The mental processes you employ to absorb information, make judgments, and come up with new ideas are known as thinking skills. When you try to comprehend experiences, resolve issues, decide things, ask questions, develop plans, or organise information, you are using your thinking skills.
Everyone is capable of using their cognitive talents, but not everyone does so well. A child must learn the craft of “Critical Thinking” if they want to develop their cognitive abilities. Making logical, well-considered decisions out of reasoned reasoning is what critical thinking entails. It is a useful ability that enhances one’s life by giving them greater judgement and a more developed mental process. Adults find it difficult to develop critical thinking, but since kids are so impressionable, it is possible to cultivate it in them over time with proper instruction.
Critical thinking advantages can improve a person’s life in unimaginable ways. It fosters innovation and serves as the cornerstone of free democracy and science. An asset in every field, critical thinking enables a person to be self-reliant.
Ways to improve critical thinking skills:
The following strategies can be used by parents to aid in their children’s development of critical thinking abilities. Here are some tips for teaching kids to think critically.
Read
A frequent reading habit will help your child’s cognitive skills and mental stimulation. It is the initial phase in the journey of learning how to use critical thinking. To foster a passion for reading and encourage avid participation, the youngster must be introduced to books on a routine basis.
Read, Repeat and Revise
Let your child read a passage to read; after they are done, have them give a brief summary of what they have read. They can use it to identify a written piece’s most significant highlights. An idea is more likely to stick in your memory when you explain it to someone else, thus it also makes it easier for the youngster to learn the extract.
Retest their recall of the information they have read by returning to the same excerpt later. Because it strengthens the child’s brain function and develops critical thinking skills, this exercise is crucial.
Entertain their Questions
Children frequently ask questions that seem really foolish to adults. We therefore brush it off and order them to quit bothering us. This behaviour is really disappointing, and we frequently aren’t even aware of it. Children grow insecure about themselves as a result of this.
With excitement, respond to inquiries! Make sure you understand their place of being before answering any inquiries they may have; although their queries may seem silly to us, to the child they are sincere. Encourage them to ask unusual questions by entertaining them. “The cat was slain by curiosity, but the cat was brought back by satisfaction,” goes a famous saying. Furthermore, indulge in responding to their inquiries to strengthen your relationship with them!
Ask THEM Questions
You should answer their queries while also occasionally stumping them with a few questions and riddles. The brain works out while thinking. The greater a child’s capacity for critical thought, the more they analyse. Ask them questions about the plot even while you’re reading a book to them. It is an easy technique to gauge their level of comprehension and an opportunity for them to show their critical thinking abilities.
A parent can monitor what their child can remember by asking them questions, as well as what they haven’t grasped. It is a very effective method for developing a child’s critical thinking abilities.
Read the Newspaper Together
For a grown child who is really curious about the world, here is a fun exercise. In relatively challenging language, the newspaper is stuffed with news about current events. The child will learn a wide variety of new words and about current events through reading books of the same nature.
A child’s brain develops more quickly when they are exposed to advanced language and current events, which results in more awareness and better language abilities as well as the previously mentioned advantages of greater awareness and quick thinking. Additionally, it allows you as a parent the possibility to spend more quality time with your kid.
The key to improving your child’s cognitive abilities is critical thinking. It puts them abreast of other people and gives them a sense of consciousness and confidence. Instilling the habit at a tender age is an indicator of good parenting since you are encouraging your kid to think independently and motivating them to develop creative ways to express their views.
