How do I convince someone that she can handle work for an older child?
Emotional maturity would be part of this. Possibly coaching her to provide a factual and non-emotional response when faced with disappointment may prepare her to participate in a group of older children.
Parents may need to consider that a trade-off exists. There is a potential downside to a younger child attending events intended for older children, and/or having a parent's blanket permission for the child to choose his/her own non-fiction reading material from the adult reference section of the library:
- Some parents prefer their children's input be filtered.
- Older children may speak of things which they deem common knowledge and which a younger child may not be prepared to process (for example: tooth fairy, easter bunny, santa claus, sexual references).
- Similarly, books may contain unexpected information.
Planning and preparation which includes open discussion may help a child access opportunities which are usually reserved for older children.
