"Our primary concern is not that the child learns to do something without mistakes. Our real concern is that the child does what he needs, with interest." The reaction of so many adults to the mistakes of children is to correct, immediately and directly, says Joosten. To truly aid the child in development, we must learn to control our response to the child's mistakes and recognize that it is through these mistakes that the child's difficulties are revealed. We always have the choice whether or not to correct a child in the moment of error. If we pay attention and observe the mistakes of children in order to discover the source of those mistakes, we can be guided in how best to remove those difficulties that impede the child's development. [Reprinted from "Around the Child 1" (1956): 32-39.]