Preparation of the hand21–24 months
Beeswax Block Crayons
Chunky beeswax blocks that need almost no pressure to leave a mark, and cannot be gripped in a fist.
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- Offer it around
- 21–24 months
- Montessori principle
- Preparation of the hand
- What you may see
- Holds a drawing tool between fingers rather than in a fist
- Makes deliberate marks rather than sweeps
- Chooses colours intentionally
A block crayon is a flat rectangle rather than a stick, and the shape is doing something. It cannot be held in a whole-fist grip comfortably — the natural way to hold it is between the thumb and the first two fingers, which is the tripod grip a child will eventually need for writing. The material quietly enforces the grip rather than an adult correcting it.
Beeswax matters for a different reason. It marks with very little pressure, so a two-year-old with limited hand strength gets a strong, saturated colour on the first pass. Cheap wax crayons need real force, which produces faint scratchy lines and a fairly quick decision that drawing is not much fun. Block crayons also let a child draw with the broad edge to fill areas, which is closer to how a toddler actually wants to work than outlining is.
Set it up as work rather than as free-range activity: paper taped to a small table, crayons in a tray, three or four colours rather than twenty. Do not ask what it is. At two, it is not anything — it is the experience of making a mark and seeing it stay, which is quite enough.
What to look for
- Block rather than stick shape for a first set
- Beeswax-based, non-toxic
- A small palette — three to six colours
- A tin or tray for storage
Not this
Washable marker pens at this age. They mark with no pressure at all, so no hand strength is developed.
Safety
Non-toxic is essential because these will be tasted. Supervise, and keep the work at a table so the walls survive.
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Also for 1–2 years
The rest of this stage
- Grading by sizeStacking RingsRings on a vertical dowel, graded largest to smallest — the first material that asks a child to order things rather than just place them.12–15 months
- Isolation of difficultySingle Shape PuzzleOne shape, one board, one knob. Four separate puzzles rather than one puzzle with four holes.12–15 months
- Practical lifePouring SetTwo small pitchers and a tray. The first true practical life work, and the one that starts a child serving themselves.12–15 months
- Care of the environmentChild-Size Broom and DustpanA working broom scaled to a toddler. Not a toy broom — one that actually sweeps.15–18 months
- Refinement of the auditory senseWooden Percussion SetReal instruments in miniature — bells, a wood block, maracas — that make a genuine tone when struck.15–18 months
- Two hands working togetherThreading BeadsLarge wooden beads and a stiff lace — the first work that genuinely requires both hands to do different jobs at once.15–18 months
- Isolation of difficultyDressing FramesA button, a zip and a snap, each mounted alone in its own frame so it can be practised away from the pressure of getting dressed.18–21 months
- Open-ended work with real materialsWooden Unit BlocksPlain hardwood blocks in mathematically proportional sizes, unpainted, with no pictures or letters on them.18–21 months
- Reality before abstractionNomenclature CardsCards showing one real, accurately depicted thing each — the Montessori answer to the cartoon flashcard.18–21 months
- Practical lifeFood Preparation SetA child-safe knife, a small board and a peeler — real tools for real food, which is what Montessori offers instead of a play kitchen.21–24 months
- The prepared environmentWeaning Table and ChairA table and chair at the child's own scale, low enough that they can sit down and get up entirely by themselves.21–24 months