The 5 Benefits of Peer Pressure
Peer influence isn't all bad - it's not always about peer pressuring kids to do drugs or skip school.
Dr. Montessori saw the potential for peer influence over a hundred years ago when she conducted her research.
"What matters is to mix the ages. Our schools show that children of different ages help one another. The younger ones see what the older ones are doing and ask for explanations.
These are readily given, and the instruction is really valuable, for the mind of a five year old is so much nearer than ours to the mind of a child of three, that the little one learns easily what we should find it hard to impart. There is a communication and a harmony between the two that one seldom finds between the adult and the small child."
- Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind
This is why Montessori classrooms are set up in 3-year gaps:
- Casa/Primary - 3-6 years of age
- Lower Elementary - 6-9 years of age
- Upper Elementary - 10-12
It helps both younger and older children is so many ways:
- Younger children get to see older children focus for longer and on more complex tasks, inspiring them work towards that. Academically, it also naturally pushes younger children.
- Older children have an opportunity to be a role model, developing their leadership skills.
- Older children have the chance to teach and mentor, developing their empathy and communication skills.
- A mixed age class also provides children with a more realistic understanding of how life works in the 'real world', where they will have to navigate social interactions with individuals of various ages.
- Children also don’t overcomplicate things, like adults tend to do. When a 6 year old is working with a 3 year old, they aren’t thinking about that child’s development or making sure they’re using the right vocabulary. They’re just doing it the way they know how to do it.
Just yesterday I heard my three year old ask my six year old what a compass was. My six year old simply told him that it's something explorers use when they get lost, to help find their way.
If he had asked me, I probably would have probably tried to explain the four cardinal directions and magnetic north, etc.
Sharing accurate and detailed info is helpful too...
But there's something so wonderful about an uncomplicated answer that allows them to get right back into their play/work.
How To Support Mixed-Age Playing
The key to supporting mixed age play is avoiding unnecessary interference and correction.
In a classroom, the teacher doesn’t correct the older child if they present an activity or information “incorrectly” because they realize how beneficial these interactions are for both children.
Monitor for safety but otherwise give them space to learn how to communicate, work together, and develop their social skills. Recognize the benefits, instead of focusing on the risks.
Your child might not have the opportunity to be in a mixed age classroom.
But it's good to keep this in mind as you watch your child navigate other social situations, like in parks or during play dates with friends or family's children.
