It's Not About Being Right In the "Thinking Skills" test, you will often read a short paragraph where someone argues for something (e.g., "We should ban homework"). Your job isn't to say if you agree. Your job is to find the hole in their logic.
The Structure of an Argument Teach your child that every argument has two parts: The Evidence (Premise): The facts they give you. The Conclusion: What they claim is true based on those facts.
The "Gap" Strategy The flaw is usually in the gap between the Evidence and the Conclusion. Argument: "Shark attacks have increased by 50% this summer. We must kill all sharks to make beaches safe." Evidence: Attacks are up. Conclusion: Killing sharks makes beaches safe. The Flaw: Does killing sharks actually stop attacks? Maybe the attacks increased because more people are swimming, not because sharks are more aggressive. The argument assumes a solution that might not work.
Common Flaws to Watch For: Correlation vs Causation: Just because two things happened at the same time, doesn't mean one caused the other. (e.g., "I wore red socks and we won the game. My socks caused the win.") Generalisation: Taking one example and applying it to everyone. ("My grandpa smoked and lived to 90, so smoking is safe.")