How exactly do you teach kids critical thinking?

How do you teach anyone critical thinking?


Lead them down the path: "Why do you think that's true?" "How do you know that?" "How would you figure it out?"- these are all good questions that raise the basic points of critical thinking.

I figured Father Christmas out aged six. My parents always had Father Christmas but it was always on the edge of a game for the very youngest members of the family. I was really excited one year and it wasn't that I was staying up for Father Christmas, because being a skeptical child I was always thinking about that kind of thing, but I was just really excited for Christmas.

So I wouldn't go to sleep. My stocking, at that time, was at the end of my bed. My mother came in carrying a duvet to tell me to sleep and talked to me from the end of my bed. Five minutes later she returned, still carrying the duvet. It wasn't until a couple of minutes later I realised-- magic-- my stocking was full.

I figured it out. I confronted her the next day but she denied it. But I knew and I have always been incredibly impressed at her willingness to play the game. So I knew for sure at six, but wouldn't exchange it for the world.

The youngest member of my family is now ten. We still enjoy the game. Father Christmas still fills the stockings of the people who are sleeping over. My ten year old sister a couple of years ago starting looking askance at us when we talked about Father Christmas. She'd heard, or figured it out, and was starting to realise it was a game. I'm pretty sure she's worked it out now-- she's also probably figured out that the Easter Bunny probably wouldn't leave paper footprints through the house!

I think that the Father Christmas fantasy is a nice story. Any child taught to observe will notice that Father Christmas doesn't make sense, especially if you make him not make sense by including different Father Christmas stories and myths and allowing them to ask questions like, "How does he fit down the chimney?" "How does he get around the world?" Smart children with a lot of information about the speed that people can go and how big people are figure things out.

And it's fun!

How exactly do you teach kids critical thinking?

Ask questions yourself of things you don't know in front of children, show yourself doing research for yourself and with your children, encourage children to ask questions and draw conclusions from observation and ultimately ask some questions of children. The only thing I would caution against is turning every fun or fascinating experience into a stream of questions. You can be pleasant and casual about it. Focus on the learning and discovery rather than the conclusions for young children-- the conclusions will come.

I think the key component of teaching critical thinking is the willingness to find things out. Many parents don't have this themselves, but you can model it very easily on the beach, at museums, at dinner, with the wooden blocks. "I wonder why..?" "Can we make a really tall tower? How?" I think showing enthusiasm and curiousity in the world is almost sufficient by itself to create a strong base, although obviously you can go further if you want.

Teshi wrote:

How exactly do you teach kids critical thinking?

Ask questions yourself of things you don't know in front of children, show yourself doing research for yourself and with your children, encourage children to ask questions and draw conclusions from observation and ultimately ask some questions of children. The only thing I would caution against is turning every fun or fascinating experience into a stream of questions. You can be pleasant and casual about it. Focus on the learning and discovery rather than the conclusions for young children-- the conclusions will come.

I think the key component of teaching critical thinking is the willingness to find things out. Many parents don't have this themselves, but you can model it very easily on the beach, at museums, at dinner, with the wooden blocks. "I wonder why..?" "Can we make a really tall tower? How?" I think showing enthusiasm and curiousity in the world is almost sufficient by itself to create a strong base, although obviously you can go further if you want.

^^ This