Hi all!
My DS5 (6 in 2 months, because it tends to matter in these earlyish years) tends to gravitate toward older kids; generally 8-12 year olds.
I know that gifted kids tend to gravitate towards older kids, but I guess in my head I picture this as more maturity and a different kind of intellectual stimulation. For example, I went to a college-level program when I was 16 that included a few high school seniors, but mostly college age (or post-college age) students. Though I was the youngest one in the class, I gravitated toward hanging out with the college and grad school students.
Since I went to traditional school and didn't really have a gifted program, I don't have any experience able what this "hanging with the big kids" thing looks like in younger kids. My son is into biking, scooter riding and skateboarding, and so the kids he wants to hang with are the ones who are into these things and are at a slightly higher level than him. So I don't know that it's intellectual stimulation that he's seeking, but maybe this is sort of the same thing?
We homeschool and I think are pretty lucky in that we end up in a lot of situations where these older kids are friendly with him, sometimes teaching him new tricks, and are at least tolerant. However, I, as a parent, can sense/see some eye-rolling about the little kid trying to tag along. And in some cases, he really is trying to tag along, as they're faster than him and he's trying to keep up.
Kids his age aren't as physically talented as DS in these arenas, so in some ways, the older kids are closer to being peers. But, you know, a 5 year old hanging out with a 10 year old is a bit awkward when it's all the time.
How have people navigated these waters in the early years? I think I'd be more comfortable if he was, say, a young teenager hanging with older teens, but he's just so little, ya know?
