Phun Philosophy and Critical Thinking for Kids
In this ongoing class, leaners cultivate critical thinking, communication, and interpersonal skills while challenging assumptions they live by and expand their awareness of different perspectives and possibilities.
Jordan Kohanim
Average rating:
4.9
Number of reviews:(167)
Popular
What's included
1 live meeting
50 mins in-class hours per weekAssessment
Largely discussion based monitored by teacher. Students may be asked share out mind maps for reflectionClass Experience
US Grade 6 - 9
Philosophy is the study of ideas, and it is a discipline ripe for pop culture reference and examination. Whether it is discussing how Rick and Morty are existentialists in search of absurdism or how Spongbob Squarepants explains Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, philosophers engaged in all sorts of disciplines are continuously exploring how media and art reflect questions of self and society. In this ongoing class, students meet weekly, bringing their favorite pop philosophy news of the week to discuss with their own peers, as we examine and discuss philosophical references, explore discourse methods, and develop our own questions and hypotheses about what we have learned. This class is for the kid that recognizes that pop culture isn’t all flash and bang and wants to explore what might be behind the “deeper” episodes. In relation to the most important issues in life: we believe that teaching students to 'disagree in an agreeable manner' is an essential skill to cultivate with young people in a healthy democratic society. What is taught: Skills aligned with Common Core English Language Arts Standards *See below TEXTS WILL BE POSTED PRIOR TO CLASS. STRUCTURE/ METHODLOGY: Warm Up Activity and Discussion. . (5 – 7 minutes); classroom instruction: text examination, video explanations, and discussion (35 – 40 minutes); reflection visual activity self (5 minutes); recap lesson and objectives (5-7 minutes) Any required experience or knowledge learners need? No experience needed! WEEK 1: Topic/Theme. Socrates: Know Thyself WEEK 2: Topic/ Theme: Know thy World WEEK 3: Topic/Theme: I Kant Believe it! (Kant and Self) WEEK 4: Topic/Theme: Hegel and Social Power Structures Week 5: Topic/Theme: Existentialism Week 6: Topic/Theme: Baudrillard, Saussure and the Hyper-real After the first six classes, discussions will be fueled by student request and may circle back to original topics
Learning Goals
Standards aligned with Common Core Literacy:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.1
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.2
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.3
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.4
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.5
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.6
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.7
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.8
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.9
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.10
Students will learn how to:
analyze how a work of fiction draws on themes, patterns of events, or character types
cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and plot; provide an objective summary of the text
analyze how a theme from a literary work develops over time and fits into the historical context
analyze how a work of nonfiction uses persuasive techniques to convey an idea
determine the meaning of words and phrases and how they are used in a text
Other Details
Parental Guidance
These discussions will revolve around secular, philosophical constructs during which any discussions around world religions will be carefully monitored but not halted, provided they are conducted in a respectful way. Young children’s experience is already replete with philosophical questioning and meaning. They have strong, even visceral, intuitions of what is beautiful and ugly, fair and unfair, right and wrong. They enjoy playing with language and are intrigued by logical puzzles. Children are full of questions – and, significantly, many of their questions have philosophical content. And, in the class, the bigger questions – what it means to be alive, how to be good, what is the purpose of human life – are given the appropriate space to be debated and discussed. The cartoons discussed will be announced prior to class meetings so learners can choose to opt out of those sessions if desired. Parents need to be aware that some language exists in these cartoons, but discussions will be monitored carefully and no hate speech will be tolerated.
External Resources
In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:
Sources
Philosophy Now magazine (referenced by teacher--not seen by students)
Episodes from various cartoons (clips discussed): Youtube clips shown only through teacher's screen. students do NOT need to access/ account.
South Park
Adventure Time
Winnie the Pooh
Rick and Morty
SpongeBob Square Pants
Courage the Cowardly Dog
Joined January, 2022
4.9
167reviews
Popular
Teacher expertise and credentials
Georgia Teaching Certificate in Secondary Education
Bachelor's Degree in English from Kennesaw State University
-I have a BS in English Education from Kennesaw State University
-I have a minor in Philosophy from Kennesaw State University
-To teach a high school level course, I have the expertise of teaching English Language Arts in a public high school in the United States for 15 years
-I have taught this course through the Governer’s Honors Program in the United States
-I have taught this type of discussion model for 15 years
-I am AP Lit and AP Lang certified through the state of Georgia
-I have won Teacher of the Year multiple times
-I am currently certified with the National Council for Teachers of English
-I am currently certified to teach English Language Arts Level T-7 (Highly Qualified) under the Georgia Professional Standards Commission from 2007 - 2022; certification to be renewed 2026
Reviews
Live Group Class
$18
weekly1x per week
50 min
Completed by 7 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 11-16
3-12 learners per class
