Archives: Philosophy ToolKit

Demands for Argument and Civility in Douglass’ 1852 Fourth of July Oration

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Federick Douglass

Introduction: Calls for civility are common features of contemporary political discourse, and teaching high school students how to engage in civil discourse over contentious issues is of obvious importance. Calls for civility, however, do not always distribute burdens equally. This is particularly true in cases where someone is called on to defend the legitimacy of … Demands for Argument and Civility in Douglass’ 1852 Fourth of July Oration

Trolley Problem Ethics

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trolley car

See the Lesson Attachment link above for a PDF of this lesson plan. Stimulus: Introduce Scenario 1:1 1:1: You are a train driver. As you are driving you look ahead and see 5 people trapped on the tracks. There is no way that you will be able to stop the train before running them over … Trolley Problem Ethics

Philosophy of Kindness

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kindness

Introduction: Have students draw up a page with two columns. Title one side ‘kind’ and the other side ‘unkind’. Get them to list actions or behaviours that they have done themselves, had done to them, or witnessed being done to others into each column. This introduction gets them working on their prior knowledge of the … Philosophy of Kindness

Philosophy of Emotion

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Poster for movie Alike - cartoon image of yellow child and blue adult

Stimulus: Play the short film ‘Alike’ (found in the Video Tab above) as the stimulus for the lesson Sharing: Generate concepts/questions/ideas that come from the film. These can be anything at this stage. They might include: why did they change colours? It was about feeling sad. It was about how bad school is. Younger children … Philosophy of Emotion

Me and You

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Ripples in water reflecting sky

Start off the activity by talking to the students about relationships. Questions: Who here has someone they’re close with? (whether that be a friend or family member) Are there any other people you have a close relationship with? Why do you think you’re close to them? What is a relationship? After introducing the idea of … Me and You

Does Grammar Matter?

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stack of English grammar books

Lesson Overview Has anyone ever corrected you on your grammar? In this lesson, teachers will encourage students to explore their use of grammar. We all use it, but why does it matter? In looking further into their grammar use, students will consider the role that grammar plays in different people’s lives. This lesson breaks down … Does Grammar Matter?

Courage without Vulnerability?

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Woman leaping over cravass at sunset

Can there be courage in a world without vulnerability? This lesson explores the definitions of courage and the definition of a lesser discussed word: vulnerability. Through a series of questions the lesson is geared to get students thinking about a possible connection that exists between vulnerability and courage. It challenges the stigma often associated with … Courage without Vulnerability?

Where are you?

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signpost in countryside by the sea

Warm Up Activity: Where do you live? Ask students the following questions: What street do you live on? What town do you live in? What state do you live in? What country do you live in? What do you live near? What is around you? Reflect on this activity by reminding them that there are … Where are you?

What Kind of Question is This?

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hand pointing to chalk writing "what where when why how who"

This lesson works well for early elementary school students (kindergarten-3rd grade) and can be used either in a classroom or online. This is a helpful activity to do with elementary aged students to help differentiate between philosophical and other kinds of questions. This helps build their skills of identifying and asking philosophical questions during philosophy … What Kind of Question is This?

Who is the Teacher?

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teaching point to globe surround by students

Preparation: Make a slide deck to share with students either using the classroom projector or with a shared screen function in the online setting.  In the deck you’ll want to include: First, a slide entitled “Who is the teacher?” with two pictures—one an adult who is teaching and one a young person who is teaching. … Who is the Teacher?