Alien Adventures

It’s the year 2500. The only entertainment left on earth is the 507th series of Big Brother in 3D.

You and a small band of courageous philosophers set off to explore the galaxy in search of intelligent life and a new planet to call your own.

Use all your combined wisdom, cunning and creativity to convince man-eating aliens to let you go, pass though Intergalactic Passport Control and cope with the sticky problems of doing DIY in outer space.

But first, you’ll have to give your cowardly spaceship a good talking to…

This is the first in a series of “Philosophy in Role” adventures, a new approach to Philosophy for Children that I find captures the interest if nearly all children from the very first activity.

Launch Day for up to 6 Classes

A popular option is to use this as a “Launch Day”, with up to six classes of year 5, 6 or 7 pupils.

You’ll receive some pre-launch activities to build anticipation.

I’ll then run the first “episode” of the adventure with each class, and leave you with materials you can use to continue the adventure yourselves.

There’s a whole term’s worth of weekly sessions.

It’s a great way of introducing philosophy for children that avoids some of the pitfalls teachers can encounter when implementing P4C for the first time.

On each planet they visit, the philosophers must help solve the problems of the aliens they encounter.

The interactive narrative is motivating, provides a rich context for dialogue and gives momentum to the series of sessions.

For teachers, built-in philosophical discussions and supportive guidance build confidence and enjoyment in this new way of working.

Like all the events, this is also available as a full day, stand-alone adventure for a single group of (usually gifted) children. The mixture of discussions, puzzles and team-building challenges makes for a fast-paced and exciting experience.

Sample Questions

If someone dies without leaving a will, should their favourite child get a bigger share – even if she’s a computer?

Is it better to be rich, beautiful or clever?

Is the future longer than the past?

If it’s OK for Sam to eat a ham sandwich, would it be OK for an alien to eat a Sam sandwich?

If your brain was moved to another body, would that body be you?

If you landed on a planet where nobody had heard of God, should you tell them?

What makes a punishment fair?

Contact me for more information:

Phone: 01245 830123