Simon Critchley's PHILOSOPHY FOR KIDS to Return to TILT Kids Festival

The Cultural Services of the French Embassy, the French Institute Alliance Française (FIAF) and the Brooklyn Public Library have announced that Simon Critchley, celebrated scholar, author and moderator of The New York Times philosophy column "The Stone," will host a new edition of his Philosophy for Kids program on Saturday, March 18, and Sunday, March 19, as part of the second annual Tilt Kids Festival.

In this series of discussions co-presented by the Brooklyn Public Library, Critchley and his PhD students-including Philosophy for Kids veterans Hannes Charren and Joseph Lemelin-will lead young people ages 5-12 in deep "parent-free" conversations about subjects ranging from friendship to society, among other key philosophical themes.

Philosophy for Kids is free and open to the public. Children will gather by age group at distinct times over the weekend of March 18-19. Two discussions will take place on Saturday, March 18, at FIAF's Haskell Library (22 East 60th Street, Manhattan): ages 5-7, from 11 to 11:30am; and ages 8-10, from 12 to 12:30pm. On Sunday, March 19, three discussions will be held at Brooklyn Public Library's Central Library (10 Grand Army Plaza, Brooklyn): ages 6-8, from 2 to 2:30pm; ages 8-10, from 3 to 3:30pm; and ages 10-12, from 4 to 4:30pm.

Discussions held at Brooklyn Public Library are part of the Brooklyn Public Philosophers forum. The event represents the continuation of discussions hosted by the Library on January 28 as part of A Night of Philosophy and Ideas in which Critchley was a featured guest.

Young philosophers Hannes Charren, Phoebe Friesen, Joseph Lemelin, and Ian Olasov led discussions that were part of the inaugural Philosophy for Kids, in last year's Tilt Kids Festival. Critchley said of that first edition,"As all parents know, children are very philosophical. They raise all sorts of questions about life, death, reality, illusion, truth and lies, right and wrong, good and bad. Children are possessed of a mighty curiosity and also, very often, not scared to speak their minds. We invited them to be as curious as they liked and ask as many awkward questions as they wanted."

IF YOU GO:

Simon Critchley & PhD Students from the New School
Philosophy for Kids
Co-presented with the Brooklyn Public Library
Saturday, March 18, at FIAF, Haskell Library (22 East 60th Street, Manhattan):
11-11:30am: ages 5-7
12-12:30pm: ages 8-10
Sunday, March 19, at Brooklyn Public Library Central Branch (10 Grand Army Plaza, Brooklyn):
2-2:30pm: ages 6-8
3-3:30pm: ages 8-10
4-4:30pm: ages 10-12
FREE

Simon Critchley is Hans Jonas Professor at the New School for Social Research. His books include Very Little... Almost Nothing, Infinitely Demanding, The Book of Dead Philosophers, The Faith of the Faithless, The Mattering of Matter, Bowie, Memory Theatre, and Notes on Suicide.He is moderator of "The Stone," a philosophy column in The New York Times, to which he frequently contributes.

Tilt Kids Festival invites kids and families to discover, play, imagine, think, and create, with performances and events that challenge the boundaries of art forms. From theater to dance parties, music concerts, innovative workshops, conversations, and visual art installations, Tilt is designed to stimulate and inspire the audiences of today and tomorrow.

Tilt Kids Festival is co-curated by Rima Abdul-Malak, Cultural Attachée of the Cultural Services of the French Embassy; Lili Chopra, Executive Vice President and Artistic Director of the French Institute Alliance Française (FIAF); and Violaine Huisman, Director of Humanities at the Brooklyn Academy Of Music. www.tiltkidsfestival.org

As an independent system, separate from the New York City and Queens libraries, Brooklyn Public Library serves the borough's 2.5 million residents, offering thousands of public programs, millions of books and use of more than 1,100 free Internet-accessible computers. www.bklynlibrary.org

The Cultural Services of the French Embassy promotes the best of French arts, literature, cinema, digital innovation, language, and higher education across the US. Based in New York City, Washington D.C., and eight other cities across the country, the Cultural Services brings artists, authors, intellectuals and innovators to cities nationwide. It also builds partnerships between French and American artists, institutions and universities on both sides of the Atlantic. In New York, through its bookshop Albertine, it fosters French-American exchange around literature and the arts. www.frenchculture.org

The French Institute Alliance Française (FIAF) is New York's premiere French cultural and language center. FIAF's mission is to create and offer New Yorkers innovative and unique programs in education and the arts that explore the evolving diversity and richness of French cultures. FIAF seeks to generate new ideas and promote cross cultural dialogue through partnerships and new platforms of expression. www.fiaf.org