Conducting philosophical inquiries with children and youth is a method of education in which practising philosophy, understood as creating and researching philosophical ideas in a group made up of students and a teacher, becomes a science of intellectual independence, openness and versatility. The creator of the idea of philosophical inquiry with children and young people is prof. Mathew Lipman of the Institute for Advancement of Philosophy for Children (IAPC) at Montclair State University in the USA, author of the Philosophy for Children educational program.

Objectives implemented within the framework of the proposed educational program:

• improving language and thinking skills,
• developing the student’s insight into their own cognitive processes in order to improve and enrich them
• acquiring the ability to issue independent and thoughtful judgments,developing communication skills,
• shaping the skills of cooperation in the group, dialogue, tolerance and openness,
• combining the ability of critical and logical thinking with imaginative and creative skills,
• developing social, moral and aesthetic sensitivity.

(based on Philosophical inquiries with children and youth, Phronesis Association)

More information about the program and activities of the Philosophy Education Association „Phronesis” can be found here: www.phronesis.org.pl

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The workshops are run by Anna Jurek. Currently, she is implementing a program for children from elementary school consisting of the following topics:
1. Questions about cauliflower. Aim of the course: to raise awareness of the role of questions in arousing child’s cognitive curiosity and expanding knowledge about the world. Children direct questions to the cauliflower, write them on the board, and then choose one that we will discuss.
2. What is the imagination? Aim of the course: stimulating reflection on what the imagination is, how it exists and what function it has in our life. The starting point for the conversation will be a fragment of Michael Ende’s „Endless Story”.
3. What is art and beauty? Aim of the course: reflection on the concept of art and beauty: what does it refer to? Are there different types of beauty? About the correlation of beauty and good. On the relationship between beauty and art based on the reproduction of images.
4. In search of time. Objective: to broaden awareness in the area of reflection on the notion of time. What is time? „Time is chasing us”, „Time is leaking through our fingers” – what does it mean? Is time „flowing” regardless of us, or is it only a product of the human mind? About the relationship of the past, present and future.
5. How was the world created? Aim of the course: reflection on various concepts of the creation of the world. Did the world have to arise? If it has a beginning, will it also have its end? Is the world infinite? During classes, we will work, among others with space maps.
6. My place in the world. Aim of the course: to raise awareness about my place in the world. How do I understand the word „world”? What does the world consist of? Am I part of the world? Each child will receive a shape of a human cut out of the carton, four paper strips of different sizes and an A4 sheet. Their task will be to arrange elements on the piece so that they show how they understand their place in the world. We will discuss the work.

Anna Jurek – the graduate of the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Lodz. Propagator of the „Philosophy with children” program by Matthew Lipman. Author of educational programs for children and youth. She created her own sex education program for junior high and high school students. Vice-president of the SPUNK Foundation for Modern Education. He collaborates with the Łódzka Gazeta Społeczna Miasto Ł, for which he conducts interviews. For Teatr Powszechny, he conducts workshops after performances played as part of the cycle „Child in a situation”. In 2017, she received the badge „For Merits for the City of Łódź” for activities for the city worth special recognition. He is passionate about boxing and Krav Maga.

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Philosophy, as we know, came from astonishment.
To those who like to be surprised, we recommend: