Critical Thinking Questions for Social

Studies
These social studies questions will get your students thinking about systems
of government, leadership, and what could change our quality of
life.

1. How does your own system of government compare to others, and which
do you think is better and why?
2. What should the role of any government be and what boundaries and
limitations should it have?
3. Considering your own values and needs, which medieval occupation
would in your opinion have provided the best quality of life?
4. If you were the leader of your country, what changes would you make to
the current state of your nation, and how would you justify those
changes?
5. In your opinion, what is the most fundamentally urgent issue in our
world, and why do you feel this way?
6. What should be humanity’s fundamental overarching goal, and why?
7. What single thing in your opinion causes the most harm to us as a society,
and how is it avoidable?
8. If you were running for president what would your top three priorities be
and why?
9. Why do we feel in our society that war is often the only way to resolve
conflict?
10. How do we distinguish between what should be rights and what should
be privileges in a society, and how can this be fair for everyone?
11. What would our world be like if the Industrial revolution had occurred
200 years earlier than it did?
12. Can human nature ever be changed? If so, how should it be changed and
why?
13. How would our society transform if there was no law to govern us, and
what would be the final result? How can you be certain of this?
14. Do you believe technology has helped or harmed education? If something
needs to change in this regard, how would you change it?
15. If you could create only three laws for people to live by, what would they
be and why?
 16. Should current and aspiring political leaders be mandatorily subject to
intelligence or aptitude tests and mental health screening? Why or why
not?
17. Do you believe the world could exist without the concept of material
wealth? How would it be different than it is now?

Critical Thinking Questions for English

Language Arts
Here are some questions for ELA that ask students to consider the
importance of language and how we use it to break down the
barriers of communication between individuals.

1. What are the reasons that cultures and individuals create narratives of
their experiences?
2. What helps you personally distinguish between “good” and “bad” writing?
3. How would you develop your own form of communication and teach it to
others?
4. How would you describe/explain ____________ to someone who had
never heard of it before?
5. Is having only one global language preferable to having several? Why or
why not?
6. In what ways would you improve your native language to make it easier
for others to learn and understand?
7. If you could get writing advice from one writer, living or dead, who would
it be and what would you ask them?
8. Is there a form of communication you consider to be unnecessary? What
is it and why don't you think we need it?

Critical Thinking Questions for the Arts

Deep critical thinking questions about the nature of art and its
importance to society and how we use it to define ourselves reside here.

1. What is “art” and why do individual cultures place so much value on its
continuing evolution?
2. What kinds of responsibilities does an artist have to an audience or a
consumer?
 3. Do audiences and consumers have any responsibility towards artists? If
so, what are they?
4. What is the line that divides art and “non-art?”
5. Is creativity something that can be measured? Should it be?
6. Do you have a favourite example of what art means to you? If so, why is it
your favourite?
7. Why do societies need art and creativity to survive, or do they?
8. How would our world be different without art of any kind?
9. Is marketing an art form in the digital age? Why or why not?
10. Does art ever cause harm to a society, and if so, how?
11. Do you believe your own contributions to art make the world a better
place? If so, how?
12. What, in your opinion, is the ultimate point of art and why do you feel
this way?
13. How are we as a society and as individuals defined by our art?
14. If you had to communicate an important message to the world through
art, what would your message be and what medium would you choose?
Why?

Critical Thinking Questions for Ethics

and Morality
This is always an engaging subject to discuss with others. What is the
difference between truth and fact?

1. If you could choose one rule for the entire world to adhere to, what would
it be and why?
2. Is civilization and order necessary to survival? Why or why not?
3. is there a person in your life you treat far differently from anyone else? If
so, how do you treat them and why?
4. If you could learn how a loved one was going to die, would you want to
know? Why or why not?
5. If someone had a very good reason for asking you to lie for them, would
you do it? Why or why not?
6. Do we have a moral obligation to help those less fortunate than we are?
Why or why not?
7. What do you believe should be the laws that govern social media? Why
and how would you enforce these laws for the good of all?
8. What harsh truths about life do you prefer to consciously ignore, and
why?
 9. Should we consider colonizing the rest of the galaxy? Why or why not?
10. If you witnessed someone commit a crime for a perfectly moral reason,
would you punish them? If not, why not? If so, how?
11. Why do some people respect power while other openly abuse it? If you
had power, which kind of person would you be and why?
12. Is it possible to live a normal life and never tell a lie? Why or why not?
13. If someone tells an offensive joke, do you consider it your responsibility
to speak up about it? Why or why not?
14. Why is having values and beliefs important and how can we form them
independently?
15. Is humanity inherently “good” or inherently “evil?” Why do you feel this
way?
16. How do different cultures shape our definitions of good and evil?
17. Why is it crucial to consider the effects of our words and actions on other
people?

Critical Thinking Questions for Health

and Wellness
The subject of health and wellness is crucial to us all. If you want your
students to think deeply and wisely about it, these are solid questions to ask.

1. Why is it necessary for long-term health and wellness to achieve balance

in our lives, and how can we achieve it?
2. How do we define “happiness” for ourselves and how important it is in
our lives?
3. What is the difference between “surviving” and “living”?
4. If there were three things in your life you considered harmful and that
you could give up, what would you give up and why?
5. How does being healthy affect our relationships with others?
6. Why is it important to be grateful and how can you practice gratitude
every day as a habit?
7. To what do you attribute the biggest successes and the biggest failures in
your life?
8. Do you believe things would get better for everyone if we all either
focused more on what was going right or what was going wrong? Why do
you feel this way?
9. How do we make medical decisions for those who cannot make them for
themselves?
10. What is special about how you deal with personal conflicts and change,
and how could this help someone else?
11. When did something start out badly for you but, in the end, turned out to
be great?
12. In a culture where we are bombarded with other people trying to define
us, how do we make decisions for ourselves?
13. How can we support people who feel alone and are uncertain about
themselves due to social and psychological factors?
14. How can we ensure that conflicts lead to constructive change and a
positive outcome for everyone involved?
15. If you were to leave behind your own legacy for future generations, what
would it would be and why?