Recently Published Book: Seen and Not Heard
Published On: September 15, 2021Excerpt: Since 1996, Jana Mohr Lone's work has centered around the conviction that we ought both to challenge our beliefs about children’s limited capacities and enlarge our understanding of the meaning of philosophy and who is qualified to engage in it. She has authored several books on the topic, including her most recent Seen and Not Heard: Why Children’s Voices Matter which explores what children’s perspectives can contribute to philosophical thought.
Read the full article on Blog of the American Philosophical Association
Happiness: Can our imagination make us happy?
Published On: September 9, 2021Excerpt: Happiness is something that everyone wants. Sometimes, though, our imaginations create anxiety and actually prevent us from experiencing happiness. We make things worse than they actually are because of what we create in our minds. Yet, at other times, it is our actual experiences that create our suffering and our imaginations play no role. The power of the imagination is unique to each individual and can be a source of our happiness or despair.
Read the full article on TeachDifferent.com
Jana Mohr Lone advocates for children’s voices in new book, ‘Seen and Not Heard’
Published On: June 24, 2021Excerpt: In her new book, Jana Mohr Lone asks, how would the world benefit if children were recognized as independent thinkers? How would their lives change “if what they said was not often ignored or patronized?”
Read the full article on UW News
Children Are Natural Philosophers
Published On: June 14, 2021Excerpt: Children ask a lot of questions, and too often we dismiss them instead of embracing their wonder. Jana Mohr Lone joins host Krys Boyd to talk about why children offer unique viewpoints on life’s philosophical mysteries, and why it’s important to take them seriously.
Read the full article on Think by KERA
Philosophy with Children
Published On: May 12, 2021Excerpt: Kids don’t just say ‘the darndest things’. Playful and probing, they can be closer to the grain of life’s deepest questions.
Read the full article on Aeon Magazine
7 Values to Teach Your Child By Age 10
Published On: December 2, 2020Excerpt: There are certain values we'd love for our kids to have. But how do we go about teaching them? Experts offer ways to instill important values as they grow.
Read the full article on Parents Magazine
Holding Ethics Conversations With Your Scouts
Published On: November 10, 2020Excerpt: Your Scouts can recite the Scout Oath and Scout Law in their sleep, but can they apply those timeless values when they face tough decisions?
Read the full article on Scouting Magazine
Episode 3 – Jana Mohr Lone – Philosophy for Children
Published On: September 1, 2020Excerpt: In Limbo is a space dedicated to exploring the philosophical dimensions of pandemic situation. Our hope is to offer a series of conversations that throw light on the numerous ways in which different philosophical domains receive and study the pandemic.
Read the full article on In Limbo
What Is Freedom? Teaching Kids Philosophy in a Pandemic
Published On: June 25, 2020Excerpt: Thinking about big questions empowers children to feel more confident about the value of their own ideas, teachers say.
Read the full article on The New York Times
Why are kids asking such big questions during the pandemic?
Published On: May 4, 2020Excerpt: Talking with kids about what they are thinking without always feeling compelled to offer answers can help them explore their own concerns and ideas.
Read the full article on The Conversation
How UW is helping children grapple with big philosophical questions during COVID-19
Published On: April 30, 2020Excerpt: This month, the Center released a guide for parents on how to navigate questions their youngsters may be having during the pandemic. The document covers topics like fear, loneliness, boredom, and death, and includes books and videos that may stoke philosophical discussion.
Read the full article on The Daily
UW Center for Philosophy for Children helps families explore ‘big questions’ around COVID-19
Published On: April 15, 2020Excerpt: Recent weeks have seen events that are affecting people of all ages. The UW Center for Philosophy for Children is offering materials to help families broach big questions and feelings that may be surfacing as kids experience the current realities of sickness and isolation.
Read the full article on UW News
When Kids Ask Hard Questions, Don’t Be Afraid to Lean in
Published On: January 6, 2020Excerpt: The director of the UW Center for Philosophy for Children encourages families to embrace kids’ deep questions, uncomfortable as it may be.
Read the full article on Jewish in Seattle Magazine
What Would You Do?
Published On: November 13, 2019Excerpt: You’re invited to a party. Your friend isn’t. Should you go? This problem is what is known as a moral dilemma—a tough situation in which the right thing to do isn’t clear.
Read the full article on Scholastic Scope
Philosophy Is for Everyone, Debi Talukdar – TEDxUofW
Published On: July 23, 2019Excerpt: Debi Talukdar, philosopher-in-residence at Thurgood Marshall Elementary School and former Philosophy for Children Graduate Fellow, describes her experiences having philosophical conversations with children. She discusses children’s ability to ask profound questions and relates some of their philosophical insights and perspectives.
Read the full article on TEDx Talks
What Students Gain From Learning Ethics in School
Published On: May 24, 2019Excerpt: Bringing ethics education into schools benefits students in a variety of ways.
Read the full article on KQED News Mind/Shift
Saigon International School Professional Development Conference
Published On: April 29, 2019Excerpt: Jana Mohr Lone gave the keynote address at the Saigon International School's Professional Development Conference on November 16, 2018, discussing the importance of questioning and philosophical inquiry in schools.
Read the full article on Saigon Teacher Professional Development Conference Website
Philosophy for Children: Reclaiming the Discipline Outside of Higher Education
Published On: April 19, 2019Excerpt: Colorado College concluded this year’s Philosophy Colloquium Talks with a lecture from Dr. Jana Mohr Lone on March 28.
Read the full article on The Catalyst
UW Creates Certificate of Mastery in Philosophy for Children
Published On: April 12, 2019Excerpt: The Center for Philosophy for Children at the University of Washington is now offering a Certificate of Mastery in Philosophy for Children.
Read the full article on Daily Nous
How to win at civil debate
Published On: April 10, 2019Excerpt: For an American teenager today, there are precious few examples of positive, collaborative civil discourse in online media or the entertainment industry. But for motivated high school students in Seattle, there’s the High School Ethics Bowl, a six-year-old competition sponsored by the University of Washington’s Center for Philosophy for Children.
Read the full article on Experience Magazine
Alone Together: Sound Effect, Episode 171
Published On: March 5, 2019Excerpt: Center director Jana Mohr Lone takes a deeper look at a Frog and Toad story and its philosophical implications on the podcast Sound Effect.
Read the full article on KNKX Sound Effect
CONGRATULATIONS! State championship for Chief Sealth International High School Ethics Bowl Team
Published On: February 12, 2019Excerpt: Congratulations to the Chief Sealth International High School Ethics Bowl Team, which just won the state championship! Their proud coach, social-studies teacher Matthew Baudhuin, sent the news and photos.
Philosophical Inquiry in Childhood
Published On: July 14, 2018Excerpt: Children begin speculating about philosophical questions early in their lives. Almost as soon as they can formulate them, most children start asking what we call “big questions.”
Read the full article on 1000-Word Philosophy: An Introductory Anthology
In Polarized Times, the Ethics Bowl Embraces the Gray Areas
Published On: March 10, 2018Excerpt: There are times in life when the answers aren't black and white. Your friend is getting married, and asks you to be best man--but you don't approve of his fiancee. Should you speak up about your reservations? Should you be quiet and agree to be best man?
Read the full article on KNKX
Playdough to Plato
Published On: March 3, 2018Excerpt: Center-led classroom philosophy discussions are tinged with the flavors of Descartes, Confucius, and Kant, and have recently covered topics such as race, human rights and fairness. “Because they are so new to the world,” says Jana Mohr Lone, “children really wonder a lot. Often they’re asking what we think of as philosophical questions without the context of these thousands of-years-old conversations.”
Read the full article on UW Columns
No Narrow Thing podcast – Episode 10 Philosophy for Children with Jana Mohr Lone
Published On: January 3, 2018Excerpt: Center director Jana Mohr Lone discusses philosophy for children: What does a philosophical education for children look like? How might the world change if everyone was a little more philosophical? How do you navigate difficult topics like violence and religion with children?
Read the full article on No Narrow Thing
Can we (Or Should We) Teach Children Philosophy? with Jana Mohr Lone
Published On: December 29, 2017Excerpt: The questions we tackle today are: “Do you have to be a grownup to study those questions? Can kids think about them? Should kids think about them?” Plug in and listen as we discuss how teaching kids philosophy could impact the entire world.
Read the full article on Paul Gibbons
Playdoh’s Republic: Children as Natural Philosophers
Published On: December 19, 2017Excerpt: Why were we born? Is life just a dream? What makes something wrong or right? Children often ask questions like these — sometimes to the exasperation of their parents. But children really want to know why the world is the way it is. And they want to know how we know. Maybe that's because they're open, curious and inquisitive — they're natural philosophers. In this episode of IDEAS, the Big Questions — and even some attempted answers.
Read the full article on CBC Radio Ideas with Paul Kennedy
Philosophy Bakes Bread Radio Show — Philosophy for Children
Published On: April 17, 2017Excerpt: In this thirteenth episode of the Philosophy Bakes Bread radio show and podcast, co-hosts Dr. Anthony Cashio and Dr. Eric Thomas Weber interview Dr. Jana Mohr Lone of the University of Washington on the topic of philosophy for children.
Read the full article on Philosophy Bakes Bread
Why Not Ask Why?: Fostering Philosophical Questions in the Young
Published On: April 7, 2017Excerpt: By and large, today philosophy is not part of the standard American educational curriculum. It is generally regarded as one item in a long list of specialized academic disciplines which intellectually-minded people pursue, but which are of limited interest to the non-specialist.
Read the full article on Crossroads Cultural Center, New York City
How Do We Talk to Our Kids about Political Issues that are Stressing Us Out?
Published On: April 1, 2017Excerpt: No matter where we fall on the issues, our kids are bound to pick up on our agitation. How can we alleviate their fears while still being truthful? And just how upfront should we be? Local experts offer some guidelines for parents to help our children understand the world and offer some reassurance.
Read the full article on Seattle's Child
Lt. Governor Dives into Complex Issues with High School Ethics Bowl Champions
Published On: March 16, 2017Excerpt: All topics were fair game for debate on Thursday, when Lt. Gov. Cyrus Habib met with Washington’s 2017 High School Ethics Bowl champions. Students from first-place finisher Seattle Academy, as well as award winners Chief Sealth High School and Rainier Beach High School, stopped by the lieutenant governor’s office to debate various ethical perspectives on a multitude of complicated subjects.
Teach Kids Philosophy, It Makes Them Better at Math
Published On: January 3, 2017Excerpt: The nature of truth. Theories of fairness. The essence of bullying. These are big, weighty subjects, and apparently 9- and 10-year-olds just eat them up. As in, according to a Quartz piece by Jenny Anderson, placing grade-schoolers in weekly philosophical discussions has surprising effects on their academic performance.
Read the full article on New York Magazine
UW philosophers explore racial inequity with young students who are living it
Published On:Excerpt: A long-running philosophers in schools program has focused on racial inequity and social justice issues at a campus with clear divisions between race and class.
Read the full article on The Seattle Times
A grade-school philosophy teacher shares the most profound things kids have ever said
Published On: September 27, 2016Excerpt: As a philosophy teacher to grade-school students, Jana Mohr Lone is no stranger to getting her mind blown.
Read the full article on Business Insider
Schools Aren’t Teaching the Most Important Subject for Kids
Published On: August 27, 2016Excerpt: Not too long ago, Jana Mohr Lone was at an education workshop in her hometown of Seattle when someone gave her a note.
Read the full article on Business Insider
Schools are Finally Starting to Teach Kids Philosophy
Published On: March 10, 2016Excerpt: Schools are generally taught to teach kids what to think, but what if they taught them how to think instead?
Read the full article on Tech Insider
The Philosophical Child
Published On: February 19, 2016Excerpt: From time to time, we all ponder life’s most difficult questions. “Is there a god?” “How can I live a good life?” “What happens when you die?”
Read the full article on New Books Network
Dear Moms & Dads: Stop Underestimating Your Children
Published On: November 13, 2015Excerpt: The room was filled with parents eager to hear what Dr. Jana Lone, director for the Center for Philosophy for Children, had to say about understanding their philosophical children.
Read the full article on The Whole U
Do-It-Yourself
Published On: September 26, 2015Excerpt: Sound Effect is your weekly tour of ideas, inspired by the place we live. The show is hosted by KPLU's Gabriel Spitzer.
Read the full article on KNKX
Schools are starting to teach kids philosophy – and it’s completely changing the way students think
Published On: July 31, 2015Excerpt: America may be great at many things, but education isn't one of them. It's here that standardized testing creeps behind students like a shadow and where fun experiments take a back seat to rote memorization.
Read the full article on TECH Insider
Someone Saved My Life: Sound Effect, Episode 28
Published On: July 18, 2015Excerpt: Jana Mohr Lone is the Director of the University of Washington Center for Philosophy for Children. She explains to Gabriel Spitzer how the book “Four Feet, Two Sandals” reveals the dilemmas of saving lives and poses questions about how we value one another.
Read the full article on KNKX
How you talk to children about death – life’s final act
Published On: June 13, 2015Excerpt: Jana Mohr Lone discusses engaging children in conversations about death on KPLU's Sound Effect
Read the full article on KNKX
12 Best Philosophical Picture Books for Kids – And How to Get the Most Out of Them
Published On: March 27, 2015Excerpt: Jana Mohr Lone list her 12 favorite picture books for inspiring philosophical conversation with children. Listening to stories being read aloud, an experience many of us had when we were children, is conducive to creating an open and relaxed atmosphere for thinking about deep and fundamental questions.
Read the full article on patheos.com
Innovators Among Us: Preparing Students for Life after Graduation
Published On: May 13, 2014Excerpt: Jana Mohr Lone and Sara Goering help UW students think deeply, from multiple perspectives, and with an open-minded spirit of inquiry. In turn, their UW students help K-12 children do the same.
Read the full article on Provost Report Series on Trends and Issues
Ethics Takes Center Stage at Competition
Published On: March 19, 2014Excerpt: Should college athletes be paid? To what extent should politicians’ sexual indiscretions be forgiven? Is it ethical to arm rebels in countries where we're not at war? These sorts of ethical questions have no easy answers, as high school students discovered at the first annual Washington State High School Ethics Bowl, held on the University of Washington campus in February.
Read the full article on UW Perspectives
UW philosophers help small children ponder life’s big questions
Published On: March 13, 2014Excerpt: Most people think of philosophy as a subject for college, not kindergarten. But University of Washington philosopher Jana Mohr Lone believes young children benefit just as much from discussing big questions about life.
Read the full article on Seattle Times
At Seattle Elementary, Philosopher Helps Kids Explore The ‘Why’ Questions
Published On: February 18, 2014Excerpt: Students at Seattle's John Muir Elementary School are trying to answer life's big questions. Along with reading and math, the school's curriculum includes philosophy.
Read the full article on KNKX
High-School Ethics Bowl a First for Washington State
Published On: February 1, 2014Excerpt: In the first Washington State High School Ethics Bowl, 100 students spent their Saturday discussing topics from the legalization of marijuana to forgiving political sex scandals to supporting research on genetically engineered meat.
Read the full article on Seattle Times
Someone You Should Know: Jana Mohr Lone
Published On: November 24, 2013Excerpt: Jana Mohr Lone doesn't have answers for kids, just many questions. As the founder and director of the University of Washington Center for Philosophy for Children, she is committed to bring philosophy into young people's lives.
Read the full article on ParentMap
Experts: ‘Selfie syndrome’ not necessarily narcissistic
Published On: October 23, 2013Excerpt: A lot of young people seem to be obsessed with taking pictures of themselves and posting it to Instagram and Facebook. But some experts say, it doesn't mean they're narcissistic or vain - in fact, it's perfectly normal.
Read the full article on KOMO News
Are the humanities really in decline?
Published On: July 14, 2013Excerpt: The Heart of the Matter” attempts to further the conversation about the importance of humanities. The report “calls on parents, teachers, scholars, the media and the public at-large to join a cohesive and constructive national discussion of these issues.” We spoke with several academics in an attempt to do just that.
Read the full article on Metro New York
SheSource Online Braintrust
Published On: July 1, 2013Excerpt: SheSource is an online braintrust of female experts on diverse topics designed to serve journalists, producers and bookers who need female guests and sources.
Read the full article on SheSource
Encouraging critical thinking in K-12 schools
Published On: May 30, 2013Excerpt: Are thoughts real? When professor Jana Mohr Lone's four-year-old son started asking such questions, it prompted her to consider how critical thinking and dialogical skills are taught to young children.
Read the full article on UW Front Porch
Philosophy and Children: The Art of Questioning
Published On: May 11, 2013Excerpt: Almost all very young children are alive with questions; they seem to naturally recognize that this is the way to investigate and understand the world. At some point, however, most children absorb the message that questions are often not particularly welcome. They learn that having a question means that there is something they should have already grasped but have not.
Read the full article on ParentMap
Raising a Philosophical Child
Published On: January 24, 2013Excerpt: Children grow up full of questions and wrestle with deep, thoughtful issues—What does it mean to be good? Why do people die? Who am I? That's natural, says Jana Mohr Lone, director of the UW's Center for Philosophy for Children and faculty at the University of Washington's Department of Philosophy, because to mature emotionally, kids must develop their desire and ability to think abstractly about themselves and their experiences. But as parents, how do we answer those questions?
Read the full article on Seattle Town Hall
‘The Philosophical Child’: A book for when your child asks, ‘Why are we here?’
Published On: January 8, 2013Excerpt: Children are natural philosophers, says Jana Mohr Lone of the University of Washington Department of Philosophy. Lone, an affiliate faculty member and director of the Northwest Center for Philosophy for Children, says she wrote her new book, “The Philosophical Child,” to help parents, teachers and other adults conduct conversations with children about life’s mysteries.
Read the full article on UW Today
Philosophy Talk Radio Show on Philosophy for Children
Published On: December 23, 2012Excerpt: Given their innocent approach to things, do children make good philosophers? Or do they lack the equipment for clear-thinking? Is exposure to philosophy good for children?
Read the full article on Philosophy Talk
NW Books: Parenting advice on philosophical questions
Published On: November 20, 2012Excerpt: “The Philosophical Child” by Jana Mohr Lone (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, $32.95). University of Washington’s Jana Mohr Lone, director of the Northwest Center for Philosophy for Children, gives her advice to parents on how to approach philosophical questions with children. The book offers guidance on answering abstract questions such as “What is happiness?” and “What does it mean to be real?”
Read the full article on Seattle Times
UW|360 – November 2011: Philosophy for Children
Published On: November 1, 2011Excerpt: Professor Jana Mohr Lone, founder of the University of Washington's Center for Philosophy for Children, brings philosophy lessons to Seattle public school students in K-12 classrooms.
Read the full article on UW 360
But Why? Raising kids who think
Published On: September 15, 2011Excerpt: Children have the capaciry to boggle the brain of even the most intelligent adult. If something like, "Why's lying so bad?" doesn't give you pausee, "Do I have to tell the truth, if the truth isn't nice?"just might.
Read the full article on Kiwi Magazine
TEDxOverlake – Dr. Sara Goering – Philosophy for Kids: Sparking a Love of Learning
Published On: June 1, 2011Excerpt: Dr. Sara Goering is part of a regular UW class that sends undergraduate students into the Seattle public schools to lead weekly philosophy discussions with K-12 students.
Read the full article on TEDx
Teaching Philosophy To Kids
Published On: January 20, 2011Excerpt: Jana Mohr–Lone is the founder of the Northwest Center for Philosophy for Children, and she teaches philosophy to kids. She's also a professor at the University of Washington. She'll tell us how kids can understand and use philosophy.
Read the full article on KUOW
Fourth Grade Philosophers Hit the Airwaves
Published On: November 15, 2010Excerpt: For 15 years, Jana Mohr-Lone (PhD, '96) has guided philosophical discussions of everything from art to happiness in K-12 classrooms. Now the rest of us can hear one of those discussions on Philosophy Talk, an hour-long radio program.
Read the full article on UW Perspectives
Why Study Philosophy?
Published On: March 15, 2010Excerpt: The United States is one of the few countries in the world that doesn't require high school students to take philosophy, so the subject is often a mystery to students. But most of us actually start asking philosophical questions early on.
Read the full article on Imagine Magazine