Practical Life: Cloth folding

Folding is one of many practical life skills that children learn in Montessori classrooms. Symmetrical folding can be tricky for little ones, so we start with simple cloth folding. This helps with concentration, patience and muscle control.

Watch the below tutorial by Wonderful World of Montessori to see how the lesson is applied:

You’ll notice that as the activity progresses, it increases in difficulty. Typically, the first folding exercises are done with four identical squares of fabric in a solid colour, featuring stitched lines to indicate how it will be folded:

Fabric 1: single median line dividing the square into equal rectangles

Fabric 2: horizontal and vertical median lines dividing the square into four equal squares

Fabric 3: single diagonal line dividing the square into equal triangles

Fabric 4: double diagonal lines dividing the square into four equal triangles.

You could also try this at home using washcloths, napkins and placemats.

Once little ones have grasped the basic principles of folding the pieces of cloth used in this classic Montessori exercise, they’ll be able to transfer these skills to a ‘real life’ basket of laundry in a home context.

If you’d like further information about this tutorial, feel free to contact us at info@saintandrewsmontessori.com. We’re happy to answer any questions.