Montessori Climbing Toys for Your Little One – How to Choose the Right One

In Montessori education, you should foster an environment for your child to learn their newest skills, including climbing. But that doesn’t mean that you have to let them climb your kitchen counter. The right Montessori climbing toys give your child a place to independently practice their climbing ability and develop their motor skills.

Keep reading to find out what are the best Montessori climbing toys for your mountaineer.

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Why Are Montessori Climbing Toys Important?

Montessori’s philosophy revolves around letting your child guide their own education. That goes for their own movements as well.

It’s inevitable that your baby will eventually discover climbing, and the way that you’ll find out is most likely by witnessing them climb something they aren’t supposed to. The key is to redirect this energy to a safe apparatus for them to practice these new motor skills.

There are several reasons why climbing toys should be an essential part of your child’s Montessori education. A few of the top reasons are to:

• Help them build freedom of motion.
• Foster their independence. 
• Increase their motor development. 
• Increase strength, agility, and balance.

The right climbing toy will help benefit your child in each of these ways and help them gain control over their own movements.

Best Montessori Climbing Toys For Your Little One

Now that you know how a climbing toy can benefit your child’s development, it’s time to introduce one into their Montessori toy collection.

However, because you don’t want to overwhelm your child in Montessori, you shouldn’t seek more than one or two climbing toys. This can make it difficult to choose the best one for your little one.

To give you a starting point, here are some of the top Montessori climbing toys to help your child develop their motor skills and critical thinking.

The Pikler Triangle

When you ask Montessori educators about the best Montessori climbing toys, the first one to come to mind is always the Pikler triangle, also called a Pikler ladder or Pikler arch.

Created by Dr. Emily Pikler, this climbing toy is meant to encourage children to explore their motor development from an early age, while also fostering independence as they try and figure out how the toy works.

There are three components to the Pikler triangle:

• Arch
• Ramp
• Climber

Each piece is an independent toy in its own right that can help your child work on specific motor skills. Both the arch and the climber triangle are excellent climbing toys, and your child can explore each one on their own to learn the differences in shape and figure out how to approach each one.

Together, the three pieces turn into the ultimate climbing toy and learning experience for your child. Depending on your child’s development, they may be ready to explore this toy at as young as six months to enhance their motor skills and cognitive development. Many children make use of this toy until about age five or six.

Pikler triangles are not hard to find as they are available from several brands and retailers on places like Amazon and Etsy.

This WoodandRoomUSA set comes with the three components of the Pikler triangle at an affordable price. Made from birch wood, this toy is strong and flexible enough to handle whatever your child throws at it (literally).

It’s always good to start your little ones off with simple toys, and the same is true for Montessori climbing toys.

Wooden Cube for Climbing

The Pikler Triangle isn’t the only Montessori climbing toy that will benefit your child. If you’re looking for other climbing toys that fit the Montessori philosophy, this Wooden Climbing Cube is another great addition to your child’s room. It can be used by itself or as an additional piece for your Pikler triangle and ramp set.

The design of this climbing cube is simple enough, yet it gives your child enough challenges to solve with their new motor skills. The cube is sturdy and stable, with the ability to hold up to 110 pounds, in order to maximize your child’s safety.

The holes at each side add a new level of discovery, encouraging your child to climb in, out, and through them.

If you do decide you want a Pikler Triangle for your child, you can upgrade this climbing toy by adding an arch and a ramp. This 4-piece set has options for the Pikler triangle, arch, cube, and ramp.

Montessori Play Gym

As your toddler gets older, they become more capable of understanding more complex concepts. Their toys should grow with their mind and always present an opportunity to discover new ideas about the world and within themselves.

This goes for your child’s climbing toys as well. If you want something more complex than the Pikler triangle, consider something such as a Montessori Play Gym or Jungle Gym.

This Avenlur indoor playground contains six different activities for your child to explore in one climbing toy, making it a great toy for older toddlers and young children to further develop their motor skills. Some of the key activities include a mini rock-climbing wall, a rope ladder, and monkey bars to give your child several ways to climb.

Made from natural wood, this climbing play gym is also easy for you to assemble, so your child can get to discovering sooner.

Montessori Climbing Toys for Your Little Mountaineer

Climbing is one of the key motor skills that your child has to develop, as scary as it might seem. However, you can help your child take control over their own climbing abilities by equipping them with the right toys to practice on.

Montessori climbing toys direct your toddler’s energy toward a safe object to allow them to push their own limits and discover what they’re capable of. Then as they learn and get older, you’ll no longer have to worry about them climbing too high.