The Kids' Book of Questions

This edition contains questions about terrorists, jail, worst word you've heard (my thrift copy had the F-word written as an answer to that one) that may now be unsuitable for classroom use in this day of teaching immature and/or traumatized students. By no means are all the questions bad. I just found the original edition in many ways more suitable for kids. There are more classroom friendly topics for junior high students. By the way, my thrift copy was written in, and the many disrespectful answers may have biased my review.

My kids and I spend Sunday mornings taking hikes and having long discussions about life, religion, school, etc. We take this book along on our hikes as our springboard for discussion. I read the questions out loud and let the kids answer them, and sometimes add on my own opinions when they're done. It gives me a chance to chime in about what I think is important and it keeps us talking. I think these conversations also help build empathy, understanding, and listening skills, as well as helping us to all remember to think before we speak. Some of the questions are lighthearted and some are more serious, and none so far have proven to be offensive to my family's ethics. My kids enjoy the questions, especially my nine-year-old son, and look forward to our hikes & talks all week long. I'm thrilled to get glimpses into my kids' heads on topics that are well worth discussing but might not otherwise come up in conversation.

I've used this book with my own kids, and I've used it in my classroom. It was enjoyed by so many students that I hate to say it, but one student walked off with it at the end of the year. I work in a school where a lot of the kids are at risk, and this book was wonderful as a tool to help them examin their attitudes, their fears, and their feelings about things. It takes a little time to look through and evaluate what would be good for your classroom. That's a subjective thing anyway, and you have to know your students, but over all, I find this book to be worthwhile and fun at the same time.

We took this book on a long car trip two years ago when my kids were 10 and 12. We spent hours talking and laughing about the questions and our answers. The book asks many humorous questions such as "If you could be invisible for a day, what would you do?", or "What was the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to you? Are you embarrassed now by the same things that used to embarrass you?". But mostly, the book asks insightful and thought-provoking questions such as, "What are you most proud of having done? What would make you even more proud?", or "Some adults have a lot of trouble enjoying themselves. If you were asked to give them some advice about how to play and have more fun, what would you say?", or "Do you think boys or girls have it easier?". This book has been in our car for 2 years. The kids still pick it up frequently to ask questions to their carpool on the way to school, or to ask questions to their friends on the way to sports practices. And they especially love to hear their parents' answers!

This book is a wonderful resource for classroom teachers. It prompts real non-biased conversations about choices, ethics, and problem solving surrounding issues such as popularity, telling the truth, money, sports, and much more. When there is time to fill, we pull out a Kids' Question. (Of course, the questions must be preapproved by the teacher due to the sensitivity of certain topics and content.)

I bought this on impulse for a long car trip, along with other books and toys, but this was the major hit! Our kids (8 and 10) took turns picking numbers and discussing the chosen questions; they kept at it for over an hour and wanted more later. They still wanted to use it on another trip two months later. As parents, we were astonished that they were so interested in talking about serious problems with us and each other as long as it was within the format of the book. Please tell me there'll be a sequel!