Good Games to Build Critical Thinking

For Lower Elementary Students

• Scavenger hunts and matching games are good activities for teaching critical thinking to younger children. Arrange or plan the hunt in a way that requires reasoning. For example, the hunt may require students to find an item that represents each letter of the alphabet, or a theme such as animals, colors or modes of transportation.

For Upper Elementary

• Older children are better able to evaluate and reason. A "guess who" or "guess what I am" game will help students to build on these skills. The game begins with the students asking questions of the teacher. The answers should help the students to determine who or what the mystery person or item is. Students should be encouraged to take notes and take turns guessing. This game can also be played with teams.

For Middle School Students

• Middle school age students often struggle with making decisions. An exercise in decision making can also help in developing critical thinking. Begin this decision-making game by asking questions of the students. For example, ask whether students would rather live in the mountains or near the beach. Students desiring to live in the mountains might be instructed to go to the left of the room, and those choosing the beach the right. Once the choice is made, present the pros and cons of both. Then, ask if anyone would like to change sides. Other topics might include whether students prefer to live in the city or the country, own a dog or a cat or enjoy summer or winter.

For High School Students

• There are a number of activities and games to use with high school students to improve critical thinking. In addition to debates, you might also consider popular games like the human knot, charades and trivia. Group projects that require students to work together as a team are also beneficial. The line formation game is perfect for high schoolers. Begin by dividing the class into three groups. Now have the groups line up according to something simple like shortest to tallest to get started. The team that finishes first wins. Now make the game more difficult by having them line up alphabetically or by birth date (the soonest to the farthest).