Tonight with your 9 to 12 year old
The prompt
“Was there ever a time two rules seemed to contradict each other, and you didn't know which one to follow?”
What to listen for
If they can describe this, it shows real critical thinking, they're noticing that rules aren't always perfectly consistent, and wrestling with that is actually a sign of a maturing sense of fairness.
Listen for how they resolved it, did they ask someone, pick the rule that felt more important, or just freeze? That process shows you how confident they feel making judgment calls on their own.
If nothing comes to mind, offer a simple example (like being told to be honest but also to be polite) and see what they think should win, the answer reveals their internal hierarchy of values.
What this tells you
This shows you how they think through competing values when the rules themselves don't give a clean answer.