Montessori Book for Babies: Nicole Kavanaugh's Colors

As you page through Nicole Kavanaugh’s book Colors, you’re greeted with images in all shades of the rainbow, categorized by color.

The images feature standard objects you may find around a Montessori home including an apple, blocks of different shapes, and even a gnome. The fact that the objects on each page are isolated to one color allows your child to focus on the characteristics of each item, and see that they all belong to the same color family. Because the color of all of the items is the same, it’s easier for a little one to understand the meaning of red.  Stacy Keane, our Monti Kids Learning Team Lead, took one look at the book and said, “That would have been a hit in my Montessori classroom. Toddlers are drawn to photos of real objects they can name and relate to. They would really study a book like this.” Colors provides countless opportunities for open-ended play, while inviting new learning opportunities as a child grows. 

Reading Tips for Ages and Stages

Reading to various age group requires different approaches.  When reading the book to a baby, point at objects in the book, “I see a red apple, I bet that tastes good,” as they deepen their understanding of language.  As you model pointing, your baby will begin to pick up on this gesture. It will open their world as they’ll learn to communicate through pointing. In time, pointing will help meet their social-emotional needs. For example, they’ll learn they can point to their cup if they would like something to drink.   With an older toddler you can play a game of I-Spy. “I spy a green dinosaur on this page, can you find it?” Or, you can ask your child if they can name the objects on the page with plenty of shapes to discern and discuss.  For the most advanced lesson, your child can find objects in your home and match them to the pages. Prompt your child with fun learning games that invite them to use their entire body to play, “Can you find objects in your room that are blue?” The Montessori principle of embodied learning guides us to do this with children whenever possible.

Monti Kids families can also create a basket of loose parts from their levels of toys. Invite your child to sort all the red colors for example as you’re reading from the red page, then move on to orange, yellow, green, blue and purple as you work your way through the rainbow of colors featured in Kavanaugh’s book.

Find the book Colors by Nicole Kavanaugh

FIND IT ON AMAZON READ MORE BY NICOLE KAVANAUGH