“Why doesn’t Spiderman shoot webs out of his butt like a real spider?”
“Go ask your mother…”
See also
Start Here
- Kids ask lots of questions. It’s super annoying but in a totally adorable way.
- Here are some great responses for some of the most common impossible questions that the little monsters like to throw at us when we’re least expecting it.
Great books for curious minds
Talking Points
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In reply to an impossible question
“That’s a great question, and I’m going to leave that one to you to answer. Some of the best things you’ll learn are the ones you discover yourself. Let’s go to the library and see if we can’t find an answer to that.”
”You know honey, there are just some questions that even I can’t answer. But that’s kind of fun too, you know? If we knew all the answers to every question there ever was, well, what fun would be in that? We wouldn’t need to read or talk to each other or go to neat places — we do all those things and more because life is constantly asking us questions and it’s our part of the game to try and answer them.”
| Question | Answer | Multi-select | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
Where did the dinosaurs go? | “About 65 million years ago an enormous asteroid collided with the earth and changed everything on the planet. The dinosaurs couldn't adapt and eventually died out, making way for new animals, ones that were better suited to this other climate.” | ScienceDinosaurs | |
Why are there so many languages? | “Thousands of years ago, people in different communities all over the globe invented their own words to describe their lives, and that's why today people from the same area tend to speak the same language and other people may not. Languages also evolve over time: Our own has changed so much that if you heard someone speaking English as it was spoken 500 years ago, you'd have trouble understanding what he was saying.” | ScienceDinosaurs | |
Why do we have “private parts”? | “Because we use them for things we don't do in public, like going to the bathroom -- that's why we call them private parts. It's also why we cover them with a swimsuit at the pool or close the door when we use the potty. We don't show our private parts to anyone except Mommy and Daddy or a trusted adult, like a doctor in her office. If someone tries to touch them or makes you uncomfortable, please tell me.” | ScienceBody | |
Why are some people homeless? | “I'm glad you noticed him. There are lots of reasons people become homeless. He may have lost his job or become too sick to take care of himself or his home. In any case, we should treat him with respect. We should also offer help for the homeless when we can, by doing things like donating to a shelter or collecting winter coats.” | Social | |
What makes people sick? | “Usually, it's because of germs. These tiny critters can find their way into our body through the air we breathe and things we eat, or when we touch our mouth or eyes without washing our hands. Most of the time, germs don't affect us, but sometimes our body can't fight them off -- and that's when we get sick. Occasionally, people also become ill because their body isn't working properly, but you can't catch those kinds of sicknesses. Fortunately, in most cases, resting and taking medicine can help your body heal.” | BodyHealth | |
Why do you cry sometimes when you’re happy? | “People may feel something so strongly that they just have to let it out. When kids feel happy they usually jump up and down or yell, but grown-ups have more complicated emotions -- and when we're really happy, we can also be just a little sad at the same time. Sometimes for adults, crying just happens.” | Emotions | |
Why can’t I stay up late too? | “Not only does your body need a break after running around all day, your brain needs one too. It's busy exercising as you think and discover new things. Since you're so active and learning so much more than adults each day, you need extra time to rest. You go to bed a little earlier so your body and mind can work even better in the morning.” | HealthBody | |
How come I can’t get new toys all the time like the other kids? | “It's up to adults to decide what they do with their money, and our neighbors may choose to spend more on toys than we do. It's easy to feel jealous, but having more stuff won't make our family happier or better than any other.” | SocialEmotions | |
Why does it rain? | “Clouds are made of water droplets. Within a cloud, water droplets condense onto one another, causing the droplets to grow. When these water droplets get too heavy to stay suspended in the cloud, they fall to Earth as rain.” | ScienceWeather | |
Why do some people look different? | “All of us are made of teeny-tiny-impossible-to-see things called ‘genes.’ You know how computers have code? We have genes that make up how we look. Some people have genes that make their eyes blue, other genes make people have blonde hair.” | ScienceBody | Talking Points for Life |
Where do babies come from? | “The father gave love to the mother and together they made a baby. Babies are made when two adults love each other so much that they're able to create a baby inside the mother.”
”Give a factual answer that is age-appropriate for your child. Use the correct terminology, even for younger children. Specific vocabulary is less likely to cause confusion and more apt to result in understanding.” | HealthBody | |
Why does it snow? | “Snow occurs when water vapors in the air freeze before they can turn into water. This happens when the temperature in the clouds is very cold. Snowflakes are made up of crystals of ice that have formed around bits of dirt in the air. The snowflakes start out very small and grow. Each snowflake is different and might contain up to 200 crystals.” | ScienceWeather | |
Why is the sky blue? | “You see a blue sky because that’s the color of the light in the air. At sunrise and sunset, the molecules in the air scatter more, and you see reds and oranges.” | ScienceWeather | |
Why do people die? | “People die because their bodies stop working. Sometimes people’s bodies stop working because they get sick or they are injured. Other times, people’s bodies just wear out after working for a long time.” | HealthSocial | |
Why do I have to go to school? | “A school is a place where people learn. Sometimes people learn best by listening to lectures or reading books. But often people learn best by doing things themselves and then talking with other people about what they’re doing. That’s what you do in school: You try things out, you talk with other kids about what you’re doing, and you listen to what your teachers say.” | School | |
How do birds fly? | “Birds fly by flapping their wings. Flight involves moving upward, against the force of gravity, and forward too. The air moves faster over the top of the wing; slower under the wing, and this lifts the bird up into the air.” | ScienceAnimals | Talking Points for Life |
Why do I have to eat vegetables? | “Food has vitamins and minerals and all sorts of good stuff that we call ‘nutrients.’ Nutrients are what our bodies use to grow and live. Vegetables happen to have a lot of nutrients and act like gasoline for a car, except that your body is the car. You can’t get far without nutrients, so we have to make sure we eat all our vegetables.” | HealthBody | Talking Points for Life |
Are we rich? Are we poor? | “We have money for what we need, not to buy everything. Money is not everything. It’s more about how we treat one another and the ideas we create.” | Money | Talking Points for Life |
An Impossible Question | “That’s a great question, and I’m going to leave that one to you to answer. Some of the best things you’ll learn are the ones you discover yourself. Let’s go to the library and see if we can’t find an answer to that.”
”You know honey, there are just some questions that even I can’t answer. But that’s kind of fun too, you know? If we knew all the answers to every question there ever was, well, what fun would be in that? We wouldn’t need to read or talk to each other or go to neat place — we do all those things and more because life is constantly asking us questions and it’s our part of the game to try and answer them.”
Or you could be mischievous and make up answers. See “Great Lies to Tell Kids” | Impossible Question | Talking Points for Life |
Do caterpillars burp? | “Nope, but their farts are outrageous.” | InsectsFunny/JokeAnimals | Talking Points for Life |
Do ghost have butts? | “I should hope so!” | Funny/JokeAnimals | |
How was the Earth formed? | “Scientists have several theories about how the Earth was formed, but no one knows for sure. One idea is that the solar system began as a huge, spinning cloud of gas and dust. Over time, this cloud gradually condensed and flattened into a disk-shaped object. Then, a giant star in the center of the disk exploded, and the resulting debris eventually formed our planet.” | ScienceSpace | |
What are black holes? | “Black holes are one of the most mysterious and powerful forces in the universe. A black hole is where gravity has become so strong that nothing around it can escape, not even light. The mass of a black hole is so compact, or dense, that the force of gravity is too strong for even light to escape.” | ScienceSpace | |
Why is water wet? | “Well, ‘wet’ is a word we use to describe something that has liquid (like water) stuck to it. So in a way, because water sticks to itself, you could say it is ‘wet’.” | Science | Talking Points of Life |
Why is the sea salty? | “Rain erodes rocks, and these eroded rocks eventually make their way into our seas and oceans via rivers. The water becomes salty because of that.” | ScienceWeather | |
Why does the moon change shapes? | “The moon itself doesn't emit any light like the sun. What we see when we see the moon is sunlight reflected off the moon. The phase of the moon is how much of the moon appears to us on Earth to be lit up by the sun. Half of the moon is always lit up by the sun, except during an eclipse, but we only see a portion that's lit up. This is the phase of the moon. Around once per month, every 29.53 days to be exact, the phases of the moon make a complete cycle. As the moon circles the Earth, we can only see a portion of the lit up side. When we can see 100% of the lit up side, this is a full moon. When we can't see any of the lit up side, this is called a dark moon or new moon.” | ScienceSpace |
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