GAM Cylinder Block No. 2

The Cylinder Blocks introduce the child to the first stage of visual discrimination of size. Working with a row of cylinders that change in a regular way, the child begins to notice and compare small, ordered differences in dimension before moving on to more demanding blocks in the series.

In this block the cylinders progress in diameter from thin to thick, and each cylinder decreases by half a centimetre in all dimensions. Block 2 varies in all three dimensions at once, which makes the differences between the cylinders easy for a beginner to see and grade.

Children use these cylinder knobs montessori materials by lifting each cylinder out by its knob, held between the thumb and fingers, then replacing it in a cavity. The knob grip also gently prepares the same finger hold the child will later use for a pencil.

The control of error is built into the block. The cylinders cannot all be replaced unless each one sits in its correct cavity, so a cylinder left in the wrong hole leaves an obvious mismatch the child can spot and put right on their own.

The cylinders are made of solid beechwood with a satin smooth lacquer finish. Each one is individually sanded and lacquered, giving a comfortable, even feel in the hand that suits the careful, repeated handling this work involves for a young child.

Blocks 1 and 2 are the easiest because their cylinders vary in all three dimensions. Block 3 varies in two dimensions and Block 4 in only one, so the four blocks form a series that grows steadily more demanding as the child's eye becomes more discerning.

The cylinder blocks are a classic sensorial material for the three to six age range. This block sits early in the series, making it a sound starting point for a child just beginning to compare size in a Montessori setting at home or in a classroom.