Understanding children, especially your own, can be quite challenging. It’s difficult to figure out what is going on in their minds, and especially the reason for their behavior. Children might not communicate any of these things easily, if at all. 

However there are helpful ways to observe their behavior and get to the root of it. The key is to find patterns in their behavior; more specifically the circumstances leading up to the behavior, the behavior itself, and what happened after. The most important part is to write all of this down when it happens, and over time you’ll be able to find a pattern within their behavior that can prove to be helpful in figuring out why this behavior occurred.

For a more detailed explanation, read the full article Here!

Kaitlyn Vitucci

Research Assistant, UConn KIDS

Welcome back to Trivia Tuesday!

This weeks question is… Newborns have a limited range of vision, how far ahead can they see?

A. 4 inches
B. 6-8 inches
C. 8-12 inches
D. 12-16 inches

Tune in next week to find out the answer!

Think about yourself… are you more of a visual or audio learner? Now throw that all away because there is no such thing as a visual learner or an audio learner!

There are many myths when it comes to learning that have been involved in education. Learning styles, ages 0 to 3 is the fundamental time where brain development is fixed, and the Multiple Intelligences theory are all neuromyths. The article, Neuroscience and education: myths and messages defines neuromyths as “misconceptions about the brain that flourish when cultural conditions protect them from scrutiny.” It mentions the importance of creating a stronger connection between the fields of neuroscience and education and how it can squash these myths and provide each field with a greater understanding of each other.

Click here to read more!

Mikayla Clemens

Research Assistant, UConn KIDS

Torri Ann is a research scientist in the HELLO (Hearing Experience Language Learning Outcomes) Lab. The biggest project in the lab is our Parent Infant Eye-tracking (PIE; Protocol #H23-0448). In this study, they have parents of children who are D/deaf or hard of hearing complete a videotaped 10-minute play session. The parents wear eye-tracking units (like glasses), and the lab assesses how the eye gaze of parents and children relates to spoken word learning! Torri Ann also has other studies that are a continuation of her dissertation looking at parent education around early intervention.  

Being a Connecticut native, Torri Ann started her educational journey at UConn, earning a BA in Psychology and Speech, Language, and Hearing Science with minors in Cognitive Science and Neuroscience. For her Master’s, Torri Ann moved to DC and attended Gallaudet University, the only University in the world that runs in American Sign Language. Once back from DC, she earned her PhD in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences at UConn. Her interest in research comes from wanting to be the best support possible for families and children who are D/deaf and hard of hearing.  

Torri Ann loves to spend her time with her dog, Marah Jade (a deaf retired service dog), family, and baby daughter. They love to go hiking, watch Bluey, and visit Old Sturbridge Village!

Torri Ann hopes to see you in her Lab!

Culture is a beautiful thing that ties into our identities; everyone comes from different cultural backgrounds, beliefs, and traditions. With the upcoming holiday season, it is important to recognize that everyone celebrates different holidays and traditions. By teaching children about different cultures around the world, it can build upon the greater understanding of how everyone’s culture is beautiful and unique while also bringing people together to apricate our differences. The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) wrote an article on how you can teach your children about different holidays around the world and why it is important to do so.

To read more, click here!

Mikayla Clemens

Research Assistant, UConn KIDS

Childhood amnesia is something that happens to all of us, no matter what. No matter how hard you try to remember, you won’t be able to remember your first birthday, your first steps, or other big moments from our early childhood. In this article we learn about how the developing brain and many other factors shape into why we don’t remember our first few years. A big point made in this article is that we begin remembering personal events only after we develop a concept of self and a rudimentary life narrative.

Learn more about this fascinating topic, Here!

Ben Solomon,

Research Assistant, UConn KIDS

 

Good afternoon and welcome to Trivia Tuesday!

This week’s question is… true or false: babies have a visual preference for solid colors over patterns.

1. true
2. false

Last week’s question was “when does hand-eye coordination start to develop?” The answer to last week’s question is: around 3 months! Babies begin to use their hands more and grab objects around them. This helps them develop further fine motor movements with their hands later in life.  

Tune in next Tuesday to find out the answer to this week’s question!

The holidays are an exciting time for many families, but for others, they may cause a “grief spike.” Grief spikes are periods when grief surges. However, there are tips to help parents and children navigate these holiday grief spikes by helping to keep lost loved ones present.

Providing children with space to talk is of utmost importance. This space can help children continue to feel connected to someone they lost. Storytelling is a great way to continue to talk about and feel connected to those we’ve lost. Additionally, support from those around you can make the holiday season more manageable after a loss. The extra support can alleviate some stress for both you and your child.

Read the full article here.

Emma Dineen

Research Assistant, UConn KIDS

Na Zhang, Ph.D., is the Director of the Family Resilience And Mindfulness Empowerment (FRAME) lab and Assistant Professor of Human Development and Family Sciences at UConn. Dr. Zhang has completed a National Institute of Health T32 Postdoctoral Fellowship at Arizona State University’s REACH Institute. Additionally, Dr. Zhang earned her Ph.D. in Family Social Science with a Prevention Science Minor from the University of Minnesota.

The FRAME lab studies mindfulness in divorcing/separating families, a project funded by the National Institute of Health. The ultimate goal is to develop a mindfulness app that can be added to an existing digital evidence-based parenting intervention for divorced/separated parents as a self-help tool. Dr. Zhang expects the project to have real-world impacts on reducing mental health problems and stress in divorced parents as well as improving the well-being of their children. The FRAME lab is inviting divorcing or recently divorced mothers or fathers to participate in their study. Please reach out if you are interested. Email the lab at frame.lab@uconn.edu or call/text them at 203-561-7045.

Learn more about the FRAME lab here!

As a family scholar and prevention scientist, Dr. Zhang mainly studies the intrapersonal and interpersonal pathways involved in the development of psychopathology and resilience among youth and adults who were exposed to stressful or traumatic experiences. A major focus of her research is on the development and evaluation of behavioral parent training programs that consider parents as the agents of change. Dr. Zhang has investigated how effective parenting may lead to resilience outcomes in children from at-risk families and the applications of mindfulness training as an intervention strategy to strengthen and optimize parenting programs.

Dr. Zhang’s favorite activities include playing at home with her four-year-old son! Together, they play puzzles, Legos, and pretend games!

Friendships are something that we see in all areas in life. From infancy to adults, we experience them at all ages… but how important are friendships in adolescence? From Theory of Mind to why we are walking at the same pace as our best friend, this short four-minute TED Talk dives into the development of friendships and the science behind it. Just like other aspects of development, friendships are way deeper than just their appearance. They allow for the development of various social skills and even areas in the brain!

To watch the full TED Talk, click here!

Mikayla Clemens

Research Assistant, UConn KIDS