Cultivate Critical Thinking Skills in Kids

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Being human, the ability to think comes naturally to us. The thinking process involves a basic understanding of the situation, grasping the information around us, and using the same in the correct way. However, kids need encouragement and education to develop critical thinking skills in them.

Why do we need to encourage critical thinking skills in kids?

Children observe so many things around them. In order to make them evaluate, analyze, and decide on different things or situations, they need support from parents, family, and teachers. A motivating environment cultivates thinking skills in kids and encourages them to become aware of their surroundings. 

What do you do to develop critical thinking skills in kids?

The major benefit of thinking skills in a kid is that he learns to grasp the information, filter, analyze and consequently solve problems. He also learns to choose the most suitable option out of different alternatives. He understands what to choose and why is he making that particular choice. 

A child with critical thinking does not believe anything said to him or goes with the flow of his peers. In fact, he checks the facts, the logic, and the relevance of a situation, and then forms a fair opinion.

Kids exercise these critical thinking habits on their own from the age of 4 or 5 and as parents, we need to help them develop thinking kids further.

                

Ways to Cultivate Thinking Skills in Kids

Let the kids ask questions. Do not try to diffuse the curiosity of your children. Explain things to them patiently. This would help them to understand the world around them.

Ask the right questions that let them think more and respond with reasons based on their evaluation. While discussing, you can ask him if he is okay or not with a certain idea, whether he agrees or disagrees and why so. This habit let the child think more.

Reading books with kids and conversing about the related characters /situations help kids to think better. Besides, discussing current affairs with growing kids is a very good proposition to prepare the kids for real life.

                      

Enquire kids about their experiences in school or elsewhere. Ask about their observations and thoughts, and help them to arrive at a conclusion. To compare and to conclude aptly is an important aspect of thinking skills.

Talk about cause-and-effect relationships. "If this happens then what will be the result?" Such a kind of approach helps kids to think before acting upon something. To develop the habit, you may ask your child while watching a show or movie about the consequences and why things happened that way.

Play puzzles, crosswords, and other thinking games with kids and assist them to learn better. Improve thinking skills in kids through games; this works well for kids at all levels. Just keep on increasing the difficulty level as per the age group.

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Enroll your child in a school club such as a debate club wherein the kids will get plenty of exposure to think critically and put across their views/ reasons and also hear out the counter reasons on the same subject.

Thinking skills help the kids to deal with real-life situations in a better way. They adopt a problem-solving attitude and attain the confidence to creatively think and decide.

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