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Materials for Home School Students and Parent Teachers
 "...the intellect, which has been disciplined to the perfection of its powers, which knows, and thinks while it knows, which has learned to leaven the dense mass of facts and events with the elastic force of reason, such an intellect cannot be partial, cannot be exclusive, cannot be impetuous, cannot be at a loss, cannot but be patient, collected and majestically calm, because it discerns the end in every beginning, the origin in every end, the law in every interruption, the limit in each delay; because it ever knows where it stands, and how its path lies from one point to another.
John Henry Newman, The Idea of a University, 1852
There is no more pressing need in education than the cultivation of the intellect. This is one of the primary reasons behind the growing home study movement. And, as John Henry Newman said, more than 150 years ago, education is a high word, and therefore is not to be confused with other things (such as indoctrination, training, socialization, amusement). But such cultivation is no easy task. Many materials available to the home school educator (and to teachers in general) lack substance. How does one works one's way through the myriad instructional strategies, gimmicks, fads prevalent in the "educational" materials market today?
We argue that the first step is to learn what it means to cultivate the intellect, to engage the intellect in the process of learning. In other words, we believe that educators themselves must develop their own minds if they are to foster the intellectual development of others. When we have cultivated our own minds, we are then ready to assist our children (students) in this process.
When we internalize the basic concepts and principles of critical thinking we understand that critical thinking must be placed at the heart of everything we do in the classroom. This is true because all content is understood by thinking, assessed by thinking, analyzed by thinking, internalized by thinking, modified by thinking, contextualized by thinking. In other words, it is only through thinking that we can understand content, truly and well. Students therefore need the tools of critical thinking to think their way through content. Until they are thinking their own way through content, with discipline and skill, they cannot internalize it. They cannot make it their own. They do not understand it.
We invite you to explore the resources on this page as a starting point for your understanding of critical thinking.
K-12 INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES & SAMPLES
The following complementary articles on our website are among those most relevant to fostering critical thinking in any subject or discipline and at any level.
Tactical and Structural Recommendations
Teaching Tactics that Encourage Active Learning
Using Intellectual Standards to Assess Student Reasoning
Making Critical Thinking Intuitive
John Stuart Mill: On Instruction, Intellectual Development, and Disciplined Learning
Socratic Teaching
Strategy List: 35 Dimensions of Critical Thought
HOW TO "REMODEL" LESSON PLANS
The Art of Redesigning Instruction
Introduction to Remodelling: Components of Remodels and Their Functions
Remodelled Lessons: K-3
Remodelled Lessons: 4-6
Remodelled Lessons: 6-9
Remodelled Lessons: High School
MATERIALS FOR PURCHASE
In addition to the complementary resources above, we offer for purchase a Home School Thinker's Guide Set to help you learn the foundations of critical thinking and foster critical thinking in your home study environment. We also offer several bundles that can be used in conjunction with this thinker's guide set. The bundles and thinker's guide contain materials commonly purchased by K-12 institutional and home study teachers at a savings to the individual item cost. For Parent/Teachers and Older Students
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Home Study Thinker’s Guide Set
We recommend this set for home study parents of Junior High/High School Students. This set includes the thinker’s guides which focus on the foundations of critical thinking. It also includes those guides useful in contextualizing essential critical thinking concepts and principles for classroom instruction. And it contains the thinker’s guides we recommend for student use.
THIS SET CONTAINS:
550M: Active & Cooperative Learning
595M: Analytic Thinking
555M: Critical Thinking Competency Standards (For Educators)
520M: Critical Thinking: Concepts & Tools
583M: Educational Fads
585M: Ethical Reasoning
575M: How to Detect Media Bias & Propaganda
560M: How to Improve Student Learning (For Those Who Teach)
525M: How to Read a Paragraph The Art of Close Reading
530M: How to Study & Learn a discipline (for students)
535M: How to Write a Paragraph: The Art of Substantive Writing
580M: The Art of Asking Essential Questions
553M: The Art of Socratic Questioning
554M: The Aspiring Thinker's Guide
570M: The Human Mind
563M: The International Critical Thinking Reading and Writing Test
Retail Value: $90.00 |
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Kindergarten through 3rd Grade
LINKS FOR YOUNG STUDENTS
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Home School (grades K-3) Bundle
The K-3 Home Study Bundle includes instructional design materials for grades K-3, elementary products for instructional use, and materials to help the home study teacher learn and begin to internalize the concepts of critical thinking.
THIS SET CONTAINS:
595M: Analytic Thinking
350DVD: Children’s Guide to Critical Thinking - Companion DVD
540M: Critical Thinking for Children
401B: Critical Thinking Handbook: K-3
104B: Learn the Tools the Best Thinkers Use - Concise Edition
542P: Masks of Fran, Sam, Nancy (set of 3)
541M: Teacher's Manual for 540M (children's mini-guide)
570M: The Human Mind
543M5: Think About Fran and Sam
Retail Value: $116.80 |
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Home School Grades 4-6
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Home School (grades 4-6) Bundle
This Home Study Bundle includes instructional design materials for grades 4-6, elementary products for instructional use, and materials to help the home study teacher learn and begin to internalize the concepts of critical thinking.
THIS SET CONTAINS:
595M: Analytic Thinking
350DVD: Children’s Guide to Critical Thinking - Companion DVD
402B: Critical Thinking Handbook: 4th-6th Grades
200S: Laminated Card Set: Critical Thinking for Education (set of 6)
104B: Learn the Tools the Best Thinkers Use - Concise Edition
541M: Teacher's Manual for 540M (children's mini-guide)
570M: The Human Mind
543M5: Think About Fran and Sam
Retail Value: $109.85 |
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Junior High and High School Home Study
Home School Students at the High School and Jr. High School levels will find the articles at the following links valuable in assisting them in becoming more self-guided and engaged learners. We encourage parent-teachers to read the content with their students and engage in conversations about how students can begin to take command of their learning through disciplining the mind.
LINKS FOR THE JR. HIGH - HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT
Learning the Elements and Standards of Critical Thinking
Critical Thinking in Everyday Life: 9 Strategies
Developing as Rational Persons: Viewing Our Development in Stages
How to Study and Learn (Part One)
How to Study and Learn (Part Two)
How to Study and Learn (Part Three)
How to Study and Learn (Part Four)
The Art of Close Reading (Part One)
The Art of Close Reading (Part Two)
The Art of Close Reading (Part Three)
Looking To The Future With a Critical Eye: A Message for High School Graduates
Becoming a Critic Of Your Thinking
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Home School (grades 6-9) Bundle
NOW INCLUDES THE ASPIRING THINKER'S GUIDE
The 6-9 Home Study Bundle includes instructional design materials that can be adapted for grades 6-9. It also includes materials to help the home study teacher learn and begin to internalize the concepts of critical thinking.
THIS SET CONTAINS:
403B: Critical Thinking Handbook: 6-9th Grades
200S: Laminated Card Set: Critical Thinking for Education (set of 6)
104B: Learn the Tools the Best Thinkers Use - Concise Edition
554M: The Aspiring Thinker's Guide
Retail Value: $71.95 |
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Home Study High School Bundle
The High School Home Study Bundle includes instructional design materials that can be adapted for high school students. It also includes a book designed to help the home study teacher begin to internalize the foundations of critical thinking. It is designed for use along with the Home Study Thinker’s Guide Set.
THIS SET CONTAINS:
404B: Critical Thinking Handbook: High School
200S: Laminated Card Set: Critical Thinking for Education (set of 6)
104B: Learn the Tools the Best Thinkers Use - Concise Edition
554M: The Aspiring Thinker's Guide
Retail Value: $71.95 |
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