As soon as you see your baby manipulating things with his fingers and have decent control over them, show them how to turn the light on and off. A couple things to consider: make sure the switch is VERY easy to turn on and off, otherwise, your baby will just be frustrated. It’s better not to do it if they will just be frustrated.

I showed B and M how to turn the light on and off using the light dimmer in our bathroom because it slides very easily, whereas the dimmer in our bedroom is very tight and you really have to push hard to turn it on and off. It’s difficult even for an adult. If you have the right light switch, this exercise can be so much fun and confidence-boosting for your baby, but if you don’t, there are many other things to do, don’t do this one!

Mackenzie is ready to do this at 8 months

Today, I met a 1-yr-old who has only been allowed to feed herself cheerios. She is spoonfed the rest of the time. Her mom tells me she doesn’t like to eat, I told her it’s bc she hasn’t experienced the pleasure of food. When M&B eats, they grab it with their fingers, smear it on their face, some ends up on their chin, cheeks, legs and up their nose. They feel the cold wetness of watermelon, the warmth and slipperiness of farfalle pasta, and they love to squeeze their fingers through bananas! Brooke’s first word was, “Yummy.”

The “aftermath”

I took B and M to my Montessori training center. Brooke was fussy and I was at a loss. My Montessori trainer, Judi, held her for a bit and noticed that B kept touching her shirt and watch band. She asked someone bring over 4-5 toys with different TEXTURES. B was enthralled! She touched everything over and over for a LONG time. When you can observe and connect a child to the thing they are interested in, magic happens.