Raising kids that know how to fact-check, be aware of logical fallacies, and form their own opinions is extremely important. Especially since, in this age of misinformation, there are lots of adults who don’t know how to do that. There are parents who believe vaccines cause autism, and that rubbing coconut oil on your forehead will cure cancer.
School systems are notorious for NOT teaching reasoning and critical thinking skills, at least until college. Memorizing facts and then spitting them back out onto a multiple choice test (where the answers are provided FOR you) is apparently better. Therefore, it’s up to parents to teach their kids the basics of logic. Check out these awesome tips by Bethany at Math Geek Mama:
-Do their homework with them, ask WHY they chose to answer a question the way they did. How did they figure out the answer to a math problem? What steps did they use?
-Play board games together that encourage strategy and logical thinking.
-Use a structure approach- solve logic puzzles together!
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