Zone'in Christmas Carol

  

Cris Rowan profiles 12 years of Christmas Tech, and encourages parents everywhere to consider non-tech Christmas gifts this year.

  

 

With

Best Wishes

to All

from Zone'in Staff 2014

  

Click to Listen, Share and Comment 

Radio

Interview with Cris Rowan by Cliff & Dougie on RadioWest in Australia talking about balancing the use of technology with healthy activity for kids. Aired on December 4, 2014.

Magazines

Look for Cris's article 'Tech Neglect - Disconnect from technology and reconnect with children to treat technology addictions' appearing in Holistic Parenting magazine, Issue No.7, January/February  2015

Newspapers

Huffington Post has recorded over 2.1 million Facebook likes for Cris Rowan's article 10 Reasons Why Handheld Devices Should Be Banned for Children Under the Age of 12.

Click here to see the article. 

January 22, 2015 - Courtney BC
Workshop on impact of technology on children with FASD sponsored by Wachiay Friendship Centre
Contact person: Allison Abraham allison@wachiay.com 1-250-338-7793

February 5, 6, 2015 - Rivers Inlet, BC

Workshops on self-regulation, literacy, technology balance, and attachment, sponsored by Vancouver Coastal Health grant

Contact person: Kevin Gianakos kgianakos@sd49.bc.ca 1-250-949-8881

February 16, 2015 - Comox BC

Keynote and full day workshop for Pro-D sponsored by School District No. 71 on impact of technology on child development, learning and behavior.

Contact: Sheila Powell  sheila.powell@sd71.bc.ca 1-250-334-5527

February 19, 2015 - New York NY
Workshop on the impact of technology on children and parents sponsored by Toppan Printing Company Inc.
Contact person: Sarah Reilly SarahReilly@toppanIf.com 1-201-518-9715

March 6, 2015 - Vancouver, BC

Workshop on school design for success sponsored by Cross Currents Special Education Conference

Contact person: Mary Berg seaspeakers@gmail.com 

March 23-April 3, 2015 - India, Sri Lanka, Nepal

Workshops for parents, educators, and health professionals sponsored by Young Presidents Organization on impact of technology on child development, learning and behavior.

Contact: Priya Thakur pthakur@ypowpo.org 

Childhood Development

Physical activity linked to children's brain and cognitive development, scholastic achievement
Published on December 3, 2014 in News Medical.

Physically active children also have increased concentration and enhanced attention spans when compared to their less active peers.

Mid-brain activation is good for children
By James Gitau November 9, 2014
Experts contended that by helping a child develop greater use of the right brain, you immensely increased the child's learning abilities and made it easier for them to understand new information and have photographic memory among other almost unbelievable benefits.
 

What lessons can I teach my child during the holidays?
By Sarah Levin Allen, Ph.D., CBIS December 8, 2014
You could help build your child's frontal lobe development by practicing skills like planning meals, deciding the order of food service, keeping calm and sharing, and deciding what to work on first. Just think how much of these skills are used at holiday time. There's meal preparation, waiting to open a gift, and not telling Aunt Lucy that her stuffing was dry! When it comes to promoting brain development, 'tis the season! 

Tech Addictions 

Moms Managing Media Help Kick Video Game Addiction

By Kathryn Searles December 15, 2014
Parenting in a digital age takes more skills than the tech devices you to try to pry from your kids' hands. 

Stop the Demand - the role of porn in Sex Trafficking
By Luke Gilkerson and Ron Dehaas
Sex trafficking is defined by the 2013 Trafficking in Persons Report as a "severe form" of trafficking in which "a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion." In the US, anywhere from 100,000 to 250,000 American children are trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation per year.

Detoxing & Unplugging

19 Places for a Digital Detox

Published by Rough Guides

Getting a digital detox, the Swiss way: One app shows you how to dodge smartphone addiction
By Rogert Laing November 25, 2014 Can't stop checking your messages? Real life events like going to the cinema or taking your partner to dinner getting in the way of reading your emails? This app may help!

8 Ways to Unplug Your Holidays
By Caroline Knorr December 2, 2014
The trick is to downsize -- not demolish -- your family's reliance on technology over the holidays.

Are you ready for the National day of Unplugging on March 6-7, 2015
National Day of Unplugging Kit for Kids (& FAMILIES & FRIENDS & TEACHERS) - Download here.

Education Technology

Teachers resisting unhealthy children's entertainment 

TRUCE is an organization of educators who work to counteract the harmful impact of media and marketing on children.
 

Philadelphia Schools Fighting Back - Part 2
Aired December 2, 2014 PBS Learning Matters
Despite drastic budget cuts, Philadelphia superintendent William Hite is fighting back, giving students an incentive to return by opening three high schools with innovative, project-based curriculums.  

Tech Radiation

'Cellphones fry young brains'
By Tanya Farber December 11, 2014

The Cancer Association of South Africa (Cansa) has issued a stern warning: giving children cellphones and other wireless technology devices carries enormous risks. iPads, for example, contain radiating antennae that should not be held directly on the body, but children's arms are not long enough to create the distance. Babies play with cellphones, and mothers speak on the devices while breastfeeding. 

Social Media & Mobile Technology

A young teen needs to be on social media? For what?
By Denyse O'Leary November 25, 2014

Sure, just like the kid needs the keys to the car or the liquor cabinet. On the other hand, kids need to learn to drive and to drink (if at all) responsibly. Denyse shares two cautionary tales of our times.
 

Common-Sense, Science-Based Advice on Toddler Screen Time
By Lisa Guernsey November 13, 2014
It's a question always sparking hot debate in parenting circles: Do you let your babies and toddlers use screens? For years, the health and child development establishment has been advising parents to avoid exposing their toddlers and babies to screen media. But daily life increasingly includes video, smartphones, and touchscreen tablets. Questions have been flying: Is staying away really the best approach?
 

Cautionary note: at this point in time, no researchers have proven that early technology use is safe, with mounting research showing that it's not (link to Cris's article). Technology overuse affects multiple systems, causing impact in multiple areas, with impact more pronounced in young children. Our children only have one childhood, and one chance to build a solid foundation for development and learning. Let's make it a good one! Think of your fondest memory. Bet you weren't playing video games!
 

Are Your Kids Wired? Be Smart About Phone and Tablet Use
By Alyssa Morlacci November 20, 2014
During the past two years, mobile device usage for ages 2-4 has grown from 39 percent to 80 percent, and usage for ages 5-8 has risen from 52 percent to 83 percent, according to research reported by the nonprofit ZERO TO THREE 

Videos of the Month 

Programs, Tools & Techniques

Non tech gift ideas

Melanie Hempe, Moms Managing Media discussing non tech gifts for kids.