Great Quotes for Kids About Passion and Enthusiasm

What are the things  in school and in life that get you most excited?  Maybe its sports or animals or music or cooking or Legos or writing or art or drama or cars or fashion or computers or helping people?  Maybe it is all of those things?

Do you have something that you are passionate about?  If so, you are very lucky!  If  not, don’t worry, you just need to pay attention to what you like and dislike, be curious and be open to trying new things.  Having passion and enthusiasm are key for achieving success and meaning in school and life.  As Arthur Balfour once said, “Enthusiasm moves the world.”

While some people discover and focus on their passions very early in life, others take a long time to do so.  The important thing is really just to pay attention to what inspires you and makes you happy.

Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, loved science from the time he was very young.  He was especially interested in the science of sound. When he was a child, he would sit in a field and try to listen to the sound of wheat growing!  When he was in his teens, he spent his own time studying the way the way our voices work.

Although Bell didn’t realize at that time that he would go on to change the world by inventing the telephone, his childhood interests and passions were leading him there…and he followed them.  This story is the same for many people who have changed the world.

Here are some great quotes for kids about passion and enthusiasm.  And then, below, are ways that you can use these gifts to make a difference in your life and the world.

• “Find something you’re passionate about and keep tremendously interested in it.” – Julia Child
• “I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.”  – Albert Einstien
• “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.” – Harriet Tubman
• “Feel your emotions,
  Live true your passions,
  Keep still your mind.”
  – Geoffrey Gluckman
• “Passion is a feeling that tells you: this is the right thing to do. Nothing can stand in my way. It doesn’t matter what anyone else says. This feeling is so good that it cannot be ignored. – Wayne Dyer
• “There is no passion to be found playing small – in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.” – Nelson Mandela
• “Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow.” – Anthony D’Angelo
• “Passion is what drives us crazy, what makes us do extraordinary things, to discover, to challenge ourselves. Passion is and should always be the heart of courage.” – Midori Komatsu
• “Be brave and be patient. Have faith in yourself; trust in the significance of your life and the purpose of your passion.” Jillian Michaels
• “Passion is energy.  Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.”  – Oprah Winfrey
• “Enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. When you do a thing, do it with all your might. Put your whole soul into it. Stamp it with your own personality. Be active, be energetic and faithful, and you will accomplish your object. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
• “No matter what you do with your life, be passionate.”  – Jon Bon Jovi
• Rest in reason; move in passion.” – Khalil Gibran
• “Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” – Howard Thurman
• “A person can succeed at almost anything for which they have unlimited enthusiasm.” – Charles Schwab
• “Why do we have to listen to our hearts?” the boy asked, when they had made camp that day.  Because, wherever your heart is, that is where you’ll find your treasure.” – Paulo Cohelmo (The Alchemist)
• “Doing what you love isn’t a priviledge; it’s an obligation.” – Barbara Sher

Now check out the video from a 17 year old who talks about how and when he developed his passion:

Additional Resources:

• Click here to see many InspireMyKids stories and videos about people that demonstrate what passion and enthusiasm is all about
• Click here for other great quotes for kids
• Learn more about Alexander Graham Bell, whose passion for sound changed the world

Topics for Discussion:

• What are your top 3 favorite quotes above?  Why?
• What is something you are passionate about?  What is it you like about it?  How do you feel when you are doing it?
• Do you know that displays passion.  Is there anything you can learn from them?

Take Action:

• List three things that you are passionate about.  Can you think of a way to help someone or something by putting one or more of your passions to work?
• Find a cause that can use your passion, such as animals, and see what you can do to help.  For example, click here for a great list of ideas to help animals from the ASPCA or here for ways to help the environment.

Teacher Features:

• Here is a link to a Critical Reading Skills worksheet that you can use for elementary school students.
• Here is a link to a Critical Reading Skills worksheet that you can use for middle school students.