Amazon Kids Shows Segue Screen Time Into View + Do

June 30, 2014 “What’s a cookie cutter?” said one student as I passed out the tools to build a knock-off of a Lunchable as part of a health literacy ‘switch pitch’ teaching about ingredients.“What do you even DO with Playdough?” said another when I gave mini-tubs to kindergarten kids who poked at it curiously as if they’d never seen or played with it before.These are some of the … [Read more...]

Look Up! Perfect Anthem for Screen Free Week

May 4-10, 2015 is Screen Free Week I'm being called for jury duty, so who knows where that lands...meanwhile, here's a links list below reprising resources to enjoy time out and about unplugged!Screen Free Week from May 5-11, 2014Every year I hear claims that in our "always on" culture, CCFC’s annual Screen Free Week has ‘jumped the shark’ in usefulness as digital dealings … [Read more...]

YTH: Youth, Tech, Health–Shaping Youth Interviews YTH Jamia Wilson

Mar. 29, 2014 Like a teen whose spirited, edgy adolescence evolved toward bold innovation, I’ve watched YTH.org "grow up" as an organization over time, expanding and emerging into one of the most exciting intergenerational collaborations surrounding youth wellness and technology. Always a favorite for inspiring fresh thinking and preventive digital health problem-solving, … [Read more...]

Using “Frozen” as an Icebreaker For Meaningful Chats With Kids

Nov. 22, 2019 Frozen 2: With the opening weekend of Frozen 2 and a script laced with big topics from tribalism to ethnic genocide, there are icebreakers and family history springboards aplenty. Interesting that Disney took a preemptive step to negate cultural appropriation backlash by signing an agreement with indigenous Sami culture for respectful portrayal; first I've … [Read more...]

KIDS FIRST! Film Critics Review Oscar Animation Nominees

With so much Oscar chat about Frozen putting all other animation contenders on ice, I thought I’d “get beyond the buzz” of school, social media and neighborhood chatter to ask kids who are trained as media critics by the KIDS FIRST! Coalition For Quality Children’s Media, a 501c3 nonprofit.After an extended chat with Ranny Levy, Founder and President of KIDS FIRST! about the … [Read more...]