How Kids Learn to Communicate in a Social Media World

June 10, 2010

A New York Times’ story on June 9, 2010 poses a new question that parents are beginning to ask about kids and technology.

We have been asking ourselves what happens to children when they spend an average of seven and a half hours a day on media, when they text rather than talk? Will they learn to communicate?

Now we are also asking what happens to children when we—their parents—are so absorbed with our BlackBerries, iPhones or iPads that it sometimes takes a child biting our leg to get our attention?

It is a new frontier—too new for even much research. But some older studies shed new light on this phenomenon.

Ellen Galinsky on Local CBS News

June 04, 2010

In case you missed it, watch the video here of Ellen Galinsky and Walter Mischel on WCBS's 11:00 news.

Child Development Experts and Parents: Redefining the Relationship

June 02, 2010

Is there a gap between what child development research has found and what parents believe? 

A new survey from Zero to Three, a nonprofit devoted to promoting the health and development of infants and toddlers, finds “yes” and “no” and importantly, underscores the need for a shift in the way we share the science of child development with parents.

This survey of more than 1600 parents with children from birth to age three found that the majority of parents echo the findings of child development research by saying that reading to young children is a strong or major influence on helping them learn (93%) as are speaking to babies in their main language (83%), playing with other children (81%), and playing pretend with children (65%).

The survey also found gaps in parents’ understanding of their children’s developmental milestones. For example, parents underestimate how early children can experience sadness or fear. Child development research shows that most children can sense whether their parents are angry or sad by six months, while only 34% of parents agree that children can sense these emotions by six months. Similarly, studies show that children are capable of feeling good or bad about themselves by ages one to two, while only 43% of parents feel that children are capable of these feelings by age two. On the other hand, parents overestimate how early children can control their emotions, such as when they are having a tantrum.

These are critical gaps between what child development research shows and what parents think. Especially important to me then are the questions this study and other studies raise: What’s important for parents to learn from child development research? How and from whom are findings best conveyed?

Quality Child Care

May 26, 2010

See Ellen talk with Ann Pleshette Murphy from ABC News Now on the topic of quality child care and the recent report released by the NICHD.  To read more about Ellen's perspective and tips on how to choose quality child care, see the links on the side bar of this page.

One-on-One Conversations with Ellen Galinsky

May 25, 2010

Ellen Galinsky has recently had conversations with Ronnie Koenig on AOL Health and Maggie Jackson (columnist for The Boston Globe) for her blog. In these conversations, she talks about her inspiration for writing Mind in the Making, reassuring parents that it's never too late, how she is trying to broaden our definition of learning and how our views of childhood have changed. Read the interviews and tell us what you think.