Why are mixed aged children in the same classroom together?
Children of 2½ – 6 years all working/playing together in the same classroom allows everybody to learn at their own pace. The older children help the younger ones and sharing what they have learned reinforces their knowledge and skill at the same time. The children in this fairly large group of mixed ages learn to function as a community (a healthy community consists of a mix of ages and abilities); they learn how to get along together, to respect each other’s rights and to share the environment and its resources. When you have a classroom of one age, all the children want the same things and there are no role models. In the Montessori environment the emphasis is on co-operation, not competition.
