My friend looked at his twelve-year-old son, then at the WhatsApp message he had just forwarded to his family group, school group, building group, prayer group and one bewildered plumber. The boy had been reading about the Times Critical Thinking Championship, founded by the Times Foundation and supported by the Times of India. The 2026 AM/NS India Times Critical Thinking Championship has now been launched nationally, encouraging children to examine evidence, challenge assumptions and think independently. Critical thinking is wonderful when applied to mathematics. Our children may win the Critical Thinking Championship, and maybe they’ll start teaching us.