Philosophy 4 Children (P4C) is a way of teaching which aims to encourage young people to think more critically, caringly, creatively and collaboratively.

1. Philosophy for Children
Philosophy for Children aims to
encourage young people to think
critically, caringly, creatively and
collaboratively.
It helps teachers to build a
'community of enquiry' where
participants create and enquire
into their own questions, and
'learn how to learn' in the process

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dh28kEL23q0

3. Philosophy for Children
Creating a Community of Enquiry
Students asking open, genuine questions
Exploring what makes a question philosophical?
Democratically choosing a question to explore
Creating a “community of enquiry”
Developing reasoning skills
Encouraging interaction and reflection
Teacher becomes facilitator
Valuing of student voice, creating environment for dialogue

4. What does progress mean in thinking and dialogue?
There are many ways to show progress in thinking and dialogue
skills, but here are 5 indicators to define development. The
process starts with a question, and the outcome could be one of
the following.
The students now:
have lots more questions
have totally changed their minds
still think what they originally thought, but with better
understanding
have many different perspectives
are confused, but enriched (a good confusion)

5. Philosophy for Children
Creating a Community of Enquiry
Developing good skills and attitudes
Sit in a circle
This emphasises equality and democracy
Agree that listening is a vital skill
Be prepared to offer your views
Respect other people’s viewpoints …
… but be prepared to challenge them
Let your teacher become the “guide on the side”, not “the
sage on the stage”

6. Developing listening skills
Ask students to sit back to back
Give one member of the pair a picture or diagram
They then have to describe it to their partner
The partner has to draw it for themselves, from the
description (no looking!)

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8. Developing the
question

11. Creating a Community of Enquiry
•Look at the picture
• Describe what you see
• What questions does it raise?
• Share and record the questions
• The questions need to be philosophical
• They need to make sense even if the picture where not
there
• When you have listed all the questions, you vote
• Choose the one you want to debate as a class

12. Discussion tips
In your discussion, play netball with ideas, not ping-pong!
Don’t practice “rubble-thinking”; try to make every point
move on, constructing new ideas
To speak, open your hand on your knee
The speaker chooses who will respond to her/him
Before speaking, state your aim:
“I’m going to agree with …., because …”
“I’m going to move the debate on, by ….”