--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The education of even a small child…" description: "\"The education of even a small child, therefore, does not aim at preparing him for school, but for life.\" — Maria Montessori" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2db/maria-montessori-709_aim_the-education-of-even-a-small-child-ther_2010776.png" --- # The education of even a small child, therefore, does not… ![“The education of even a small child, therefore, does not aim at preparing him for school, but for life.” quote by Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2db/maria-montessori-709_aim_the-education-of-even-a-small-child-ther_2010776.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2db/maria-montessori-709_aim_the-education-of-even-a-small-child-ther_2010776.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2db/maria-montessori-709_aim_the-education-of-even-a-small-child-ther_2010776.png) > “The education of even a small child, therefore, does not aim at preparing him for school, but for life.” [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Education should equip children with practical life skills, not just academic knowledge. **In simple terms:** Teach life, not just school. Key Takeaway Focus on real‑world readiness. Themes education lifelong learning practicality Mood inspirational thoughtful Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - home economics - community involvement - career planning - daily chores Key Concepts child development holistic education skill acquisition Questions to Reflect On - What life skills are essential for today’s youth? - How can schools integrate practical learning? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on life skills may neglect academic foundations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [School life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school-life/) [Small child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-child/) ## Related quotes > [Praise, help, or even a look, may be enough to interrupt him, or destroy the activity. It seems a strange thing to say, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/praise-help-or-even-a-look-may-be-enough-to-interrupt-him-or-destroy/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [The greatest development is achieved during the first years of life, and therefore it is then that the greatest care should be taken. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/the-greatest-development-is-achieved-during-the-first-years-of-life/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [We've had this program for a number of years now, called 10,000 Small Businesses, where Goldman Sachs has convened a group of partners to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lloyd-blankfein/we-ve-had-this-program-for-a-number-of-years-now-called-10-000-small/) [Lloyd Blankfein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-blankfein/) > [There have been great men with little of what we call education. There have been many small men with a great deal of learning.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-coolidge/there-have-been-great-men-with-little-of-what-we-call-education-there/) [Calvin Coolidge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calvin-coolidge/) > [Youve got to have a good public education system so small-business owners, when they locate to an area, are confident their kids are getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-tester/youve-got-to-have-a-good-public-education-system-so-small-business/) [Jon Tester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-tester/) > [How can we speak of Democracy or Freedom when from the very beginning of life we mould the child to undergo tyranny, to obey…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/how-can-we-speak-of-democracy-or-freedom-when-from-the-very-beginning/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Indeed there are powers in the small child that are far greater than is generally realized, because it is in this period that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/indeed-there-are-powers-in-the-small-child-that-are-far-greater-than/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Children have an anxious concern for living beings, and the satisfaction of this instinct fills them with delight. It is therefore easy to interest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/children-have-an-anxious-concern-for-living-beings-and-the/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Sometimes very small children in a proper environment develop a skill and exactness in their work that can only surprise us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/sometimes-very-small-children-in-a-proper-environment-develop-a-skill/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [What a child does not know and does not want to know of race and color and class, he learns soon enough as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/what-a-child-does-not-know-and-does-not-want-to-know-of-race-and-2/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [One travels so as to learn once more how to marvel at life in the way a child does. And blessed be the poet,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-maillart/one-travels-so-as-to-learn-once-more-how-to-marvel-at-life-in-the-way/) [Ella Maillart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-maillart/) > [A mother understands what a child does not say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jewish-proverb/a-mother-understands-what-a-child-does-not-say/) Jewish Proverb > [It's a bad child who does not take advice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/african-proverb/it-s-a-bad-child-who-does-not-take-advice/) African Proverb > [If your child does not have the confidence to look into your eyes and say Daddy, I Love You. Then you haven't been a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-mark/if-your-child-does-not-have-the-confidence-to-look-into-your-eyes-and/) [Terry Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-mark/) > [I do believe that when your child does poorly on a test, your first step should not necessarily be to attack the teacher or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-chua/i-do-believe-that-when-your-child-does-poorly-on-a-test-your-first/) [Amy Chua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-chua/) ## More by Maria Montessori > [Plainly, the environment must be a living one, directed by a higher intelligence, arranged by an adult who is prepared for his mission.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/plainly-the-environment-must-be-a-living-one-directed-by-a-higher/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [To assist a child we must provide him with an environment which will enable him to develop freely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/to-assist-a-child-we-must-provide-him-with-an-environment-which-will/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Imitation is the first instinct of the awakening mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/imitation-is-the-first-instinct-of-the-awakening-mind/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [The undisciplined child enters into discipline by working in the company of others; not being told he is naughty.” “Discipline is, therefore, primarily a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/the-undisciplined-child-enters-into-discipline-by-working-in-the/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [When you have solved the problem of controlling the attention of the child, you have solved the entire problem of its education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/when-you-have-solved-the-problem-of-controlling-the-attention-of-the/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [It is exactly in the repetition of the exercises that the education of the senses exists; not that the child shall know colors, forms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/it-is-exactly-in-the-repetition-of-the-exercises-that-the-education/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Adults look upon a child as something empty that is to be filled through their own efforts, as something inert and helpless for which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/adults-look-upon-a-child-as-something-empty-that-is-to-be-filled/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [The observation of the way in which the children pass from the first disordered movements to those which are spontaneous and ordered -- this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/the-observation-of-the-way-in-which-the-children-pass-from-the-first/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [The teacher's task is not a small easy one! She has to prepare a huge amount of knowledge to satisfy the child's mental hunger.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/the-teacher-s-task-is-not-a-small-easy-one-she-has-to-prepare-a-huge/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Education is a work of self-organization by which man adapts himself to the conditions of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/education-is-a-work-of-self-organization-by-which-man-adapts-himself/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [The possibility of observing the developments of the psychical life of the child as natural phenomena and experimental reactions transforms the school itself in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/the-possibility-of-observing-the-developments-of-the-psychical-life/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Never help a child with a task that they feel they can complete themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/never-help-a-child-with-a-task-that-they-feel-they-can-complete/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [It is not the child as a physical but as a psychic being that can provide a strong impetus to the betterment of mankind.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/it-is-not-the-child-as-a-physical-but-as-a-psychic-being-that-can/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [By the age of three, the child has already laid down the foundations of his personality as a human being, and only then does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/by-the-age-of-three-the-child-has-already-laid-down-the-foundations/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Rewards and punishments, to speak frankly, are the desk of the soul, that is, a means of enslaving a child's spirit, and better suited…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/rewards-and-punishments-to-speak-frankly-are-the-desk-of-the-soul/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) [Explore all 397 Maria Montessori quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) ## More Aim quotes > [If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zig-ziglar/if-you-aim-at-nothing-you-will-hit-it-every-time/) [Zig Ziglar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zig-ziglar/) > [A good aim surveys the present state of experience of pupils, and forming a tentative plan of treatment, keeps the plan constantly in view…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/a-good-aim-surveys-the-present-state-of-experience-of-pupils-and/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [The Christian man must aim at that complete obedience to God in which life finds its highest happiness, its greatest good, its perfect consummation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-barclay/the-christian-man-must-aim-at-that-complete-obedience-to-god-in-which/) [William Barclay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-barclay/) > [ He \[an earnest young reporter\] seemed to share the view of many intelligent, well-educated, well-meaning people that, while adult literature may aim to be… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-paterson/he-an-earnest-young-reporter-seemed-to-share-the-view-of-many/) [Katherine Paterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-paterson/) > [In Bosnia, little children shot in the head by a guy who thinks it's okay to aim his gun at a child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiane-amanpour/in-bosnia-little-children-shot-in-the-head-by-a-guy-who-thinks-it-s/) [Christiane Amanpour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiane-amanpour/) > [Design certainly has a cosmetic, aesthetic aim. It always aims at making things beautiful. But relevance is just as important. I often say, 'If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yves-behar/design-certainly-has-a-cosmetic-aesthetic-aim-it-always-aims-at/) [Yves Behar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yves-behar/) > [My aim was to make money for the bank. You lose track of the amounts involved when you are engaged in this kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-kerviel/my-aim-was-to-make-money-for-the-bank-you-lose-track-of-the-amounts/) [Jerome Kerviel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-kerviel/) > [My only aim is to clock a time that everyone remembers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hima-das/my-only-aim-is-to-clock-a-time-that-everyone-remembers/) [Hima Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hima-das/) > [My main aim has always been to do good quality films with roles that have some substance. With Power and Beauty there were loads…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-henstridge/my-main-aim-has-always-been-to-do-good-quality-films-with-roles-that/) [Natasha Henstridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-henstridge/) > [ I really enjoyed it - being involved in watching rushes and playback \[in "The Invisible Woman"\]. Ralph \[Fiennes\] was very open to my input,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicity-jones/i-really-enjoyed-it-being-involved-in-watching-rushes-and-playback-in/) [Felicity Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicity-jones/) > [My aim is to be counted among the top players.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/babar-azam/my-aim-is-to-be-counted-among-the-top-players/) [Babar Azam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/babar-azam/) > [The single aim of my life is that every child is: free to be a child, free to grow and develop, free to eat,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kailash-satyarthi/the-single-aim-of-my-life-is-that-every-child-is-free-to-be-a-child/) [Kailash Satyarthi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kailash-satyarthi/) > [The aim of good prose words is to mean what they say. The aim of good poetical words is to mean what they do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/the-aim-of-good-prose-words-is-to-mean-what-they-say-the-aim-of-good/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [Prescribing hard work for the soft, or easy work for the hardy, is generally nonsense. 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