How to Nurture Logical Thinking for Modern Learning

Education is way more than simply preparing children for the world of work, which is why we expose learners to a broad range of disciplines throughout their educational career, nurturing their creativity, interests, and eventual specialisms. 

Indeed, logical thinking in modern learning is critical because the jobs our children will thrive in during adulthood probably don’t exist yet. Think about it: if you went to school during the 1980s, there was no such thing as the commercial internet or a digital nomad. Yet, most of us — in some way — rely heavily on the internet during our working lives. 

This article explores how logical thinking helps prepare our children for a future job market that has yet to manifest while instilling a love of learning from a young age. 

What is logical thinking?

The simplest definition of logical thinking is “the art of problem-solving.” 

In other words, we take a problem and determine the solution. We use reasoning skills to analyze the problem’s causes. And we come to a rational approach to overcoming it.

Logical thinking is the process of:

• Applying evidence and reasoning to help understand a problem, then
• Coming up with the most sensible solution

At the heart of it, logical thinking is a transferable learning skill that we develop at a young age and take into our adult lives. It prepares us for the adaptability we all need in the job market, helping ensure a satisfying professional career later in life. 

But:

Learning isn’t just about preparing us for the world of work. Developing logical thinking at a young age instills a lifelong reverence for puzzles and brain teasers that keep the cerebrum fit and active into old age. 

Is logical thinking the same as critical thinking?

Recognizing how a “normal thinker” might operate is essential to fully understanding the difference between logical and critical thinking. 

A “normal thinker” might accept realities as facts based entirely on faith without analysis or examination of the root cause of an issue. 

And while there are similarities in what we describe as logical and critical thinking, there are some essential differences. 

Logical thinking is essentially the analysis of arguments, drawing on the differentiation between truthful and untruthful statements. 

And while critical thinking relies on logical thinking, it takes it a step further — assessing the face value of statements while connecting the dots that help draw the thinker towards a truthful conclusion. 

The importance of logical thinking

The ability to think logically is a valuable life skill, something we rely on our entire young and adult lives. 

As well as helping us overcome complex issues by breaking big problems into more manageable components, logical thinking helps us:

• Make decisions — a successful life is about making the right decisions or dealing with the aftermath of a poor decision. Logical thinking helps us consider the potential outcomes, identify the pros and cons, and make choices based on reason rather than emotion and cultural- or learned biases.
• Communicate effectively — we can develop effective assertive behaviors through logical argument, allowing us to convey our thoughts and ideas coherently and persuasively.
• Deepen learning — a logical mind recognizes the relationships between one fact and another, helping us understand rather than just know. If we know why something happens, we can understand it more clearly. 

How to improve your logical thinking

Some of the best ways to improve the ability to think logically are:

Puzzles and games 

Brain teasers, puzzles, and games enhance logical thinking skills, challenging learners to recognize patterns and make logical deductions by analyzing presented information. 

Some of the best puzzles are the simplest: Chess, Wordle, Sudoku, crosswords, connections, etc. They challenge the gray matter to think in advance, making educated decisions based on a preconceived strategy. 

But for younger children, puzzles like word searches and Connect 4 are excellent for developing visual cognition; even I-Spy is an excellent creative game for inspiring creative thought.

Seeking out diverse arguments

Thought processes become stagnant if left unchallenged. So, seeking out diverse perspectives through debate encourages fact-checking and challenges an individual’s ability to change their mind through enlightening discussion. 

Indeed, discussion and debate are particularly useful educational devices because they demand a range of cognitive processes, such as:

• the analysis of information, 
• formulation of an argument, and, perhaps most importantly, 
• the development of listening skills

These attributes are invaluable tools in the development of logical reasoning. 

Creative hobbies

The arts might not be your first port of call when considering how you might develop logical thinking in a learner, but hear us out:

Creative activities like painting, music, and writing require organizational planning and problem-solving. 

For example, it helps to imagine the finished result when painting a picture or writing a story. Knowing where it’s going is a valuable path to finding the way from the beginning to the end. And this relies on logical sequences, identifying patterns, and using your senses to make decisions. 

Therefore, creative endeavors encourage experimentation and decision-making based on logical reasoning.

Effective questioning

One of the principal issues affecting modern learners is the overwhelm of information and the vast range in the reliability of sources. 

So, encouraging learners to consider the validity of information is a valuable step in the educational process. 

Nurture probing questions like:

• How do you know that’s true?
• What is the evidence?
• Is the source reliable?
• Is the answer logical or based on assumption?

How do you teach logical thinking?

Some pupils have innately logical minds, while others need help developing the reasoning skills to assess a problem logically. 

But the good news is that most learners can develop a logical mind with practice and constructive feedback. 

Here are some top tips for encouraging logical thinking in your student group:

1. Initial assessment

It’s easier to teach a group once you understand the gaps in their skillset or knowledge base. So, run some fun diagnostic assessments that help you measure each student’s understanding of key concepts, logical rules, and terms.

Consider pop quizzes, informal practical tests, or even assignments so that you can observe their responses to stimuli. Get them involved in class discussions, group projects, or debates, and discern their responses to new concepts.  

2. Demonstrate the skills

Once you understand the group’s existing levels of logical thinking, you can help develop reasoning skills with explicit instruction, exploring the processes and principles associated with logic. 

1. Start by referring to the relevant terms and rules of logic, using analogies and examples related to your specific subject area. 
2. Model the steps and strategies commonly used during logical reasoning, demonstrating how to identify a premise and how it differs from a conclusion. 
3. Show how to evaluate evidence and verify sources.
4. Explain the importance of identifying bias and fallacy.
5. Demonstrate how you construct and test an argument. 

Use puzzles and brain teasers, getting your students to apply logical reasoning to decipher the root cause of a problem. 

And reinforce your demonstration with graphics, using practical tools, such as coding games, which provide an excellent visual interface for children to see the results of their logical deduction. 

Use flowcharts and Venn diagrams to explore processes, examining where they overlap so your learners can understand and streamline them. 

3. Leave space for practice 

Learners need the space to experiment, manipulate, and challenge the processes you’re introducing them to. Allow them to discover outcomes for themselves, examining what happens when they go against logic. 

Is the outcome better or worse? 

Devise tasks and activities that push your learners towards logical thinking — puzzles, case studies, games, or even simulations are great ways to get hands-on with conceptual, logical principles. 

It can be difficult to allow students to stray from the lesson plan, but let your learners find the answers in their own way. While many will stray from the directly logical path, they’re likely to veer back in that direction when they discover things have gone wrong. This way, they learn the value of logical thinking for themselves. 

4. Give real-world feedback

Guide your learners with feedback that helps them develop their judgment. Use real-life scenarios to help them understand the correct path of action in solving a problem. 

Provide a range of real-world examples to accommodate each learner’s life experience. And challenge them to improve their theoretical knowledge and organizational skills, asking them to analyze, sort, and manage various real-world problems. 

5. Encourage collaboration and reflection

Encourage a supportive learning environment where learners feel comfortable contributing to discussions and tasks. Debates are excellent frameworks that support and challenge each other’s knowledge and assumptions. 

Facilitate discussions by asking learners to listen to varying perspectives and challenging them to question their assumptions. 

After all, logical thinking is the ability to step back and take in the problem’s entirety — and sometimes, this is the only way we see the things we may have missed. 

Stick in some red herrings along the way — can your learners identify them collaboratively?

Ask learners what they’ve learned and how they felt about facing the challenge. How did it feel to challenge something they thought they knew? Do they feel more or less able to solve problems alone? Remember, reflection is a valuable stage of the learning process.

6. Use technology to solve problems and nurture logical thinking

While you might not encourage phone use during class, there is a time and place to use the technologies we carry around in our pockets while learning.

Integrate digital platforms and tools to help bring logical learning to life. For example, CodeMonkey’s online coding platform presents a wide array of contexts for logical thought through a fun, visual interface that teaches kids to code alongside the conventional school curriculum. 

Activities that promote logical and critical thinking

Here are some ways to incorporate logical and critical thinking exercises in your classroom activities:

Survival

Provide a hypothetical, challenging scenario, such as being stranded on a desert island or lost in the forest, and list the resources that might help them overcome the problem.  

Split the group into teams and give them a short timescale to discuss, trial, and assess potential solutions. Then, ask each group to present their solution to the rest of the class. 

This encourages problem-solving through teamwork, collaborative deduction, and listening —  challenging the learner’s ability to analyze and present information coherently. 

Build a Rocket

This activity asks learners to use given resources to build an item, such as a bridge, tower, or rocket, varying the complexity of the task depending on ability. Maybe ask one group to build a rocket that can take off while another group might just make the physical rocket. 

Provide everyday (but limited) resources, like building blocks, pipe cleaners, sheets of paper, etc. 

Again, give your groups a limited timescale, promoting teamwork and time management. 

Don’t break the egg!

The task here is to drop the egg from a given height, developing ways to save it from breaking as it lands. This could create a mess, so consider using tennis balls for younger learners. 

The idea is that learners develop a soft landing using given resources that encourage lateral thinking. 

For example, you could use a newspaper to create a “fireperson’s blanket” or screw up the pages, making a soft nest to break the egg’s fall. 

The Apprentice invention round!

Split your learners into small groups and ask them to invent a new product, such as a new schoolbag, delicious snack, or concept for a video game. Encourage them to develop the idea, design logos and product packaging, and explore the pros and cons of the concept. 

Then, ask each group to present their ideas to a panel of the other students. This activity could run for several sessions, offering students a range of challenges and problem-solving skills. 

Connections

Give your learners a seemingly random selection of items, and ask them to find connections between them. 

For example, you might give them a list of items including:

• A hairbrush
• A board marker
• A pair of glasses
• A box of chalk
• A hat
• A pencil
• A notepad
• A wig

Of course, the solution is:

• Things you use on your head: hairbrush, glasses, hat, wig
• Things you use for writing: board marker, chalk, pencil, notepad. 

They don’t need to be as obvious as that but see which connections the students make. And while there’s always an obvious correct answer, encourage your group to think outside the box and find more tangential connections.

FAQs

What is logical thinking?

Logical thinking is analyzing a problem or situation and developing realistic and reasoned solutions. We all have the ability to develop logical thinking, although it comes more naturally to some than others. Logical thinkers gather the facts to formulate a systematic way to overcome a problem. 

At what age do children develop logical thinking?

Very young children base their environmental understanding on the things they see around them. The typical age for a child to recognize basic logical connections is around 7 to 11, during the “concrete operational stage” of cognitive development (according to Piaget). 

Is it possible to teach logical thinking?

Logic isn’t necessarily a natural cognitive mindset in humans. Babies typically lack the ability to logically decipher the world around them, developing the first signs of logical connections at around 7. Research suggests that children exposed to rational choices from a young age are better at problem-solving than those without experience of logical or critical thinking, implying that logical thinking is a skill developed through exposure to analytical stimuli. 

Nurturing logical thinking for learners

I hope we’ve given you some inspiring ideas about how you might encourage logical thinking in your classroom. Of course, this is the tip of the iceberg, so we’d love it if you share your tips for teaching logical thinking in the comments below. 

And don’t forget to check out how CodeMonkey helps develop logical thinking through a wide range of coding games, helping set kids up for a lifetime of computer literacy that will serve them well throughout their professional lives. 

Thanks for reading!