Benefits of Mixed-Age Interaction

One of my favorite things about our group is watching some of the "littles" grow to become "bigs" - and seeing them interact with younger peers in the same way that older children once did with them.

Here is a wonderful example of this cycle of friendship: Jacob has been with us since he was six weeks old, and is now a helpful, sociable five-year-old. Today, he spent some time building a train for his little buddy Austyn to play with. After working to get it just right, Jacob proudly presented his creation to his friend. Austyn excitedly crawled over and began grabbing individual pieces. Jacob laughed and said, "Well, that's okay. I think he likes it!"  :)