Today, we think of philosophy as something reserved for higher education, if then. It has a reputation for being intimidating — or even useless in the “real world.” But, over in the UK at least, there’s a growing trend to teach philosophy to kids as young as five.

A story from the Daily Mail relates the debate going on about whether teaching such deep issues to impressionable children is a good idea. Critics say that the school system is struggling enough, and philosophy shouldn’t take time away from the much more important skills of reading, writing and arithmetic.

However, supporters of introducing philosophy to young children say that it only aids a student’s progress in these other areas. For instance, a 2007 psychological study found that 10-year-olds who had studied philosophy did better in verbal, numerical and spatial ability tests.

The idea is that teachers use the Socratic method, asking the children questions such as whether it’s always wrong to lie.