Zan Spaihts-Mohns Commission a set

Montessori Story Baskets

Montessori Story Baskets, handmade with love

Self-contained Montessori works that let children tell stories about the real world and history. Made by hand, one basket at a time, by an artist formally trained in the Montessori method.

See the Collections Commission a set
A handmade Montessori Story Basket with its figures and cards in natural wood

Collections

The baskets

Each basket is complete in itself: a story, the figures and cards it needs, and a tray that keeps everything together. The sets below are examples of the stories we make most often.

The Julia Butterfly Hill Story Basket laid out on a table
Detail of the figures in the Julia Butterfly Hill basket

Julia Butterfly Hill

The story Julia Butterfly Hill lived in a 1,000-year-old California redwood named Luna for 738 days, from December 1997 to December 1999, to prevent the Pacific Lumber Company from clear-cutting the forest. Children can explore Julia's mission, her interactions with the lumber company and its workers, and the supporters who stood with her.

Materials Wooden figures, giant redwood pieces, miniature platform and supplies, lumber trucks and equipment, printed photos and cards.

  • Figures of Julia and supporters
  • Giant redwood trees
  • Julia's living platform and supplies
  • Lumber trucks and equipment
  • Photos and story cards
The Ruby Bridges Story Basket with its figures and cards
Detail of the Ruby Bridges figures and school bus

Ruby Bridges

The story In November 1960, six-year-old Ruby Bridges became the first African American child to attend the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans, Louisiana. U.S. Marshals escorted her to protect her from angry crowds. Children can learn and retell the story of Ruby's family, community, and school, and explore the wider Civil Rights struggle.

Materials Wooden figures, classroom, police car, and school bus, with printed photos, cards, and newspaper reproductions.

  • Figures of Ruby and her community
  • Classroom set
  • Police car and school bus
  • Photos, cards, and newspaper reproductions

About

About Zan

Zan Spaihts-Mohns at work in the studio

Zan Spaihts-Mohns is formally trained in the Montessori method, and the training shows in every piece. The materials are built to be used by a child, not just admired.

The work is slow by design. A set of materials takes weeks, and each one is made with exacting attention to detail and deep thought about the teaching process.

Zan has been making Montessori materials since 2010, for families, home schools, and early-years classrooms.

Commissions

Custom sets for classrooms and home schools

Classroom sets

A full collection of Story Baskets for one room, planned with your teachers and delivered in one shipment.

Home school sets

A curated group of baskets for one child or a small family, matched to the stories you want to explore.

Spirit Play sets

Story Baskets made for religious education rooms, with stories and figures chosen with your catechists.

Commission a set