Xanthus Communications adds the University of Washington Center for Philosophy for Children to its client list

SEATTLE, June 4, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Xanthus Communications has announced the addition of the University of Washington Center for Philosophy for Children to its client list.

The University of Washington Center for Philosophy for Children was founded in 1996 by Jana Mohr Lone Ph.D., affiliate faculty in philosophy at the university and the Center's director.  The Center was formerly known as the Northwest Center for Philosophy for Children, but has removed reference to the Northwest in order to build awareness of its connection with the University of Washington and to reflect the Center's national and international work.

The University of Washington Center for Philosophy for Children is dedicated to introducing philosophy to K-12 students to encourage them to explore essential questions about life, such as: Who am I? Why am I here? What is a good life?  

Philosophy sessions use children's books and activities to inspire discussions that emerge from children's own questions, based on the understanding that questioning is central to independent thinking. The student-driven nature of these sessions creates an intellectually safe environment, in which students think for themselves about their experiences, recognize that there are many ways to understand the world, and examine their own views and reasoning. In the process students develop confidence in their own questions and ideas, as well as lifelong critical and creative thinking skills that can be applied to all academic disciplines.

The Center's "Philosophers in the Schools" program educates University of Washington students about ways to introduce philosophy in K-12 classrooms, and then sends them into Seattle schools to conduct philosophy sessions at no cost to the schools.

The program has introduced philosophy to thousands of K-12 students. The Center also runs workshops for teachers and parents about ways to facilitate philosophy discussions with young people.

The University of Washington Center for Philosophy for Children is currently working on several new initiatives, including hosting a regional High School Ethics Bowl in Seattle in early 2014, sponsored by the Department of Philosophy at the University of Washington. The winning team will go on to compete in the National High School Ethics Bowl in April 2014.  The Center recently announced the creation of three Philosophy for Children graduate fellowships at the University of Washington.

The Center is also integrally involved in organizing the third biennial PLATO conference, which will be held in Seattle in June 2015. PLATO (Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization) is a national support and resource sharing organization for teachers, parents, philosophers and others involved in introducing philosophy to K-12 students. http://plato-philosophy.org/

Other recent developments include the publication of The Philosophical Child, written by Center founder Jana Mohr Lone. This well-received book is "highly recommended" by the American Library Association's Choice Reviews. One reviewer remarked that it "deserves to be mandatory reading for anyone teaching or raising a curious child."

For more information, please see http://www.philosophyforchildren.org or follow us on Facebook and Twitter @janamohrlone.

About Xanthus Communications LLC and PR for People®
Founded by Patricia Vaccarino in 2003, Xanthus Communications is a Seattle-based PR firm.  Xanthus offers the full range of traditional public relations services as well as technologically sophisticated channels of communication through its subsidiary PR for People®. Please see http://www.prforpeople.com. 

SOURCE Xanthus Communications LLC