What are your thoughts on a mixed age preschool?

[daisy1234]

DD has a speech delay and we are looking into all preschool options. The school DS went to last year was a mixed age preschool...3,4,5's together. For center learning they are grouped according to developmental levels. but free play, gym class, morning centers are all together. The class is 2.5 hours long. and there are 16 children in the whole class. Any thoughts on this compared to a school that separates them. My only concern is that there are a lot of children in one class. There are 2 teachers for 16 children. In the other schools where the 3's are separate the class is smaller with one teacher. Not sure if this matters???? One positive is that maybe being with the older children...this could be good for her....since they typically are more verbal???? Seems to make sense???

[schrocat]

DS is in a mixed age class at Montessori and it has worked out great. He's a mentor to the younger kids and I've noticed that he's much nicer to the younger children than the other kids his age. He'll be moving up to the primary classroom soon so he'll be one of the oldest but it should be a good experience for him.

[KBecks]

When our playgroup friends investigated preschools, there were concerns about 3,4,5's together -- primarily that more would be expected of the 3's in terms of sitting and doing academic things when they need more play time and free exploration. Two moms chose a playschool that has a 3 year old class.

We are pursuing Montessori, which is 3,4 and 5 together but the learning is individualized and so it's not about having to line up and sit quietly for long periods, which was my main concern about the more academic and structured preschools.

[hez]

We chose an in-home daycare setting partially because of the variety of ages DS would be exposed to-- it's worked out very nicely from that aspect. That said, we chose a single-age preschool, because DS was already getting the multi-age exposure at the sitter's home.

If he weren't getting the exposure via her home, I'd be exploring ways to do it-- if not preschool, then perhaps via a playgroup or other setting.

[Gena]

DS is in special needs preschool though the local school district. It’s a mixed age class with 3-5 year olds for 2.5 hours a day, four days a week. The age range has never been as issue to us. I think it’s a good mix for some kids to be older and some younger. There is huge amount of variation in development in that age group, so not all the 5 year olds are more advanced in all areas than all the three year olds. To me it makes more sense to group kids by developmental level than by age.

In DS’s class there are 12 kids (8 with IEPs and 4 typical peers), with 1 teacher and 2 aides. There is also a therapist in the classroom every day (ST on Monday, OT on Tuesday, etc). So the child to adult ratio is pretty low. But the ratio you are looking at is usual around here for typical preschools.

How delayed is your daughter’s speech? Does she qualify for services from the school district?

[ellies mom]

My DD is in a mixed age developmental program (not academic). There seems to be a lot of kids but there is also a ton of adults because it is on campus where I go. I never really thought about the mixed age thing, I'm just so thrilled that that they have the same philosophy as I do with the flexibility I need as I my schedule changes each term and a price I can afford.

I do know that they do pull aside the kids that are getting ready to start kindergarten for a little "academic practice" a few minutes a day (for the last month or so). But the rest of the time, the kids are all together and it seems to work out well.

[JBaxter]

Nathan does 3,4& 5's in his montessori preschool I really like it.

[ThreeofUs]

We love it. DS would rather interact with kids a couple of years older anyway, and it works really well for him. We're in montessori, too.

[AngelaS]

I think it's a great idea.

I mean truly, outside of 13 years of public schooling, when else are you only in a group of people that are all within one year of you in age? Life is all about mixing with people of all ages and I think doing that early is a great building block for life.

[Karenn]

DS went to a mixed age preschool and I loved it. So did he. I wouldn't be comfortable with it if it were a more academic school where there was a lot of direct instruction on the part of the teacher, but in a play based program, I think it is ideal. It was fascinating to watch which age group my DS tended to play with over the course of his time there. I ended up with a much better perception of his social development than I would have if he were in a group of same age peers.