ProudGrandma Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Do you recommend doing books like this with your kids??? I just read in the WTM that they recommend using Minda Benders with children in the Logic stage.... The Critical Thinking Co.™ - Mind Benders® Book 1 <http://www.criticalthinking.com/getProductDetails.do?id=01328&code=p> and according to the book, no matter what age you start these, you need to start with the first book. is this something that I need to do, or is doing Suduko and playing checkers fit the bill?? thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susann Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 (edited) I used the entire series with my oldest dd. She is finishing up her finals for her freshman year this week at an extremely competitive engineering school. We all strongly believe that these books were wonderful tools that greatly helped her with her logical thinking skills. (FYI, I couldn't get past the A level books!) Edited May 23, 2011 by Susann additional information Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denise in Florida Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 We did a lot of those type activities. Mind benders is one good resource, but there are a lot of others. Things to try: We played a lot of board games (logic type). Racko, dominos, scrabble, mastermind, cribbage, etc. Sudoko is great (I am highly addicted :001_smile:). Logic puzzles where they give you clues and you say 'who had what pet and lived in which house'. etc. Attribute cards (make them yourself - description below) Word problems using math Set out 12 things, have the kid look at them for 30 seconds and close their eyes, take away 1 - 4 things, have them open their eyes and tell you what is missing. I loved these activities. I think they are crucial to all areas of learning. I hope you find one you like. Attribute cards. Make a series of cards (use 3x5). With attributes like color, shape, quantity. for example one card might have 3 red dogs and another have 1 yellow snake. Then ask the kids to sort into piles. By color, shape, etc. I gave them large colored hoops (like plastic embroidery hoops only BIG) then I would say yellow things in hoop 1, dogs in hoop 2, etc. They would figure out to overlap hoops (like venn diagrams) so that the yellow dog card could be in both hoops. It was a fun game and you can make up a bunch of variations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProudGrandma Posted May 23, 2011 Author Share Posted May 23, 2011 I used the entire series with my oldest dd. She is finishing up her finals for her freshman year this week at an extremely competitive engineering school. We all strongly believe that these books were wonderful tools that greatly helped her with her logical thinking skills. (FYI, I couldn't get past the A level books!) how old was she when you started using them with her? My daughter is 10....11 in September. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProudGrandma Posted May 23, 2011 Author Share Posted May 23, 2011 anybody else have something to share with me on this topic? Or should I assume that the lack of response means that it is not as important as the WTM book emphasizes? thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Do you recommend doing books like this with your kids??? I just read in the WTM that they recommend using Minda Benders with children in the Logic stage.... The Critical Thinking Co.™ - Mind Benders® Book 1 <http://www.criticalthinking.com/getProductDetails.do?id=01328&code=p> and according to the book, no matter what age you start these, you need to start with the first book. is this something that I need to do, or is doing Suduko and playing checkers fit the bill?? thanks. We did the Mind Bender and Red Herring books. My kids think they are fun. It's a treat for when we have a break in the day. They are sort of mini-mysteries that the kids have to figure out. What I like about them is they actual teach methods of deduction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs_JWM Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 My daughter is almost 6, and she's been doing the Mindbenders for about 6 months. She loves them, as does the 7-y-o I tutor occasionally. They're also good reading practice; mine does them completely independently and I have to stop her from doing more... You can print out samples from the Crit. think. site so your daughter can try them before you buy them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 I love those grid logic puzzles! I think, as a PP said, you can definitely practice that skill many ways, but Mind Benders are a fun and effective way to do so. Y'know what's funny? We don't even have a MB book--we do the ones in the catalog when it comes! LOL Gotta order... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lllll Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProudGrandma Posted May 23, 2011 Author Share Posted May 23, 2011 thanks so much! I really appreciate it. Kathy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dana Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Mind Benders are so expensive though! You can get the same type of puzzles (although quite a bit tougher) by buying a Dell Logic Puzzles book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Another thumbs up for doing logic puzzles such as MindBenders. I had my daughter do these from 7th through 9th grades. She enjoyed them (apart from the fact that I slowed her down by wanting to know how she progressed from one step to the next). Regards, Kareni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negin Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Mind Benders are so expensive though! :iagree: Most products by that company are shamefully expensive. Mind Benders are good, but to me, they're not the greatest. As Lori D here, I think, said, They only teach a single, limited type of logic and develop only a single type of puzzle-solving skill. What we've really liked: Logic Countdown; Logic Liftoff; Orbiting with Logic and pretty much any of the books by Bonnie Ribsy Critical Thinking Activities by Dale Seymour I have some others in mind also ... but those are my favorites for now. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 And don't forget games such as Quarto, Clue and Set which also promote logical thinking. Regards, Kareni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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