Benefits of mixed age groupings

The idea of a greater mixed age grouping is something we have thought a lot about in crafting new class offerings for the 2023-24 school year. We find great value in a mixed age classroom community. Here are some of the benefits we already see and know:

• Development is not linear: children, even within a few months of one another, are developing at different rates and come to us with varying levels of abilities and knowledge. Each child will bring something different to the classroom community. Teachers are skilled at meeting the needs of each child individually within the context of a larger group. Our current class rosters include children across a wide age range already. 
  

• Opportunities for older children: children on the older end of the age range can develop a greater sense of responsibility and leadership. They are able to model what they know for younger children, learn to adapt their behavior to meet the needs of a child not on their level, and build their autonomy as they grow more capable in the classroom.  
  

• Opportunities for younger children: children on the younger end of the age range can learn and grow from observing older peers. They can be exposed to more sophisticated language and play skills and similarly work to adapt their interactions with older peers. 

So much of this already takes place in the classrooms now. Especially since the pandemic, we have children as old as Junior Kindergarten who have never been to school before. Though entry into school might look different by age, there are similar levels of learning and adjusting that happen as children transition to school and group life. Children who have been to school still work to learn the routine of the new classroom, how it feels to separate from a parent or caregiver, and internalize what it means to be at school.