Little Andy walks purposefully through the forest, holding a deep red leaf in her small hand. Every so often, she bends down, picks up another one, and compares it to the first. She subjects them all to a thorough examination. On her way back home, she ends up holding only two, one in each hand — these only met her expectations and criteria.

All along the way, she admires them. What is happening in her mind at that moment? What occupies her thoughts, and what is she searching for with such determination? Children possess great curiosity — this is evidenced by the questions they bombard adults with. To what extent, however, do they concern themselves with "adult" issues, such as death or sex? Are these innocent questions mere flashes, or do they conceal a lasting engagement with the mysteries of life?

Susan Engel, in The Intellectual Life of Children, draws from her personal experience as well as from significant research in the fields of psychology and education to prove that children systematically engage with difficult and complex concepts. When a child collects leaves, shells, or stamps, collects comics or albums, they may be attempting to solve a problem that occupies their mind.

These early collections may conceal an engagement with a question or perhaps reveal a calling. When a four-year-old child asks about God or death, it may be the first time they are forming an idea. Engel highlights how important these moments are and shows how teachers and parents can leverage them, cultivate children's interests, and initiate them into the world of inquiry, invention, and ideas.