Here’s another Practical Life activity for the classroom. With the holidays upon us, many will read to your children the Christmas story of Jesus’ birth, where you will come across the passage that says: “And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” The Gospel of Luke 2.7.
To swaddle a baby is a technique that mimics the coziness of the womb. It can keep your baby warm and comfortable, as well as help him or her sleep better and longer. Back in 2010, we posted this classroom activity and thought you might enjoy it!
For this activity, choosing a life-like and life-sized doll is important when placing it on your Practical Life shelf. Although the demonstration sheet, below, states the targeted age level as 6-9, one could confidently place this in the primary-age classroom as well.
To help you create your step-by-step visual, go here to Mayo Clinic’s slide show: How To Swaddle A Baby
How to diaper a baby…with a cloth diaper (preferred) and with disposable diaper:
Below, is the Demonstration Sheet by Kaori Fujita of Spring Valley Montessori School
Given at The PNMA Spring Sharing Fair, Spring 2010
Taking Care of a Baby
Curriculum Area: Practical Life
Age Group: 6-9 years
Prerequisites: Dressing Frames and Cloth Folding
Direct Aim: Learning how to care for a baby
Materials:
basket
infant-size doll
disposable diaper (cloth preferred)
cloth diaper
pins
diaper cover
receiving blanket
infant-size clothes
step-by-step picture books:
Book 1 – How to Swaddle a Baby
Book 2 – How to Diaper a Baby with a Disposable Diaper
Book 3 – How to Diaper a Baby with a Cloth Diaper
​Presentation:
Invite a student to the work.
Show and name what is in the basket to him/her.
Demonstrate the lesson (one book at a time, in the order of the book number).
S/he may repeat the lesson by referring to the book as a guide.
Variations/Extensions: Carrying a baby in a sling, dissecting a disposable diaper (absorbent material experiment), baby anatomy
