Philosophy Park Teacher Resource

The Philosophy Park Teacher Resource is designed to support and complement the Philosophy Park Story Book, following on from Dr Philip Cam's acclaimed 'Thinking Stories' series.

Ideal for teachers to use with students in the upper primary years, the Philosophy Park Teacher Resource facilitates the development of critical and creative thinking - a core requirement and 'general capability' in the Australian Curriculum.

Each chapter provides a framework for discussion of the topics that students encounter in the Philosophy Park Story Book. Carefully constructed activities and exercises introduce students to a collection of tools that will enable them to analyse the subject matter through questioning, conceptual exploration and reasoning.

In the spirit of collaborative inquiry, students will be encouraged to work in pairs, small groups and whole-of-class contexts to:

• Generate questions
• Raise suggestions
• Imagine alternatives
• Formulate criteria
• Make connections
• Build on others' ideas
• Consider implications
• Apply criteria
• Weigh evidence
• Question assumptions
• Give reasons
• Explore disagreement.

At the end of each session, students will learn to reflect on the discussion, evaluating not only their results, but also their use of thinking tools and the quality of their collaboration.