From Shells to Strength: What Octopuses Can Teach Us About Risk-Taking in Early Childhood

Once upon a tidepool, octopuses were armored and protected—shelled mollusks like their relatives, snails and nautiluses. But over millions of years, something remarkable happened. They lost their shells. What might seem like a disadvantage actually set them free: free to squeeze into tight spaces, camouflage instantly, explore complex environments, and develop some of the most impressive problem-solving abilities in the animal kingdom.

In a very different but deeply connected way, children, too, grow when we allow them to take thoughtful risks. While we often want to wrap them in metaphorical shells for protection, it's the very absence of constant shielding that helps them become flexible, adaptive, and capable thinkers—just like the octopus.

The Evolutionary Leap: Losing the Shell

For early cephalopods, the shell was both armor and limitation. It protected them from predators but confined them to a narrow way of moving through the world. The octopus’s ancestors gave up the shell to evolve more complex nervous systems, arms with their own mini-brains, and the ability to learn, play, and problem-solve. In short, losing the shell gave them freedom and intelligence.

But evolution didn’t do this in a day. It was a process of trial and error—of risk and reward. And the result? A creature that’s now studied not just for its biology but for its cognition. Octopuses can open jars, solve mazes, and even escape from aquarium tanks. Their flexibility, curiosity, and adaptability are direct results of risk-taking through evolution.

Children Need to Lose Their Shells, Too

In early childhood, risk doesn’t look like skydiving—it looks like climbing that slightly-too-tall structure at the playground, trying to zip a coat without help, or speaking up when they feel nervous. These little “risks” are actually essential steps in developing confidence, executive function, and emotional resilience.

Just as the octopus became stronger and smarter without a shell, children become more capable when we allow them to stretch, stumble, and self-correct. Risk-taking in early childhood supports:

• Problem-Solving: When children are allowed to experiment, they learn from consequences and become better thinkers.
  
  
• Resilience: Facing a challenge (and sometimes failing) teaches children that they can try again—something a shell of overprotection won’t offer.
  
  
• Confidence: Conquering a fear, no matter how small, builds pride and belief in their own ability.
  
  
• Creativity: Like the octopus, which adapts to its environment in endlessly inventive ways, children need space to explore and experiment.
  
  

The Paradox of Protection

Of course, we protect because we love. But overprotection, like a shell that’s never shed, can limit the very qualities we want to foster. The goal isn’t to remove all safety nets, but to shift the mindset from “How do I prevent risk?” to “How do I support safe, meaningful risks?”

Ask:

• Can they try it on their own first?
  
  
• What’s the real risk here—physical injury or emotional discomfort?
  
  
• What will they learn if I let go for just a moment?
  
  

Final Thoughts: Octopuses, Kids, and Courage

The octopus, with its soft body and sharp mind, is the ultimate example of strength through vulnerability. It reminds us that giving up the illusion of total protection often opens the door to greater intelligence, adaptability, and freedom.

So next time your child wants to climb a little higher or try something new, think of the octopus. What they gain might be invisible now—curiosity, confidence, self-trust—but like the ocean’s most brilliant invertebrate, they’re evolving into something amazing.