Challenges of Providing Multi-Age Groupings

[Anonymous]

Share some thoughts about the challenges of providing multi-age groupings

[Grace Baer]

Personally, multi-age groupings are a challenge because I so often work with groups that are divided by age. Most often, the groups I see are Pre-Kindergarten groups and elderly residents grouped by mental and cognitive abilities. With both types of groups, I structure and plan my sessions with songs that are appropriate for the corresponding ages. When a group is mixed with multi-aged participants, I have to make sure that my materials, delivery, and interaction with the participants are appropriate for each of them. Unlike my two examples of groups that I see, a Sprouting Melodies class that has multi-age grouping would probably be much closer in age, such as siblings a few years apart. In this instance, I would need to be careful that I am allowing lots of opportunities for the younger child to participate while still engaging and challenging the older child. This would also be an opportunity to encourage sharing, working together, and joint attention within multi-aged pairs of children.

[Celia Grove]

I think the big challenges of multi-age groupings come down to understanding where every participant is in their development. You might have one kiddo who is definitely exploring themselves and coming into their own and wants to be the star of the show, but you might also have someone who still needs all the trust and safety of having a parent nearby. I like in the video about Family Sprouts using those older kiddos as a model and making sure those older kiddos as models is a great idea because as one person you can only do so much!

[Samantha M Lawrence]

Thinking back onto the challenge of multi-age groupings reminds me of my time spent in dayhabs. These were so challenging because there was no way to know who was going to be there that day, they were ages 22+ with varying levels of ability and developmental levels, and so many individual interests. For these groups, the biggest challenge is that it’s very hard to plan and prepare.

I think in a multi-age group, it’s the group cohesion that really makes such a huge difference. You can do your best to meet the needs of each group member, but you can never meet everyone’s needs in every moment. So I feel like in these groups if you can create a space where group members can work together and support each other, that makes so much difference! Like in the video, older kids modeling for the younger ones, that is so great!

I’m looking back at an adult group home session I had earlier today. I had a group member request a pumpkin song for another member because she knew how happy it would make them. This group has a span of ability levels, but they love seeing each other succeed, experience joy, and make sure everyone’s preferences are communicated.

Group cohesion is not something that can be created all at once, it’s developed over time. However, I think other tips and tricks for these types of sessions are flexibility in the session plan and having a variety of instrument choices.

[Leeann Mcmorrow]

What awesome group dynamics!

[Hally Batterman]

I agree with Samantha that flexibility and adaptability are key when working with multi-age groupings. Luckily, we are trained right from the start of our education that we as therapists need to be flexible. I ran some multi-age groupings at my facility over the summer as part of a new summer camp that we started at the Music Academy. I was so nervous when I was told that the youngest in the group was to be 9 and the oldest in their mid-20’s. However, all participants were notified before agreeing to join the summer camp music group and the participants themselves felt it would be a great opportunity for them to act as “mentors” for the younger members. This is exactly what happened and it was truly beautiful to witness in the moment. The older members became role models for the younger ones and it created a space for support and encouragement amongst all group members.

I could easily see how this situation could translate to a Sprouting Melodies group. It would create the perfect space and opportunity for sharing, caring for one another, learning the concepts of kindness and empathy (which we often focused on in these types of groups when I used to work at a pre-school), etc.

[Erika Svolos]

Thank you all for insightful contributions.

[Brenna Sheaffer]

When providing services for multi-age groups you have to remember the various age levels and abilities of each child and how the music needs to touch upon everything. You also need to be aware of all children’s responses to the group and how you can tailor the music so that each child has developmentally appropriate responses to the music and opportunities for exploration and growth.

[Caitlyn Pawelek]

Like many have stated, the challenges of a multi-age group involve being able to adapt to all of the development needs of each individual. Being able to give everyone the attention they need while still addressing the group as a whole can be a challenge. Having the older clients act as mentors and models for the younger ones can aid in this challenge. Adapting and finding songs and interventions that can be used for the entire group and adaptations for different developmental levels is also important for the group.

[Leeann Mcmorrow]

I’ve been struggling with this issue particularly at the monthly library concerts that I have been doing over the last year. The size of group tends to be very large with multiple ages represented. There are a few things I have learned are helpful in this setting.
1. Songs with a lot of movement: keeping the kids moving often helps with engagement with the large group.
2. Songs with directions: Clear directions (like If You’re Happy and You Know it Clap Your Hands) allows everyone to participate together.
3. Songs with choice (but don’t take too long with decisions): The last time I was there, I did Old McDonald had a Farm, and I asked the kids for animals to sing about. I didn’t always wait until I heard the name of an animal- sometimes the kids just made an animal sound, and I picked that up quickly and moved forward with the song, which helped keep everybody engaged.

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