18–24 months

Somewhere around eighteen months a switch flips: your child stops wanting toys and starts wanting your life — the broom, the faucet, the heavy bag of oranges. Montessori has names for what's happening (maximum effort, the language explosion), but you'll know it as a small person insisting "me do it" at the kitchen counter. The materials below meet that head-on — and because a child works through most of them in eight to twelve weeks, I'd rather you buy a few right ones and rotate than fill a closet.

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