When our 2 year olds first enter the building, you’ll find them taking off their own shoes and changing into slippers. The significance? This is one of the many crafted lessons specific to this age group that a toddler will take part in to encourage self-reliance and help develop a variety of skills.

Our Montessori Toddler program for children age 2 allows toddlers to explore and experiment with their thoughtfully prepared environment; our toddlers are brimming with energy, giggles, and curiosity. On any given day, you will find our young learners filling a bucket with soap and water and then carefully scrubbing a table, or putting out tiny cloth placemats, china and glassware for a group snack. Children at this age are using developmentally appropriate tools to slice bananas, peel clementines and then serve this healthy snack to their friends. They are arranging flowers in small glass vases and learning the names of everyday objects and even the sounds of letters. Each task has a purpose, and each child will master it before moving on to the next lesson.

Our toddler classrooms, like all of our classrooms, are orderly and materials are accessible to curious students. This community of children is guided by Montessori credentialed adults who are focused on the children’s needs and supporting their independence. Many materials are based on activities of the home: cooking, cleaning, washing, etc. There are puzzles and manipulative games and objects to aid in the development a child’s senses, hand control, balance, and coordination. Stories, songs, books, and pictures encourage the acquisition of language. The environment helps children develop an awareness of their own rights and limits, as well as the rights and limits of others. More than a Montessori daycare, our toddler program equips our children to take learning into their own tiny hands.

The Toddler Program at Gladwyne Montessori is specifically designed and structured to support children age 2 by September 1st. Throughout this year, your child will develop confidence, a love of learning, and the skills required to communicate both with peers and adults in a nurturing and academic setting. One of the goals of the toddler program is to establish, within the child, a work cycle: the child chooses a material or lesson, independently brings it to a table or mat, works purposefully with the material for as long as the child needs, returns the lesson or material to its shelf and rolls up the mat or pushes in the chair. These initial skills and steps form the foundation of their academic journey and are instrumental in preparing them for their future academic and social experiences and success.

Another important objective of the Montessori Toddler program is for our children to practice independence in a safe and nurturing environment. Unlike traditional daycare, Montessori Toddler education focuses on the individual physical, emotional, social, and spiritual needs of the child. Our trained Montessori guides observe each child individually to provide the necessary support and teaching that fosters meaningful growth and budding independence. Little by little, each child blossoms into a confident and independent member of her learning community.

Our Montessori Toddler program is the only one of our programs that takes place over the course of one year. We offer a five day or three day program and morning (9 a.m.–12 p.m.) and full day options (9 a.m.–3 p.m.). Additionally, we offer extended day options both in the morning and afternoon to help accommodate families and their busy schedules.