Critical Thinking - How to Improve Critical Thinking Skills in Children?

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Hi,
Parenting is a daunting task that has to match both joys and sorrows of life. Children are the catalysts that drive the parenting engine throughout day and night, months and years, and forever until children transform into successful adults. In fact, parenting is a well-oiled machine that keeps chugging irrespective of whether a day is productive or frustrating. In other words, parents keep walking on a tight rope to manage and balance rigors of parenting life.

If parenting life is so busy and action-packed, who is going to motivate and cajole parents to remain cheerful, joyous and motivated? Parenting with a purpose should be the main goal for all parents. Come what may, all parents should keep rejuvenating their inner spirits and outer calm to support their children, in times of needs and crises.

Refreshing internal motivation and an urge to face the difficulties of parenting should become a top priority. In the meanwhile, check these parenting inspirational videos to keep refreshing your internal drive. All the best.

Thought for today:
"Successful and unsuccessful people do not vary greatly in their abilities. They vary in their desires to reach their potential." - John Maxwell

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How to Improve Critical Thinking Skills in Children?
Critical thinking is a special skill that defines a person. Critical thinking is always acquired early in life. Parents may want to learn to improve critical thinking skills in their children.

Q1: My younger boy is 6 years, 11 month old. I've brought him for a Wechsler Preschool and Primary scale of Intelligence [WPPSI-III (UK)] test and BAS single word reading ability, when he was 5 yrs 7mths old. The reason being that I suspected he may be having dyslexia (due to bad handwriting, writing mirror images of Chinese characters when younger).

His score for WPPSI-III was 114 Verbal IQ, 123 Performance IQ, 116 Processing speed and 126 Full Scale IQ. Conclusion by the psychologist - at-risk group of dyslexic. Recently he took a TONI III test at 6 years 10 months, and he scored 138...

A: Based on his scores, he is in the above average range. For most gifted programmes, a cut-off at 130 is usually required for admission. In general, he scored high average on performance, processing speed, with an FSIQ in the high average range as well. He may be considered for a gifted education programme as a special case. There is a discrepancy between his verbal and performance IQ scores VIQ & PIQ). The PIQ is indeed the best indication of a child's general cognitive ability..... Continue to read Dr. Sandhu's answer on WPPSI Score Indication here.

Q2: I was wondering if you could please give me some guidance. I would like to know if my child is developing normally, a little bright or advanced. A little background, her father has ADHD and is a little dyslexic so I'm also not sure if she has these traits. I have been very involved in trying to help her enjoy learning in fear that if she has learning disabilities then hopefully with the right nurturing she will find it easier than her father.

So I'd just like an experts' opinion on whether she seems on track or not so that I know how to continue to bring her up in the best environment. She is very active and I'm not sure if that is because she needs lots of stimulation or if she is showing signs of ADHD....

A: Your little one does appears to be developing at a higher pace compared to her peers. From your description, it is possible that she has shown many signs of advance development. There is much more to ADHD than what you have mentioned so although I am not in a position to rule out anything, I am not really seeing signs of ADHD or dyslexia for now. Furthermore, she is indeed very young.... Continue to read Dr. Sandhu's answer on Very Advanced 15 month old here.

Q3: My 4th-grade son just came home with his Terra Nova scores for reading. He scored in the 98th percentile nationally. The test says that he is above the 9th grade level for reading. He is a good reader but his spelling is horrible. He gets letters backwards, numbers backwards, transposes letters, writes "ch" instead of "tr" (example: chruk for the work truck). He even spells simple words incorrectly (example: gurl for girl). He hates to write, but he can talk about books and themes and can rationalize his opinions. Any clues about what might be happening with his poor spelling?

A: It has been established that good reading correlates with good spelling as it appears that there are both meaningless without the other. However, this has not been the case for some. This is called the unexpected spelling problem that indicates that a child is able to recognise and read a word very well on one hand, and on the other, is unable to recall the correct sequence of letters when trying to write the every same word.... Continue to read Dr. Sandhu's answer on Great Reader Poor Speller here.

Building Thinking Skills- Critical Thinking skills for reading, writing, math, science (Level 1(Grades 2-3)
By Sandra Parks and Howard Black

Building Thinking Skills® provides highly effective verbal and nonverbal reasoning activities to improve students. vocabulary, reading, writing, math, logic, and figural-spatial skills, as well as their visual and auditory processing. This exceptional series provides a solid foundation for academic excellence and success on any assessment test.

Sandra Parks received an M.A. in Education, specializing in Curriculum Development, for the University of South Florida and pursued doctoral studies at Indiana State University. She also received a certificate of advanced study from Harvard University. She has conducted National Curriculum Studies Institute workshops annually for the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development and provides staff development to schools across the country.

Lollipop Logic: Critical Thinking Activities
By Bonnie Risby and Robert Risby

What a tantalizing treat for young minds! Seven different thinking skills--relationships, analogies, sequences, deduction, inference, pattern decoding, and critical analysis--are presented in a format designed to appeal to the pre-reader. Lollipop Logic employs visual and pictorial clues to introduce and reinforce high-powered thinking. This one-of-kind tool gives wings to pre-readers and non-readers. This unique book introduces complex thinking skills without the fetters of lexical meaning.

Lollipop Logic is the perfect instrument for many young learners. It is simple to use and simpler for youngsters to understand. Best of all, it alleviates the encumbrances of reading ability for young minds ready to soar into the stratosphere of thinking skills far beyond their reading levels.

Vitamin D In Pregnancy & Baby's Brain Development
WFAA Sep 25, 2012

Another study suggests higher levels of vitamin D during pregnancy may play an important role in a baby's future health. In the latest study, Vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy has been linked to poorer mental and motor skills in babies.

Caution: Brain under construction from birth to 3
WA USA Daily Herald Sep 24, 2012

At birth, a child's brain is approximately 25 percent of the weight of an adult's brain. By age 3, it reaches about 90 percent of its full size. How you interact with your child during this important developmental stage can determine how your child interacts with others, learns and handles stress for life.

Childhood obesity negatively affects brain development, says study
VOXII Sep 11, 2012

Brain development issues may occur in children who are overweight, obese, or at risk for metabolic syndrome, says research published in the journal Pediatrics.

IQ may go up as well as down
The Guardian Sep 23, 2012

The discoverer of the 'Flynn effect' says environment plays a major role in determining a social group's IQ levels.

How Childhood Neglect Stunts the Brain
Wired Sep 13, 2012

Science is painting a dramatic picture of how childhood neglect damages developing brains, so stunting them that neglect might be likened to physically violent abuse.

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