Read the passage about awareness and answer the question: According to the passage, how do children perceive things around them in their early years?

Introduction / Context:
This question is based on the same passage about awareness and the difference between children and adults. The author contrasts the way infants experience the world with the way grownups do. You are asked to identify the specific word used in the passage to describe children's early perception of sights and sounds.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The passage states that "seeing and hearing have a different quality for infants than for grownups."
• It further explains that they "are more aesthetic and less intellectual in the first years of life."
• The little boy in the passage sees and hears birds "with delight," before his father introduces names and labels.
• The question asks: "How do children perceive things around them?"

Concept / Approach:
The key phrase is "more aesthetic and less intellectual." "Aesthetic" relates to beauty, artistic enjoyment, and sensory delight. The author is emphasising that young children experience the world through delight in sights and sounds, rather than through intellectual classification. Therefore, the correct answer must reflect this aesthetic mode of perception rather than an intellectual, moral, or purely emotional one.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify the part of the passage that directly describes children's perception. Step 2: Note the exact wording: "more aesthetic and less intellectual in the first years of life." Step 3: Understand that this means they respond to beauty, colour, and sound rather than concepts and categories. Step 4: Look at the options and find the one that matches "aesthetic." Step 5: Choose "Aesthetically" as the correct answer, since it is derived from the adjective "aesthetic."

Verification / Alternative check:
Review each other option. "Intellectually" is clearly contrasted with "aesthetic" in the passage; the author says children are less intellectual, not more. "Emotionally" and "morally" are not used in the text at all. Although children may certainly have emotions and moral development, the passage specifically highlights the aesthetic nature of their early perception. Therefore, only "Aesthetically" precisely matches the author's description.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

• Intellectually: The passage states the opposite, that early perception is "less intellectual."
• Emotionally: While children may be emotional, the passage does not mention emotions here; it focuses on aesthetics and intellect.
• Morally: There is no reference to moral judgement or ethical perception in this context.

Common Pitfalls:
Sometimes exam takers choose "emotionally" because they associate children with strong feelings, or "intellectually" because they misread the contrast. The safest strategy in such questions is to rely on the exact wording in the passage instead of guessing from general knowledge or stereotypes about children. When an author uses a specific technical term like "aesthetic," chances are high that the correct option will echo that term closely.

Final Answer:
According to the passage, children perceive things around them primarily aesthetically, rather than intellectually, in their early years.