Children and Families in the Digital Age offers a fresh, nuanced, and empirically-based perspective on how families are using digital media to enhance learning, routines, and relationships. This powerful edited collection contributes to a growing body of work suggesting the importance of understanding how the consequences of digital media use are shaped by family culture, values, practices, and the larger social and economic contexts of families’ lives. Chapters offer case studies, real-life examples, and analyses of large-scale national survey data, and provide insights into previously unexplored topics such as the role of siblings in shaping the home media ecology.

As featured on The Steve Wright Show on Radio 2. Equipping children to thrive and survive in the digital jungle Digital technology, social media, and online gaming are now a universal part of childhood. But are you worried about what your children might be doing online? What they might come across by accident? Or who might try to contact them through Facebook or Twitter? Whether you are a parent, grandparent, teacher, or youth leader, you will want children to get the most out of new technology. But how do you tread the tightrope of keeping them safe online, whilst enabling them to seize and benefit from the wealth of opportunities on offer? Bex Lewis, an expert in social media and digital innovation, has written a much-needed and timely book full of sound research, practical tips, and realistic advice on how to keep children safe online. She puts the Internet scare stories and distorted statistics into context and offers clear and sensible guidelines to help children thrive in the digital jungle. Media coverage includes: BBC Radio 2: The Steve Wright Show, BBC Radio Tees, BBC Radio Newcastle, ITV Tyne Tees television , Real Radio, Sun FM, The Durham Times, The Northern Echo, The Sunderland Echo, Premier Radio.

“One of the most-needed and grab-you-by-the throat convincing books around today” - Steve Biddulph, author of Raising Boys “For parents who feel defeated by the powerful influence of social media in their children’s lives, this book will sympathise, illuminate, inspire and encourage us to believe there is another, better way to live.” - Hugh Mackay, social researcher and bestselling author Smartphones and other interactive devices have turned up the volume on stress and are harming our mental and physical health. They have shrunk the capacity of families to spend time together, and when together, they have increased conflicts. Two-thirds of Australian families experience tension or disagreement about screens at least three times a week. In this confronting yet constructive guide on parenting in the digital age, award-winning journalist Toni Hassan catalogues the impacts of interactive devices on children and young people and offers ways out. “Rather than freeing us, screens have made us dependent,” she says. “They have thinned relationships and thinned time for the things that ultimately nourish us. Almost no part of children’s lives are free from the anxiety created by commercial forces curating their moment to moment experiences.” Moving beyond the gloom, Hassan offers lots of practical hope with ideas and tips for families to manage the digital age so that, despite the challenges, children and young people can thrive.

Family Engagement in the Digital Age: Early Childhood Educators as Media Mentors explores how technology can empower and engage parents, caregivers and families, and the emerging role of media mentors who guide young children and their families in the 21st century. This thought-provoking guide to innovative approaches to family engagement includes Spotlight on Engagement case studies, success stories, best practices, helpful hints for media mentors, and "learn more" resources woven into each chapter to connect the dots between child development, early learning, developmentally appropriate practice, family engagement, media mentorship and digital age technology. In addition, the book is driven by a set of best practices for teaching with technology in early childhood education that are based on the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and Fred Rogers Center joint position statement on Technology and Interactive Media. Please visit the Companion Website at http://teccenter.erikson.edu/family-engagement-in-the-digital-age

Young children are born into a digital world and it is not unusual to see preschool children intuitively swiping screens and confidently pressing buttons. There is much debate about the impact of the increased access to technology on young children’s health and wellbeing with claims that it damages their social skills and emotional development. This timely new textbook examines how developments in technology, particularly mobile and touch screen technology, have impacted on children’s lives and how when used appropriately it can support all aspects of their development. Clearly linking theory and research to everyday practice, the book offers guidance on: The role of technology in the early years curriculum Developing young children’s understanding of safe and responsible use of technology The role of the adult within digital play activities Using technology to enhance and develop young children’s creativity Technology and language acquisition Featuring a wide range of case studies and examples to show how the ideas described can be put into practice, this is essential reading for all early years students and practitioners that want to know how they can harness technology in a meaningful way to support young children’s learning and development.

Young Children Playing and Learning in a Digital Age explores the emergence of the digital age and young children’s experiences with digital technologies at home and in educational environments. Drawing on theory and research-based evidence, this book makes an important contribution to understanding the contemporary experiences of young children in the digital age. It argues that a cultural and critically informed perspective allows educators, policy-makers and parents to make sense of children’s digital experiences as they play and learn, enabling informed decision-making about future early years curriculum and practices at home and in early learning and care settings. An essential read for researchers, students, policy-makers and professionals working with children today, this book draws attention to the evolution of digital developments and the relationship between contemporary technologies, play and learning in the early years.

Digitalisation is transforming education as well as social and economic life, with implications for childhood. Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC), with its immense potential to shape children’s early development, learning and well-being, can play a major role in addressing the opportunities and risks that digitalisation brings to young children.

Being a teenager has never been easy, but the digital age has brought with it unique challenges for young people and the adults in their lives. Nurturing Young Minds: Mental Wellbeing in the Digital Age collects expert advice on how to tackle the terrors of the twenty-first century and is a companion to Growing Happy, Healthy Young Minds. A comprehensive and easily accessible guide for parents, teachers, counsellors and health care professionals, this book contains important advice about managing online behaviour, computer game addiction and cyberbullying, as well as essential information on learning disorders, social skills and emotional health, understanding anger and making good choices. This volume includes up-to-date information on: Understanding Teen Sleep and Drowsy Kids Emotions and Relationships Shape the Brain of Children Understanding the Teenage Brain Healthy Habits for a Digital Life Online Time Management Problematic Internet Use and How to Manage It Computer Game Addiction and Mental Wellbeing Sexting: Realities and Risks Cyberbullying, Cyber-harassment and Revenge Porn The 'Gamblification' of Computer Games Violent Videogames and Violent Behaviour Talking to Young People about Online Porn and Sexual Images Advice for Parents: Be a Mentor, Not a Friend E-mental Health Programs and Interventions Could it be Asperger's? Dyslexia and Learning Difficulties Friendship and Social Skills The Commercialisation of Childhood Sexualisation: Why Should we be Concerned? Porn as a Public Health Crisis How Boys are Travelling and What They Most Need Understanding and Managing Anger and Aggression Understanding Boys' Health Needs

The purpose of the Mental Health Practice in a Digital World: A Clinicians Guide book is to prepare clinicians to understand, critically evaluate, and embrace well-designed and validated technologies that have the potential of transforming the access, affordability, and accountability of mental healthcare. The reader will become aware of the practical applications of technology in mental health as well as research supporting information technology tools, policy debates. Each chapter contains either examples or scenarios that are relevant to the current practice of mental health care. Policy makers, application developers, scientists, and executives that have lead or supported the use of technologies in real world practice are chapter authors. The goal for this book is to be the key resource for current and future mental health clinicians in the U.S. and around the world to become familiar with technology innovations and how they impact and improve clinical practice.

Applying an asset-based approach, Multimodal Funds of Knowledge in Literacy prepares educators to teach and support diverse students and their families as they negotiate multimodal aspects of literacy learning. Framed by sociocultural theory, multiliteracies, multimodality, and posthumanism, the text combats deficit narratives by providing concrete alternatives that push educators to rethink their practices and support students’ and families’ cultural and linguistic strengths. Chapters include case studies, vignettes, prompts, and learning samples that will leave readers with valuable insights and new understandings of multimodal funds of knowledge. Comprehensive and instructive, this book is a key text in literacy education, family literacy, and community engagement.