Philosophy for Children - Logic: Critical Thinking and Wondering About the World

➖ 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗖𝗵𝗼𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗼𝗽𝗵𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱? ➖
In a world filled with quick answers and instant information, philosophy offers something truly special: the chance for your child to slow down, think deeply, and ask why. This class is designed to nurture your child’s natural curiosity and help them develop essential skills like critical thinking, problem-solving, and reasoning—all while having fun! Through interactive, Socratic-style discussions, your child will learn to question assumptions, explore new perspectives, and articulate their ideas with confidence. These skills won’t just help them with their education—they will set them up for success in life.

➖ 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 ➖
Children are born philosophers, always asking big questions about the world around them. Why is the sky blue? What does it mean to be fair? How do we know what’s real? In this class, we celebrate their curiosity and provide a safe, supportive space for them to explore these ideas. Through engaging discussions and thought-provoking exercises, your child will build critical thinking skills while connecting with peers who share their sense of wonder.

This isn’t a typical class where kids sit back and listen—it’s an interactive experience! Using the Socratic Method, we create a circle of inquiry where every child’s voice matters. The teacher guides students to ask questions, challenge assumptions, and consider different viewpoints in a judgment-free environment. Through open-ended dialogue, kids learn to think about how they think—a skill that will benefit them in every area of life.

  ➖𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗪𝗲’𝗹𝗹 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲➖

We’ll dig into big, meaningful topics like reality, courage, truth, and friendship. These conversations help children better understand the world and their place in it, while also encouraging them to reflect on their own values and beliefs. In a supportive and inclusive environment, your child will grow more confident in expressing their ideas and listening to others.

This class is based on Matthew Lipman’s book Kio & Gus, a story that sparks philosophical thinking through the adventures of two curious friends. Kio visits his grandparents’ farm and befriends Gus, and together they explore the nature of animals, people, and the world around them. Each chapter presents new situations and questions that will inspire your child to think deeply and engage in meaningful discussions.

The teacher will share relevant sections of the book as PDFs during class, and we’ll explore these big ideas together. 

The maximum number of learners in class will be 6. This ensures that all learners have the opportunity to share their thoughts with their peers. 

𝗦𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀:
Introductions/Warm up questions, such as: Think of something you are glad happened. Can you be happy and sad at the same time? Think a funny thought.
Round table discussion of the philosophical concepts facilitated by the teacher.
Wrap up/Goodbye

Please note that the below listed months are a guideline. The study of philosophy is a spiral where the concepts are covered multiple times and in multiple ways throughout the classes. Even when not specifically listed the topics are being covered each month. There are multiple groups with varying start dates.  Due to multiple active groups and amount of student driven discussion and engagement, not all groups are on the same topic. If you are looking to join in at a specific topic of discussion, please send me a message so I can let you know which group will best meet your needs. Thank you for your understanding.

𝗧𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵:
𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆:
•Exploring hypotheses: "Can you be afraid of nothing?" 
• Understanding children-animal relationships and animal intelligence. 
• Taking turns, intentions, imagining, cause & effect, and inferring.
𝗙𝗲𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆:
• Delving into metaphors and figures of speech: "Is it possible?"
• Examining quantity vs. quality, making a difference, inferring, persuasion, and memory.
𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵:
• Analyzing ethical dilemmas: "Do animals have rights?" and "Might makes right?"
• Developing arguments, justifying actions, logical fallacies, family dynamics, and imagination.
𝗔𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗹:
• Investigating homonyms, saying vs. speaking, trust, believing, and exploration.
𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲:
• Distinguishing real vs. fake, decision-making, analogies, and descriptive reasoning.
𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆:
• Examining mental acts: wondering, knowing, and understanding.
• Exploring concepts of beauty, fairness, and the line between pretending and reality.
𝗔𝘂𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁:
• Defining truth, reality, and simplicity.
• Engaging in hypothetical and analogical reasoning.
𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿:
• Comparing believing vs. knowing, and discussing truth, goodness, and the "best."
• Analogical reasoning and understanding perception.
𝗢𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿:
• Investigating origins and causation: "Why do things happen the way they do?
• Analyzing intentions and contrasting farm life vs. life at sea.
𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿:
• Exploring abstract ideas: "Are numbers real?" and "Do things have names?
• Discussing minds, communication, guessing, and understanding relationships.
𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿:
• Reflecting on idioms, puzzling questions, trust, thinking, and the concept of existence.

𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗲: Topics rotate back to the beginning once the final theme is completed, ensuring continued engagement and learning.

The methodology of this course is based upon the teachings of Matthew Lipman.

𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘀:

𝗥𝗲𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘆:
I follow Outschool's policy on refunds for ongoing classes: Parents enrolled in an ongoing class will see a “stop subscription” button instead of “withdraw” on the classroom page after the class’s first meeting. Use this button to prevent any future weekly charges, starting with the following billing period, which rolls over Sunday mornings Pacific time. You can use this to stop future charges at any time.  There will be no refunds issued for a student(s) missing class.  

𝗢𝘂𝘁𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗔𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘆: If your learner misses a class meeting, you are not entitled to a refund. If your learner misses 3 consecutive class live meetings without communicating with the teacher, you forfeit the class fee and the teacher may cancel the class or withdraw your learner.” 

𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘆: Please note that per Outschool policy, if there are 0 students after the first 10 minutes of the class, the class will be canceled for that day. The live meetings are scheduled for 50 minutes; however, depending upon the number of students and the amount of participation from the class, some live meetings may be shorter than 50 minutes.  If the teacher needs to cancel class a makeup class will be assigned. If the student is unable to attend the makeup class a refund will be issued after the makeup class.

𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘆:
When you enroll your child in my classes, you are paying for a live, interactive group learning experience. To maintain the integrity of this format, I do not release recordings of my live classes.
The decision not to share recordings is to protect the safety and privacy of all learners. Many families prefer that recordings of their children not be shared or distributed to others, and I fully respect and prioritize that preference. Additionally, this policy helps safeguard my intellectual property, as the lessons I teach are original content I have personally developed. Unfortunately, the misuse or unauthorized distribution of educational resources is a growing concern, and this policy helps mitigate such risks.
Thank you for your understanding and support in creating a safe and respectful learning environment.