Joanne Jacobs
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...
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Joanne Jacobs
Jun 10, 20182 min
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
Apr 9, 20181 min
Too many toys spoil the toddler
Toddlers play more creatively if they’re given a few toys, according to a new study in Infant Behaviour and Development. Too many toys at...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 17, 20182 min
Naked tykes by the fire pit
Sara Zaske moved to Germany with a four-year-old daughter, then gave birth to a son. In Achtung Baby she praises “the German art of...
Joanne Jacobs
Nov 24, 20171 min
Kids can take it
You’d never see this ad on American TV, says Let Grow. #Norway #play
Joanne Jacobs
Oct 17, 20172 min
Parents don’t see value of kids’ play
Parents value structured activities over free play, according to a Gallup survey, “despite research associating unstructured, child-led...
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 24, 20171 min
#Recess2017
Banning cellphones during lunch time has forced students to interact face to face, says Rebecca Gogel, principal of Corona del Mar Middle...
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 4, 20171 min
Don’t raise your kids to be snowflakes
Mamas, don’t raise your kids to be snowflakes, says social psychologist Jonathan Haidt in a Spiked interview. Over-protective parents are...
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 3, 20172 min
Too young for a smartphone?
The average child gets his or her first smartphone at age 10, but some parents are pledging to keep their kids smartphone-free till...
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 12, 20171 min
Putin vs. fidget spinners
“Fidget spinners are a capitalist plot to turn Russian children into zombies,” Vladimir Putin fears, according to Newsweek. The...
Joanne Jacobs
Jul 13, 20172 min
Fun in the sun is not enough
Summer camp isn’t just for swimming and crafts, writes Michael Alison Chandler in the Washington Post. Specialty camps — debate,...
Joanne Jacobs
Jul 5, 20172 min
Don’t have fun, kids! It’s dangerous
Summer is the “time to dig in the sand, gulp from the hose, play at the park, and leap with joy … unless you’re a kid,” wrote Lenore...
Joanne Jacobs
Jun 14, 20172 min
Play is great, but kids need to work too
The University of Cambridge has appointed the world’s first Lego professor of play, writes Tom Bennett in The Guardian. Young children...
Joanne Jacobs
Jun 14, 20172 min
More work, less play makes Jack a smarter boy
Preschools where teachers teach about phonics, numbers and shapes produce cognitive gains for students — especially blacks — concludes a...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 25, 20171 min
Kindergarten can wait
Kids who wait a year to start kindergarten show significant long-term benefits, concludes a Stanford study of Danish children. “Delaying...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 16, 20171 min
Cover the world with LEGO
“Nimuno Loops” — LEGO-compatible adhesive tape — looks very cool. A new Indiegogo campaign is raising money for the product, reports...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 14, 20171 min
More recess helps kids focus
Four 15-minute recess breaks each day is helping kindergarten and first-grade students stay focused in class at four Fort Worth...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 14, 20172 min
Move to learn
Kids are spending too much time sitting indoors writes Angela Hanscom, a pediatric occupational therapist, in the Washington Post‘s...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 20, 20171 min
‘Smart’ doll is a good listener — and transmitter
A doll that records and transmits what it hears is an espionage device, German officials have concluded. “My Friend Cayla” is now banned...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 5, 20171 min
‘Nature Preschools’ grow
“Nature preschools” are catching on, reports Education Week. Children play outside, exploring natural environments. All Friends Nature...
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