Young Thinkers Program
The Young Thinkers Program consists of 10 stories using cartoons with voice-overs. The stimulus materials challenges students from Grades 4-8 to use critical thinking processes such as:
- Fact or Opinion
- Sure or Unsure
- More Important or Less Important
- Points of View
- Cause and Effect
There area is also a range of creative thinking processes such as:
- Creative Design
- Creative Uses
- Creative Reversals
Students answer a set of questions based on each 30-50 second part of the story. Students generally choose from four of the eight options and then are able to challenge the Most Frequent Answers which are then displayed on the screen.
The lessons are highly engaging and motivating for students, leading to better self-esteem. The critical and creative processes are clearly linked to the persuasive genre and really do engage a wider group of students. The ten stories would take over 30 hours of classroom time and as such would be a great resource for thinking lessons, pastoral care classes and for special extension for all situations
Rationale
Critical and creative thinking is one of the most commonly requested skills asked of new graduates. It also ranks as one of the most commonly identified aims of education across all sectors and all grade levels. It is rare to see a systematic approach to teaching thinking skills, and more rare to see an approach to scoring, grading and providing feedback to explicitly improve thinking skills. Not only will students need to be literate and numerate, they will need cognitive processes and dispositions that will enable life-long-learning and formal entry into higher education and work careers.
Outcomes of the Young Thinkers program
Confident, articulate thinkers who:
• Are inquisitive, self-directive, self-corrective , and self-disciplined
• Support the reasoning behind a solution rather than memorising answers
• Develop plausible and effective critical and creative problem-solving skills
• Are willing to reconsider ideas and judgments based on good evidence
• Learn how to distinguish between facts, myths and opinions
• Use critical thinking to better navigate information in today’s highly connected world
• Ask more interesting questions at school and at home
• Improve skills, confidence and self esteem as a learner and thinker
• Learn the thinking skills necessary for success in learning beyond school classrooms
John Joseph, the creator of the program, has used this in more than ten countries around the world and even used it with parts of the Bangkok City Council administrators.
ITC Publications customers receive a 10% discount on a Young Thinkers Program school licence.
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Visit www.criticalandcreative.com.au to buy your subscription.
Eric Frangenheim has taught one of the stories, ‘Dusty the Dog’ at Boonah SHS, Kelvin Grove State College, Biloela SHS and Biloela SS, Tannum Sands, Moura SS, Baralaba P-10 SS, Earnshaw College and Kimberley Park SS with students from Grades 4-9. He strongly recommends this resource for schools.