Moonpreneur
Why should we develop logical thinking in children? It is an essential life skill that enables them to distinguish between right and wrong. It helps them make better decisions and realize the repercussions of their decisions. Most importantly, the experts say children cannot learn these skills on their own, these skills have to be fostered in them.
What is logical thinking?
Logic is defined as the study of correct reasoning. Logical thinking skill is the ability to understand a situation by observing facts and evidence from different angles. It trains the left hemisphere of the brain. An individual with logical thinking skills exhibits better reasoning, problem-solving, critical thinking, and communication skills.
What are the ways to enhance logical thinking in kids?
You don’t have to go out of your way to do it. You can turn day-to-day chores into learning opportunities.
Here are five ways to enhance logical thinking skills in children:
1) Ask open-ended questions
You can start by asking open-ended questions, which do not have one-word answers like yes or no; open-ended questions usually have explanatory answers.
It can revolve around general conversations.
For instance, your child is upset as you are not allowing them to go out and play because of the weather. They ask you, “Why aren’t you allowing me to go out?” Instead of directly answering the question, ask them, “Why do you think I am not allowing you to step out?” Allow them to think and reply.
You can give them open-ended stories to read. Such stories do not have a definite ending and they can draw their conclusions based on what they have read. Encourage them to end the story.
2) Encourage creative thinking
Creative thinking stimulates the brain’s right side, enabling you to think innovatively or differently. How will you instill creative thinking in your child? The best way is to avoid furnishing your child with solutions when they are stuck in a situation.
Allow them to resolve it. This is an interesting learning process involving creative thinking and problem-solving as they would come up with ideas or options to handle the situation. Don’t be surprised if they throw up out-of-the-box solutions.
3) Encourage logical reasoning
Logical reasoning is an integral part of the logical thinking process. If the child is in a situation, encourage them to analyze the problem objectively and come up with a rational solution. This will save them from making impulsive decisions and they will learn about the cause and effect of an action or event.
Logical reasoning optimizes observational skills; if practiced regularly, one can reap long-term benefits.
4) Encourage curiosity
Parents often suppress the curiosity of their children when they are going through the why phase because practically it is not possible to answer all their questions. It may sound like a cumbersome activity but allow your child to ask questions, provide opportunities to form and test their theories, allow them to experiment, etc.
This encouragement will lead to exploration and make them understand whatever they are thinking or doing “does it make sense”.
This way you will be fostering their interests. If something interests children, they happily experiment and this investment enhances their knowledge.
5) Train them to evaluate information
We are living in an age of information where any information is just a click away. It is served on a platter and we lap it up without evaluating it, which is not the right way of consuming information. Therefore we should train our children to evaluate information to determine its authenticity. Teach them about the basic steps of information evaluation:
- Accuracy: Is the information coming from a reliable source? For instance, a holiday is announced in the school. What should we do? We should verify the correctness of the information. If it is coming from the school administration, then it is correct because the administration is an authentic and reliable source.
- Authority: School administration has the authority to announce a holiday. Authorities use official email or phone no to circulate the information.
- Relevance: Schools announce sudden holidays under extraordinary circumstances such as extreme weather conditions, pandemics, etc.
Logical thinking plays a crucial role in one’s professional life where dynamics are constantly changing and leaders shouldn’t get carried away by the sequence of events. They should be level-headed and have the ability to analyze situations and evaluate information to arrive at a logical solution.
At Moonpreneur, we help your child hone logical thinking skills in order to give them an edge in an increasingly competitive global landscape to enhance your academic performance. To know more book a free trial or enroll for Power Skills course.
