Logic study - why do it?

[janainaz]

We've been doing Latin for 3 years and I'm ready for a break. I'm not ready to start Spanish with my ds11 until my ds7 is in 3rd grade (he's in 1st). I thought I could fill in this time and do a logic study. We have done the Building Thinking Skills books, but I think ds would be ready for the actual logic books. We used the Latin series from Memoria Press, and I was thinking of using their logic series as well.

 

What are the reasons to study logic, and is it a good use of time? I have some small idea, but I need the bigger picture. :001_smile:

[heart'sjoy]

Mostly a bump. I'm asking the same question. Recently I read a thread on literature and essays that someone linked back to a SWB article where she recommended logic to prepare for the essays that require a thesis.

 

I'm totally in the dark. But when I read descriptions on Laurel Tree and Captive Thought online literature/ writing classes, I could see where logic would prepare for the type of analysis and essay writing needed.

[Jay3fer]

The bigger picture is that logic is the threads that your children will use to connect the facts that they have acquired throughout the grammar and early logic stage. If you have only a collection of facts, you cannot extrapolate and create valid generalizations about the world. Conversely, you are dependent on your own prior knowledge and can be easily bamboozled by somebody mis-using logic to "prove" points that are downright silly.

 

Logic gives kids - and adults - the skills to analyze any statement and critically assess any theory or belief they come across in life.

 

ETA: This is sort of like the two sides to the argument about whether kids should be taught GRAMMAR. One side says, they don't need to know formally what everything is called - if they are well-read enough, they will know an incorrect sentence when they see it. That may be true, but if you do it that way, they may never be able to articulate WHY a sentence is grammatically correct or incorrect. Same with logic - we all have a strong intuitive sense and naturally call certain things "logical" or "illogical." Knowing WHY, categorizing statements, etc., is part of the formal study of logic and gives our children tools that in many cases, we were deprived of ourselves by a generation who gave up on the classical "bones" of education.

 

Plus, it's tons of fun!

Edited January 5, 2012 by Jay3fer

[nansk]

I was listening today to SWB's lecture on classical education and one point she made was that logic enables the student to make connections and start seeing patterns in their reading/learning. This ability is useful not only for maths (algebra readiness) but also in history and science, and as a precursor to the study of rhetoric.

[jenbrdsly]

I've been wondering about the need for Logic myself. I've asked every person I know with a fancy education and none of them (Harvard, Columbia, Dartmouth, Stanford, and Berkeley) have studied Logic. Even the lawyers haven't studied Logic. To be fair, I didn't ask any philosophy majors.

I think we will probably stick to computer games like Mind Benders, fun books over summer, etc. But to each, his own.

[janainaz]

The bigger picture is that logic is the threads that your children will use to connect the facts that they have acquired throughout the grammar and early logic stage. If you have only a collection of facts, you cannot extrapolate and create valid generalizations about the world. Conversely, you are dependent on your own prior knowledge and can be easily bamboozled by somebody mis-using logic to "prove" points that are downright silly.

 

Logic gives kids - and adults - the skills to analyze any statement and critically assess any theory or belief they come across in life.

 

ETA: This is sort of like the two sides to the argument about whether kids should be taught GRAMMAR. One side says, they don't need to know formally what everything is called - if they are well-read enough, they will know an incorrect sentence when they see it. That may be true, but if you do it that way, they may never be able to articulate WHY a sentence is grammatically correct or incorrect. Same with logic - we all have a strong intuitive sense and naturally call certain things "logical" or "illogical." Knowing WHY, categorizing statements, etc., is part of the formal study of logic and gives our children tools that in many cases, we were deprived of ourselves by a generation who gave up on the classical "bones" of education.

 

Plus, it's tons of fun!

 

That was very helpful (as are the other replies... still reading). What logic curriculum would you recommend for someone who has never studied logic before. I love Memoria Press, but I'm open to suggestions.