Greetings from Florida! For those of you who don’t know me, I was a Lower Elementary guide at Greenspring and then the Director of Admissions before moving to Florida. My daughter, Lila, recently turned two and I would like to share a few thoughts on what it was like setting up a toddler-friendly bathroom.

Care of Self

As Montessori parents, our goal is to prepare the home environment for toddlers to be as independent as possible. The bathroom provides a wonderful opportunity to empower our toddlers and begin teaching them important life skills. Toddlers are innately motivated to take care of themselves, so they will be eager for these opportunities!

Giving Introductory Lessons

Children will need to be introduced to each process, broken down into simple steps. All of the needed materials must be easily accessible and in child-size containers. After introducing and modeling each skill, your toddler will need many opportunities to practice. Important skills to learn include:

*Washing hands

Provide a bottle of pump soap (my daughter loves the foaming kind) or a small bar of soap and a washcloth on the counter. You might consider using a faucet extender so your child can reach the water more easily. View a sample lesson here.

*Brushing teeth

Prepare a tray with the necessary supplies: toothbrush, toothpaste (which you may wish to portion out in individual containers at first rather than make the whole tube available), a timer, and a small water glass. View a sample lesson here.

*Brushing hair

Prepare a tray with a hairbrush and/or comb and place with (or near) a mirror. View a sample lesson here.

*Blowing the nose

Have a box of tissues accessible. If you worry about your toddler enjoying this activity a bit too much and using the whole box (see photo below), you can place a few folded tissues in a small basket. View a sample lesson here.

*Washing with a washcloth & Washing hair

Toddler-size bottles will allow your child to pour her own soap without emptying the entire supply. You can use a small plastic basket, tray, or suction cup caddy to store supplies. A suction cup mirror will allow your child to see herself while washing. (You may still need to assist with the rinsing.)

Necessary Items within Reach

Keep all necessary items within reach. If you have room in your bathroom, a shelf set up with supplies is ideal. Or you can empty the cupboard beneath your sink to store some of these items.

Beginning Toileting

This is a weighty topic for another day, but just a few suggestions:

Start changing your child’s diapers (standing up) in the bathroom whenever possible. Allow your child to help with her own diapering as much as possible.

When your child starts to show an interest in the toilet, encourage this interest. Allow your child time to sit on the toilet, practice flushing, and washing hands.

If you are comfortable with it, allow your child to watch you using the toilet and assist with flushing and washing hands.

Have a floor potty available as well and allow your child to sit on it (clothed or unclothed) whenever she shows an interest. Keeping the floor potty in the bathroom is ideal if you have room – this reinforces the idea that toileting takes place in the bathroom. Now that Lila is fully engaged in the toilet-learning process, we keep a basket of underwear and books near her potty.

Have a child-size toilet seat and step stool for the adult toilet so that this is also an option. You can allow your child to choose which she wants to use.

Supplies

These are some of the items I recommend. (These are linked to Amazon.com.)

Sink faucet extender & Tub faucet cover

Stepping Stools: Kidcraft or Soft Grip

Two-in-one toilet seat (or Toilet seat with ladder) and a Potty chair with a soft seat

Articles & Resources:

Montessori Now (blog): Montessori Activities for Self Care

Montessori Teacher Collective: Montessori lessons plans for care of self

Michael Olaf: 1-3 Years Care of Self

Montessori Services has every basket, tray, and child-size dish you could ever want!

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In my next blog entry, I will discuss setting up a child-friendly kitchen. To view my previous blog entry about setting up a Montessori bedroom, click here.