Since transforming Jamila’s room to make it more Montessori, it’s become my favourite room in the house. I had so much fun designing the space and was really able to let my creative juices flow – especially since the space isn’t too large, so I really had to think about where to place each item.
I wanted to create a space that met Jamila’s needs. As an adult, we see everything from a very different perspective to our children. A low shelf for us could be completely unreachable to them, and a piece of artwork on the wall at our eye level could be too high for them to even notice it. A core concept in Montessori is to create a prepared environment – one in which our children’s tools of play are accessible to them, where they are free to explore safely and can move easily from one activity to another. That’s something that initially drew me to Montessori – it’s a child-centred approach.
I started off with a classic Montessori room staple – a reading corner. I’ve always loved the idea of a teepee tent and this one appealed to me because of it’s yellow colour. It’s actually a four-point tent but I folded it into a three-point and it works perfectly in the space. I decorated it with a pompom garland, a matching rug, cushions and a basket. The basket contains some easily accessible items for Jamila, including teethers and a couple of her favourite soft toys. I chose to run wild with the pompom theme because if you can’t have an explosion of colour in the nursery, where can you? I finished it off with a book stand and loaded this with some of her favourites, although I rotate these once a week as she has quite a large collection of books. I love the idea of a book stand because she can see the titles clearly and choose which one she wants. At the moment she’s loving ‘I say Alhumdulillah‘ and ‘Elmer‘. Story time with her Abu is one of her favourite parts of the day, and this reading corner just makes it so much more special.
Next to her reading corner, I stuck a mirror to her wall using 3M strips. This will be her grooming/ dressing area, and when she’s a toddler she can use this space to comb her hair, get dressed, or just pull silly faces. Montessori recommends such a space to encourage independence in the child as they learn to do these things for themselves. I keep a toddler hair brush and a bow on the stand, which we use as a mini shelf.
Next in her room is the classic Montessori shelf. The shelf is compartmentalised to separate activities, and as it’s low down children are able to easily access what they need. After carefully measuring her room we brought this one, because it fit perfectly in the space. It was easy to assemble and comfortably fits 6 of her toys or activities in it at a time, which is enough to provide her with options but not overwhelm her with them. I rotate her toys every week or so to keep things interesting, based on the skills that she’s working on mastering. The one’s not currently in rotation are kept in a storage box under her bed.
I finished off her shelf area with some art work – a simple paper kite, which I crafted myself using coloured card, jute rope, and washi tape. I attached this to the wall very low down so that it’s visible to her and I think it finishes off the space perfectly!
The other side of her room is fairly basic. We decided to keep Jamila in a cot rather than a floor bed for safety and sleep hygiene reasons, although we will be moving her to a floor bed in a couple of years inshaAllah. Under her cot, I keep storage boxes containing some extra blankets, toys, and clothes.
We also have a changing table with draws which are low enough for her to access herself, where we keep her clothes. As there was a small space between her cot and changing table, I’ve wedged in some extra books and created a little book corner, which I think is great because she often picks out books from this area. As it’s very close to the floor, it’s easy for her to access without me worrying that the books will fall and injure her. I’ve strung up some Routine Cards above her changing table, which she likes to look at and interact with whilst being changed.
Finally, behind her door I’ve created a little area for her to hang up her coats and bags. I’ll be adding something similar for her in the hallway inshaAllah, but this little hanger was too cute to resist and matches her room décor perfectly.
Alhumdulillah, I’m so pleased with the way that her room turned out. Every section of the Nursery was carefully planned based on what would best meet Jamila’s needs, and because of this everything is completely child-proof and accessible to her. As she grows into a toddler, her room set-up will be a critical enabler for her in gaining independence, fostering curiosity, and permitting hands-on learning, inshaAllah.
Montessori Muslim 