be seen as natural philosophers in a certain way, the clinical philosopher on the pediatric ward of a hospital would be a highly reasonable innovation. <...> He or she would encourage the children to give their ‘inner philosopher’ full scope and would assist them caringly in orientating themselves in the world — especially under the preconditions of being ill. The child as a philosopher Basically all children in their capacity as newcomers to this world are disposed to orient themselves in the world. <...> Admittedly, this is a task that essentially is never completed because humans, as existing creatures, are subject to permanent change, and the world is engaged in a constant transformation. <...> Therefore, adults are required to help children with their orientation in the world. <...> Usually, children trust adults to do just that. <...> More precisely, they believe that the grown-ups want to and can help them to find orientation in the world. <...> The betrayal of this naive basic trust is catastrophic. 178 Philosophy is orientation in thinking and at the same time orientation in the world through thinking. <...> However, doing philosophy is also, as we can see watching children discover the world, a fundamental human need. <...> This alone, however, does not automatically make each human a philosopher. <...> Adults possess greater experience in thinking, so that they can guide the children in the thought process. <...> By contrast, childlike thinking is more naive — innocent, as Nietzsche puts it. <...> Infantile thinking distinguishes itself through a form of refreshing naivety, which adult thinking has lost in the course of years. <...> This naivety can sometimes have an unmasking quality. <...> Thinking does not blindly accept common truths. <...> While adults are inclined to comfortably confine themselves in a shell of preestablished truths, children are not as quick to settle for common sense explanations. <...> By this means the persistent asking child is able to help the grown up philosopher to get to the bottom of things by hindering him or her to come up with immediate answers which prevent a deep illumination of the matter in question. <...> Those who do philosophy with children should ask what children have seen and what answers they have given to serious questions. <...> Philosophical education <...>