I’ve always enjoyed the process of cooking. From grocery shopping, prepping the ingredients, down to putting food on the table. Back when I was a kid, my mom bought me tons of kitchen play sets. I spread out plastic toy meat and vegetables around in the living room and pretended I was out shopping at a local palengke. I’d bring home the produce, “wash” them, and “cook” them up in my teeny-weeny play set. As an only child, my mom and dad also let me help around the kitchen when they were cooking. I still carry those memories with me today. The montessori philosophy is quite similar in a way. Kids are given the hands-on opportunity to learn by themselves. In a previous article, we discussed the basics of setting up a montessori bedroom for your toddler. This time, we’ll tackle montessori kitchens!

Why a Montessori Kitchen?

Why have a montessori kitchen? Kids are naturally inclined to helping around the house. That is, if we let them. Toy utensils and food are good, tactile ways for kids to learn. But, montessori kitchens take it one step further. Instead of giving our kids toy utensils and food, we provide them with real (albeit child-sized) items that they can use easily. Of course, this doesn’t mean we can give them chef knives or any other potentially dangerous cutleries. Provide your child with safer alternatives like small, duller knives so they can cut soft things like bananas!

The montessori philosophy is very child-centric. It really focuses on giving real-life experiences for kids to learn and grow as independent individuals. By giving them small, manageable tasks in the kitchen, these kids are given the opportunity to feel like they’re really part of the family unit. The key thing here is that we provide them with items and furniture that they can easily access without having mommy or daddy help all the time.

The Basic Set Up

Set aside one small corner of the kitchen or dining area with a really cute montessori kitchen! While I think you can purchase tiny kitchenettes in IKEA (who else is excited?), you can definitely just start off with a low table with the basic essentials such as as some child-sized plates, cutleries, and cutting boards. Another popular addition to this setup is a small glass jar where the child can get a cup of water on their own!

Cute Montessori Kitchen Ideas

The whole setup already screams CUTE from far away. I’m actually tempted to get one for myself even if I’m not a mom yet. Make it look more fun and enticing for your child by painting bright, colorful backsplashes as well!

Cute Montessori Kitchen Ideas | MyBoysen

Montessori spaces usually call for neutral backgrounds to highlight the colorful activities kids can do However, you can definitely get creative with some fun paint designs! Of course, get your kid involved too! What colors does he or she like? Do they like rainbows? Animals? Flowers?

Cute Montessori Kitchen Ideas | MyBoysen

Make the space more enticing for them by using bright colors and fun patterns. All of the colors we featured above can be mixed in the Virtuoso Silk Touch base. It’s a water-based, low-VOC, and low odor interior paint that is formulated with Teflon Surface Protector Technology.

Taking the montessori home one step further? Why not try color coded activity walls for your kids?

Some Final Thoughts

Now, kids are synonymous to mess. And, of course, the same thing applies to a montessori kitchen. Provide small cleaning mats and a child-sized broom and mop so they can clean-up after themselves (to the best of their abilities!). Paint your kitchen with Virtuoso Silk Touch so you can easily wipe away any food mess your future sous chef happens to splatter on the wall! How would you style your montessori kitchen? Do you already have one set up for your little bundle of joy? Send us photos! We’re always excited to see what you guys come up with! Happy painting!

Author

Inah is an avid overplanner with a manic desire to organize everything. She dedicates most of her time and attention to her two chunky dogs, Prince and Peanut. If there's a bit of extra time on hand, she will spring clean her entire house.

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