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No phones, no Moms, just kids playing in the park
Parents should band together to "say 'no' to smart phones and social," writes Laura Yuen in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. She dreams of...
Joanne Jacobs
Jun 23, 20242 min read
Childhood's end
Phone-centered childhood is a disaster, writes Jonathan Haidt in The Atlantic. In the early 2010s, "adolescents in rich countries traded...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 24, 20243 min read
Snorble wants to be your toddler's friend: Are AI toys good for kids?
AI playmates for toddlers will be in stores next year, writes Alyssa Rosenberg, who visited New York City's Toy Fair, in the Washington...
Joanne Jacobs
Dec 10, 20231 min read
Teens spend 4.8 hours a day on social media, says Gallup
U.S. teenagers average 4.8 hours a day on social media apps such as YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and X (formerly Twitter),...
Joanne Jacobs
Oct 19, 20232 min read
How AZ parents spend ESAs: Specialty schools, private schools -- and karate lessons!
How are Arizona parents spending Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) money? They're paying for educational products and services,...
Joanne Jacobs
Oct 10, 20232 min read
Let the kids play and the teenagers work
Teenagers wouldn't be so anxious, depressed and fragile if they'd spent more time playing outside with friends -- without adult...
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 5, 20232 min read
Joanne Jacobs
Jul 16, 20230 min read
U.S. kids spend lots of time in school, but much of it is wasted
Rethink summer vacation, writes Rick Hess in an Education Week column. That doesn't mean extend the school year. The much-discussed...
Joanne Jacobs
Jul 6, 20232 min read
Go outside to play -- and learn
Kindergarteners learn outdoors -- including time in the "magical forest" -- for most of the school day at a school in Quebec, reports...
Joanne Jacobs
May 29, 20231 min read
'Transition Me Elmo' could be the next hot new toy
The new Transition Me Elmo doll will introduce children "to the exciting new world of gender reassignment," reports Babylon Bee. "If...
Joanne Jacobs
Apr 19, 20231 min read
Move it and lose the blues
Exercise and sports -- at least one hour three times a week -- are a natural anti-depressant for teenagers, according to an analysis of...
Joanne Jacobs
Jan 9, 20231 min read
No more snow days? Not yet
Snow days have not been canceled, despite the rise of remote learning, writes Nathan M. Sorber, a higher education professor at West...
Joanne Jacobs
Jan 7, 20232 min read
Striver parents want toys to 'cram learning into playtime'
For ambitious parents, toys are supposed to "cram learning into playtime," writes Alex Blasdel in The Guardian. "Is it time for a...
Joanne Jacobs
Nov 26, 20221 min read
Back in the day, playgrounds were unsafe -- and fun
The first Saturday of each month is National Play Outside Day, writes Don Mathis. He remembers the exciting -- and dangerous --...
Joanne Jacobs
Nov 25, 20222 min read
Child's play is learning
Playing -- especially child-directed play outside with friends -- is how kids learn, writes Jackie Mader on the Hechinger Report. Playing...
Joanne Jacobs
Nov 25, 20221 min read
Boy trouble
Boys are struggling in school around the world, not just in the United States, points out Kay Hymowitz in City Journal. Boys have lower...
Joanne Jacobs
Oct 29, 20222 min read
Raising an American girl
My daughter never had an American Girl doll, because I was too cheap to spend that kind of money, even if each doll had a history back...
Joanne Jacobs
Jul 17, 20222 min read
She watched kids play — security was called
Lenore Skenazy was walking by an elementary school in Queens, when she saw kids playing hopscotch, just as she used to do, and paused to...
Joanne Jacobs
May 14, 20221 min read
Screen-time limits linked to cognitive skills
Limiting kids’ recreational screen time to less than two hours a day boosts their brainpower, concludes a new study, reports Hamza Shaban...
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 30, 20181 min read
Raising self-regulating kids
Children — and their parents and teachers face a “crisis of self-regulation,” argues Katherine Reynolds Lewis in The Good News About Bad...
Joanne Jacobs
Jun 10, 20182 min read
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