Thinking Traps Worksheet for Kids

Critical thinking lesson 17: Thinking traps: “everyone does it” and more · Set 771 · 40 questions

Thinking tip (Spot the trap): Everyone does it: “The video has a million likes, so it must be right.” One means all: “One cat scratched me, so all cats are mean.” Lucky charm: “I used this pen and got full marks, so it is a magic pen.” Attacking the person: “Her plan is silly because she is the youngest.” Fair reasons come from tests, measurements and checked facts.

1. 1.True or false: “I used this pen and got full marks, so it is a magic pen.” is the “attacking the person” trap. (a) True (b) False
2. 2.True or false: “everyone is doing it” is a fair reason. (a) True (b) False
3. 3.True or false: “The first episode was dull, so the whole series is dull.” is the “lucky charm” trap. (a) True (b) False
4. 4.Which of these is a thinking trap? (a) tests show it works (b) the rule book says so (c) my lucky pen did it (d) it was measured twice
5. 5.True or false: “Her plan is silly because she is the youngest.” is the “attacking the person” trap. (a) False (b) True
6. 6.🪤 Which thinking trap is this? “The video has a million likes, so it must be right.” (a) lucky charm (b) attacking the person (c) everyone does it (d) one means all
7. 7.True or false: “One cat scratched me, so all cats are mean.” is the “one means all” trap. (a) False (b) True
8. 8.🪤 Thinking trap or fair reason: “the rule book says so”? (a) a thinking trap (b) a fair reason
9. 9.True or false: “one was bad, so all are” is a fair reason. (a) False (b) True
10. 10.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) the rule book says so (b) it has lots of likes (c) tests show it works (d) checked facts support it
11. 11.True or false: “tests show it works” is a thinking trap. (a) False (b) True
12. 12.🍀 You wore red and won a race. Did the red shirt make you win? (a) yes, for sure (b) only on Sundays (c) yes, red is fast (d) no, just a coincidence
13. 13.🪤 Which thinking trap is this? “One banana was bad, so this fruit seller always cheats.” (a) everyone does it (b) lucky charm (c) attacking the person (d) one means all
14. 14.True or false: “Her plan is silly because she is the youngest.” is the “everyone does it” trap. (a) False (b) True
15. 15.True or false: “Half the school is buying these shoes, so I need them too.” is the “everyone does it” trap. (a) False (b) True
16. 16.🪤 Thinking trap or fair reason: “checked facts support it”? (a) a fair reason (b) a thinking trap
17. 17.True or false: “One cat scratched me, so all cats are mean.” is the “lucky charm” trap. (a) True (b) False
18. 18.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) tests show it works (b) many trials agree (c) it happened once (d) the rule book says so
19. 19.🪤 What is a thinking trap? (a) a kind of fact (b) a mistake in reasoning (c) a puzzle game (d) a hard question
20. 20.🐈 One cat scratched you. What is the fair thought? (a) cats hate me (b) all cats are mean (c) that cat was upset (d) never touch animals
21. 21.True or false: “I failed one test, so I am bad at everything.” is the “everyone does it” trap. (a) True (b) False
22. 22.🚦 Your friends are all crossing on a red light. What do you do? (a) close your eyes (b) run fast (c) follow them (d) wait for green
23. 23.🪤 Thinking trap or fair reason: “it happened once”? (a) a fair reason (b) a thinking trap
24. 24.🪤 Thinking trap or fair reason: “my lucky pen did it”? (a) a fair reason (b) a thinking trap
25. 25.True or false: “I sat in this seat and our team scored, so I must stay here.” is the “attacking the person” trap. (a) True (b) False
26. 26.👍 A post has thousands of likes. Does that prove it is true? (a) no, likes aren’t proof (b) yes, always (c) yes, if it is long (d) only on weekends
27. 27.Which of these is a fair reason? (a) it has lots of likes (b) many trials agree (c) everyone is doing it (d) mocking who said it
28. 28.True or false: “it has lots of likes” is a fair reason. (a) True (b) False
29. 29.True or false: “One boy from that school was rude, so all of them are rude.” is the “one means all” trap. (a) True (b) False
30. 30.True or false: “many trials agree” is a fair reason. (a) True (b) False
31. 31.🪤 Which thinking trap is this? “I wore my blue socks and we won, so the socks bring wins.” (a) attacking the person (b) everyone does it (c) lucky charm (d) one means all
32. 32.🪤 Which thinking trap is this? “Don’t listen to his science idea — he can’t even play football.” (a) attacking the person (b) lucky charm (c) everyone does it (d) one means all
33. 33.True or false: “I wore my blue socks and we won, so the socks bring wins.” is the “lucky charm” trap. (a) False (b) True
34. 34.True or false: “it was measured twice” is a fair reason. (a) False (b) True
35. 35.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) checked facts support it (b) mocking who said it (c) it has lots of likes (d) my lucky pen did it
36. 36.🪤 Thinking trap or fair reason: “it was measured twice”? (a) a fair reason (b) a thinking trap
37. 37.True or false: “my lucky pen did it” is a fair reason. (a) False (b) True
38. 38.🙅 Instead of attacking the person, a fair thinker… (a) walks away (b) checks the idea itself (c) laughs at them (d) calls them names
39. 39.True or false: “It rained after I washed my bike, so washing it brings rain.” is the “lucky charm” trap. (a) False (b) True
40. 40.🪤 Which thinking trap is this? “All my friends have this game, so it must be good.” (a) attacking the person (b) lucky charm (c) one means all (d) everyone does it

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