Philosophy for Children was developed by Matthew Lipman in the l970s, inspired by the work of John Dewey and Charles Peirce among others. Philosophy for children builds on the students’ own wonder and curiosity about ideas that are vitally important to them. The subject matter of Philosophy for Children is those common, central and contestable concepts that underpin both our experience of human life and all academic disciplines. 

Philosophy for Children (P4C) improves critical, creative and rigorous thinking. Participants develop their higher-order thinking skills and the attitudes and dispositions necessary for good thinking. They improve their communication skills and their abilities to work with others. It is one of the cornerstones of learning at Balmoral School.

Skills covered in P4C include: 

• asking relevant questions

• showing sensitivity to context in a discussion

• demonstrating an ability to find relevant examples

• showing openness to new ideas

• identifying, justifying and clarifying ideas

• consistency when developing points of views

• expressing ideas coherently

• paraphrasing or building on others’ ideas

• discussing issues with objectivity

• accepting corrections by peers willingly

• showing respect for members of the Community of Inquiry

• listening to understand

• evaluating the thinking used

These skills have wide application across the broad curriculum.