Are all animals beasts? What makes something a beast? Are the people in this room beasts? Can we have beasts inside of us? (In our mind, actions, thoughts, fears, etc.) Why do we think things that scare us are bad? Have you ever thought you were really different from someone else, and then realized that … Who is the Beast?
What does it mean to hear something? Is hearing the same as listening? The book tell us that the old man “always asked himself hard questions that take a while to answer.” Who decides how long we have to answer a question? Why do some questions take longer to answer than other ones? Are there advantages of … Other Way to Listen
Can a person be sad without knowing why? What is sadness? Is it the opposite of happiness or something else? How can you forget something that was affecting you so deeply? Are feelings important? Are feelings real? Why didn’t the mom just ask Pookie what was wrong from the beginning? Contributed by Gobe Hirata
What is beauty? Are the following things beautiful? a sunrise The Mona Lisa a smile a song a feeling a thought a painting Can we have different ideas about what beauty is? What does something have to have to be beautiful? Anything? What does it feel like when something is beautiful to us? Is this … Very Hungry Caterpillar
Was the “ugly duckling” really ugly? If so, what made him ugly? Did he stop being ugly at the end of the story? What does ugly mean? Would the “ugly duckling” still be ugly if someone thought he was beautiful? What is beauty? How do we decide what is beautiful and what is not? If … Ugly Duckling
What do you think of Nikolai’s questions? Do you think they are the most important questions in life? What do you think are the three most important questions? Do you believe that what we think about these questions changes over time and with experience? Should it? Are the most important questions in life the same … Three Questions
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GOOD AND BAD? Is Peter behaving badly? Is the mouse carrying the seeds out of the garden behaving badly? Is the cat behaving badly? Was Mr. McGregor behaving badly when he killed Peter’s father? Are the following things good or bad? A hammer. An ice cream cone. A friendship. A song. … Tale of Peter Rabbit
Is Swimmy scared when his school of fish are eaten? What does he do? Is Swimmy brave? If so, what makes him brave? Is Swimmy afraid of all the new creatures he encounters? Why or why not? Does Swimmy like being alone? Is a school of fish a community? What makes a community a community? … Swimmy
What are the important things? How do we know these things are important? Are there some things that are important for everyone? Activity: This is a useful activity for a first philosophy class. Pass out index cards to the students and ask them to envision a classroom in which they are bound by only one … Stuart Little – Chapter 12, “The Schoolroom”
WHAT MAKES A . . . Duck a duck? Cat a cat? Man a man? Woman a woman? Parent a parent? Car a car? Bird a bird? Smile a smile? Feeling a feeling? Thought a thought? WHAT DOES A THING NEED TO. . . What does a kite need to fly? What does a tree … Stellaluna
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