Your students are about to begin a fun adventure to learn critical-thinking skills, which will have a profound impact on their lives. Critical-thinking skills promote independent thinking, wise decision-making, problem-solving, and other life skills that will guide your students through real-life situations. The lessons in this book teach students critical thinking skills in an engaging, encouraging, and entertaining way. Enjoy the adventure with your students.
Each lesson is designed to teach critical-thinking skills using 5 Rs:
- Receive
- Research
- Restructure Thinking
- Respond
- Reflect
The authors considered the daily workload of teachers when writing this curriculum. The lessons are designed with minimal preparation and are meant to be interactive. As a teacher, you will facilitate discussions to increase student learning.
Chapter 1: Know Yourself
Lesson Titles
- Lesson 1: Who Am I?
- Lesson 2: Family Dynamics
- Lesson 3: Choose Your Friends
- Lesson 4: Respect
- Lesson 5: My Life Plan
Chapter 2: Communication
Lesson Titles
- Lesson 1: Listen Up
- Lesson 2: Active Listener
- Lesson 3: Eye Contact
- Lesson 4: Facial Expressions
- Lesson 5: Body Language
- Lesson 6: Tone of Voice
- Lesson 7: Verbal Communication
- Lesson 8: Public Speaking
Chapter 3: Collaboration
Lesson Titles
- Lesson 1: Synergy
- Lesson 2: Be a Leader
- Lesson 3: Social Media Analysis
- Lesson 4: Social Media Manners
- Lesson 5: Brainstorming
- Lesson 6: Service Project
Chapter 4: Truth Detector
Lesson Titles
- Lesson 1: Identifying Fake News
- Lesson 2: Social Media Mayhem
- Lesson 3: Article Analysis
- Lesson 4: Photo Analysis
Chapter 5: Quality Questions
Lesson Titles
- Lesson 1: Great Questions
- Lesson 2: Disagreement Dialogue
- Lesson 3: Image Investigation
- Lesson 4: Reading Realization
Chapter 6: Decisions, Decisions!
Lesson Titles
- Lesson 1: Making Decisions
- Lesson 2: Teen Brain
- Lesson 3: Influencers
- Lesson 4: Value Verdicts
- Lesson 5: Avoiding Mistakes
- Lesson 6: Mending Mistakes
- Lesson 7: Problem-Solving
- Lesson 8: Personal Problems
Chapter 7: Teamwork
Lesson Titles
- Lesson 1: Take a Stand
- Lesson 2: Team Player
- Lesson 3: Team Building
- Lesson 4: Peer Challenge
Chapter 8: Critical Thinking
Lesson Titles
- Lesson 1: Critical Thinker
- Know Yourself
- Communication
- Collaboration
- Truth Detector
- Quality Questions
- Decisions, Decisions!
- Teamwork
Bunnie Loree
Claxton
Dr. Bunnie L. Claxton, Ed.D., is the Director of Applied Research at Liberty University. She is an associate professor at Liberty University and Colorado Christian University. She has 25 years of experience in the field of education, including public, private, homeschool, and higher education. She has developed multiple graduate-level courses, chaired dissertations, served as a research methodologist, subject matter expert, and instructional mentor to professors. Her scholarly publications include A Step-by-Step Guide to Applied Research in Education, A Step-by-Step Guide to Qualitative Research in Education, A Step-by-Step Guide to Quantitative Research in Education, A Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Literature Review in Doctoral Research, and Planning, Writing, and Implementing IEPs: A Christian Approach; she has also served as a contributing author for two additional books. Dr. Claxton served as the Superintendent for Liberty University Online Academy, an online K-12 school with over 6,000 students.
Dawn
Cobb-Fossnes
Dr. Dawn M. Cobb-Fossnes, Ed.D., has been in the field of education since 1980 as a high-school math teacher, guidance counselor, and principal. She currently is an adjunct professor at Liberty University and a middle-school principal at a charter school. Having worked both in private and public schools, she has also been a workshop speaker at several teacher conferences and the co-founder of a private school that included international students. In addition, she is the founder of Melody Ministries, Inc., a non-profit organization that provides a free week of camp for underprivileged boys and girls.
Dawn’s vision and mission has been to help young people become the best they can be, so she recognizes the importance of teaching them to become critical thinkers.