Philosophy

NOTE: New ideas are posted below this introduction!!

P4C - Philosophy for Children - has been gaining momentum in primary schools internationally over a number of years.  It aims to make children think, and to consider The Big Questions, to which there are often (always?) no right answers.  It's not to be confused with PSHE, where there usually are right answers.

Picture books are often used as a starting point for philosophical questioning and discussion, and here's a link to Barry Hymer's recommendations for doing just that:

http://www.wandsworthclc.org/p4c/documents/60stimuli.pdf

Starting out
To get children started, focus on these three key skills -

• Listening
• Giving examples     e.g. I feel happy when… 
• Giving Reasons       e.g. because…for…so..

Builidng up - stage 1

Build on the early work by next introducing and working on these areas:

• Questions/statements
• Building on others’ ideas  e.g. What else could we say? How could we make it better?
• Summarising     e.g. retelling a story; What have we learned today?
• Reflection        e.g. What have you enjoyed?  What went well, Even Better If
• Similarities and Differences between concrete objects

Stage 2

• Grouping questions  e.g. These are about setting; these are about character
• Open and closed questions
• Making connections in discussions  e.g. linking ideas in circle time
• Explanations  e.g. How?

Stage 3

• Different points of view  links well to history, RE and literacy
• Different types of questions who, when, what, why, how, which
• Listing criteria
• Definitions e.g. What do we mean by disappointment?  It is when…
• Similes  using ‘like’ and ‘as…as’ e.g. I felt like I would explode ; as white as a shee
• Counter examples differences of opinion

Stage 4

• Alternative possibilities  e.g. We could do this…or that
• Distinctions
• Analogies  e,g, It’s like when…; It’s like making glue run uphill 
• Similarities and differences between abstract concepts

And now for some practical ideas:

Generating questions
 You may already know Robert Fisher's books about developing thinking skills.  They have some useful short stories that can be used for Philosophy, but instead of using the questions Fisher lists, I'd recommend asking the children to generate their own. (You can do this with any book you may use).  Ask them:

• What do you wonder about this story?
• What do you want to know more about?

Get them to write their questions on post-it notes and stick them on to a clear surface somewhere that everyone can see - you may need to clear a bit of wall space for this.  Give them maybe 3 post-its and 4 or 5 minutes to do this.  Then you go over their questions, moving the post-its that are either the same, similar or in a similar area, together, so you end up with several groups of post-its rather than loads of individual questions.  Then summarise the key questions, limiting them to about 6 or so (you'll inevitably have some that could actually be answered just from listening properly to the story, like straightforward comprehension questions.  Weed this out by asking 'Does anyone know the answer to that?'  You should aim to end up with philosophical questions that have no easy or definite answer).

List these and ask the children which one they want to go on and talk about.  You can give them a few minutes to start discussing with a partner or a small group before bringing their thoughts to the whole class for further debate.  Remember - there are no right or wrong answers!  It's down to opinion supported by good reasons!


Real/Not Real
This idea is one of Phil Cam's, an Australian academic who has written widely on Philosophy for children.  It's a great game to use as an introduction to getting even very young children to think philosophically - they have to give reasons for their choices, and the magic word here is 'because'.

Prepare a set of cards, each with the name of something or someone that might or might not be real but which isn't  necessarily easily explained, so you might have: Father Christmas, fairies, heaven, dreams, ghosts, rainbows, dinosaurs, elves, monsters, angels, dragons, magic, etc. Give pairs or threes any card at random, for them to discuss and decide whether their item is Real or Not Real. (With very young children you can do this as a whole class).  It doesn't matter if they can't agree. Reassure them that there are no right or wrong answers - this is entirely their opinion, but they must be able to justify their choice

Next, they place their card along a line, maybe on the floor, with bigger cards marked 'Real' at one end and 'Not Real' at the opposite end. They put their card nearest to what they decided.  If they can't agree, they put it in the middle.  Then you start a discussion, asking why they made their choices - they must use the word 'because' in their explanation. .  You will be surprised at the depth of thinking many children achieve with this excercise.  Encourage further discussion from the rest of the class, asking what they think about their peers' choices.