Helping Children Stay Curious

By Jared Lisonbee

“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing¹.”

–Albert Einstein

Children are born curious. They begin engaging with and discovering their world from the day they are born. As young children gain the ability to wonder, ask questions and make connections, they discover the joy of learning which pushes them to discover even more.

Unfortunately, as many children progress across childhood, the spark of curiosity that leads to a love of learning diminishes. The “how” and “why” questions common in early childhood may be replaced by “What do I need to know for the test?” or “Just tell me the right answer.”

In our world where technological advances are happening at a rapid pace, curiosity and creativity will be increasingly essential characteristics to have. Parents and teachers working with young children have a big influence on supporting children’s continued curiosity. Unfortunately, adults may also contribute to the loss of curiosity through committing common “curiosity killers”. Here are a few recommendations for how adults can promote and support children’s curiosity beginning in the early childhood years:

Curiosity Supports	Curiosity Killers
Curiosity Questions	Discouraging Children’s Questions
Engaging, Hands-on Learning	Passive Learning
Encouraging Trial and Error	Fear of Failure
Focus on the learning process	Focus on the learning product
Knowing Children’s “Zone of Proximal Development”	Learning Activities are Too Hard or Too Easy
Individualized Learning	One-size Fits all Teaching/Learning
Appropriately Celebrate Success	Hollow Praise or External Rewards
Emphasizing the Joy of Learning	Making learning a chore or “work”

Curiosity Questions:  Many of the best learning moments start with a child asking “why.” To encourage this curiosity driven learning, adults should engage with the child when the child asks questions to encourage continued questioning and discovery. This may involve asking the child additional questions to encourage continued observation and exploration to gain additional information as well as help make connections by linking ideas and concepts. Through guided observation and careful probing, the adult can support the child’s joy that comes from making a discovery.

In contrast, if the adult simply gives the answer to the child without encouraging curiosity, the child misses out on the satisfaction of experiencing the discovery process.

Adults can encourage children’s joy of discovery by modeling curiosity questions. By frequently asking “how” and “why” questions, adults can show that they are continuously curious themselves, as well as invite children to develop additional curiosity questions to extend the depth of their learning.

On the other hand, adults may unintentionally squelch children’s “why” questions, leading to a fear or hesitancy on the part of the children to ask curiosity questions. These “curiosity killers” include using the adult’s position of authority to avoid helping the child find the answer to her or his question (e.g., Responding to a child’s curiosity question with “Because I said so!” or “That’s just the way it is.”). Adults may also hinder children’s curiosity by simply dismissing or failing to engage with the child when the child is curious. When adults fail to engage with children’s curiosity questions, the child may receive the message that curiosity is not valued or important. The child will then be more hesitant to ask questions in the future.

Hands on Learning and Exploration:  When given the opportunity to engage in hands-on exploration, children learn to make discoveries on their own. These discoveries lead children to develop curiosity questions which leads to additional exploration by the child.

On the other hand, if a child’s learning environment is primarily characterized by passive observation of adults demonstrating an intended lesson, the idea learned by the child may be that the child is not competent to discover on his or her own and should rely on others to provide the learning experience for the child. To prevent this, adults should consistently plan activities that involve hands-on learning appropriate for children to actively engage in the learning and discovery process.

Encouraging Trial and Error:  Recently, I invited my five-year-old daughter to write a description of a picture she had drawn using invented spelling. She asked me if she could just tell me what to write and then I could write the words for her. I told her that I would be glad to help her make the words by listening for the sounds in the words she wanted to write. She then asked if I would at least write the words in “grown up writing” for her to copy. When I asked her why she wanted me to write the words for her to copy, she said that she wanted to “write it right.” I tried to explain to her that finding the letter sounds in words is part of the learning process, but sadly, it was hard to convince her since she already had a fear of “getting it wrong.” Fear of “messing up” hurts children’s curiosity because it can interfere with children’s willingness to take risks and learn from the experience of trying things that don’t work and then revising their strategies to find different strategies to accomplish their goals.

Children need to have permission to make mistakes. When we emphasize the learning process of trying out strategies to see what works and what doesn’t work rather than emphasizing an end product (e.g., “getting it right”), we support children’s curiosity.

Focus on the learning process rather than the product:  Teaching the learning and discovery process is a key to promoting curiosity. Some well-intentioned teachers and parents may present children with models or end products with explicit instructions for the children to follow in order to produce the desired product. The message that children receive from this approach is that there is a right way to accomplish a task, and individual experimentation and exploration is discouraged. When an end product is emphasized, children are not encouraged to engage in brainstorming and planning to come up with their own strategies for solving a problem or accomplishing a goal. This self-directed learning process is essential for developing healthy curiosity.

Guiding Discovery within the “Zone of Proximal Development”:  The developmental theorist Lev Vygotsky encouraged people working with young children to provide guidance to children to help them learn within the child’s “Zone of Proximal Development” (ZPD)². The ZPD refers to skills that a child is able to perform with some coaching or support (scaffolding) from adults or knowledgeable others. If a task or activity is too easy for a child, it does not provide a challenge to the child and the child may soon become bored. Having a challenge to motivate the child to achieve a new skill or some new knowledge encourages children to engage in the learning process and work to solve a problem.

However, if a skill is too advanced for a child, even with support and guidance, the task becomes frustrating for a child and the child will be more likely to give up or develop doubt in his or her ability to succeed. Self-doubt is another common curiosity killer. Getting to know children’s skills and ability levels can help parents and teachers provide an appropriate level of challenge and guidance for children to develop confidence in their ability to effectively engage in their learning environment.

Individualize Learning:  Knowledge of children’s interests and abilities allows adults to promote curiosity by individualizing learning. As children learn from others, the media, and their environment, children develop a unique set of likes, dislikes, and interests. These unique interests allow a child to develop a level of expertise as they connect new learning to their existing knowledge to grow their knowledge in an area. Skilled parents and teachers acknowledge each child’s unique set of interests by providing opportunities for children to engage in learning that is uniquely suited to the child.

On the other hand, parents and teachers discourage curiosity when they use a “one-size-fits-all” approach to engaging children in learning. If a parent or teacher dismisses individuality by assuming that all children of the same age will like or be able to engage in the same activity equally, or makes assumptions about children’s likes or interests that are based on factors such as the child’s sex, race, or ethnicity, the child receives that message that their uniqueness does not matter as much as their conformity to stereotyped expectations. Dismissing individuality may prevent a child from pursuing her or his own self-directed learning and exploration driven by the child’s unique interests.

Appropriately Celebrate Children’s Success:  We tend to like being recognized for the successes that we experience. However, the type of acknowledgement that children receive for their successes contributes to children’s continued curiosity. Children tend to increase their curiosity and engagement in learning when the motivation is internal (from within the child) rather than external (e.g., rewards and punishments)³. Adults can support children’s internal motivation for learning by acknowledging the efforts and strategies children use to explore (e.g., “You kept trying to get the marble to roll down the track even when it wasn’t working, and you finally did it! Good problem solving.”). When children develop a love of learning for the sake of learning or from the personal sense of accomplishment they receive from solving a problem or achieving a goal, they are more likely to aim for more advanced achievement, leading to continued curiosity.

On the other hand, motivation based on external rewards (e.g., approval from adults, receiving treats or stickers, avoiding disapproval), may lead to the learning process becoming more like a job or chore to complete to get something in return. Parents or teachers may accidently harm children’s curiosity by telling children things like “you have to finish your school work (or homework) before you can have fun.” The message children learn from this is that learning is not fun, but something that has to be done in order to get to do something fun. In order to preserve children’s curiosity, the enjoyment that comes from learning and discovering should be emphasized.

Emphasizing the Joy of Learning:  The love of learning and discovery displayed by infants and young children learning about their environment can serve as a model for the types of learning experience we should aspire to provide for children throughout childhood. Parents and teachers can encourage children’s curiosity by providing materials and activities that encourage children to ask questions, explore, and problem solve. As children learn that curiosity is valued and learning is exciting and enjoyable, children will be more likely to develop a lifelong love of learning which will enrich their lives and lead to confidence and confidence in the ability to learn and solve problems.

Our goal, as adults, should be to support the development of curiosity in the children we work with, as well as striving to continuously “stay curious” ourselves.

¹ Quoted in “Old Man’s Advice to Youth: ‘Never Lose a Holy Curiosity.’” LIFE Magazine, May 2, 1955.

² Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

³ Corpus, J. H., & Wormington, S. V. (2014). Profiles of intrinsic and extrinsic motivations in elementary school: a longitudinal analysis. The Journal of Experimental Education, 82(4), 480-501.