4-year-olds are already quite independent, active, and even more curious than they have been before. At this age, fine motor skills are much better developed; they can express their thoughts with understandable phrases and complex sentences and understand basic logical concepts: closer-further, big-small, same-different, above-below, and so on. When they start drawing, clear figures of people, trees, and bushes with individual branches can appear in their drawings – details that indicate improved observation, memorization, and use of acquired information in appropriate contexts.
Observing the emotional and social development that occurs at around four years old is even more interesting. Children are no longer afraid to make friends, play together, learn to solve conflicts, share, and take turns. This period sees a truly significant leap in emotional intelligence development.
Taking into account all these features of development, we have selected 10 activities that children may enjoy and will definitely be a useful way to spend time. Some DIY Montessori activities for 4-year-olds require minimal preparation, and most tasks allow you to use whatever you have on hand: kitchen utensils, handy materials, sand, sticks, or molds found outside. Sometimes, Montessori activities for 4-year-olds only require a little time and a desire to spend it productively.
#1 Indoor Montessori Activities for 4-Year-Olds
Montessori activities at home for 4-year-olds can be diverse: playing hide-and-seek, watering flowers together, cooking lunch together, and so on. However, when it comes to physical activity it is the key to good health, muscle strengthening, and better mastery of one's body in space. For this purpose, you can use indoor Montessori climbers. Such a homemade jungle gym is an excellent way to stimulate physical development and provide children with fun activities right at home.
Montessori climbers come in various forms. With their help, your toddlers can:
- Climb wooden ladders and use rope accessories.
- Create tunnels, obstacle courses, and other interesting constructions for crawling, climbing, and developing coordination and motor skills.
- Use these elements for creative play.
- Play hide-and-seek.
- Use climbers for relaxation: you can cover a tent or triangle with a tarp, equip a balance beam with a cushion on ties, transform it into a rocking rocker, and more.
In fact, there are so many games with Montessori climbers, such as the Montessori triangle, Large Indoor Playground, Trapeze, Wave climber, and many others, that we dedicate separate materials to them.
Sensorial activities
Through the development of sensory organs, a child improves cognitive abilities, learns to write, perform everyday tasks, and better interact with the world. Therefore, it is important to pay maximum attention to sensory games. These can be DIY Montessori activities for 4-year-olds and various practical tasks.
#2 Exploration with sandpaper letters
Sandpaper letters are a classic Montessori material for sensory development and letter recognition. By running their fingers over the textured surface of each letter, children better recognize and memorize them.
#3 Sorting and matching objects
Sorting exercises aim to improve sensory skills and develop the ability to identify similarities and differences between objects based on various attributes such as color, sound, and texture.
- Provide children with toys or blocks of different colors and ask them to sort them by color or size, shape, or weight.
- Ask the child to close their eyes, listen to the sound of one of several bells, and guess which one it was.
- Ask them to sort all the smooth, soft, or rough items provided. It will acquaint the child with different textures and their properties.
You can play such games even outside. "What bird was singing?" "Who do you think these footprints in the snow belong to: a cat or a dog?" and so on. Do not complicate things — educational materials are already around you. Use it anytime, anywhere.
Practical Life Activities
Montessori practical life activities for 4-year-olds are activities that children often encounter in daily life.
#4 Buttoning and Zippering
Buttoning may not be so fun, but preparing a favorite doll for a walk is a great game. Among other things, it helps to learn how to button, take care of someone, and master self-care skills as well. You can also zip up your jacket yourself and try to tie your shoelaces. Shoelace tying can sometimes be a long story. If it's difficult for a child to move straight to tying shoelaces, start with simpler children's lace-up toys. They are very interesting and help children cope with this task. There are plenty of ready-made templates for children's laces on the Internet – you can make them yourself.
#5 Folding and Sorting Clothes
Folding and sorting clothes are practical tasks that teach children organization and responsibility while improving their motor skills and spatial awareness. Offer a choice of clothing, such as towels, napkins, or handkerchiefs, and demonstrate the correct folding technique. Encourage children to neatly fold items and sort them by size, color, or type. Participation in these activities instills a sense of order and attention to detail, preparing kids for more complex household chores in the future.
#6 Prepare Lunch Together
Children love to participate in anything they find interesting. At this age, they try to imitate their parents and do the same things that important adults do. Therefore, they will gladly help wash vegetables for salad, set spoons on the table, mix dough for pancakes, and so on. Equip a child-friendly workstation in the kitchen with a helper tower. It will be a great way for the child to reach high surfaces easily and safely. You won't have to put the child on the table to reach everything they need or hold them all the time, as it is also inconvenient.
Language Activities
Montessori language activities for 4-year-olds aim to develop language skills through interactive experiences.
#7 Reading Books and Stories
Simple, engaging, and interesting stories capture attention and imagination, helping to “befriend” characters and understand them. After reading a book, you can discuss the plot together or certain adventures the characters encounter. Choose books with interesting large illustrations that are not too complex but still have an engaging storyline. A good example of such a book for a four-year-old could be the story of Winnie the Pooh.
#8 Matching Objects and Pictures
Exercises in matching objects to pictures are excellent tools for expanding vocabulary, improving visual discrimination, and enhancing cognitive skills in 4-year-old children. Give children sets of cards or objects with pictures of familiar items, animals, or everyday objects. Encourage children to identify and match corresponding pictures or objects based on shape, color, or function similarities.
Math Activities
Mathematics is an integral part of the Montessori curriculum for 4-year-old children, promoting the development of numerical understanding, problem-solving abilities, and spatial awareness through practical exploration and discovery.
#9 Counting and Number Recognition
In Montessori classrooms, children can work with numeral rods, counters, and bead chains to develop a concrete understanding of numerical concepts. Encourage children to count objects, arrange them in sequential order, and associate each object with the corresponding number. Through playful counting games and interactive exercises, children improve their ability to recognize and represent numbers, building a strong foundation for understanding more complex mathematical concepts.
#10 Measurement and Weighing
Rulers, scales, measuring tapes, and measuring cups — almost anything found at home or outdoors is suitable for introducing children to units of measurement and the difference between them. Combining this game with a muddy kitchen or sandbox, a child will happily spend time with these activities. You can measure the length and height of objects around, pour water from larger containers to smaller ones and vice versa, weigh various items on kitchen scales, and so on.
Conclusion
As you can see, conducting interesting and beneficial activities at home requires minimal items but plenty of imagination. However, Montessori educators still advise creating an appropriate environment at home where beneficial exercises and activities are possible in a safe format. Make useful learning materials accessible to the child: place books on low shelves, set up a kitchen helper tower in the kitchen, and a step stool in the bathroom. Combining these elements will help create a convenient and organized environment at home, where toddlers have access to everything they need to experiment, discover, explore the world around them, and develop at their own pace.