People sometimes question the difference between a family meeting and, say, dinner.
Child-care wait lists have ballooned across Ontario since the province signed on to the national $10-a-day program, as demand due to the lower fees appears to be far outstripping the creation of new spaces in many regions. Children play at a daycare in Coquitlam, B.C., on March 28, 2018.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Governments need to co-operate to prioritize access to high-quality child care for low-income families, and sustain not-for-profit care centres with well-paid educators.
In response to threats, we learn to avoid challenge and comply with external rules (instead of wondering how systems can be improved). We protect our feelings and restrict our thoughts to what’s safe.
Using concrete tools or objects matters for fostering mathematical development – but how can children best learn to count by 10?
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Findings of a study suggest using a ‘hundreds chart’ showing numbers one through 100, beginning with one in the top-left corner, fosters children’s counting by 10s.
For over 20 years, I have researched and treated children sleep problems. The research suggests changing sleep patterns over the summer break does not have to be a problem.
A child’s sense of attachment with parents or caregivers is formed from the consolidation of a series of interactions and responses during the child’s first year of life (and beyond).
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Parents or caregivers who a child can return to in times of distress to receive comfort or protection provide a secure base for the child from which they feel safe to explore the world.
Investing in non-profit programs that provide culturally-relevant education is important to children and families.
Early childhood education isn’t about warehousing children so adults can go to work. There is an ethical imperative to support a paradigm shift in how our society values educating young children.
In a systematic review of existing studies, researchers found that air pollution such as fine particulate matter can interfere with regions of the brain responsible for emotional regulation.
Electronic devices are not, in and of themselves, a source of visual problems. Using these devices inappropriately can interfere with the natural development of the eye, as well as reading and learning skills.
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The impact of using electronic devices is critical during the first years of life, both visually and on the cognitive and social development of the child.
Early learning and play are key to children’s development - and their futures.
Jessica Ronaasen
Given the clear importance of language skills for lifelong outcomes, it is critical to set children up early for language success.
Recent advances in research on human development, and brain science in particular, have revealed that traumatic childhood literally changes the human body, affecting brain development.
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The impact of early childhood trauma on lifelong physical and mental health makes it urgent to invest in programs to support healthy pregnancies and stable, caring very early childhoods.
This Book Week, don’t stress about the costume and don’t worry about what the other mums or dads are sewing or buying. Costumes are fun but what matters is to let your kid read what they enjoy.
Children who grow up in disadvantaged areas seem to react more strongly to facial expressions showing anger or fear. But social connections between neighbours can help.
Children born during the pandemic are at nearly twice the risk for developmental delays.
Ariel Skelley / Getty Images
The COVID-19 pandemic – and the isolation it brought on – deprived many babies of the stimulating experiences they need to develop. Is the damage permanent? A language specialist weighs in.
Abortion-rights demonstrators hold up letters spelling out ‘My Choice,’ Saturday, May 14, 2022, outside the United States Supreme Court in Washington, D.C.
(AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Restricting abortion access has negative effects on parents, as well as children and families, including increased poverty, unemployment, pregnancy-related deaths and higher health risks in children.
Children’s physical experiences help them learn new words.
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Children may hear a lot of words when sitting in front of or interacting with screens, but to learn language children need to interact with physical objects.
Professor, Canada Research Chair in Determinants of Child Development, Owerko Centre at the Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary
Adjunct Professor, Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development at Ontario Institute for the Study of Education (OISE) and Senior Policy Fellow at the Atkinson Centre, University of Toronto