Why Critical Thinking for Kids Is Important (2025)

Most of us don’t think about thinking—we just do it. But thinking critically is one of the most important skills that people need to learn from childhood to survive in this world. This is why critical thinking for kids is so important. Children should learn to make sense of information, analyze, contrast, compare and form higher-order thinking instead of memorizing the facts and telling them back like a robot.

Below, you can find why critical thinking for kids is important.

We also offer a special critical thinking skills course for kids aged 9-16 that helps them improve in this area.

What is critical thinking?

Critical thinking is the art of analyzing and evaluating a problem to make a judgment about it. However, the degree to which a person can make such judgments depends on various things. Such as:

1. World Knowledge

2. Curiosity

3. Life Experience

4. Good Communication Skills

5. Comparing and Contrasting Skills

6. Knowing Basic Logic

7. Open-Mindedness

8. Using Credible Sources

9. Basic Knowledge of Human Mind

10. Asking Thoughtful Questions

Critical thinking is a high-level skill. So, we can’t expect children to make informed decisions from early childhood. However, children as young as 6 or 7 have been shown to be capable of it within the limits of their experience and linguistic abilities.

Why Critical Thinking Skills for Kids Are Important 

From an early age, kids are bombarded with questionable information and inconsistencies. By the time kids are capable of reading proficiently, they’re attacked by unsupported reporting, pressurized advertising, and social media which can harm kids’ self-esteem and emotions. This is why critical thinking skills for kids are useful. The sooner they learn how to approach these materials the better they’ll become at making informed decisions. Once they establish this critical approach it’ll remain with them for the rest of their lives and will be developed as their knowledge and horizons widen.

Areas of Critical Thinking Skills for Kids + Exercises

Here are some of the areas of critical thinking skills for kids with examples and exercises that you can practice with your child based on their age. Some of these examples might seem quite challenging for little ones but they’re so useful.

1. Finding contradictions

Kids should be able to spot contradictions in a simple text, anecdote, video, or any other piece of information. For example:

Exercise: Tom’s underwater watch has gone wrong. He thought to himself that he can have it fixed since it’s still under its six-month guarantee. Tom loved his watch so much because he had bought it for Christmas, and now it was only July.

1. Can you find a problem?
2. Do you think the guarantee is still valid?

2. Identifying Facts

Facts are statements that can be proven to be true or events that are known to have happened or have existed. Kids should learn to ask necessary questions and doubt everything before trusting a generally accepted fact. For example:

Exercise: Emma’s classmate tells her that this semester for the history they are going to study the life of Queen Beluba who ruled England. What questions should Emma ask? 

Offer these ones if your kid runs out of questions.

1. When did she live?
2. Did she rule alone or was there a king too?
3. What was she famous for as a queen?
4. Did she have any children?
5. How many years did she rule?

3. Getting Details

Details are small pieces of information that give you more data about a thing, a person, or an event. Teaching kids how to ask for details helps them deepen their knowledge in a specific area (e.g. science or astronomy). It also fosters the curiosity that encourages their desire to learn. Below, you can find an example to motivate your child to ask for more details.

Exercise: Your school announces a new student exchange program. What details would you want to know about this new program? Help your kid with these questions if they can’t think of any.

1. Is it done voluntarily?
2. Is there an age limit to take part?
3. Which country or countries can we go to?
4. How long does it last?

4. Make Choices

Kids should evaluate the advantages and downsides of choices to make good decisions. Learning critical thinking skills for kids helps them to do so.

Go through the example below with your kid to find out what pros and cons s/he sees in this situation and if s/he can find a solution. It is best to practice this exercise with 2 kids or more where they can discuss their ideas. Ask the following questions and encourage them to challenge each other with similar questions.

Exercise: Bella is planning a party at her house. 2 of her friends can’t stand each other. Bella is considering these 3 options:

a. Invite both of them and ask them to behave themselves and don’t spoil the party.

1. Would this plan work?
2. Won’t these girls fight with each other and ruin everything for everyone else?

b. Invite one of them and have the other one to ice cream the day after the party.

      4. Would this plan work?

      5. Won’t the uninvited girl be jealous and blame the other girl?     

c. Invite neither of them and explain the reason.

      6. Won’t this plan make everything between these girls worse? 

      7. What do you think about this plan? 

5. Develop Good Judgments

Kids’ natural need to be accepted by their peers may contribute to decisions with negative impacts. Therefore, judging the merits of an action, a decision, or a plan is important. This is one of the reasons why critical thinking skills for kids are a must.

Exercise: Harry was wondering where to take his family for dinner for his daughter’s birthday. He remembered a billboard which said, “ Excellent Experience. Voted the best place to eat in the city”. “That would be worth a shot,” he thought.

Ask your kid to think of some questions that could help Harry make his mind.

1. How was this vote done?
2. Who organized this vote?
3. How many restaurants are there in this city?
4. How many people were in fact asked to vote? Were they from different age groups?

6. Evaluate Advertisements

Advertisements try everything they can to persuade you to buy an object, an idea, or an action. The ability to evaluate advertisements, helps kids understand the truth behind them as well as what they really are trying to do.

The example below shows if your kids have enough critical thinking skills. Ask them what questions might they think about before they decide? 

Exercise: Kids! You need new kicks! Get our brand new Heroes Style while stocks last! Outshine your friends when you wear these beauties!

1. Do they really need new sneakers? Aren’t their old ones still in good condition?
2. Do they even like this Heroes Style?
3. Why do they want to outshine their friends?

7. Suggest Alternatives

Thinking of different ways in which things could happen or finding different solutions to a problem is another reason why critical thinking for kids is emphasized so much. Go through the exercise below with your kids and ask them the following questions to form a discussion.

Exercise: Mia’s mom said she could take 2 of her friends to the movies for her birthday, but Mia has 3 best friends and doesn’t want to leave one of them out.

1. Should Mia tell her friends what her mom’s plan is?
2. If she leaves one of them out will they still be friends?
3. Can they do something different and include them both?
4. What other activities can you think of?
5. What plan do you suggest and why do you think it’s the best?

8. Challenge Claims

Saying something is true without providing reliable proof is something kids face a lot these days. Challenging claims appear on TV, social media, magazines, and basically everywhere. They may be even worrying or frightening. Critical thinking skills for kids teach them how to recognize such claims.

Read the below claim and ask your child for their view and questions.

Exercise: Doing voluntary work, such as house cleaning for elderly people, makes kids happier. 

1. Who says that?
2. Have they asked enough children before making this claim?
3. How do you feel about it? Do you want to do so?
4. What kind of voluntary job is suitable for kids?

9. Detect Bias

Bias is having a prejudice against a person or a group in favor of another. Kids may not be familiar with this word but chances are they’ve sensed it somewhere. To be a good team member, it’s important to teach kids how to avoid bias and detect it when it happens.

If your kids don’t know the concept make as many examples as you can to teach them.

Look at this example. Read it to your kid and ask the following questions.

Exercise: The result of this disappointing match was upsetting; a win for the Tigers. The Lions fought so bravely but had to give in to the outsiders. 

1. Can you guess which team the reporter supports?
2. Is he biased?
3. Which comments make you think so?

10. Recognizing Scare Stories/Scams/Fake News

Untrue or misleading stories that spread scare on purpose, illegal plans for making money, false information on social and traditional media that cause confusion about social and political issues are immoral and hurtful. This is another reason why critical thinking for kids is vital; to protect our children from these negative effects.

Exercise: Look at the examples below.

1. Travel Stress is more than the benefits of a beach holiday.
2. Microchips will be injected with vaccines.
3. An email from an overseas lottery that you haven’t played in.

1. Which story does scare you?
2. Who might be behind these headlines?
3. Have you ever heard about one of these stories on TV, or radio?
4. What questions should you ask before accepting one of these stories as facts?

Fostering critical thinking skills for kids is definitely another 21st-century essential: useful in everyday life, academic success, and building meaningful lasting relationships. This is the idea behind launching our special Critical Thinking Course for kids aged 9-16. We believe that when kids start reasoning early they easily develop the skills they need to succeed in life.

Editor: Michael Mitryakov | Writer: Negin

Did you Like this article? Hit the button :)

Array