Want to raise a child who loves to think?
Every parent wants their kids to be curious, confident and quick thinkers. Why? Because good thinking skills early on lead to:
- Better learning at school
- More confidence with new ideas
Here’s the catch:
Adults mostly ask children closed-ended questions. “Did you have fun today?” quickly receives a “yes.” And that’s that. Conversation over.
Closed questions close down thinking.
The solution is easy and it costs nothing. It begins with just one little word change when you speak to your child.
Let’s jump in!
What’s inside this guide:
- Why The Early Years Matter So Much
- What Are Open-Ended Questions?
- How Open-Ended Questions Build Thinking Skills
- What To Look For When Choosing The Right Childcare
- 5 Easy Ways To Ask Better Questions At Home
Why The Early Years Matter So Much
During the first five years of life, a child’s brain develops more quickly than at any other age.
How quickly? Approximately 90% of brain growth occurs by the time a child turns 5 years old. That is a significant window of time. But it goes by faster than most parents realize.
In these years the brain is making the connections your child will use to problem solve, use language and exercise self-control. Each conversation, story and question helps build those connections.
This is why the grownups in your child’s life are so important. At home… and at daycare.
Which is also why selecting childcare is such an important decision for families to make. Your little one could be spending multiple hours a day with educators. So you want to choose a centre where educators talk with children, not down to them. Parents researching childcare in Doreen and surrounding suburbs should ask how educators encourage questioning, play and conversation to develop early critical thinking skills before enrolling their little one.
What Are Open-Ended Questions?
Open-ended questions are questions with more than one right answer.
Questions you cannot answer with a simple ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’ They require a child to elaborate, guess, imagine or describe something. They typically begin with ‘how,’ ‘why’ and ‘what if’.
Here’s the difference:
- Closed question: “Is that a red car?”
- Open-ended question: “Where do you think that red car is going?”
See the difference?
One answer fits the first question. With the second question you open a door. Your child has to think, visualize a story and search for words to tell it.
Children are typically able to answer open-ended questions starting at age 3 or 4. But you can start anytime.
How Open-Ended Questions Build Thinking Skills
Children are naturally curious creatures. One study actually discovered preschoolers ask 26 questions an hour when they’re at home, but fewer than two questions per hour while at school.
That’s a massive drop.
Wonder isn’t something you lose automatically. Children lose wonder when they aren’t allowed to wonder. Ask open-ended questions to leave the door open for wonder. Here’s why…
They Grow Language Skills
When children respond to open-ended questions, they use more words. They construct longer sentences. They learn how to tell a story from beginning to end.
A study published in Frontiers in Psychology reported that children whose caregivers predominantly asked closed questions had shorter sentences and lower overall language scores.
More talking = More learning.
They Build Problem Solving
“How could we stop the tower from falling down?”
A question like this one requires a child to observe a problem, test a hypothesis and try again. That is the exact same thought process used by adults in the workplace every day. It just begins with a pile of blocks.
They Boost Confidence
There’s no wrong answer to “What do you think happens next?”
That relieves the pressure. Children will feel safe to voice ideas without fear of being wrong. And a confident child will be much more likely to continue to ask questions themselves.
Pretty cool, right?
What To Look For When Choosing The Right Childcare
Family/home life is one piece of the puzzle. When a child is in childcare though, teachers become significant people in their lives as well.
Visit a centre and observe how the teachers interact with children. Do they ask, “What colour is that?” Or do they say, “Tell me about your painting”?
It’s a small thing. But it speaks volumes about how a centre perceives learning. When teachers ask deep questions, they produce children who ask deep questions.
Here are a few things to look out for:
- Educators who get down to eye level and chat with kids
- Play-based learning with blocks, art, sand and water
- Time for kids to explore without being rushed
- Staff who are happy to explain how they support early thinking
Centres worth their salt treat questioning as part of the learning process… not an interruption to it.
5 Easy Ways To Ask Better Questions At Home
You don’t need any training. Just a few go-to questions and a willingness to wait.
Here’s what to do…
Swap “Did You” For “What Did You”
Say “What was the best part of your day?” instead of “Did you have a good day?” One small word change turns a “yes” into a story.
Wonder Out Loud
“How come leaves fall?” This gets your child thinking with you, rather than waiting for you to deliver the answer.
Ask “What Would Happen If…”
Questions like these fire up the imagination. “What if dogs could talk?” There isn’t a correct answer — and that’s the whole point.
Wait For The Answer
Ok, here comes the hard part. Just count to five in your mind before you respond. Kids need time to process their thoughts. Let there be silence…that’s where the magic happens.
If you jump in too quickly you’ll end up providing them the answer… defeating the purpose.
Ask About Their Answer
When your child responds, press further. “Why do you think that happened?” or “How did you figure that out?” Every follow-up question elongates their thought process.
It really is that simple.
The Final Word
Open-ended questions may be one of the simplest ways to cultivate a curious, confident thinker. They are…
- Free to do
- Easy to start today
…and they can have a big impact during the years when your child’s brain is developing rapidly.
To quickly recap:
- The first five years are when the brain grows the most
- Open-ended questions have more than one right answer
- They build language, problem solving and confidence
- Choosing the right childcare means finding educators who ask great questions
- Small swaps at home make a big difference
Begin with just one question at dinner tonight. An open-ended question. Sit back and observe.
