08 Nov 5 Tips for Battling ‘Lazy Thinking’ in Kids (and Parents)
Bethan Winn offers practical, playful strategies to keep those mental muscles in shape, with five practical tips any family can start to practice.
We’ve all seen it: a child asking Alexa for homework answers instead of looking it up, or reaching for a calculator for times tables they could solve themselves.
As a critical thinking trainer, educator and parent, I’ve seen how our growing reliance on digital shortcuts may be quietly weakening the mental muscles both children and adults really need.
Now AI is creeping into every aspect of our screen-dominated lives, we can’t avoid it. So how can we preserve our ability to think independently? Just as physical fitness requires regular exercise, cognitive fitness needs deliberate practice.
Here are my five simple strategies for keeping thinking sharp in any family:
- Create ‘Boredom Spaces’
I deliberately make regular time without screens or structured activities. This activates our “Default Mode Network”, the brain’s natural reflection system that makes connections when we’re not actively engaged.
Some of our best ideas occur while doing “nothing”: pottering around the house, during walks, or waiting. Children need these moments of mental wandering to develop imaginative thinking and problem-solving skills. You may face initial whining, but push past it. Most kids will make-up a game, start creating something or follow their curiosity.
- Practice ‘Nibble, Rather Than Scoff’
When facing challenging tasks, I encourage small, reversible steps rather than seeking immediate solutions. If a maths problem seems overwhelming, break it into smaller parts. This builds resilience and prevents the urge to simply ask AI for answers.
Learning happens in the struggle. Starting any task is often two-thirds of the work; once momentum builds, challenges become easier.
- Try ‘After Action Reviews’
Transform everyday experiences into learning opportunities, asking simple reflection questions: What was supposed to happen? What actually happened? Why was there a difference? What might we do differently next time?
Whether reflecting on a bad family outing or a great school project, this process helps children extract meaningful lessons from experiences rather than simply moving on to the next activity.
- Use the ‘Five-Minute Rule’
Before turning to technology, set a timer for five minutes and encourage children to think through problems independently. This often reveals they know more than initially thought.
We keep a colourful egg timer on our dining table so kids can set their own without needing phones or tablets. Five minutes of mental effort often prevents hours of digital dependency while building confidence in their own capabilities.
- Question Everything You See Together
Once or twice weekly, play “digital detectives.” When scrolling social media, watching adverts, or reading AI content, ask: Who created this? What’s it for? Is it effective?
Make it a game: spot persuasive techniques, discuss why certain posts appear in feeds, or investigate whether photos could be AI-generated. This builds the curiosity and “defensive thinking” children need to navigate our complex information landscape.
The Family Challenge
Choose one idea and implement it consistently for a month, observing how thinking patterns change. Our ability to pause, question and think deeply becomes increasingly valuable and role-modeling that for the next generation will help them figure out what it means to be human in the age of AI.
Bethan Winn is a critical thinking specialist and
author of The Human Edge: Critical Thinking in the Age of AI.
