Raising Critical Thinkers: A guide for parents to help children of all ages process the onslaught of unfiltered information in the digital age.
Education is not solely about acquiring information and skills across subject areas, but also about understanding how and why we believe what we do. At a time when online media has created a virtual firehose of information and opinions, parents and teachers worry how students will interpret what they read and see. Amid the noise, it has become increasingly important to examine different perspectives with both curiosity and discernment. But how do parents teach these skills to their children?
Drawing on more than twenty years’ experience homeschooling and developing curricula, Julie Bogart offers practical tools to help children at every stage of development to grow in their ability to explore the world around them, examine how their loyalties and biases affect their beliefs, and generate fresh insight rather than simply recycling what they’ve been taught. Full of accessible stories and activities for children of all ages, Raising Critical Thinkers helps parents to nurture passionate learners with thoughtful minds and empathetic hearts.
Becoming a Critical Thinker: A practical resource to grow students’ ability to think well in an age of information overload.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Julie Bogart
Julie Bogart is known for her common sense parenting and education advice. She’s the author of the beloved book The Brave Learner, which has brought joy and freedom to countless home educators. Her online coaching community, Brave Learner Home, the Brave Writer podcast, and Julie’s popular Instagram account are lifelines for tens of thousands of weary parents all over the world.
Julie’s also the creator of the award-winning, innovative online writing program called Brave Writer, now 21 years old, serving 191 countries. She home educated her five children who are now globe-trotting adults.
Julie has also taught college freshmen at Xavier University and was honored with Xavier’s 2017 Madges Award for Outstanding Service to Society for her work in Brave Writer.
Today, Julie lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, and can be found sipping a cup of tea while planning her next visit to one of her lifelong-learning kids.
For media inquiries, please contact Casey Maloney at Penguin Random House.
"Transformative learning experiences often happen far away from the classroom, amidst our informal discussions with young people: “Why do you believe what you believe? How do you know this to be true? What’s a different perspective?” For parents who care about raising sharp-minded and powerfully independent children, Julie Bogart’s new book is the perfect guide."
"It's one thing to say you want to raise a critical thinker, but it's hard to know where to begin.This book provides a road map. With fascinating examples and age-specific activities to help kids learn to think deeply, imaginatively, and compassionately, Julie Bogart gives us the guide for nurturing critical thinking in the next generation."
"We live in an era when critical thinking is more important than ever—a world inundated with bewildering information, contradictory misinformation, and a zillion hot takes. In Raising Critical Thinkers, Julie Bogart provides a passionate, compassionate exploration of what critical thinking is and how to hone this vital skill set in our children—and ourselves. This is a brainy, practical, encouraging guidebook, written with Julie's signature clarity and common sense. I can't wait to share it with my kids."
“Julie Bogart is a brilliant educator who’s written a wonderful book that shows us how to nurture children’s ability to think critically and carefully. Each chapter offers dozens of questions, lessons, and exercises for helping learners understand their biases, evaluate the sources from which they get information, and consider other perspectives. These tools can enable students from kindergarten through high school to experience the joys of discovery and insight, and they can help young people grow into compassionate adults who want to make a positive contribution to their world. Read this book and use it. Your children and students will thank you, and you’ll learn a lot about yourself, too!”
“Raising Critical Thinkers encourages us to grow courageous children who respect evolving beliefs, value intellectual honesty, and consider context as they read and experience the world. The journey I took with this book was thought-provoking and every chapter expanded my parenting priorities in a glorious way.”
"Raising Critical Thinkers is a must-read for parents and teachers. It speaks to the deep need for raising and educating children (both at home and in the classroom) to do much more than accept, memorize, and restate. Julie masterfully provides the tools to guide children in growing the ability to think – while also challenging readers to reflect on their own critical thinking skills in the process. It is a gold mine of learning for all."
"I am in awe. Every parent and educator needs to read this book. As a psychologist and mother, I understand the importance of raising critical thinkers, but it’s not always clear what that really means day-to-day. Raising Critical Thinkers uses cutting-edge education theory and concrete practices to answer: How do we help kids separate fact from fiction? What can we do to keep kids’ curiosity and ‘itch’ to learn alive? What fosters self-awareness and flexible perspective taking in kids? Let Julie Bogart guide you through the wilderness of raising critical thinkers."
"There is no one I know whose wise counsel I would trust more than Julie Bogart when it comes to teaching our children (and ourselves!) how to think. Critical thinking has never been more important, and Julie arrived just when we needed her. This book is a must for anyone who wants to raise children to be thoughtful, kind, and independent."
“This is the guide parents need to teach their kids to be thoughtful consumers of information.”
