The Philosophical Child

Mohr Lone (Univ. of Washington) presents both an argument for and description of how to raise children who are philosophically aware. The book includes ample examples of discussions, sometimes led or inspired by children’s literature, which will allow parents to engage with children. Throughout, Mohr Lone explicitly draws on the work of the late Gareth Matthews and the late Matthew Lipman, in addition to recent work by Thomas Wartenberg (Mt. Holyoke) and others in the philosophy for children movements. The first two and the last chapters nicely lay out for the uninitiated why philosophy is a key component of raising children who become critical and engaged thinkers; the middle four chapters provide background on some branches of philosophy. Among these “content” chapters the discussion of aesthetics, a generally overlooked aspect of philosophical reflection, is especially welcome. Though the book is aimed at parents, it also could be easily adapted for use in educational settings, and would be of interest to developmental psychologists. Easily integrated into multiple academic programs, this volume will interest anyone who is around children. Summing Up: Highly recommended.

University of Washington’s Jana Mohr Lone, director of the Northwest Center for Philosophy for Children, gives her advice to parents on how to approach philosophical questions with children. The book offers guidance on answering abstract questions such as “What is happiness?” and “What does it mean to be real?”

We owe it to our children and to the future of our world to heed the lessons of this book. Call it the work of real philosophy, or call it simply the joyful work of nourishing the love of Truth and the Good. Whatever we call it, this warm and wise guide shows us why we must bring philosophy to our children (and, at the same time, to ourselves).