The multi-age groupings are a fundamental hallmark of Montessori education. By interacting with children of varying ages, a child learns to understand and respect her place in a community that extends beyond the students in her same “grade.” As a younger member of her classroom community she learns from observing and interacting with older classmates. By the time she becomes an upperclassman, she will reinforce her learning by providing an example to younger children. One never learns a concept as well as when one teaches it to another.

Multi-age classrooms also permit a child to build a special, longer-term relationship with her teachers, which cultivates a sense of belonging to a learning community.