Montessori Floor Bed {All Your Questions About Floor Beds Answered}

Interested in a montessori floor bed for your baby or toddler? Answering some of your most-asked questions!

Lots of you are interested in the idea of a floor bed for your baby or toddler.

It’s a hot topic lately, and there’s a lot of information out there to sift through.

I get a lot of questions from readers about floor beds, and wanted to answer some of them in today’s post!

Montessori Floor Bed

Let’s get started and learn all about Montessori beds and how to make the crib to floor bed transition.

What is a Montessori style bed?

Montessori beds, or floor beds, are a concept created by Italian doctor and expert Maria Montessori.

The Montessori method is primarily centered on a child’s innate ability to initiate her own learning within a prepared environment.

For this style bed, the bed is at the child’s level and is a place they can crawl into and out of whenever they want to.

What age are floor beds for?

It’s usually recommended to transition to a toddler floor bed frame somewhere between 2 and a half and 3 years. Obviously, this also depends a lot on the individual child!

Usually, parents start to think about this when their child begins climbing out of their crib or shows other signs that they are craving their own independence.

What are the benefits of a Montessori bed?

 A Montessori bed is thought to allow children to exercise independence and follow their natural cues where sleep hygiene is concerned.

A floor bed also encourages a child’s freedom of movement.

Children are no longer confined to a bed. They are free to move and to get in and out of bed, allowing them to explore their environment more freely.

The main benefit, in my opinion, of a Montessori bed for toddlers is probably the most obvious of reasons: one of the primary worries you have as a parent is your child rolling out of bed after transitioning them out of a crib.

This is something you don’t have to stress about with a floor bed because even if they do roll off, it’s not much of fall at all!

While this may seem like a new concept, people in Japan have been using Japanese futons for years.

What is a Montessori baby room?

If you want to take the Montessori method a step further, consider making your child’s whole room Montessori-style. 

Here are some identifying features of a Montessori room: Firstly, a baby-proofed space that is safe for the baby to move and explore.

Next, consider these things: a floor bed and even a mobile above the floor bed, low pictures and art on the walls, shelves the child can reach, child-sized furniture, toys and accessories, and a mirror attached to the wall at child’s height.

What is a Montessori House Bed?

Purchase this floor bed here

In some respects, just having a mattress on the floor can look too sparse for some people’s tastes.

That’s where a “house bed” comes in.

A house-shaped frame around a mattress is really just for aesthetic purposes. It adds a whimsical and fun design element to a child’s bedroom and can be more pleasing to look at than a mattress on a floor.

So, when you hear the term “house bed,” know that this is what that is: a simple frame (usually wooden), that is housing the child’s mattress on the floor.

Crib to Floor Bed

If you’re looking to help your child make the transition from crib to floor bed, here are some things to help prepare your child.

-Talk with your child about making the switch from a crib to a floor bed. This is a big step for them!

Make a big deal of it, because it IS a big deal. I find books very helpful when helping children make a change. A Big Kid Bed is Coming is one I highly recommend.

-Try to involve your child in the process. Have them help pick out the bed (if possible), choose new bedding and/or new wall art. This will help them have ownership for this big change.

If you don’t have a huge budget, no big deal. See this post for free printables for kids for art to download and hang without spending a lot of money.

-Make sure the room is completely child proofed. This is a critical step. You must make sure the child’s room is 100% child proofed before making this transition.

Where can I buy a Montessori floor bed?

You can find floor beds in LOTS of places nowadays! Everyplace from Wayfair to Target to IKEA sells different styles of Montessori beds at different price points.

Here are a few of my favorites from Amazon (I like these because most of them ship FREE and also have free returns!)

UHOM Montessori bed

South Shore Natural Poplar bed

Domestic Objects Play Tent Canopy

As with everything, though, whether or not a floor bed is a good idea for your child depends on many things, including your child’s temperament and sleep habits.

Also of note, it is critically important that if you choose to go the floor bed route, your child’s room is thoroughly childproofed and safe.

What are your thoughts on floor beds for babies and toddlers? I’d love to hear!

We have more ideas for Montessori floor beds ideas to help you make an informed choice!

Have more questions about Montessori beds? Please feel free to leave them in the comments!

Thanks so much for reading all about Montessori Bed {All Your Questions About Floor Beds Answered}. Have a great day!