Practical life at home: five jobs for a three-year-old

In a Montessori classroom, a three-year-old pours water, wipes tables, sweeps crumbs and washes cloths. These are practical life activities, and they're often the first work a new child chooses. You can set up the same kind of work at home. Five jobs suit a three-year-old well, and each needs a few child-sized tools and one slow demonstration.

Choose real tools in a child's size

A toy broom with soft bristles leaves the crumbs on the floor. Buy or borrow tools that work, scaled to your child's hands.

Before you start, gather these:

• A small pitcher that holds about a cup, and a glass your child can hold in one hand
• A short-handled broom and dustpan
• A small spray bottle filled with plain water
• A stack of small cloths, kept in a basket your child can reach
• A low hook or shelf where the tools live

Breakable things are fine. A glass that falls and breaks teaches a child to carry it with two hands. Show your child how to call you to help clean up, and keep a small brush nearby for that.

Five jobs to start with

Watering a plant. Fill the pitcher halfway. Your child carries it with two hands to one plant, pours slowly at the base, and returns the pitcher to its place. One plant is enough at first. Add more when your child asks.

Wiping the table after a meal. Your child sprays the table twice, wipes in rows from one side to the other, then puts the damp cloth in a basket for the wash. Circles move crumbs around and leave them on the table.

Sweeping a small area. Use tape to mark a square on the kitchen floor, about the size of a placemat. Your child sweeps the crumbs into the square, then into the dustpan. The square gives the job an end your child can see.

Folding cloths. Start with square napkins or washcloths. Fold in half, then in half again, and stack them in the basket. Your child can later learn to match socks.

Pouring a drink. Put the pitcher and glass on a tray at your child's height. Your child pours, drinks, and carries the glass to the sink. Spills will happen. Keep a cloth on the tray so cleaning up is part of the job.

Pick the job your child already watches you do most often. A child who follows you into the kitchen every morning is probably ready for the table.

Show the job slowly, without talking

Montessori guides give a short demonstration called a presentation. You can do the same at home. You'll move much more slowly than usual and say very little.

Here is the sequence:

1. Invite your child. "I'm going to show you how to water the plant. Would you like to watch?"
2. Get the tools from their place while your child watches.
3. Do the job slowly, with exaggerated, clear movements. Hold the pitcher with both hands. Pause before you pour so your child sees where your hands are.
4. Don't explain while your hands are moving. A young child watches your hands or listens to your voice. Doing both at once is hard at three.
5. Put the tools back exactly where they belong.
6. Offer the turn. "Now you can try."

Then step back. If your child pours too fast or misses the pot, let it go for now. Correcting in the middle of the work usually ends the work. Show the job again another day, focusing on the step that went wrong, and say nothing about the mistake.

Keep it going past the first week

Children often repeat a new job over and over. A three-year-old may water the same plant four times in a morning. Let the repetition happen if you can. If the plant can't take more water, offer a second pot of soil with nothing in it, or a bowl to pour into on the tray.

If your child stops after a week or two, it usually means the job is too easy now, or the tools have drifted out of reach. Check that everything is back on its hook. Then add one step. A child who wipes the table can learn to push in the chairs. A child who folds washcloths can fold dish towels, which are larger and take two folds the long way.

Keep your words short when your child finishes, and name what happened: "You wiped the whole table."

If you aren't sure what your child does in the classroom, ask the guide which practical life work your child has been choosing this month. Set up the same job at home, with the same steps, so your child practices it in both places.