All About Our Large Pikler Arch

Independent Play

To encourage safe independent play, it is strongly recommended to place the Pikler in an environment free from hazards; e.g. no sharp corners, large or heavy items or anything that could pose harm to your child if they were to bang into it. A padded mat, carpet or even grass are the most suitable bases for your Pikler, they should not be used on hard surfaces such as concrete, tiles or floorboards without any soft padding. As a parent or caregiver, the Pikler encourages and enables you to support from a far and not need to be there holding your child’s hand every step of the way. Simple words of encouragement are so much more valuable when it comes to your child/ren’s progress on the Pikler than jumping up and plonking them on top; they will progress when they are ready. It really is about letting your child explore their environment independently and try new tasks or steps only when they feel they are ready and confident to do so.

The Pikler Triangle allows children to learn and explore their own boundaries at their own pace whilst encouraging and building their self-confidence. Children will set their own pace when using the Pikler and this allows parents and guardians the opportunity to watch from a far and provide support when needed. Younger children may pull themselves up on the rungs of the Pikler and explore with two feet on the floor, whilst older children may begin to climb and when they are comfortable and confident explore the opportunities of climbing all the way up and over the Pikler; little babies can even lay under the Pikler and engage in some sensory play, like hanging scarves or silks.

This is why we are huge fans and advocates of the Pikler, rather than running before they know how to walk, the Pikler provides children the opportunity to explore, engage and learn at each stage and only once they feel comfortable and confident move onto the next stage; all independently; what a way to build self confidence in your child!

Endless Possibilities

Amazing on its own, the Pikler can also be used in conjunction with other similar items including The Play Cube, Ladder or Slide. We have over time added these additional pieces to our play and it has created even more possibilities; crossing the plank from the Pikler to the cube; crawling through the cube and walking and/or sliding down the ramp. We’ve also seen a huge increase in our daughters confidence and gross motor skills at our local park, whereby previously she would not go near the cargo nets or the big rungs to climb up to the slide, now does independently and after 6 months living in isolation with no access to parks, I am confident this is hugely because of her daily climbing and adventures on her Large Pikler Arch. She may even jump off it from time to time onto padded surfaces, something that she has learnt to do on her own through identifying the risks; starting at the first rung, then adding in some pillows and moving up each rung until she is confident.

A daily play tool in our house for both young and old, watching our daughter create her very own experiences is one of our favourite reasons we love the Pikler. As well as allowing her to create her own play we from time to time provide some invitations to play that encourage her to problem solve, evaluate risk, use both fine and gross motor skills and ultimately provide her with play opportunities that are age appropriate and put a smile on that little face.

Here are just a few ways we love to use our Pikler, Play Cube, Ladder and Ball Run in our daily play:

1. As a Pikler

2. Dinosaur Volcano Rescue

Using some silks and dinosaurs’ figurines, we tied them to different rungs and Moo had to get in the Pikler to untangle, stand on top of the Pikler to reach some and unwind silks in between each rung.

3. Giant Abacus

We added some wooden rings and flashcards to create a giant abacus, it took about 10 minutes to add them all on and it stayed this way for quite a few days. Some insta friends have also done this with cardboard rolls cut with a slit so they could slide on, pipe cleaners, ribbon and so many other options, really it is up to you.

4. Connetix Tiles

Our other favourite product to use with our Pikler is our Connetix Tiles, flip the Pikler on its side, add some Connetix tiles and we had ourselves a boat which then turned into a desk, then a fire truck and finished with lots of banging and crashing as we knocked everything down.

5. Marble Run

The perfect addition to the Pikler is the Marble Run / Slide, with a built-in marble run it is the perfect quiet time activity to promote coordination, timing and problem solving. The marble run is always a hit in our house!

Stephanie Pickering @our.dandelion.days

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Date	Jan 24, 2021
Category	Fox Kids, Lifestyle, Montessori, Pikler
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