Manners are important year-round, but they’re especially noticeable during the autumn and winter holidays. Halloween, Thanksgiving, and all the December holidays provide lots of opportunities for children to show good manners. Manners lessons combined with manners practice is one of the best ways to prepare children for those holidays.
Here, you’ll find links to free manners printables used to prepare hands-on activities and a new Montessori-inspired manners pack for our free newsletter subscribers’ resource library! This unit has resources for preschool through early elementary.
Disclosure: This post contains some affiliate links (at no cost to you).
Montessori Shelves with Manners-Themed Activities
Montessori Shelves with Manners-Themed Activities
You’ll find Montessori-inspired manners-themed numbers, letters, and and more (part of my subscriber freebie pack, so just sign up for my email to get the link and password … or check the bottom of your latest newsletter if you’re already a subscriber) Note: The Montessori-inspired manners pack isn’t designed as a complete fall scavenger hunt unit but as supplemental materials. I design the packs using realistic images that I’ve often looked for when preparing a unit study (such as font cards and phonogram cards featuring the letter and phonogram related to the theme and math cards with realistic images that fit the theme and can be adapted for math activities at a variety of levels.)
You could mix your manners-themed activities among your shelves according to curriculum area. Or you could have a special manners-themed area something like the one pictured. My shelves at the beginning of our unit have a mixture of skill levels. Many of the activities can be adapted for a variety of levels. If you’re a homeschooler, just choose the activities that work for your child’s interests and ability levels. If you don’t have room for all the activities you’d like to do, simply rotate them.
Montessori Shelves with Manners-Themed Activities and Renoir Art Print
Notice the framed art print Two Girls Reading (1891) by Pierre-Auguste Renoir. It’s a free download from Wikimedia Commons. We featured a Renoir art print last month, too, but I think Renoir is perfect for repeated emphasis. While the art print doesn’t directly refer to manners, it’s a beautiful representation of two girls showing respect for each other and anyone near them.
For our monthly featured art print, I purchased a Li’l DAVINCI art framethat opens in the front for easily changing a free art masterpiece printable or vintage illustration to fit with the month’s theme. The frame can be switched from horizontal to vertical without changing the hanger, which is perfect!
If you’re wondering about the rugs and rug box I use, both therugsandwooden rug holderare from Montessori Services. I love the Montessori Services rugs and rug holder! I used to use anumbrella standsomething likethese. I loved that for 1-3 rugs, but I needed something different when I had more grandchildren and some projects that needed more than one rug.
Favorite Shelves, Trays, Baskets, and More for Montessori Homeschoolers
I often get asked about the trays, baskets, etc., that I use, so I published a post with many of the items. You can find lots of helpful resources here. They’re not all essential, so don’t feel you need to have everything. Just choose what’s best for your budget and your unique family’s needs. You’ll find more ideas in the Living Montessori Now Amazon shop
Books for a Manners Unit
Even though I have books on shelves, I’m now keeping many of my themed books in a forward-facing display after placing a plant where the themed book basket was before. My seasonal books are now in that book basket.
For toddlers and preschoolers, about ¾ of the books I use are typically Montessori friendly (focusing on reality without smiling or talking animals or smiling or talking vehicles). More than ¼ of the books in this unit aren’t Montessori-style books even though the topic is perfect for Montessori.
Books for a Manners Unit
Books on Top Shelf of Themed Shelves:
- Manners by Aliki is recommended for ages 4-8. The pages are rather busy with many different concepts being reinforced, so it’s best for older preschoolers through early elementary. This is a good book for taking the time to discuss manners concepts with your child. This is a book I had from when my kids were little.
- Give Please a Chance is a simple book focusing on saying “please” for toddlers and young preschoolers. For beginning readers, it would be a good book to read to a younger sibling or classmate. I would change the often-awkward wording when reading this book to a toddler or preschooler. For example, there is a double-page spread with a boy looking at a plate of cookies with the word “Please?” below it and “I really, really, really need a cookie!” on the preceding page. I would point to the word “Please?” and say, “Please. May I please have a cookie?”
- Give Thank You a Tryis the follow-up to Give Please a Chance. It isn’t quite as easy for beginning readers to read, but I prefer the writing in this book.
- Emily’s Magic Words: Please, Thank You, and More is a sweet book by Emily Post that emphasizes the “magic words” please, thank you, hello, good-bye, excuse me, and I love you.
Top Shelf of Forward -Facing Display:
- My Manners Matter
- Manners Can Be Fun
- A Smart Girl’s Guide: Manners: The Secrets to Grace, Confidence, and Being Your Best (American Girl® Wellbeing)
2nd Shelf:
3rdd Shelf:
4th Shelf:
- Madeline Says Merci: The Always-Be-Polite Book
- The Berenstain Bears Say Please and Thank You
- Please, Thank You, and Excuse Me
Bottom Shelf
- How Do Dinosaurs Show Good Manners?
- Thank You, Mama
- Excuse Me: A Little Book of Manners (Lift-the-Flap Book)
I have some manners fun fiction books on a shelf across the room:
Shelf with Manners Fun Fiction Books
- Note: Even though the Berenstain Bears books were loved by my kids,The Berenstain Bears Forget Their Mannersisn’t one of my favorites. I just feel the negative behaviors might make more of an impression than the good manners in the book; I don’t like penalties for forgetting manners; and I didn’t like how the dad isportrayed in the book.
- Clifford, the Big Red Dog is a lovable children’s book character who’s been around for years. My now-adult children loved the Clifford books, and I still have the series. Clifford’s Mannersby Norman Bridwell isn’t an elaborate story, but it clearly emphasizes a number of etiquette techniques and the importance of good manners.
- Curious George Says Thank Youhas Margret and H.A. Rey’s Curious George
, but it’s writtenby Emily Flaschner Meyer and Julie M. Bartynski and illustrated in the style of H. A. Rey by Anna Grossnickle Hines. The book isrecommended for ages 4-7, but I think most preschoolers will love it. Young children often identify with Curious George. This book has a positive message about the importance of saying thank you. - Richard Scarry’s Please and Thank You Book
- Little Critter’s Manners
, but it’s writtenby Emily Flaschner Meyer and Julie M. Bartynski and illustrated in the style of H. A. Rey by Anna Grossnickle Hines. The book isrecommended for ages 4-7, but I think most preschoolers will love it. Young children often identify with Curious George. This book has a positive message about the importance of saying thank you.We have a grace and courtesy book on our peace table right now.
Grace and Courtesy Book on Peace Table
IthinkGrace and Courtesy: a picture guide for children and adultsby Alicia Olson is great for Montessori classrooms and parents who have a child attending a Montessori school. Each page has a an illustration of a child or children demonstrating an important grace and courtesy rule in the Montessori classroom. The book is designed to stand up on a shelf like an easel. It’s a wonderful book to set up on one of the Montessori shelves, changing the picture shown to remind children about rules that are important in a Montessori classroom. It’s also helpful for a Montessori homeschool and can be used to remind children of Montessori rules that are being used at home.
I have more manners books from previous posts in a book basket:
- Cheri J. Meiners M.Ed., has a helpful, Montessori-friendly series of books about learning to get along. Many of them are available in English and Spanish as well as in English. For our manners unit, we have Be Polite and Kind: Ser respetuoso y amable. If you prefer, thebook is available in English alone.
- Fill a Bucket: A Guide to Daily Happiness for Young Children (just one of the bucket-filler books. See my bucket filling post at my BitsofPositivity.com blog for more!)
- I love the silliness ofDo Unto Otters: A Book About Mannersby Laurie Keller.The book is recommended for ages 4-8. I recommend it for older preschoolers through early elementary because of the busy pages and humor that could be above the heads of younger children. It’s a fun book that wasn’t around yet when my kids were little.
- May I Please Have a Cookie?(Scholastic Reader, Level 1) by Jennifer Morris is for preschoolers in general and an easy reader for beginning readers. It’s definitely silly and unrealistic, but it emphasizes the importance of saying please in a fun way.
- Books from my post The Best Books about Manners for Preschoolers
- Books from my post The Best Children’s Books About Taking Turns and Sharing
You can see many manners books here: Manners Books for Kids(including books as they’re published)
Manners Book and Game
Manners Book and Game
The book is Manners by Aliki is recommended for ages 4-8. The pages are rather busy with many different concepts being reinforced, so it’s best for older preschoolers through early elementary. This is a good book for taking the time to discuss manners concepts with your child. This is a book I had from when my kids were little.
Free Printable: Good Manners Game by Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy at TPT
This was super easy to prepare. You can play it cooperatively or competitively. I prefer cooperative games, especially with young children. So we’ll play the game cooperatively using one game piece and trying to see how quickly we can make it to the finish.
Here’s another helpful manners game:
Free Printable: Mind Your Manners Game (restaurant and table manners) from Cutesy Crafts
Give Please a Chance Book with Manners Matching Cards
Give Please a Chance Book with Manners Matching Cards
The book is Give Please a Chance. I like the simplicity of it for toddlers and young preschoolers. For beginning readers, it would be a good book to read to a younger sibling or classmate. I would change the often-awkward wording when reading this book to a toddler or preschooler. For example, there is a double-page spread with a boy looking at a plate of cookies with the word “Please?” below it and “I really, really, really need a cookie!” on the preceding page. I would point to the word “Please?” and say, “Please. May I please have a cookie?”
Free Printable:Manners Matching Cards created by Carolyn from Wise Owl Factory for Living Montessori Now. They reinforce some of the concepts from my eBook Montessori at Home or School: How to. Teach Grace and Courtesy.
The manners matching cards can be used for matching, concentration, or to make a booklet. If you want to make a booklet, there are save-the-ink cards with white backgrounds that could be colored.
Give Thank You a Try Book with Yes, Please and No, Thank You Activity
Give Thank You a Try Book with Yes, Please and No, Thank You Activity
The book isGive Thank You a Try. It’s the follow-up to Give Please a Chance. It isn’t quite as easy for beginning readers to read, but I prefer the writing in this book.
Free Printable: Thanksgiving Manners from Share & Remember
The Yes, Please and No, Thank You Activity was so easy to prepare. I simply printed out the cards, cut them out, and placed them on plates. You could use paper plates or regular plates. I didn’t even glue the images down to reuse the plates.
This is the first activity my 6-year-old grandson wanted to do after I put the activities on the shelf. You simply offer a plate of food to the child and ask if the child would like some of the food. The child either says, “Yes, please” or “No, thank you.” I included foods like the turkey that we wouldn’t eat as vegetarians. I think it’s important for children to know how to simply and comfortably say, “No, thank you” when refusing a food.
I’d like to continue the game by placing the foods on a pretend table and having the child politely ask for foods. It’s great practice for children to know simple etiquette phrases like “Please pass the corn.”
Sand Writing Tray for a Manners Theme
Sand Writing Tray for a Manners Theme
Free Printable /p/ for please font cards (part of my subscriber freebie pack, so just sign up for my free newsletterto get the link and password … or check the bottom of your latest newsletter if you’re already a subscriber). They come in print, D’Nealian, and cursive.
Free Printable /th/ in thank you phonogram cards (part of my subscriber freebie pack, so just sign up for my free newsletterto get the link and password … or check the bottom of your latest newsletter if you’re already a subscriber). They come in print, D’Nealian, and cursive.
I love that these cards use sign language along with the words “please” and “thank you.”
You’ll see a variety of simple letter writing trays in my previous unit study posts. I often used the wooden tray from theMelissa & Doug Lace and Trace Shapes. You can use whatever tray or container work best for you, though.
I typically now use this lovely spelling/alphabet tray from FamilyTreeWW on Etsy. I like it for writing more than one letter or spelling words. (Note: That sand tray is currently unavailable, but you’ll find lots of other options for Montessori sand trays on Etsy.) I found some colored sand in 12 colors on Amazon that I started to use instead of salt or colored salt. I love it because it’s so soft and feels great!
If you would like help with introducing phonetic sounds, introducing objects with sounds, or beginning phonics in general, check out myDIY Beginning Montessori Phonics with Preschoolers.
I have a post and video on how to introduce words starting with phonograms, even with very young children.
TH Phonogram Work
TH Phonogram Work
Free Printable: Digraph Puzzles from 123 Homeschool 4 Me
The digraph puzzles aren’t self-correcting in that all the puzzles work identically. They’re good practice for thinking about /th/ in each of the pictured objects.
You could use any of these digraphs from the printable:
- TH: thin, thorn, throne, thumb, thirty and think.
- WH: whistle, whip, whale, whisk, wheel and whiskers.
- SH: sheep, shoe, shell, shower, shrimp and shoulders.
- CH: cherries, cheeks, chair, church, chips and cheese.
- QU: quail, quiet, quack, queen, queue and quick.
- PH: phone, photographer, photo, phew, pharmacy and physician.
These are thedouble sandpaper lettersI have.
Please and Thank You Spelling Activity
Please and Thank You Spelling Activity
Free Printable: Tea party alphabet cards (part of my subscriber freebies, so just sign up for my free newsletter to get the link and password … or check the bottom of your latest newsletter if you’re already a subscriber).
The alphabet cards in print and cursive are easily adaptable, depending on the child’s level. They can be used for a variety of activities, such as matching letters with sandpaper letters, matching print to cursive letters, or movable alphabet word building.
Place Setting Addition Activity
Place Setting Addition Activity
Free Printable: Place setting number cards 1-20 (two cards each for 1-10) and addition symbols (part of my subscriber freebie pack, so just sign up for my emailto get the link and password … or check the bottom of your latest newsletter if you’re already a subscriber).
We have free spinners (both 1-5 and 1-10) in our subscriber freebie pack.
I thought it would be fun to use wooden peg dolls for this activity. I used 10 “adult” peg people and 10 “children” peg people. You could use plain wooden peg people or paint them (or have children paint them).
For this activity, he child spins the spinner to find how many adults are at the family gathering. Then the child spins the spinner to find the number of children at the gathering. The peg people are added to find the total people needing place settings for a meal.
If you’d like to continue the activity, you could spin the spinner to find how many children asked, “May I please be excused?” before clearing their plates and leaving the table.
If you’d like, you could even print out an extra 20 place setting math cards, cut out only the place settings and have one-to-one correspondence with the peg people and place settings.
There are so many different activities you can prepare using the math cards! You’ll find many ideas in our previous units.
My Mini Manners Bookmaking Activity
My Mini Manners Bookmaking Activity
Free Printable: My Mini Manners Book by Claudia Armenta at TPT
This is a simple activity to prepare. I left out the page about sharing, since Montessorians emphasize taking turns rather than sharing with young children.
Manners Activities on Another Shelf
Table Setting Activity with Free Table Setting Printables
Free Printable: Table Manners Chart (the poster on the wall) from Home Bloom Education
I have take setting activities here for toddlers through elementary-age kids. I just added a variety of printables to plate stands to save space on our shelves. The loose parts are in page protectors next to the matching placemat. The 3-dimensional place setting on the tray can easily be varied, depending on the child’s age and ability.
These are the free placemat activities I used:
- Free Printable: Dishes Pack from 3 Dinosaurs (I have two activities out using printables from the pack – shadow matching table setting and table setting number puzzle.)
- Free Printable: Formal Table Place Setting Chart (for older kids) from iMom
- Free Printable: Teaching Placemat from I Should Be Mopping the Floor
- Free Printable: Montessori Placemat (for toddlers) from The Montessori Notebook
There are lots of ideas for teaching table setting in this post:Table Setting. There are also more free printable placemats if you check out my Pinterest board linked to in that post.
If you’d like to purchase a cloth or silicone placemat with outlines, there are a number of options available on Etsy.
Emily’s Magic Words Book with Sign Language Movable Alphabet
Emily’s Magic Words: Please, Thank You, and More is a sweet book by Emily Post that emphasizes the “magic words” please, thank you, hello, good-bye, excuse me, and I love you.
I’ve used our sign language movable alphabet (a product in our shop) with the book that children can use to spell a variety of “magic words” using our sign language movable alphabet.
The little cards in the right-hand compartment are from the free Social Skills Mini Flippy Books by Clever Classroom at TPT. The printable includes a one-page Social Skills Desk Mate that I cut apart to use for “magic words.”
Free Montessori-Inspired Manners Pack
Montessori-Inspired Manners Packfor DIY Cards and Counters, Number or Letter Matching, Number or Letter Basket, Bead Bar Work, Hands-on Math Operations, Number or Letter Salt/Sand Writing Tray, Letter Tracing, DIY Movable Alphabet, and Creative Writing (subscriber freebie, so justsign up for my email to get the link and password – or check your inbox if you’re already a subscriber).
More Manners Resources
- How to Teach Your Child Manners Using Montessori Principles
- How to Teach Your Child to Say Thank You for Holiday Presents
- How to Help Your Child Feel Comfortable Greeting Relatives
- Halloween Grace and Courtesy
- Montessori-Inspired Kids’ Gift Wrapping Activities
- Geometric Solid Dressing, Wrapping, and Gift Giving (and Receiving)
- How to Manage Interruptions in Your Montessori Classroom or Homeschool
- Montessori at Home or School: How to Teach Grace and Courtesy Is Out!
- Free Grace and Courtesy Printable {Manners Matching Cards}
- The Best Way to Teach Manners to a Toddler
- Focusing on Toddler Manners in the 100 Acts of Kindness Challenge
- Completing 100 Acts of Kindness (Toddler Manners Challenge) and Starting 100+ Acts of Kindness
- How to Have a Healthy and Courteous Tea Party Picnic
- How to Have a Healthy and Courteous Teddy Bear Picnic
- How to Teach Toddlers and Preschoolers to Take Turns and Work Together
- The Best Children’s Books About Taking Turns and Sharing
- How to Have a Healthy and Courteous First-Day-of-School Tea Party
- Simple Way to Teach Kids to Stop Interrupting
- Holiday Manners
- How to Have a Fun Fraction Party for Toddlers and Preschoolers
- How to Have a Healthy and Courteous Back-to-School Tea Party
- Free Manners Songs for Home or Classroom
- 20+ Free Printable Manners Cards, Booklets, Charts, and Games
- The Best Books about Manners for Preschoolers
- Free Royal Tea Party Videos {Grace and Courtesy Resources}
- How to Have a Healthy and Courteous Royal Tea Party
- How to Teach Your Child Table Manners for Holiday Gatherings
- How to Teach Your Child Manners and Good Character Through Golf
- Grace and Courtesy for a New School Year
- Grace and Courtesy Games at Home or School
If you’d like ideas for calendar-based themes throughout October and November, see my October Themed Activities for Kids. and my November Themed Activities for Kids.
Learn more about my eBook Montessori at Home or School: How to. Teach Grace and Courtesy!
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