30 Nov Montessori Holiday Gift Guide 2022
Montessori Holiday Gift Guide 2022 for kids aged 0-8
Montessori gifts made from the heart is how your holiday season should start! We know finding the perfect gift for family and friends during the holiday season can become overwhelming, and that’s why we are sharing these heartfelt gift ideas for you to create just in time for the upcoming holidays – and they are all Montessori friendly!
We’ve rounded up ideas for several home-made gifts you can craft with your little one(s) to help spread some holiday cheer. Each completed gift represents a Montessori learning area in action, and so these hands-on activities can help your child build a bridge of continuity from school to home. Developing consistency between the school environment and home life will help ensure that the learning never stops! In addition to the fun of creatively crafting, encouraging the act of thoughtful gift giving allows a child to develop a connection with others and feel a sense of inner pride as they know their special gift will light up their loved one’s face.
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Infants/Toddlers | Age 0-3
Holiday Art Canvas
An easy and explorative way for your infant or toddler to engage in fine motor skills is painting! Help your child become a miniature artist and identify (and mix up!) various colors of paint to create a holiday masterpiece. Try using colors that fit perfectly into the holiday you’re celebrating with your child or using different shades of the recipient’s favorite color!
No-Bake Birdseed Ornaments
Let your child use their visual and auditory senses while creating and placing bird seed ornaments both inside and outside your home. This quick and fun activity is the perfect gift for bird-lovers and a kind gesture to animals preparing for the chilly season ahead. Hang up your birdseed ornaments outside on trees, off deck railings, or on your porch where you can watch as they are found and devoured by the local wildlife.
Personalized Acrylic Keychains
These keychains won’t be blank for long – using finger
paint, add your child’s thumb prints in the shape of a
heart to send a tangible symbol of love and goodwill for
family and friends to carry with them this holiday season.
Pre-Primary | Ages 2-3.5
Tea Light Candle Holders
Show your child how to light up someone’s room with
festive tea light holders! This activity requires some
patience and planning ahead as the clay will need a few
days to fully dry and mold to perfection in order to then
be painted in whatever colors you choose! You can
further personalize this gift by including scented tea
candles.
Holiday Puppy Chow Recipe
Mix up the perfect blend of sensorial, sweet, and salty
this season with a holiday twist on ‘puppy chow’! Once
created, your child can serve this tasty recipe to friends
and family. CMMS Tip: make this treat personalized and
unique by using color assorted candies that align with the
holiday your family celebrates and/or incorporating the
gift recipient’s favorite flavors!
Rear-View Mirror Decoration
Keep the memory of Montessori learning fun nearby with a pink
Montessori tower decoration! The pink Montessori tower is used
often in our classrooms to help understand and practice
mathematical concepts. Let your child count out and then
paint/color their own pink Montessori tower and hand it out to
loved ones to use as a rearview-mirror decoration, holiday
ornament, or even a one of a kind keychain.
Primary/Honors & Kindergarten | Ages 3.5-5
Homemade Sugar Scrub
This homemade sugar scrub will keep your family’s
body soft and hydrated during these cold winter months.
Help your child reinforce their mathematic and science
skills to measure and mix together a holiday sugar
exfoliant. The real treat is that finished product can be
used on faces, hands, feet, or over the entire body!
Hot Chocolate in a Jar
Traveling to coffee shops is too far, let’s make hot
chocolate at home in a jar! Help your child use practical
life skills like scooping and pouring as they layer
yummy hot chocolate toppings in a mason jar.
Send off your hot chocolate with a sweet note or
drawing attached.
Home-made Snow Globe
Shake up some holiday spirit as you help your child
put together a unique holiday snow globe! Let your
creativity run wild as you choose to insert a laminated
picture of your child or pet, or even place one of your
child’s favorite toys inside to create a memorable
decoration.
Elementary | Ages 6-8
Puzzle Piece Snowflake Decoration
There are no two snowflakes (or puzzle pieces) that are exactly
alike. Make your own puzzle piece snowflake decoration for
your friends and family to hang in their home, office, or
rear-view mirror! Organizing and classifying which
puzzle pieces to use in each location on the snowflake during
this activity will help your child hone and refine multiple
sensorial skills.
Shortbread Blossom Cookies
Share a sweet treat with your child and bake shortbread
blossom cookies. Let your child use both their fine motor
and gross motor skills to mix up and roll the cookie dough in
holiday themed colored sprinkles or sugar and finish with a
yummy chocolate kiss!
Holiday Stamped Napkins
Perfect for any festive dinner table or personalized
Party, this activity requires skills from across all
Montessori learning areas to design and stamp
holiday oriented designs onto cloth napkins that can
make an appearance at holiday dinners for many years
to come!
If you would like more information on how to incorporate the Montessori method into your routines at home, we invite you to register for our quarterly Montessori Monday Parent Education Seminars. Our next Montessori Monday session is scheduled for Monday, January 9, 2023 at 6pm!