine and gross motor skills
• To help children towards independence
• To establish order
• To develop a good self-esteem
• To appreciate and understand the limits of his environment
• To develop a sense of responsibility
• To aid the child in his construction
• To appreciate culture

Read more about practical life activities in Montessori HERE.

Do not forget to follow us on Facebook page & closed Facebook group, Twitter and Instagram for day to day updates that might not always find a place on this blog. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to know more about our early learning journey, DIY & Montessori-inspired activities for kids, kids books & toys reviews and much more!

Hope to see you around. Happy Parenting!

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Top 7 Benefits Of Travelling With Kids

Father & Son Exploring The Sea In Goa

I travelled a lot during my entire childhood, thanks to my parents who loved travelling & knew how important & beneficial it is for children to travel. Be it an infant, a toddler, a teen or an adult, a family vacation or an outing is always an opportunity to learn & evolve.  We also travel a lot with our toddler and love the experiences, learnings & the questions that our toddler comes up with! Read about some real kick-ass benefits of travelling with kids in this article.

Today, I am so happy to have Devishobha share her thoughts on this topic. Read on what she has to tell you about the benefits of travelling with kids - 

1. They become naturally more inclusive

“Wherever you go becomes a part of you somehow”- Anita Desai. 

Children who travel soak up multiple cultures and practices. They become deeply empathetic individuals- one of the most important traits that directly correlated with success in adult life. Needless to say, children who are exposed to multiple cultures mould into confident individuals who are more socially more adept - because they hone their ability for acceptance and tolerance.

2. Travel fuels their insatiable curiosity

Travelling puts us in contact with myriad fields like archeology, art, culture, music, food, languages, tourist highlights - not to mention the hundreds of other travellers who criss-cross in and out of your life. There is literally no better way for an immersive learning experience.

Pro tip: If you think they need more- Use Google. Involve them in the planning to your vacation(with boundaries, of course). For example- give them a choice between 3-4 places that might have similar budgets. Help them look up the place on Google and learn what they can about it before they set foot on the land. Allow them to explore various routes. The richness of the experience is doubled when children “touch- and-feel” what they read about and imagined in their heads.

3. The family unit becomes tighter

When you travel as a family to a foreign land, it is natural to want to stick together as a family. Children are exposed to new cultures, but also learn to value their own identities as a society. Plus, it’s definitely more time spent hanging around with each other – making family units tighter in the process.

4. They learn in the context of the real world

Children learn exponentially more by being out in the real world than they can ever do in a classroom. 

5. They become self-reliant and very resourceful

You might have made a thousand plans. Yet, the only thing we should really expect during travel is the unexpected. The limits that a backpack or a suitcase imposes on travellers is reason enough to be extremely alert, adaptable, self-reliant and resourceful! Plus, they will come up with a thousand ideas to beat ‘boredom’. And, yes- they will see first-hand the workings of group-decisions.

6. You soak in the world together and create memories

Travelling with your children not only changes the way they see the world, but it evolves the way an adult sees the world too. It’s a great way to see and understand the world through your child’s eyes.

Encourage the child to keep a travel journal. The way they write about their travels not only opens up the world to you but helps you understand what the child truly values. In all probability, you might find that the expensive dinner you took him to, did not even make an entry into his diary- but the sparkles you collected by the curb at the bus-station found a triple-star entry into this journal.

Seriously, is there a better way to know your child and see her evolve?

7. They become Global citizens

Travelling the world together means you are preparing your child to fit into the role of a Global citizen. They are less likely to be boxed into limited identities – setting the ground for limitless possibilities.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Devishobha is the founder of Kidskintha- an online parenting resource repository dedicated to jumpstarting conversations around millennial parenting, encouraging parents to bring their attention to words, thoughts and actions that will enable them to raise a well-rounded, empathic and motivated generation. You can also find her on the Huffington Post, Parent.co, Entrepreneur, Lifehack, TinyBuddha and many other publications.

You can read the entire article HERE on Kidskintha.

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Preparing Snacks - Montessori Inspired Practical Life Activity & Importance For Toddlers (VLOG)

What is Practical Life & Practical Life Activities In A Montessori Environment For Toddlers?

Practical : means basic, useful, purposeful

Life : means the way of living

Practical life exercises are exercises for the child to learn how to do daily routine chores & activities in a purposeful way. 

Children, specially toddlers & kindergartners are naturally interested in daily chores. Hence, Dr. Montessori began to use practical life exercises to allow the child to do activities of daily life & therefore adjust himself in his culture & society. 

All the materials & supplies of practical life activities should be real, familiar to the child, breakable (if applicable) & functional.

Preparing snacks for yourself is a great practical life activity!

Are you trying to find a way to peacefully cook and also engage your toddler constructively without iPads, TV and screens?

Involve your toddler in the kitchen! It's a great fine motor skill and teaches them life skills. This indirectly also helps in preparing those little fingers for writing, a great pre-writing activity.

We are a great fan of practical life activities and my son loves them.

These days, it has almost become a ritual that my 28 month old son would help me prepare his evening snacks. I asked him if he wanted to eat paneer pakoda (cottage cheese fritters), he gladly said yes & asked me to show him how to make & insisted he makes it completely, including frying. So finally he made his pakodas & I had to force him not to fry it & be away from the gas stove :D

Watch my son in action in the video below!

You might also like 
Toddler making Omelette
Baking with toddlers
Doing laundry with toddlers 
Cutting Potatoes With Toddlers

Benefits & Importance Of Practical Life Activities In Montessori

The practical life exercises are a beginning point in the Montessori environment. They help the child in his whole development - physical, mental and moral.

• To develop the child's concentration
• To develop fine and gross motor skills
• To help children towards independence
• To establish order
• To develop a good self-esteem
• To appreciate and understand the limits of his environment
• To develop a sense of responsibility
• To aid the child in his construction
• To appreciate culture

Read more about practical life activities in Montessori HERE.

Do not forget to follow us on Facebook page & closed Facebook group, Twitter and Instagram for day to day updates that might not always find a place on this blog. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to know more about our early learning journey, DIY & Montessori-inspired activities for kids, kids books & toys reviews and much more!

Hope to see you around. Happy Parenting!

Read More »

Montessori Inspired Practical Life Activity & Importance For Toddlers - Cutting (VLOG)

What is Practical Life & Practical Life Activities In A Montessori Environment For Toddlers?

Practical : means basic, useful, purposeful

Life : means the way of living

Practical life exercises are exercises for the child to learn how to do daily routine chores & activities in a purposeful way. 

Children, specially toddlers & kindergartners are naturally interested in daily chores. Hence, Dr. Montessori began to use practical life exercises to allow the child to do activities of daily life & therefore adjust himself in his culture & society. 

All the materials & supplies of practical life activities should be real, familiar to the child, breakable (if applicable) & functional.

Cutting is a great practical life activity!

Are you trying to find a way to peacefully cook and also engage your toddler constructively without iPads, TV and screens?

Involve your toddler in the kitchen! It's a great fine motor skill and teaches them life skills. This indirectly also helps in preparing those little fingers for writing, a great pre-writing activity.

We are a great fan of practical life activities and my son loves them.

Watch my 28 month old son cutting real potatoes and making imaginary French fries in his toy kitchen set, while I made real French fries for him!

You might also like 
Toddler making Omelette
Baking with toddlers
Doing laundry with toddlers

Benefits & Importance Of Practical Life Activities In Montessori

The practical life exercises are a beginning point in the Montessori environment. They help the child in his whole development - physical, mental and moral.

• To develop the child's concentration
• To develop fine and gross motor skills
• To help children towards independence
• To establish order
• To develop a good self-esteem
• To appreciate and understand the limits of his environment
• To develop a sense of responsibility
• To aid the child in his construction
• To appreciate culture

Read more about practical life activities in Montessori HERE.

Do not forget to follow us on Facebook page & closed Facebook group, Twitter and Instagram for day to day updates that might not always find a place on this blog. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to know more about our early learning journey, DIY & Montessori-inspired activities for kids, kids books & toys reviews and much more!

Hope to see you around. Happy Parenting!

Read More »

Toddler Making Omelette - Montessori Inspired Practical Life Activity & Benefits (VLOG)

My 27 month old son helped me prepare an omelette :) Here is a quick video of this Montessori Inspired Practical Life activity !

DISCLAIMER - please take the necessary safety measures while working with kids.



Benefits Of Practical Life Activities

The practical life exercises are a beginning point in the Montessori environment. They help the child in his whole development - physical, mental and moral.

• To develop the child's concentration
• To develop fine and gross motor skills
• To help children towards independence
• To establish order
• To develop a good self-esteem
• To appreciate and understand the limits of his environment
• To develop a sense of responsibility
• To aid the child in his construction
• To appreciate culture

Read more about practical life activities in Montessori HERE.

If you loved this post, you might also want to check out more such posts & videos on my Blog & YouTube channel. Do not forget to subscribe to both of them for regular updates! 

If you are a Facebook person then I would love to see you on my Facebook Page and closed Facebook Group where I share my daily mini stories/updates that do not always find a place on the blog & YouTube. You can also follow my updates on Twitter & Instagram (@kuhoogupta) 

Hope to see you around :)

Happy Parenting!

Read More »

Montessori Inspired Practical Life Activity & Importance - Baking With Toddlers (VLOG)

What is Practical Life & Practical Life Activities In A Montessori Environment For Toddlers?

Practical : means basic, useful, purposeful

Life : means the way of living

Practical life exercises are exercises for the child to learn how to do daily routine chores & activities in a purposeful way. 

Children, specially toddlers & kindergartners are naturally interested in daily chores. Hence, Dr. Montessori began to use practical life exercises to allow the child to do activities of daily life & therefore adjust himself in his culture & society. 

All the materials & supplies of practical life activities should be real, familiar to the child, breakable (if applicable) & functional. 

My 2.4 year old son baked a brownie for his dad to celebrate Father's day :) Why should girls have all the fun in the kitchen! Here is my son baking a brownie! It is such a pleasure to see such young kids working in the kitchen. Watch the video to experience it :)

Benefits & Importance Of Practical Life Activities In Montessori

The practical life exercises are a beginning point in the Montessori environment. They help the child in his whole development - physical, mental and moral.

• To develop the child's concentration
• To develop fine and gross motor skills
• To help children towards independence
• To establish order
• To develop a good self-esteem
• To appreciate and understand the limits of his environment
• To develop a sense of responsibility
• To aid the child in his construction
• To appreciate culture

Read more about practical life activities in Montessori HERE.

If you loved this post, you might also want to check out more such posts & videos on my Blog & YouTube channel. Do not forget to subscribe to both of them for regular updates! 

If you are a Facebook person then I would love to see you on my Facebook Page and closed Facebook Group where I share my daily mini stories/updates that do not always find a place on the blog & YouTube. You can also follow my updates on Twitter & Instagram (@kuhoogupta) 

Hope to see you around :)

Happy Parenting!

Read More »

10 Benefits Of Music Instruments (Percussions) In Early Childhood (VLOG)

Do you have music instruments in your child's toy collection? If not, then you should seriously consider adding few instruments today!

My 26-month-old son surprised everyone with his self-discovered beat pattern and that motivated me to share with everyone so many benefits of music instruments, specially percussion, in early childhood! Being a singer & musician myself, I cannot be happier to see the beat sense developing so beautifully in my son :)

Check out this video to know some awesome benefits of introducing music instruments to your child!

Happy Parenting :)

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