From starting to walk independently to gaining more balance and equilibrium, My Munchkin has been on her path of perfecting her walking skills. A visible difference in coordination can be seen as she tries running a little as well now.
We have been having more outdoor time with her as she enjoys being able to exercise her new skills. As every other Munchkin, she loves the park. We have a small sand pit in our park which we would avoid putting her in earlier as she put everything in her mouth. This month we let her explore the sand pit, sitting close by just in case she decided to taste the sand. The sensory exploration of sand was new to her and she took her time, picking some and trying to hold it in her hand over and over again. She also used some of the toys other children had trying to collect sand.
My Munchkin got another shelf as we were falling short of space for materials/toys with just one. This meant an addition of things for her to play/work with. Our new additions in Month 16 are highlighted below.
Opening and Closing of Boxes
This is a DIY with various boxes that My Munchkin could open and close by herself. This is the perfect age for such an activity and it keeps them occupied for quite some time. I will post a DIY for this soon.
Farm Animals
We had farm animals on the shelf earlier as well, but then I came across big ones that looked like the animals actually do. So I replaced them with the smaller ones we had on the shelf and what a difference it made! My Munchkin was super excited with this set.
Pop Up Toy
A great toy for hand-eye coordination as well as colour recognition. The baby presses down each of the heads and they pop out of their places. It is a fun activity for them. They develop their coordination when putting a finger on each head and pressing it down to pop out. Also, when they put the pop ups back into the holes on the stand. Initially, they will not match the colours as it takes time for them to pair colours. This skill comes closer to 20months or so.
Vehicles
We added some cars and a digger she received as gifts. My Munchkin loves see the cars pass by and also watches a construction site close by so recognizes the digger, cement truck and more.
Pull Toy
We added a pull toy as well to encourage her to walk at home too. This is not very Montessori but My Munchkin seemed to like it. We made sure it was not one of the noisy battery operated ones when purchasing it.
Tracker Toy
This was another DIY we did for her as the actual one is very expensive in India. I will admit I ended making this late and so My Munchkin did not play with it as much. More on this and the DIY in the coming blogs.
Shape Sorter
A very simple shape sorter with the basic shaped of circle, square and triangle. Children enjoy this one a lot and there are many options available. I suggest to take a simple one that focuses on just the shapes and there are no other distractions.
Do not be surprised if your munchkin just lifts the lid and puts all the shape blocks inside (instead of putting each one through the respective place on the lid). This is quite normal with most children in the beginning. To be honest, that in itself is commendable as they figure a way to complete the activity.
Did your Munchkin play with a shape sorter? Did they do the same as My Munchkin? I would love to hear about it.