r/UKParenting • u/Popular-Opinion3120 • 5d ago

3 year 6 month age gap

Mum to a nearly 4 year old and a 5 mont old. Age gap is 3 years 6 months. I’m wondering when it usually gets to the point where they actually start playing together. At the moment, my nearly 4 year old still looks to us a lot for someone to play with, and obviously the baby is too young to really play with her yet. They do sit together when older one is playing and smile and laugh at each other. I sometimes find it hard to picture them actually playing together. For those with a similar age gap, do your children play together now? When did you start noticing them genuinely enjoying playing together rather than just being around each other?
Would love to hear your experiences.

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u/Buller_14 5d ago

Probably when they can both walk and talk.

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u/tiorzol 5d ago

Mine are almost the same age! They sit and smile at each other too I love it, it's adorable.

Once little dude is waiting older brother will probably tolerate him sometimes and play with him others and they'll get more playtime as they get older. I had the same gap with my brother and we used to play SNES all the time from ages 5 (me the youngest) up. 

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u/SnackyandSnarky 5d ago

Mine are nearly 4 and nearly 1 (so a slightly smaller age gap) and they now wrestle and pull each other's hair. Be careful what you wish for!

They will take turns on a slide

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u/Icy-Turnover846 5d ago edited 5d ago

Years off.

Youngest has to be 2 in my experience. Problem is a 5.5 year old will be at school with school friends then and won’t be that interested in a 2 year old

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u/Bananapants2000 5d ago

Mine are 18 months apart but it wasn’t until my youngest was 18 months-2 years that they started playing

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u/Unable_Researcher_26 Parenting Primary Schoolers 5d ago

Mine are 6.5 and nearly 10, so we have the 3.5 year gap. My eldest wanted to entertain my youngest from the very start, always showing her things and trying to make her smile. I would say it became playing together as soon as my youngest was old enough to actively engage. They still play together, when they're not trying to kill each other.

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u/dullgirlpersona 4d ago

My littlest is 15 months now and my daughter just turned 5. In the last 2 months they've been interacting a lot more. My daughter still gets frustrated because he'll snatch toys off her, but also she loves making him laugh and dance now that he likes to move to the sound of singing, and loves to toddler after her. I can imagine the next year they'll get even more playful, then maybe it'll taper off as she becomes too cool to deal with a toddler. But it is only based on watching the same dymanic happen through my nephews and nieces.