Why Children Need Play With Mixed-Age Groups

Mixed-age play is wildly beneficial for kids, and many of us have grown up experiencing rich, mixed-age play. But how about the new generations who almost never get to interact with other age groups? Continue reading to discover the benefits of mixed-age play for younger and older kids alike, how mixed-age play disappeared from our culture, and ways we can bring it back into our children's lives.

Our Preschoolers in The Heights, aged 3-6, engaging in mixed-age play!

We live in times where children of different ages interact with each other the least they ever have in the history of humanity. If a child doesn’t have siblings a few years older or younger than them, there really are not many opportunities for them to do so. It’s not only traditional school systems that have strict peer groupings, but it’s also the majority of out-of-school settings, like extracurricular activities or playgroups. As normal as this segregation of children close in age has gotten in our modern times, this is not how humans have grown up throughout history. And if you observe children closely, you will see that kids of different age groups are drawn to each other too. Older children are attracted to the younger ones because they find them cute, and the younger ones just adore the older ones and want to be around them. Children are each other’s most valuable learning tools and it’s time we talk about why mixed-aged play matters. 

Let’s look at history 

Throughout 99% of human history, kids of all ages played together. During hunter-gatherer times, there just weren’t enough kids for them to be separated into groups of children close in age, so everyone played together. When humans first started schooling children, they used one-room schoolhouses, which later became mixed-age classrooms. But mixed age play didn’t stop after humans continued evolving. Mixed age play was the norm in the 20th century too. During the 1950s, 60s, 70s, and up late 1980s, neighborhood play was a huge part of childhood and that’s where children of all ages played together. Then safety became an issue, video games came about, societal norms changed and here we are.

What did taking away mixed-age play take away from children 

Let’s talk about all the benefits children received from regular mixed-age play and what taking that away from them ended up taking away in the long run. 

Social and emotional skills – Regularly spending time with other age groups, encourages children to adjust their communication and vocabulary, allows appreciation of individual differences and makes space to practice empathy in ways that same-age interactions just don’t.

Collaboration and better problem-solving – Mixed-age play reduces competitiveness and encourages collaboration and cooperative play. It creates more opportunities for negotiation, as well as compromise and prepares children for real-life social interactions. 

Benefits of mixed-age play for younger kids

Studies show that children learn best from other children more skilled than them, so when we take away mixed-age play, we are taking away one of the best tools for children to learn, each other. Here are some benefits mixed-age play creates for young children:

Cognitive and language development – When younger kids are regularly around older kids, they get exposed to more complex ideas, thoughts and language This supports enhanced development of skills in young kids.

More advanced play – More often than not, when 2-3 year-olds play together, they’re not actually playing together, they’re engaging in what’s called parallel play. When there are older children in the group, instead of just playing side by side, young children get the opportunity to engage in truly social play with the initiation and help of the older kids. 

Mimicking/pushing limits and motor development – Through observing older kids, younger kids get encouraged to try new things they wouldn’t have otherwise. They look at older kids and think to themselves, “If they can do it, why can’t I”. With the right kind of support and guidance present, younger kids get to push their own limits, mimic the older children, and often end up making remarkable progress.  

Benefits of mixed-age play for older kids 

The benefits of mixed-age play aren’t limited to the younger kids! Here are some things older children get to practice and end up gaining from playing with younger children. 

Confidence – Children who are shy and less confident can gain confidence through interactions with younger peers. Feeling that they are more competent than the younger kids in the group, can encourage more reserved older kids to open up and get integrated into the group more easily. 

Mentorship and leadership – Playing with younger kids, gives the older ones a chance to be leaders. They very naturally take up this role in a mixed-age setting and the younger ones happily accept it. When young children see their older peers can do things they can’t, they start looking up to them and seek their mentorship. This gives the older kids the opportunity to be the teacher, while the younger ones model their behaviors. 

Empathy and kindness – Interacting with younger children who simply cannot do the things you can do, requires compassion and kindness. Older children develop a sense of empathy and understanding when they frequently interact with their younger peers. These are soft skills that are much needed to build friendships and collaborate with others. 

Ways you can cultivate mixed-age play in your child’s life

To live in the world we live in now, it’s not easy to find opportunities for mixed-age play for children. But it is still possible! Here are some ways you can find mixed-age play!

Create a community – Our individualistic society can make it hard to get out of our comfort zones and build a community for ourselves and our children. But children greatly benefit from being raised in communities. So do it for your child, build those relationships with neighbors, maintain the ones with friends and family, and make an initiative to make new friendships, to not only enhance your support system, but to create a bigger one for your child.

Montessori/Waldorf schools – These non-traditional schools embrace the idea of mixed-age play and see the value in it. They have become really popular in recent years and can be found almost everywhere. 

Nature/Forest schools – Nature schools, like us, believe that when children are taken out of classrooms and the good old ways of going outside and playing with other children are replicated, the need for having same-age groups practically disappears. This is how children have played and learned for millennia. 

In mixed-age play-based settings children truly thrive! They learn essential social and emotional skills, become more confident and empathetic. The younger ones develop at a faster pace to meet their older peers at their more experienced level and the older ones get to practice their leadership and mentorship skills. 

At The Wild School, we are bringing back the childhoods kids were always meant to have. We see children transform through experiencing rich, mixed-age play and we truly believe it’s essential. Sign up for a trial class and see The Wild School difference!

Email us at info@thewildschool.org to learn more about our programs!

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by Viktorya Avetisyan