Mark and Theo Make Their Case Teacher Manual

The thirteen chapters of Mark and Theo Make Their Case aim to impart the three central philosophical skills we want children to develop: identifying a problem, making an argument, and making objections. These are fundamental skills that have inspired great thinkers throughout the history of civilization to build and transform the intellectual world.


The book falls into two parts. The first part, Chapters One through Seven, are inspired by Plato’s quest for a perfect world; the second part, Chapters Eight through Thirteen, are inspired by Aristotle’s rejection of that world.


You and the child could read one chapter each day for thirteen days. Or you could read one part each day for two days. You could even read the entire book in one day if you make sure to take plenty of breaks for talking and thinking about what you’ve read. 


The teacher manual is the instructor's guide to implementing Mark and Theo Make Their Case. It provides for each chapter a summary of the plot developments, a philosophical basis for the key concepts of the chapter, discussion questions based on Bloom’s Taxonomy, and a suggestion for an activity that the child can do.