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Curiosity is the desire for knowledge (Markey & Loewenstein 2014). The opening vignettes highlight how curiosity drives children鈥檚 learning (von Stumm, Hell, & Chamorro-Premuzic 2011). But what does curiosity look like before a child can talk?

In babies, we might observe

• expressions of wondering or questioning (raised eyebrows, for example);
• steady gazes between what鈥檚 being observed and a trusted information source (parent, teacher, or older child);
• vocalizations (of excitement, or rising, questioning intonation);
• or pointing (as if to say, 鈥淲hat is that?鈥� or 鈥淲hat is happening here?鈥�).

To express curiosity, toddlers may

• ask a question or repeat an action over and over again;
• take your hand and show you what they are curious about;
• or persist in trying different ways of gathering information about an object or activity.

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There are several different kinds of curiosity (Berlyne 1978). Curiosity can be motivated by a desire for knowledge or information鈥攚ondering how a door opens on a busy box or why some objects float and others sink. There is also the curiosity that is driven by a desire to entertain ourselves鈥攍ike wondering what will happen if we pour water into sand. Still another type of curiosity is driven by the pleasure of that comes from mastery鈥攊magine watching a child patiently stacking unevenly shaped rocks into a tower, sometimes failing and sometimes succeeding but all while maintaining curiosity.

Think of curiosity as being prompted by an essential knowledge gap between what we听currently know听and what we听wish to know; we feel intensely motivated to fill this gap with desired knowledge (Loewenstein 1994). When individuals feel curious, they 鈥渆ngage in persistent information-seeking behavior鈥� (Shin & Kim 2019, 854), and听all听children are curious. Perhaps this is why emerging research shows a connection between higher curiosity in children and higher reading and math scores at kindergarten (Shah et al. 2018).

Promoting curiosity in the classroom

Each type of curiosity can be nurtured in the early childhood classroom, and each curiosity can foster a child鈥檚 early learning. Here are some key practices that early childhood educators can try to build on a child鈥檚 natural desire to explore and learn. (Also see 鈥淭ips for Nurturing Curiosity in Your Early Childhood Classroom鈥� above for reflection questions and suggested activities.)

• Practice the 5 Ws of wondering.听Look for opportunities to model asking questions and wondering together by asking听who, where, when, why听and听how听questions. Toddlers are able to ask听what听questions at about 24 months, then听where听(26鈥�32 months), who听(36鈥�40 months) and finally听when, why,听and听how听questions (42鈥�49 months).
• Use 鈥淚 wonder . . . 鈥� statements.听Find ways to incorporate 鈥淚 wonder鈥� statements into your discussions and activities: 鈥淚 wonder what will happen next in this story,鈥� 鈥淚 wonder why the ball rolled farther on that ramp,鈥� 鈥淚 wonder how he鈥檚 feeling,鈥� and 鈥淚 wonder where they鈥檒l pour the cement.鈥� By modeling 鈥淚 wonder鈥� statements, you are showing your own curiosity and encouraging children to engage with you in finding a solution. You may find children begin to share their own wonderings with you鈥攚hich create important opportunities to implement an emergent curriculum driven by their curiosity. Imagine a group of three toddlers running up to show you a cicada casing (empty shell) that they found on a tree trunk. You might use this as a learning opportunity in the classroom. You can introduce new vocabulary, such as听cicada,听casing, and听life cycle, and teach them about the distinctive loud buzzing sound cicadas make. You may also follow up on this conversation with some age-appropriate books on insects to continue the children鈥檚 wonderings.
• Document children鈥檚 wonderings.听For toddlers (ages 2 years and up), make it a practice to ask children what they are curious about when you introduce a new material, object, or experience. Document their questions and wonderings on a flipchart and find answers to their questions during this planned exploration. For younger toddlers and babies, use the 鈥渟portscasting,鈥� or play-by-play technique, to describe what babies seem to be asking or curious about: 鈥淵ou鈥檙e wondering how that top pops up. Watch how I turn the handle鈥攈ere, you can help me try.鈥�
• Point out changes.听Identifying changes and patterns in the world around us sparks a child鈥檚 desire to 鈥渇igure out鈥� how things work. 鈥淒o you see how this leaf looks different than this leaf over here? What do you see that鈥檚 different? Would you like to touch them both?鈥�
• Allow children to try and fail.听Rather than offering a solution to every problem, share an observation and ask a question: 鈥淭he block tower keeps falling down. Why听do you think that happens?听What听can we do to make it stay up?鈥澨齇f course, the teacher knows that putting the giant rectangle block on the very top of the block tower means it will come crashing down. But toddlers do not yet understand balance and weight distribution. Letting children experiment in this way builds their problem-solving skills and grows knowledge about the physical world by harnessing their curiosity about the event.
• Follow the children鈥檚 lead.听Every child is different, and what sparks curiosity will vary from child to child. See what captivates a child鈥檚 or group鈥檚 interest and suggest, 鈥淟et鈥檚 learn about this together!鈥� One class, after hearing an informational text about bats, became fascinated by these flying mammals. Their teacher created a 鈥渂at cave鈥� out of a child-sized table covered by a blanket. The children would 鈥渇ly鈥� around the classroom and then return to the cave where they would pretend to hang upside-down.

Curiosity can be a source of motivation, learning, and joy for all of us鈥攏ot just children. In fact, the inborn drive to be curious and seek out knowledge has been shown to activate the reward center of an adult鈥檚 brain鈥攕eeking knowledge to satisfy our curiosity feels good (Kang et al. 2009). By creating classrooms that celebrate curiosity, we can nurture children鈥檚 internal pursuit of knowledge, their pleasure in discovery, and their emerging understanding of the world around them. Most of all, by sharing in their curiosity, we build stronger relationships with children鈥攖he kind of relationships where they can better grow and thrive.

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References

Berlyne, D.E. 1978. 鈥淐uriosity and Learning.鈥� Motivation and Emotion 2 (2): 97鈥�175.

Kang, M.J., M. Hsu, I.M. Krajbich, G. Loewenstein, S.M. McClure, J.T.Y. Wang, & C.F. Camerer. 2009. 鈥淭he Wick in the Candle of Learning: Epistemic Curiosity Activates Reward Circuitry and Enhances Memory.鈥� Psychological Science 20 (8): 963鈥�73.

Markey, A., & G. Loewenstein. 2014. 鈥淐uriosity.鈥� In International Handbook of Emotions in Education, eds. R. Pekrun & L. Linnenbrink-Garcia, 246鈥�264. London and New York: Routledge.

Shah, P.E., H.M. Weeks, B. Richards, & N. Kaciroti 2018. 鈥淓arly Childhood Curiosity and Kindergarten Reading and Math Academic Achievement.鈥� Pediatric Research 84 (30): 380鈥�86.

Shin, D.D., S. Kim. 2019. 鈥淗omo Curious: Curious or Interested?鈥� Education Psychology Review 31: 853鈥�74.

Von Stumm, S., B. Hell, & T. Chamorro-Premuzic. 2011. 鈥淭he Hungry Mind.鈥� Perspectives on Psychological Science 6 (6): 574鈥�88.

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