children
TagChildren, Academia, and the Life of the Mind
“If children take time away from a habit of intellectual activity that is bad in itself, it’s hardly a real accusation against them.” (more…)
Philosophy Foundation Co-Founder Recognized in New Years Honours
Emma Worley, co-founder and co-chief executive officer of The Philosophy Foundation, was named a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) as part of the 2020 New Years Honours.
“Corrupt the Youth” Wins Prize for Excellence & Innovation in Philosophy Programs
Corrupt the Youth, an organization that brings philosophy to high school students and others, has won the 2019 Prize for Excellence and Innovation in Philosophy Programs, awarded jointly by the American Philosophical Association (APA) and the Philosophy Documentation Center (PDC). (more…)
Philosopher-Rocker Turns to Music for Kids
You may know Daniel Groll, associate professor of philosophy at Carelton College, for his work in biomedical ethics. You may also know him as the singer for The Counterfactuals, an indie rock band that is 3/4 philosophers. (more…)
Bioethicists’ Letter on the “Ethically Abhorrent” Treatment of Children at the U.S. Border
Over 800 bioethicists have signed a letter calling for the United States government to remedy its failures to assure the children it is detaining at its border are in safe and sanitary conditions. (more…)
Univ. of Washington Creates Certificate of Mastery in Philosophy for Children
The Center for Philosophy for Children at the University of Washington is now offering a Certificate of Mastery in Philosophy for Children. (more…)
Separating Migrant Children From Their Parents Is Not Required By Law, But Even if It Were…
There is no law requiring family separation at the border. And even if there was, that still would not be enough to justify the administration’s cruel policy. (more…)
Making a Case for Pre-College Philosophy
“We assume that certain kinds of questions are only for advanced students, and I think that the irony is that, in many cases, not encouraging all students to ask those questions is why some are not advanced.” (more…)
Has Philosophy Affected Your Parenting? Or Vice Versa?
Philosopher-parents: how, if at all, has philosophy affected how you parent? And how, if at all, has being a parent affected your philosophical views? And is there wisdom about parenting to be found in the history of philosophy? (more…)
Emergent Horrors (?) of Information Technology
These videos, wherever they are made, however they come to be made, and whatever their conscious intention (i.e. to accumulate ad revenue) are feeding upon a system which was consciously intended to show videos to children for profit. The unconsciously-generated, emergent outcomes of that are all over the place…Â (more…)
New Philosophy TV Show: Ethics Matters
Ethics Matters is a new television show that debuted yesterday on Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s youth-oriented channel, ABC 3. (more…)
Nietzsche For Tots
Have you ever interacted with a three year-old and thought, “what this kid needs is some Nietzsche”? Me neither. Those who are before good and evil don’t need to be encouraged to move beyond it, in my experience. (more…)
Zarathustra for Kids
John Holbo (National University of Singapore) has undertaken a new project: a version of Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra for kids. It’s illustrated, and written in the style of Dr. Seuss. It’s called On Beyond Zarathustra: A Parody for All and None, and samples from it have been posted on his website (and Crooked Timber). Below are images from the first few pages..
Talking Philosophy With Your Kids
Philosopher parents: how, if at all, do you talk philosophy with you own children?
I don’t give my children philosophy lessons, nor do we celebrate Socrates’ birthday. There may be a few more books of logic puzzles laying around the house than average, along with many of the children’s books listed here, but I don’t force philosophy on the kids. If the opportunit..
Philosophy as Anti-Terrorism Tool
A study from 2010 cites Philosophy for Children among “teaching approaches that help build resilience to extremism among young people.” The study, commissioned by the UK government,
presents the findings from a large-scale, in-depth research study into teaching methods—knowledge, skills, teaching practices and behaviours—that help to build resilience to extre..
Philosophically Interesting Books for Young Kids
A friend is interested in soliciting philosophically-minded books for young children—ones who are reading, but are not at the chapter-book stage. Here are a few I’ve enjoyed with my kids…
- The Big Orange Splot by Daniel Manus Pinkwater — for the young individualist.
- A Hole Is To Dig by Ruth Krauss — for the young teleologist.
- Pierre: A Cautionary T..
More on the Benefits of Philosophy for Kids
An increasing number of American children from low-income backgrounds are coming to kindergarten lagging in both academic and non-cognitive skills critical to educational success…. Fortunately, there’s a growing — yet under-appreciated and therefore under-reported — method of teaching that’s been showing tangible progress in student academic achievement, including..
Philososplainin’ #2: Letting Kids Do Stuff Themselves
Making the rounds this morning is the news of parents who are being investigated for neglect for allowing their children, ages 10 and 6, to walk, by themselves, the one mile from a park to their home in Silver Spring, Maryland. There have been a rash of such stories recently, it seems, most notably one about  a South Carolina mother who was arrested (!) for allowing..
Brilliant Combination of Teaching and Outreach (updated)
Mount Holyoke philosophy professor Thomas Wartenberg and College President Lynn Pasquerella co-teach a course called “Philosophy for Children.” An article at masslive.com describes it:
As part of the course, college students are teaching second graders at the Martin Luther King Jr. Charter School of Excellence in Springfield to question their own assumptions, lis..
Philosophy in Childrens’ Books
Once upon a time, there was a website called History of Philosophy Without Any Gaps, run by a man named Peter Adamson. On the website was a blog that Peter Adamson wrote. And on that blog, boys and girls, was a very nice collection of philosophical excerpts from childrens’ books. Take a look and live happily ever after. The end.