Critical Thinking Skills for Children

It is strange that we expect students to learn, yet seldom teach them anything about learning. - Donald Norman.

Education consists of two things - subject matter and evaluation of subject matter. As far as the subject matter or content is concerned, it is properly transmitted from the teachers to the students. But when it comes to evaluation of the subject matter by the children, it seems like a difficult process, mainly because the children lack basic critical thinking skills. We should understand that developing critical thinking (or starting the process) in children is as important as transmitting knowledge.

What is Critical Thinking?

Critical thinking is the correct way of thinking in order to attain relevant as well as reliable knowledge about our surroundings. This strategic thinking, based on reasoning, is focused on helping an individual to decide what to believe and what to do. Critical thinking helps the person to question, gather necessary and relevant information, reason and come to a reliable conclusion. We don't possess these skills right from our birth, nor do we develop them more than basic day-to-day survival thinking. These skills need to be thought by the parents and the teachers.

Recognize, Recall and Classify

When children are learning something, while they have fun, they take more interest in things which they are learning. One has to tap this aspect of teaching children to inculcate critical thinking in them. Encourage the children to apply the knowledge that they gain in practical activities. Critical thinking exercises for children include activities which would make the children recognize things, recall them and classify them. Some such activities include giving children a story to read, and asking them to follow-up their reading by explaining the logical connection between the events in the story. Quizzes, puzzles, debating and problem solving can make the children think strategically, and hence should be encouraged. These exercises for children can help them to master memory techniques, thus inculcating critical thinking skills in them at a very young age. It is important that the person who is teaching critical thinking to the children himself believes in it, and applies it in the questions he asks the children.

Applying Knowledge

Just grasping the subject matter is not at all useful, the children should learn to apply the knowledge which they gain in various walks of life. Subjects like mathematics and science are based on logic, but if they are not practically applied, then there is no use of learning them. At times, even doctors, who can boast of sound educational background, resort to getting help from something supernatural, which itself shows that science and maths are immaterial, if not used properly. These skills don't just make children smart, but also help them when it comes to decision making. It helps the children to reach the root cause of the problem in order to eliminate it completely, instead of finding a temporary solution for it.

Sans critical thinking, the world will no doubt drown in the sea of gullibility, and hence it is important that the same is inculcated right from childhood. As we grow older we tend to memorize, but we are not comfortable with the adapting part, but in childhood we are eager to learn as well as adapt. We as parents and teachers should make full use of this and thrive to inculcate the habit of critical thinking in young minds.