The following two pages have some wonderful quotes by some well-known and some less well-known people about the wonder of childhood.
http://www.naturalchild.org/quotes/2009.html
http://www.naturalchild.org/quotes/2010.html
Our society and times place little value on childhood itself. Childhood in this age of hyper-nervous parenting is about keeping children safe from any and all danger long enough that they can be molded into future superstars. On both accounts we do tremendous damage to children.
"I would like to know why it is that we have disregarded all children’s significantly spontaneous and comprehensive curiosity… Nothing seems to be more prominent about human life than its wanting to understand all and put everything together."
R. Buckminster Fuller
"A child does not have to be motivated to learn; in fact, learning cannot be stopped. A child will focus on the world around him and long to understand it. He will want to know why things are the way they are. He won’t have to be told to be curious; he will just be curious. He has no desire to be ignorant; rather he wants to know everything."
Valerie Fitzenreiter