Dear subscribers, I am deeply honoured to have been invited to give a talk on doing philosophy with children at The Royal Institute of Philosophy - and on the World Philosophy Day! (Nov 19 in 2026) Can children do philosophy? Can teachers and philosophers do philosophy for children? I often explain to children that I do philosophy with that I will ask them to say WHAT they think and WHY they think it. Well, you can probably guess, as a practitioner of facilitating children’s philosophy, WHAT I will say: yes, they can. But it’s still worth turning up for a WHY (explanation) and a HOW (practicalities) and a WHEN (under what conditions) and WHEN NOT. Do join if you are in London. Also, I have launched a Patreon account, where I am publishing blogs with tips and insights on doing philosophy, as well as new lesson plans. Subscribe to be notified of new blog entries or become a paid member to get access to the full growing library of exclusive new materials. Recent blogs include Running an After-School Philosophy Club: Hints & Tips and Think Ahead: What a Bach Prelude and Odysseus Can Teach About Classroom Behavior, as well as a lesson plan based on one of my favourite picture books for philosophy, Chris Haughton's Oh No, George!Also, don't miss my upcoming online courses, the next one in just five days - an introduction to Worley's PhiE - Philosophical Enquiry for Teachers and Facilitators. It will be a nice international group of people, this week is your last change to join! Details on this and my other activities below. Yours, Peter Worley | |
|  | | Lecture: Who Can Do Philosophy For Children? - November 19 (London) | November 19, 2026, 18:15 Room 349, Senate House, Malet St, London WC1E 7HU On World Philosophy Day, Peter Worley will be giving a lecture Who Can Do Philosophy For Children?, as part of The Royal Institute of Philosophy London Lecture Series 2026-27, dedicated to Children In Philosophy. In this talk, Peter will revisit his first published paper, published in Think in 2009, and consider how his views about the extent to which children can do philosophy have developed and changed. He will draw on what is now 23 years of experience, teaching, writing and thinking about the topic of children doing philosophy, to say something about where it is now and where it can go, what the challenges are doing philosophy with children, and what it still has to offer, if anything. | | | | | |
|  | | Worley's PhiE - Philosophical Enquiry for Teachers and Facilitators - Oct 17-18 (online) | | October 17-18, 2026
weekend course, online, £200pp
Course schedule (London time): Day 1&2: 10am - 1pm, 2pm - 5pm
Certificates of completion will be awarded after the end of the course
Maximum number of participants: 15
Join philosopher, educator and PhiE creator Peter Worley for an intensive weekend exploring the theory and practice of philosophical enquiry. Drawing directly on more than twenty years of practice and the evolving body of work developed across his books – from the bestselling The If Machine to his comprehensive two-volume Corrupting Youth – Peter will introduce participants to the core principles, practical tools and most recent developments in his PhiE methodology. Through a lively combination of theory, demonstration and hands-on enquiry, participants will explore how carefully structured questioning, listening and facilitation can create the conditions for genuinely philosophical thinking and dialogue with children, young people and adults.
You will learn:
1) The Socrates-inspired principles of PhiE philosophical enquiry
2) The practical nuts-and-bolts of PhiE facilitation (basic and expert levels)
3) A chance to observe these aspects in practice so that you are ready for classroom application | | | | | |
|  | | Short Course in How to Make Critical Thinking Short - Nov 28-29 (online) | | November 28-29, 2026
weekend course, online, £200pp
Course schedule (London time): Day 1&2: 10am - 1pm, 2pm - 5pm
Certificates of completion will be awarded after the end of the course
Maximum number of participants: 15
Join philosopher, educator and PhiE creator Peter Worley for a practical short course that cuts through the complexity of critical thinking, distilling it into a small number of simple, powerful and widely applicable concepts and tools. Drawing on his work in philosophical enquiry, reasoning and metacognition, Peter will introduce the essential principles of critical thinking for teachers and educators, before exploring practical ways to make these skills visible and usable for children, young people and adults. Participants will learn techniques for helping learners recognise and examine reasoning, reflect on their own thinking, and begin to apply critical-thinking and metacognitive tools deliberately and independently – both within philosophical enquiry and beyond.
You will learn:
1) What is understood by critical thinking
2) Essential principles you need to know (but no more!)
3) Which handful of critical thinking tools you need to know (and no more!)
4) How to teach these critical thinking skills to children and others | | | | | |
|  | | PhiE-PC - Worley's PhiE-inspired Philosophical Counselling Course - Jan 30-31 (online) | January 30-31, 2027 weekend course, online, £300pp Course schedule (London time): Day 1&2: 10am - 1pm, 2pm - 5pm Certificates of completion will be awarded after the end of the course Maximum number of participants: 15 Succinct ready-to-go starter or CPD course for one-to-one client work for philosophical counsellors / coaches / consultants / facilitators Inspired by 20 years of group facilitation in PhiE method and best practices from the industry. Designed by Peter Worley, author of the internationally acclaimed PhiE pedagogy of philosophical enquiry (see “Corrupting Youth”, “The If Machine” and other books), and Alexandra Konoplyanik, certified APPA philosophical counsellor and experienced PhiE practitioner. You will learn: - What is PhiE-PC? Is it philosophy, coaching, counselling or smth else?
- Possible aims of PC - how to address and choose
- How to onboard and engage new clients
- How to structure, conduct and conclude client sessions in PhiE-PC
- How to successfully incorporate other PC modalities into PhiE-PC work
- How to responsibly address psychological topics philosophically
- Useful questioning tools, exercises, resources and insights
- Typical pitfalls and troubleshooting …and more!
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|  | | Running an After-School Philosophy Club: Hints & Tips | | By shifting from a single long-form inquiry to a varied series of games, logic puzzles, and short discussions, you engage different parts of the brain, maintain high energy, and build a club that children look forward to attending every week. | | | | |
|  | | Philosophy for children (online) - weekly | These hour-long weekly online sessions is a chance for your children to think critically, creatively and collaboratively while learning to respond, reflect, reason and re-evaluate philosophically, thinking for themselves but with each other. Current groups: - Tuesdays 18:15 - 19:15 London time (11-16 year olds)
- Wednesdays 17:30 - 18:30 London time (5-10 year olds)
“Both my girls have come out of their rooms shouting in excitement that tonight was the best Philosophy session ever! They are still debating about it…..thank you so so much, Tuesdays evenings are the highlight in their week.” - parent Respond to this e-mail to join one of the existing groups or to discuss setting up a new one at a different time, or individual sessions. Gift Vouchers available here | |  | | Philosophy for Home Education (online) - weekly | Peter is currently running these weekly session (similar to the above) organised by www.p4he.org. Groups relaunch term-by-term, but can be joined mid-term if spots available. P4HE Philosophy Age 9 to 12 - Thursday 10.15am - Book hereP4HE Philosophy Age 13+ - Thursday 11.30am - Book here | |  | | Phi Club - monthly (online) | Peter hosts and facilitates a monthly Phi Club online event (usually on the last Wednesday of every month, 7-9pm UK time). Phi Club (formerly Think n' Drink) is a long running social event where s small group of philosophy enthusiasts meet to take an informal approach to formal philosophical enquiry. Respond to this e-mail if you would like to join a taster session. Gift Vouchers available here | |  | | Role-Playing Games (RPG) Night - monthly (online) | | Every second Wednesday of a month, 7-9pm UK
A monthly online RPG night. Peter is a seasoned DM (‘Dungeon Master’) with decades of experience.
If you’d like to join a free introductory/ taster session, respond to this e-mail.
We are starting a new adventure cycle in November, don't miss! | | |
|  | | HowTheLightGetsIn - Sept 19 (London) | As usual, Peter was part of HowTheLightGetsIn London Children's Programme. HowTheLightGetsIn is the world's largest philosophy & music festival, taking place annually in Hay and London . This time Peter ran The Great Cat and Mouse Chase game . Can we work out what will happen before a game of Cat & Mouse begins? What makes one player more likely to win than another? Through a simple but tricky game of cat and mouse, we explored probability, prediction, strategy, and chance. Want to join the next festival, in Hay-on-Wye, on 28-31 May, 2027? Early bird tickets already for sale here. Kids under 12 go for free! | | |
| | Recent talks & interviews | |
|  | | Dices & Decisions:
Dungeons & Dragons & Philosophy | | Philosophy For All, Kant's Cave - July 6, 2026
What makes a decision a good one? And what can slaying dragons teach us about living well? An accessible introduction to the surprising philosophical depth of Dungeons & Dragons. | | | |  | | Why and How to Teach Children Philosophy? | | Charles University (Prague) Faculty of Education Podcast - June 2, 2026 - 64 minutes
Peter talks to Václav Loubek in Prague about AI, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and philosophy with - and through - children. | | | |  | | Can Children Do Philosophy? | | Big Ideas Series with Jason Buccheri - Episode 57, March 17, 2026 -
How philosophical inquiry, open questioning, and “slow thinking” can transform classrooms into spaces for deeper reflection and collaborative thinking | | | | |
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