Can You Do This?

[FCCLife]

I currently have my dd who is 5 and a a dcg who is 4 and a dcg whom is 19months. The 4&5 year old spend most of their time at the dining room table playing because the 19 month old takes things. Now the 19month old crawls across the table to snatch things and runs. I have thought about gating off a area for the 4&5year olds to play with big girl toys but I don't know if it is wrong to be able to have the separate area gated off. Right now the girls play at the table while I play with the 19 month old so I guess no different then it is now. Do I provide the big kid zone or continue trying to get them to play together? Opinions, ideas?

[Fiddlesticks]

My daycare rooms are what would be a formal living room and dining room. The dining room is gated off for the bigger children, the littles are not allowed in there. The bigger children deserve a place where they can play without having their towers knocked down, or their drawings ripped up. They still play in the main room with the littles, but they have their own space as well. While it is two rooms, no matter which room I am in I can see everything in the other room as if we were all in the same room, so supervision is never an issue.

[Ariana]

I currently have a high table my big kids play at that the younger ones can't reach. I have also, in the past when my dd was little, moved shelves around and created a space for older kids that only older kids knew how to get into. At this age they need their space. The 19 month old can learn social play from you!

[Rockgirl]

I have also, in the past when my dd was little, moved shelves around and created a space for older kids that only older kids knew how to get into. At this age they need their space. The 19 month old can learn social play from you!

I have done this, as well. It worked great!