A: Critical thinking skills are important for students at all academic levels.  Critical thinking is the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgment. This skill will not only help with school.  Analyzing and evaluating ideas will remain an important skill to have as an adult as well.

Here are some ideas to help develop your student’s critical thinking skills at any age:

  1. Help your child discern differences by having them compare and contrast two objects or two ideas. For older children this can include sides of a political debate, law, or social injustice.
  2. Teach children how to seek information when they have a question. This can be through discussing the question with peers, researching using the library or online search engine, or using logical reasoning to reach a conclusion.
  3. Ask your child to make predictions during story time. Pause while reading and ask your child, “what do you think will happen next?” As children get older, you can talk to them about predicting outcomes in social situations, with literature, or with forming a hypothesis with science experiments.