“Eagerness for surmounting difficulties and for high attainment is much more frequently found in children than we, judging by our own experience as adults, easily suspect.”
- Date
- 1917
- English wording
- Arthur Livingston — Translator · from Italian
Meaning of “Eagerness for surmounting difficulties and for high attainment…”
Montessori cautions adults against underestimating children’s willingness to engage with challenge, arguing that observed performance can reveal stronger motivation and aptitude than adult assumptions predict.
Where does it come from?
The Montessori Elementary Material (1917), Arthur Livingston translation, Part VI, Music, Chapter I, “The Scale,” beginning on printed page 322 and continuing onto page 323, Project Gutenberg #42869. After describing children’s differing interest in bell exercises, Montessori argues that adults often underestimate children’s eagerness for difficulty and high attainment and says actual performance reveals particular aptitude. This remains her historical educational observation rather than a modern validated aptitude test or clinical claim.
