Dr Barbie Clarke is pleased to be an expert judge for the CoC Playful Minds ‘Future Play Design Challenge 2022’. This year’s theme is “Ethically co-creating the next generation of sustainability & climate play together with children and families”. 🌱 Join the Virtual Kick Off Event and launch of the Challenge 2022 on 1 February 2022 at 3-5 PM CET. What’s in it for you? 💡 Be inspired 🔍 Meet the expert jury 💬 Hear case stories of former participants…
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New research suggests that there is a connection between gut health and behaviour development. 260 children took part in the study, with parents  providing gut health samples when their children were 6 weeks, 1 year and 2 years old. At 3 years parents completed a Behavioural Assessment System for Children to assess behavioural development. The research team recruited the 206 children from the New Hampshire Birth Cohort Study. The aim of this research was to…
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In a UCL study of almost 40,000 pairs of parents and children, it was found that a child’s educational success depends on both the genes that they have inherited from their parents, as well as the genes they have not. Parents pass on traits through nature and nurture, leaving children with an intertwined mix of both; a child’s lifestyle can affect their grades. This concept is referred to as ‘genetic nurture’ in which parental genes…
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The WHO is concerned that tobacco companies are luring in non-smokers with their vaping products, many of whom are underage. They argue that by strengthening legislation across the world, young people can be further protected from harm. The WHO is also concerned that vaping products are acting as an entry point into the world of cigarettes, which do contain tobacco. A new study found that young people who have vaped are more than twice as…
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Results from a recent survey suggest that children in Britain are first playing outside unsupervised up to two years later than their parent’s generation. The British Children’s Play Survey spoke to over 1,900 parents of children aged five to eleven about their children’s time spent playing. The survey shows children are most likely to be aged eleven when they first play outside without adult supervision. On average their parents were aged nine for the same…
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Children’s Commissioner for England Dame Rachel de Souza is launching a one-month campaign to help improve childhood. Between 19th April and 19th May, children across the country will be encouraged to participate in The Big Ask – an anonymous, national survey that focuses on ways to progress childhood in the years ahead. All children will have access to the survey through their school and via the Oak National Trust, where footballer Marcus Rashford will make…
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Scotland will soon become the first devolved nation in the UK to incorporate the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) directly into domestic law. Members of Scottish Parliament voted unanimously to pass the Bill, which will take six months to become law, as of Royal Assent. The passing of this Bill makes Scotland part of a very exclusive number of nations that have also incorporated the UNCRC into law such as…
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Researchers from King’s College London have recently published findings on smartphone addiction amongst students. Focusing on the habits of 1,043 participants between ages 18 and 30, results show how phone use before bed can be a big indicator of who displays addictive tendencies and who does not. 42% of participants who used their phones before bed are said to display signs of addiction, compared to 23.8% of participants who refrained from such use 60 minutes…
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In partnership with LEGO Ventures, CoC Playful Minds has launched a global design challenge for entrepreneurs within the market of play and playful learning. The ‘Future Play Design Challenge’ aims to encourage and inspire entrepreneurs to practice ethical co-creation with children and involve them in design activities. In 2021, the theme is social digital play – a highly topical theme at a time when much of children’s social life and play must take place digitally. The…
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The number of mothers who have given birth pre-term (before 37 weeks) has decreased significantly this year. According to one evaluation, there were fewer babies born extremely early (prior to 28 weeks) during Denmark’s complete lockdown in the Spring compared to the last five years. A similar phenomenon happened in Ireland, where there was a 73% decrease in the number of premature babies born in the first 4 months of 2020. It is estimated that 15 million…
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