A Montessori bed is chosen to promote independence and allow the child to take ownership of their environment. Typically, parents transition their child to a floor bed between the ages of 5 and 10 months, although some may start as early as 2 months.It is a simple yet rewarding concept that brings about noticeable transformations in a child's life.
What is a Montessori Bed?
What sets a Montessori bed apart is not the bed itself, but the underlying philosophy. Having a floor bed is about empowering your child and trusting them to make decisions and grow through their own experiences.
Rather than being confined within a crib, where their movement and vision are limited, a Montessori bed allows the child to explore a captivating world filled with wonders and adventures.
At bedtime, the child is placed in their bed and invited to sleep, rather than being forced to. They start taking themselves to the bed whenever they feel the need to relax or sleep.
Why Choose a Montessori Bed?
A Montessori bed is an essential step in raising your child the Montessori way. Maria Montessori advocated for creating a fully prepared and furnished environment that supports a child's significant endeavors. The floor bed plays a crucial role in such an environment.
"What sort of environment must be prepared for the child so that it may be of assistance to him? There can be but one answer to this: the environment for the baby-child must be the world, the world that is around him, all of it!"
- Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind
Imagine the world through the eyes of a child confined to a crib. With their curious minds eager to make connections, they see the world through bars, unable to truly experience it, no matter how much they long for it.
In contrast, a child in a Montessori bed naturally acts upon their impulses and learns from their experiences. This grants them a sense of ownership over themselves and their surroundings. The bed becomes their "base," and their room transforms into a vast, open wilderness. The world becomes exciting and full of possibilities, and their role within it expands. They feel empowered and confident to take action, eventually gaining the courage to shape their environment as they desire. This teaches them to recognize their own sleep cues and boundaries, as well as develop self-control and decision-making skills.
Early on, children acquire the attitudes, independence, and skills of lifelong learners during these immersive experiences that become deeply ingrained and never forgotten.