In case it is not obvious, whilst many of these quotations are consistent with Taking Children Seriously, many of them are not. Sometimes it is just interesting that that person said it, or it is interesting for some other reason.
“[L]et him attend to his work, be glad in it, love his wife, be glad in her, bring up his children with joyfulness, love his fellow men, rejoice in life.”
– Søren Kierkegaard, 1850, Training in Christianity
“The way a child learns how to make decisions is by making decisions, not by following directions.”
– Alfie Kohn, 1993, Punished by Rewards: The Trouble with Gold Stars, Incentive Plans, A’s, Praise, and Other Bribes, The Chance To Choose, p. 249
“The basic idea that the child is not now but will become later, does not know anything but will do so, is not capable of doing anything but will learn, makes us live in a perpetual state of expectation.
For the sake of tomorrow we fail to respect what amuses, saddens, amazes, angers, and interests him today. For the sake of tomorrow, we steal many years of his life.”
– Janusz Korczak, 1999, A Voice for the Child: The Inspirational Words of Janusz Korczak
Return to alphabetical index of Quotations pages
Taking Children Seriously, ‘Quotations K’, https://takingchildrenseriously.com/quotations/