---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I’m always amazed when adults say that…"
description: "\"“I’m always amazed when adults say that children “just did that to get attention”. Naturally children who need attention will do all kinds of things to..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/anonymous-1_children_i-m-always-amazed-when-adults-say-that-c_937507.jpg"
---

#  I’m always amazed when adults say that children “just did…

![“I’m always amazed when adults say that children “just did that to get attention”. Naturally children who need attention will do all kinds of things to get it. Why not just give it to them?” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/anonymous-1_children_i-m-always-amazed-when-adults-say-that-c_937507.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/anonymous-1_children_i-m-always-amazed-when-adults-say-that-c_937507.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/anonymous-1_children_i-m-always-amazed-when-adults-say-that-c_937507.jpg)

> ““I’m always amazed when adults say that children “just did that to get attention”. Naturally children who need attention will do all kinds of things to get it. Why not just give it to them?””

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Children seek attention through behavior, and denying it may reinforce those actions; giving attention can be a constructive response.

**In simple terms:** Kids act to get attention; respond positively.

Key Takeaway

Provide attention when appropriate, not as a reward for misbehavior.

Themes

parenting behavior attention

Mood

concerned thoughtful

Type

advice parenting

When to use this quote

- Managing classroom behavior
- parent‑child communication
- setting boundaries
- positive reinforcement strategies

Key Concepts

Psychology of attention reinforcement theory

Questions to Reflect On

- When should you give attention versus set limits?
- How do you balance attention and discipline?

A Different Perspective

Over‑giving attention can unintentionally encourage undesirable behavior.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/)

## Related quotes

> [“Why did adults have to be so thick? They always say “tell the truth,” and when you do, they don’t believe you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/why-did-adults-have-to-be-so-thick-they-always-say-tell-the-truth-and-3/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Children say 'I want to grow up faster'. Adults say 'Oh how I wish I was young again'. The heck?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/children-say-i-want-to-grow-up-faster-adults-say-oh-how-i-wish-i-was/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“You're a kid,' said Alexandra. 'There is no just about it. Only adults say just a kid and what the heck do they know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-re-a-kid-said-alexandra-there-is-no-just-about-it-only-adults-say/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [So what should we say when children complete a task—say, math problems—quickly and perfectly? Should we deny them the praise they have earned? Yes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/so-what-should-we-say-when-children-complete-a-task-say-math-problems/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [They say that if you give your children too much, they don't get the joy out of work. They just want the unearned things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-rinehart/they-say-that-if-you-give-your-children-too-much-they-don-t-get-the/)

[Gina Rinehart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-rinehart/)

> [Adults say that we're to young to know what love is, but maybe they're to old to remember.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/adults-say-that-we-re-to-young-to-know-what-love-is-but-maybe-they-re/)

[Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/)

> [Adults are always telling young people, 'These are the best years of your life.' Are they? I don't know. Sometimes when adults say this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/adults-are-always-telling-young-people-these-are-the-best-years-of/)

[Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/)

> [Since I spent eighteen years of my life as a child, and nine years of that life as a pretty sexually active gay child,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/since-i-spent-eighteen-years-of-my-life-as-a-child-and-nine-years-of/)

[Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/)

> [“Here's what bothers me about adults. They say we're supposed to be the bigger person and lie there like road kill while the bullies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-hammond/here-s-what-bothers-me-about-adults-they-say-we-re-supposed-to-be-the/)

[Lauren Hammond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-hammond/)

> [“When adults say, " teenagers think they are invincible," with that sly, stupid smile on their faces, they don’t know how right they are.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/when-adults-say-teenagers-think-they-are-invincible-with-that-sly-3/)

[John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/)

> [Why did adults have to be so thick? They always say “tell the truth,” and when you do, they don’t believe you. What’s the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/why-did-adults-have-to-be-so-thick-they-always-say-tell-the-truth-and-2/)

[Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/)

> [“At the time, I thought this was just one of those vague things adults say to remind you that you're a kid who doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brock-clarke/at-the-time-i-thought-this-was-just-one-of-those-vague-things-adults/)

[Brock Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brock-clarke/)

> [When adults say, "Teenagers think they are invincible" with that sly, stupid smile on their faces, they don't know how right they are. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/when-adults-say-teenagers-think-they-are-invincible-with-that-sly/)

[John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/)

> [“Why did adults have to be so thick? They always say "tell the truth", and when you do, they don't believe you. What's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/why-did-adults-have-to-be-so-thick-they-always-say-tell-the-truth-and/)

[Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/)

> [“When adults say, "teenagers think they are invincible" with that sly, stupid smile on their faces, they don't know how right they are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/when-adults-say-teenagers-think-they-are-invincible-with-that-sly-2/)

[John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/)

## More by Anonymous

> [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

[Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## More Attention quotes

> [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/)

[David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/)

> [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/)

[Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/)

> [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/)

[Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/)

> [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/)

[Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/)

> [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/)

[Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/)

> [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/)

[Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/)

> [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/)

[Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/)

> [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/)

[Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/)

> [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/)

[Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/)

> [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/)

[Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/)

> [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/)

[Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/)

> [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/)

[Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/)

> [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/)

[Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/)

> [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/)

[Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/)

[Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“I’m always amazed when adults say that children “just did that to get attention”. Naturally children who need attention will do all kinds of things to get it. Why not just give it to them?”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Anonymous"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-always-amazed-when-adults-say-that-children-just-did-that-to-get/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Attention"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-always-amazed-when-adults-say-that-children-just-did-that-to-get/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/anonymous-1_children_i-m-always-amazed-when-adults-say-that-c_937507.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/anonymous-1_children_i-m-always-amazed-when-adults-say-that-c_937507.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/anonymous-1_children_i-m-always-amazed-when-adults-say-that-c_937507.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I’m always amazed when adults say that children “just did that to get attention”. Naturally children who…” — Anonymous",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Anonymous",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“I’m always amazed when adults say...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-always-amazed-when-adults-say-that-children-just-did-that-to-get/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-always-amazed-when-adults-say-that-children-just-did-that-to-get/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
