table setting

This is a one person job. It is meant for the young child just entering the Primary Montessori classroom. It is simple enough and rewarding. You'll want to make this material yourself, as I did.

First, I bought a plain white piece of thick vinyl for the mat. Then I shopped around for a small cup, cloth napkin, small dish and small silverware. I had some left over extra small espresso cups left over from a broken pouring job so that is what you see for the cup. I bought the rest at Cost Plus World Market - I just love that store! Anyway, once I had all my items together I layed them out on the vinyl and measured out how much vinyl I would actually need to fit all the items. I trimmed the mat down. I then traced the outline of the items with a pencil so I didn't mark anything up with permanent marker. After the pencil, I cleared off the items and traced over the pencil with a permanent marker and let it dry over nite. Once everything was dry I was ready to transport my items to the shelf. I happened to have a flat 8"x12" rectangular basket that I could store the items in while they are on the shelf. The basket is not actually part of the job or lesson. In fact, you could use a tray to store the items on the shelf if you wanted.

Make sure to check the items daily for smudges. But, there shouldn't be any because part of your lesson should include hand washing before table setting. :) ENJOY!