Raising Critical Thinkers

that we had work to do. She had allowed herself the possibility of my  interpretation   a moment of  amusement   but she would not be swayed from her task.

I enjoyed this impromptu sitcom moment. I knew the complexity of the ideas in conflict. In the 1930s, to make love to someone meant to put the moves on the woman of your dreams. It didn t mean to have sex, the way it does today. But this letter had landed us in trickier territory. My Bapa hadn t written this note in 1937. He d written it in 1997. He referenced an experience from the 1930s, yet recorded it in the full light of the  late-twentieth century. Certainly, he knew the changing times and the way sexual innuendo had altered the meaning of those two words. Yet perhaps he was calling back to a previous meaning deliberately. Did he use that  old-  time language to jar his wife s confused mind into re-calling a sweeter period of her life? Or was he expressing nostalgia for his own memories using the idiom of that day? Or had we stumbled on a deathbed  revelation   a  confession   a scandal and secret he had kept until his dying  day   that he and Eva, the lifelong Catholics, had been lovers before they were married?

My aunt June wanted her parents to be good Catholics for their entire lives. My younger aunt Shevawn wanted them to be rebels, revealing a long-hidden willingness to put their own values ahead of church doctrine. Each of these interpretations matched the sisters per-sonalities and had less to do with my grandparents than the story my aunts wanted to tell themselves about their parents. Later that weekend, I ribbed my mother that her Catholic parents may have had sex before marriage after all. She chuckled and dismissed

Susie Allison, creator of Busy Toddler and author of Busy Toddler's Guide to Actual Parenting

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.
Amber O'Neal Johnston, author of A Place to Belong

"Critical thinking is not merely a test of fact vs. fiction. In this timely and actionable primer, Julie Bogart teaches us how imagination, self-awareness, empathy, and introspection make true critical thinking possible. These are crucial lessons for children and parents alike."
Ximena Vengoechea, author of Listen Like You Mean It

"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."
Melissa Wiley, author of The Nerviest Girl in the World

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.
Diana Hill, PhD, author of ACT Daily Journal

For parents who care about raising sharp-minded and powerfully independent children, Julie Bogart's new book is the perfect guide.
Blake Boles, author of Why Are You Still Sending Your Kids to School? and founder of Unschool Adventures

"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."
Yael Schonbrun, PhD, assistant professor of psychiatry and human behavior at Brown University

"For decades, I've admired Julie Bogart's wise and humane help for parents who participate in their children's education."
Peter Elbow, Professor of English Emeritus, University of Massachusetts at Amherst