Montessori glossary · The classroom
Mixed-age classroom
One room spanning roughly three years of age, so children learn alongside older and younger peers.
In plain English
What it actually means
Younger children see what is coming and want it; older children consolidate by explaining. The oldest year of each three-year cycle is where the benefit is clearest, which is why leaving before the kindergarten year forfeits most of the return on the two years before it. It also means a child can be ahead in one subject and behind in another without it being an event.
Why it matters to you
On a tour
Single-age classes are the clearest sign a school has kept the materials and dropped the model.
More terms
Other words you will hear
Hear these words used properly
Tours run mid-morning, during the work cycle, year-round.