My Husband loves Bob's show and the times that we have gone there have been a few kids that seemed to be more reluctant to join, some stayed with their families the whole time, whereas others started joining in once they started feeling more comfortable, but there was certainly no pressure (except for some parents that were pressuring their own kids). Also, if they are really apprehensive the lounge area wraps around the bar so it is possible to sit further back in the lounge and still hear Bob but not be anywhere near the action, you certainly don't get the full experience here but you can hear the show and the people in this area are still pretty engaged with the show. Unfortunately, it gets pretty filled up, or has when we have been there, so it isn't easy to move from the farther room to the closer one if they do decide they want to be closer.