Question
Hi, Lina! I signed my daughter up for an after school class called “Introduction to Theater” at an arts studio. The age group was for 6-7 year olds. The teacher informed me that she’s going to have to cancel the class because my daughter is the only student signed up but she said I could have her join another theater class made up of 7-10 year olds. Do you think it would be ok to have her be the youngest in the class? Just concerned how she will be treated by the “older” kids and if they could expose her to things that kids their age are into (like tv shows or toys or whatever else that may not be age appropriate for her). Or would it be good for her to be around older kids, since she is already more mature for her age and being around older kids would help advance her more in theater? The max number of students is 6 for the class.
Answer
When I work with schools and they ask for my assistance, I don't recommend mixing those age groups. The way I recommend age groups to be split are 5-7, 8-10, 11-13, 14+
What the 9 and 10 year old's will bring to the class is way beyond her emotional, social, and cognitive understanding. If you really want her in the class, get a good breakdown of the ages. If there are lots of 7 and 8 year old's then great but if it's 9 and 10 heavy I would pass on the theater class this year.