"If you want to do something nice for
children, give them an environment
where they can touch things as much
as they want."
– Buckminster Fuller
When your child asks a question, he or she is taking an active role in their own learning, trying to figure out how the world works by seeking information. As they ask questions, they are developing critical thinking skills that build brain power.
Asking questions is also an important form of communication. Your child is seeking out a knowledgeable person —you, another child, a family member or caregiver—and requesting information that he needs or wants.
Finally, when your child asks questions, it shows how important strong relationships are in helping children learn and grow. Children turn to the people they love and trust to help them learn.
Why does not always mean why. It can mean how, or what, or when. Sometimes Why is also an opportunity for children to extend talking with you and getting your attention. They love you and want to have you see them and think about them. You can also turn questions back to children. Tell me what you think is happening? What do you see? What is important to you about this?
Ways to promote questions at home:
Read books together and ask questions about the story: What do you see, where is the character, and talk about the story itself, what will happen next?
Ask questions yourself about situations that are occurring for example: “The water is not draining from the sink, what do you think I can do? What should I try?
Offer opportunities to think about how things work:
-When water spills, ask what happened to the water.
-Talk about how food is hot or cold and what is making it like that.
-These little opportunities to ask questions with children and explore different perspectives about why and how things happen encourages creativity as well as builds confidence in thinking and demonstrates the importance of asking questions.
