Six Reasons Your Child Should Learn Logic | Homeschooling

By PhyllisWheeler
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In Star Trek, there's the purely logical guy, Mr. Spock, and the purely emotional guy, who is just about any other character. Real life isn't like that--we need to be able to function both ways, with our minds and with our emotions.

Unfortunately, learning logical thinking doesn't just come naturally for most people. But it's an important skill. Logic traps are everywhere.

Here's what you can do about it: teach logic to your child. Why?

1. Learning about cause and effect, your child will be able to make better choices. For example, "friends" who urge him to misuse his money and his time may find he understands what the logical consequences of such behavior are.

2. Problem-solving will be something your child can do as he grows older. Faced with any problem, such as dealing with a plugged-up sink or a broken-down car, your child will be able to list options and pick one.

3. Your child will be better prepared to challenge advertising. He will be able to identify fallacies such as circular reasoning. For example, an advertiser might tell us, "Happy folks buy Toastie Puffs." What he means is, "Buy Toastie Puffs, and you'll be happy!" This is circular logic! Can your child recognize it?

4. What about persuasion in the media? Let's say a reporter asks five people whether they think illegal immigrants should be allowed to stay. All of them say yes. Then the reporter concludes that everyone wants illegal immigrants to be able to stay. Does your child see the problem here? The error is in the size of the sample group--too small. The reporter needs a much broader sample.

5. Your child can learn to evaluate advice on the basis of the qualifications of the person doing the advising. If your dentist tells you to floss your teeth, you will believe him -- he's an expert. But if he tells you to put an oil additive in your car, you need to weigh the advice because he's not an expert there.

6. Your child will be able to understand computer logic as well. Computers think simply: if A is true, do B; if not, do C. Our own brains aren't so linear. But learning to think in a linear manner like this will help a child learn logical thinking, a useful skill in the Information Age. In fact, a child who learns about computers can master computers eventually.

About the Author

Investigate computer programming for children and teens and get a no-cost e-book on Internet research, the Internet Scavenger Hunt. Phyllis Wheeler provides curriculums for those who want to teach their children and teens fun computer skills.

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