Babies and Technology – What we know, but refuse to accept
Every parent on this planet knows technology is infinitely harmful to infants and toddlers, yet they continue to flock in droves to the latest technological device as if it were seemingly innocuous and benign. As a pediatric occupational therapist, I incessantly hear parents touting the latest new technology or program for their wee one exclaiming […]
Video Game Design – Criteria to Enhance Child Development and Learning
As concerns mount regarding the impact of technology on children, visionary focus on changing the design of video games comes to the forefront. Through strategic design, can a video game actually enhance child development and learning? I was recently approached by game designer to work collaboratively with his team in creation of a video game […]
Tech Diet – Four Tech Tools To Help “Tech Fat” Families Reduce The Use Of Technology
While the benefit of technology is obvious, inherent risks of technology overuse by young children are unrecognized and largely ignored. The virtual world is devoid of touch, movement, human connection, and nature – four critical elements for child development and learning. One in three children now enter school developmentally delayed, one in four are obese, […]
Neuroscience of Video Game Violence – Cells That Fire Together, Wire Together
Every parent who has a child with an obsession or addiction to video games, is “on alert” following the recent family shooting in New Mexico where a 15 year old avid video gamer shot and killed his parents and three siblings. Many parents are reeling in shock, trying to come to terms with the recent […]
Profile of a Shooter – School and community intervention and prevention initiatives.
Guns, video games, isolation, and mental illness have all been implicated as causal factors in the recent school shooting by Adam Lanza in Newtown, Connecticut. Intervention initiatives for school shootings, such as arming teachers, or enlisting full time police presence, have been proposed for schools both in the U.S. and Canada without any evidence showing […]