The Broad Stair or Brown Stair- Montessori

The Brown Stair is part of the Visual Sensorial curriculum. It allows children to see a growing scale while reinforcing this observation with the sense of touch. The Brown Stair is made up of ten wooden prisms. While the prisms are all the same length (20 cm), they vary in thickness from 1 to 10 cm.
Similar to the Pink Tower, the Brown Stair is an important basic material in both early mathematics and sensory training.The Brown Stair is appropriate for children ages 2.5-3.5.
PRESENTATION:
To work with the Brown Stair, the child brings each prism to a floor mat.

Then arranges the prisms from thickest to thinnest, using  hands to ensure that the ends are flush. When grasping a prism, the child’s hand wraps around its thickness to bring attention to this dimension. The child does the exercise as presented. (If he or she cannot grasp the largest prism, it does not matter; the child can use two hands for this one. He or she may grasp the others with one hand.) The child will make mistakes at first.
As the child masters this exercise, the next step is introduced. At this level, she arranges the stair and then brings the smallest prism up against each step, observing the growing comparison scale. Later, children are free to explore with the Brown Stair and the Pink Tower, discovering how they relate to one another.
VOCABULARY:
When the child is familiar with the activity and has grasped the concepts involved, the “Three Period Lesson” can be used to introduce the vocabulary below as appropriate.

Wide – Narrow
Wide – Wider – Widest
Narrow – Narrower – Narrowest
Heavy- Light
Prism
All Montessori works have a control of error. If the child places a block incorrectly, it will become apparent at the end when it is leftover. Young learners can self-correct this way. This empowers them to direct their own learning. There is no need for adult interference when a child makes a mistake working with the Brown Stair. It provides a basis for the understanding of math in terms of numbers 1-10 as the child moves to the mathematical materials as part of the Montessori environment.

The Brown Stair is often combined with the Pink Tower for visual sensorial extension activities.

By combining the Pink Tower and Broad Stair. Build the Broad stair standing vertically and then placing the Pink tower cubes on top of the prism.
Purpose
Develop the child’s visual and muscular perception dimension.
Develops the child’s coordination of movement and fine motor control.
Prepare the child, indirectly, for mathematics by giving the child experiences in comparison, grading and seriation with prisms.
Provide basic language- important in mathematics.