NICO’S BIG QUESTIONS — ME, YOU & US5 Video Companion Resources | Philosophy, SEL & Critical Thinking | Ages 7–14

Help students explore some of life’s biggest questions through curiosity, reflection, discussion, and discovery.

Nico’s Big Questions: Me, You & Us is a collection of five thoughtful companion resources designed to accompany the animated Nico’s Big Questions video series. Created for learners ages 7–14, the bundle introduces complex philosophical, psychological, and social ideas in language young people can understand—without reducing them to simple right-or-wrong answers.

At the center of the series is Nico, a curious young jaguar who investigates big questions about being human. Rather than simply telling students what to think, Nico invites them to examine evidence, consider different perspectives, question their first assumptions, and develop their own ideas.

THE BUNDLE INCLUDES:

WHAT IS EMPATHY?

Students explore what it means to understand another person’s experience and discover that empathy involves more than simply being kind.

They consider questions such as:

Can we understand exactly what another person feels?
What is the difference between empathy and sympathy?
Why is listening important?
WHAT IS FAIRNESS?

Students investigate why treating everyone exactly the same is not always the same as treating everyone fairly.

They explore ideas including:

Equality and equity
Needs and circumstances
Effort and opportunity
Fair and unfair rules
Seeing a situation from another person’s position
Students learn to ask not only “Did everyone get the same thing?” but also “Did everyone have a real chance?”

DO MEMORIES SHAPE US?

Students investigate the relationship between memory, identity, experience, and change.

Questions encourage them to think about:

Why do some memories stay with us?
Are memories perfect recordings of the past?
Can two people remember the same event differently?
How do our memories influence who we believe we are?
This resource introduces students to the complexity of memory while encouraging thoughtful reflection on personal identity.

WHAT IS IDENTITY?

Students investigate the many elements that contribute to who a person becomes.

They consider:

Personality
Experiences
Relationships
Family and community
Choices
Memories
Interests and values
Rather than presenting identity as something fixed, students explore how some parts of us remain relatively stable while others develop and change throughout our lives.

WHAT GIVES LIFE MEANING?

Students explore one of philosophy’s oldest questions in an accessible and open-ended way.

Rather than giving students a single answer, the resource invites them to examine different possible sources of meaning, including:

Relationships
Caring for others
Learning
Goals and purpose
Responsibility
Belonging
Experiences
Contributing to something beyond ourselves
Students are encouraged to distinguish between what feels enjoyable in the moment and what can make something deeply meaningful.

MORE THAN COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

These resources are designed to move beyond simple recall.

Students are encouraged to:

OBSERVE

What happened? What evidence can we find?

QUESTION

What assumptions are we making?

COMPARE

Could someone else see the situation differently?

REASON

What makes an explanation convincing?

REFLECT

How does this question connect with our own lives?

DISCUSS

Can we disagree respectfully while continuing to investigate together?

The goal is not for every student to reach the same conclusion.

The goal is to help students think more carefully about why they believe what they believe.

PERFECT FOR

This bundle can be used in:

Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)
Philosophy for Children
Critical Thinking
Character Education
English Language Arts
Homeschool
Advisory periods
Gifted and Talented programs
Classroom discussion
Ethics and values education
Interdisciplinary humanities lessons
It can also work especially well as a discussion starter, extension activity, independent reflection resource, or small-group inquiry.

DESIGNED FOR AGES 7–14

Activities can be adapted for different developmental levels.

Younger learners can focus on concrete examples, illustrations, personal experiences, and guided discussion.

Older learners can explore ambiguity, competing explanations, hypothetical situations, ethical dilemmas, and written argument.

This makes the collection suitable for mixed-age classrooms and allows teachers to revisit the same questions at increasing levels of complexity.

A CONNECTED JOURNEY

Together, the five investigations form a larger inquiry:

How do we understand ourselves?

How do we understand other people?

What do we owe one another?

How does our past shape us?

What makes a life meaningful?

From empathy and fairness to memory, identity, and meaning, students gradually move from questions about themselves toward questions about relationships, community, responsibility, and human experience.

NICO’S BIG QUESTIONS

Big questions rarely have tiny answers.

Join Nico as he investigates ideas that philosophers, scientists, psychologists, and ordinary people have wondered about for centuries—and discover that asking a better question can sometimes be just as important as finding an answer.