Weed, pot, grass, marijuana — or cannabis to use the proper terminology — is now legal in Canada, after 95 years of prohibition. Anyone over the age of 18, or 19 depending on the province, can now walk into a store and buy up to 30 grams (approx. 1 ounce) of regulated product.

There is less fighting among young people in countries where there is a complete ban on all corporal punishment of children, according to a new study of more than 400,000 youth in 88 countries.

English spelling has a reputation for being illogical and chaotic. What’s going on with yacht, and why the W in two? There are a thousand other “but why?” questions our children ask about English spelling.

Humans have been migrating since prehistoric times – moving within and beyond geographical borders – in search of food, for survival or for better prospects in life.

From crying in the toilet to leaving the house in a rage, many parents and carers don’t want their children to see them getting emotional. But is this the right thing to do, or should you come clean about your fear of spiders or how angry you are with your boss? While the topic is complex, some clear answers are beginning to emerge from the research.

For years, Facebook grew in size and influence at a staggering rate. But recent reports suggest its hold on users — particularly in the developed world — may be weakening.

Young people need a brand of sex education that is responsive to current realities, behaviours and pressures so they can get the most comprehensive and contemporary information about the issues that they will face and are facing in making decisions about relationships and sexual activity.

Each year, more parents send their young child to elementary school equipped with a smartphone. For instance, the percentage of third-graders who reported having their own cellphone more than doubled from 19 percent in 2013 to 45 percent in 2017.

A lot of us suffer a great deal in our lives because our inner child has old wounds that have never been healed. It is important to know how to overcome our old wounds, because all too often they stand in the way of our ability to fully love ourselves, other people, and the children in our lives. Our old wounds often become our children's burden.

The friends that adolescents select, the influence they have on each other, and gender may all play a role in establishing friendships that can help, or possibly hurt, teens, according to new research.

For most parents, the phrase “I don’t want to brush my teeth” is rather familiar. While it may seem easiest to pry their mouth open and force them to brush, research suggests there are better ways that may positively influence children’s future dental health.

Parents may display more conservative attitudes, according to new research. Parental advice like “Look both ways before you cross the street,” or “Don’t run with scissors,” can be considered examples of a certain perspective that portrays the world as a dangerous place—a perspective parents might use to instill caution in their children.

Encouraging children “to help,” rather than asking them to “be helpers,” can instill persistence as they work to fulfill daily tasks that are difficult to complete, according to a new study.

Survey the shelves of most supermarkets and you’ll no doubt be confronted with row upon row of food designed to appeal to children. Be it chicken nuggets or turkey twizzlers – many foods now bear little resemblance to their original ingredients – “junk foods” now line the supermarket shelves to appeal to young consumers.

Parents play a critical role in their children’s early math education. They not only can provide math-related toys and games, but serve as role models demonstrating how math is used in everyday activities.

When schools suspend kindergartners and first-graders, some find it a challenge to turn things around in their academic life, a new study shows.

Supervised, awake tummy time is recommended to facilitate a baby’s development and minimise flat head syndrome. But some babies don’t like tummy time, and will kick up an almighty fuss to let you know. Luckily, tummy time is not all you can do to get your baby moving.

The real danger of separating children from parents is not the psychological stress – it’s the biological time bomb.. The screaming and crying, the anguish and desolation is gut-wrenching. But the fallout pales in comparison to the less visible long-term effects that are more sinister and dangerous.

Acceptance is the hallmark of many Eastern teachings. The opposite of acceptance and validation is judgment and denial, which make us tense up, lose our center, criticize ourselves and others, and hold impossible standards for everyone. When we are being judgmental, we invalidate ourselves and others.

We know from new research that children whose mothers are depressed may respond differently to stress, have altered immunity and be at greater risk of psychological disorders. This work adds to the body of research showing children can be affected in negative and long-term ways by their mothers’ mental ill-health.

When talking about separation and divorce, media and personal stories often focus on relationships characterised by ongoing conflict or violence. In contrast, Australian research suggests low conflict or cooperative post-separation relationships are common. These are negotiated in contexts that require what British sociologist Carol Smart described as an “indelible” joint-parenting contract.

Children of divorce are less likely to earn a four-year or graduate degree, according to a new study. The study is one of the first to look specifically at divorce and graduate education. Susan Stewart, professor of sociology at Iowa State University, says it is important to understand this relationship as more jobs require a graduate or professional degree.

Worldwide, people are not eating enough fruit and vegetables. In Australia, less than 4% of us meet the Australian Dietary Guideline recommendations for vegetables by age group. Worryingly, children and teenagers are even less likely than adults to be eating enough vegetables.

Less than 1% of kids aged two to three are eating the recommended 2.5 serves of vegetables and legumes a day. Between ages four to eight, 0% of kids are meeting their minimum 4.5 serves of vegetables per day. Most children up to 13 are eating two or fewer serves per day when the aim is closer to five serves.

While some kids may be lucky enough to skate through their parents’ separation relatively unscathed, the majority are going to suffer at least some short term, if not longer term distress. As an adult, you’ve likely forgotten just how central your family was to your sense of stability and even identity. Children have yet to develop autonomy, independence or a secure sense of self; instead, their entire frame of reference is strongly centred around their family. When that framework is broken, their world can feel as though it has fallen apart.

Exposure to an acute stress in utero can have long-term consequences extending into childhood—but only among children in poor households, according to a new study. The study, which took place in Chile, did not find the same effect among children in upper- or middle-class families.

Dress code policies have always been prevalent in schools. Normally, what children can and cannot wear in schools is explicitly noted in school policies or implicitly implied by broader cultural and societal norms. The issue of the vast and sometimes exhaustive list of dress code policies of what cannot be worn has not had any resolution across localities and countries.

There is magic in stories. We all remember hearing them as children, and we loved them. Imaginary adventures set in faraway places. Tales about how the dishwasher isn’t working. It doesn’t matter! Whether made up by parents or read from books, kids love to hear stories. Our recent work showed reading to children positively impacts long term academic achievement more than many other activity (including playing music with them, or doing craft).

Up to two-thirds of students experience ‘ninth grade shock,’ which can affect everything from grades to mental health.

What dads do online helps them navigate gender roles as society changes.

When people think of women freezing their eggs, it’s often seen as something to do if you want to get ahead in your career – a way of delaying motherhood.

Childhood bullying is so common that it may not seem like a big deal. Up to 35% per cent of people are estimated to have experienced it at some point.

During August football practice, every coach’s favorite cheer will be to “stay hydrated” and “keep urine clear” during the summer heat.

One emotion holding many of us back is negative love: our tendency to repeat the behaviors we used to win our parents’ love, and to repeat our parents’ attitudes, behaviors, and treatment of us. Generation after generation pass on the same type of negative love...

Using coercion to get your kid to eat healthy foods doesn’t really have effect, good or bad, on their weight. But it can cause meal-time tension and damage the parent-child relationship, a new study suggests.

The physical benefits of getting kids moving have been well recognised to help prevent chronic disease and develop movement habits across their lifespan.

In five states that decriminalized marijuana between 2007 and 2015, there was no corresponding rise in the drug’s use among young people, a new analysis shows.

Research shows that playing games can enhance our personal, social and emotional well-being, as well as our mental acuity. Many board games strengthen the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex of the brains of players.

From educational toys to governmental guidelines and detailed nursery progress reports, there are lots of resources available to help parents track and facilitate their children’s development.

In recent years, there has been a concerted effort to protect children from failure in order to safeguard their fragile self-esteem.

It’s that time of year again, when the noticeboard outside your local primary school is likely to read “Enrol your child for kindergarten/prep now”. But how do you know what the “right” age to start school is?

Children typically begin lying in the preschool years, between two and four years of age. These intentional attempts at deception may worry parents, who fear their child will become a pint-sized social deviant.

Whenever you get a chance, even if it’s only ten minutes, engage in shared reading activities.

Each year, more than 6 million children in the United States are referred to Child Protective Services for abuse or neglect. Previous research on the consequences of early life stress and child maltreatment shows that these children will be more likely to develop a multitude of social and mental health problems.

With all the freedoms independent living entails, it’s maybe not surprising then that drug use tends to be much higher among students than the general population.

Three out of four pediatricians disapprove of spanking, research finds.

The truth is that my favorite Father’s Day gift this year has been the gift of time.

As a society, we often wax eloquent about how important it is to nurture, support and protect our children. The sad reality, however, is that all too often major, life-changing decisions are made without any consideration of their potential lifelong and devastating impact on kids.

One in 7 women suffer depression around pregnancy.

Parents often have different expectations for their three- to five-year-old children when they attend an early learning center.

How much do you know about the guidance on drinking in pregnancy? Most are aware of the “don’t drink” message. But if you’re an expectant mother, or someone who’s job involves giving advice, our new study shows that the abstinence message can feel too simplistic.

As Amazon releases an Echo Dot smart-home device aimed at children, it’s entering a busy and growing marketplace. More than one-third of U.S. homes with children has at least one “internet of things” connected toy – like a cuddly creature who can listen to and respond to a child’s inquiries.

You’ve probably heard that breast milk provides all the energy requirements, vitamins and nutrients that an infant needs. In fact, the World Health Organization recommends exclusively breastfeeding babies for the first six months of life when possible. Unfortunately there are a number of reasons that breastfeeding can be a challenge...

Young adults who listen to music with their parents during childhood—and especially during adolescence—report having better relationships with their moms and dads as they enter young adulthood, according to a new study.

Economic tumult in the early 2000s persuaded many young people to keep living with their parents, but their reasons differ starkly by race, a study concludes.

GOD, IF YOU COULD CHANGE ONE THING ABOUT TODAY'S SOCIETY, WHAT WOULD IT BE? -- Peter, 15 yrs old -- I would change your beliefs about who you are, and who I am, and how life is. I would cause you to notice that you and I are One, that you are likewise one with everything and everyone else...

Almost half of all children will go through a fussy eating period in the early years. Rest assured, refusal of foods by young children is a normal stage of development.

The rise in violent incidents on the streets of London has prompted a wave of discussion about what causes crime among young people.

Anyone who has raised children or grown up with siblings knows there are some bumpy times in a child’s life.

One of the biggest issues modern schools and parents have to encounter is how to manage students’ electronic use. The guidelines state students aged five to 18 shouldn’t be spending more than two hours per day engaged in electronic media for entertainment. Yet the recommendations have even been challenged as being “virtually impossible” for students to meet.

As an economist at the University of Toronto who has researched child-care policy for the last 30 years, and the main author of a new study — “Affordable For All: Making Licensed Child Care Affordable in Ontario” — let me try to explain why free preschool really does make the most economic and social sense.

Women without kids have earned more than employed mothers for decades or longer.

Primary care providers and pediatricians may be less confident than child and adolescent psychiatrists in their ability to tell whether irritability in young patients is normal or could be linked to deeper mental health issues, a new study suggests.

More than 40 years ago, psychologist Sandra Scarr put forth a provocative idea: that genetic influence on children’s cognitive abilities is linked to their family’s income. The wealthier the family, the more influence genes have on brain development, the thinking went.

The idea that four-year-old boys have a spurt of testosterone is often used to explain challenging behaviour at this age. But how did this idea come about? Is there any truth in it? And if not, what else could explain their behaviour?

Reading to your child is one of the most successful ways of instilling a love of reading in them. Children typically enjoy being read to, and there are educational, social and emotional benefits to the practice. But families are busy, and finding time to read aloud can be eaten up by the demands of everyday life.

Before the 1980s, clinicians actually performed surgery on newborns without giving them anaesthetics or pain medications.

Race-based conflicts and prejudices are common. The persistence of such attitudes has led some to ask whether we are naturally inclined to like those who are like us and dislike those who are different. One way to investigate that is to do experiments with babies and young children.

The UK department of health recommends that young people (aged five to 18) should get at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day. But not enough teenagers actually do.

Medical and surgical intervention during birth continues to rise in much of the world.

It is one thing to read (or write) about bringing up children, and quite another to actually do it. Words are easy to come by; so are anecdotes and suggestions. Yet without deeds, the soundest educational theory is useless...

Millions of people all over the world are experiencing mental health problems. And though the causes vary, we know that half of all these illnesses will have started in childhood or the teenage years.

Therapy dogs can decrease anxiety and stress in students, while getting them more excited about classroom activities.

Ask your children two simple questions: "What is a happy home like?" and "What makes our home feel good?" The answers are usually about small, everyday things. Almost never have children mentioned exotic trips, pools, large houses, or expensive clothes or toys.

Certainly, in our role as parents, teachers, or care-givers, we watch as our children are shaken up by the inescapable barrage of scary news involving death, bombs, enemies, and the like. They are frightened and confused...

As parents, our desire and role is to have children who have a positive sense of self, feel fulfilled and can lead a positive life with the ability to thrive on their own after leaving the nest. We want to give them necessary tools to move easily through challenges in life and create the best life they can.

The hype surrounding “Black Panther” has been as hyperbolic as any feat its characters might perform, with the film being praised for its layered story and what’s been described as its “Afrofuturist” cast.

While current interventions offer broad protocols for children and young people, specific guidelines for teenage girls are missing.

Every day, we have to remember intentions to perform specific tasks in the future. We may need to remember to buy milk on the way home from work, to return a book to the library next week, or take a certain pill at 8am every day. Psychologists call this “prospective memory”.

In a typical classroom of 25 to 30 students, eight to 10 children — a third of the class — have been cyberbullied at some point in their lifetime. About three or four students are likely to have bullied others online.

For decades, researchers have demonstrated the numerous ways in which parents can positively influence their children’s development.

Johnny is five years old. He watches his friend Mark being teased by other kids, and then he sees Mark start to cry. As a parent, or caregiver, what do you hope Johnny will do?

When parents and teachers adapt their own behaviours based on what a child is thinking, they help stimulate that child’s brain development.

It is possible to eliminate war and destruction, if we start with our youth, educating them to understand the conditioning that teaches them to hate those different from themselves. If we teach our children to understand the barriers to peace and the skills to resolve conflict, we have invested in our future. We've invested in a peaceful world. We need to start somewhere. We can begin in our homes and our schools. Plant the seed, nurture it and watch it grow.

Parent behavior may affect how well children with certain behavioral problems like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, ADHD, perform in school, a new study suggests.

From getting beyond drunk at a friend’s party, to some seriously questionable outfit choices, teenagers often do things that seem outlandishly stupid. But we now know why...

How do you help your child achieve a positive sense of worth? By teaching him how to appreciate himself. Do this by: 1. First, no matter how your child is behaving, find something within him to value and be grateful for. 2. Then, point out to your child the specific quality or action you are appreciating about him.

Being bilingual may make it easier for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) to switch gears from one task to another, according to a new study.

A new campaign from Public Health England is urging parents to limit snacks for children to two a day, and 100 calories a piece. The aim is to reduce kids’ sugar consumption.

Children as young as five may have already formed distinct emotional reactions to spending and saving money, a new study suggests.

There is a new "breed" of humans among us and they are here to usher in the new age of peace. These powerful and intuitive people have little tolerance for dishonesty. They are on Earth so that they can teach others about the importance of speaking truthfully and living in harmony.

Schools in England are legally required to promote the moral development of pupils. Unfortunately though, there is little agreement on what this involves.

If you grew up in a home where you were either neglected or constantly on the losing end of a win-lose situation, you will be trying to build responsiveness and responsibility in yourself at the same time that you try to maintain it in your household -- not an easy task by any means, but one you can handle.

For centuries, most children’s books reinforced messages that children are unimportant, incompetent and powerless. Children need to shape up and adopt adults’ values. Children must change to fit into an adult world.

Developmental psychology suggests that fantastical beliefs in children are associated with positive developmental outcomes. And parents need not worry, children will bust the Santa myth themselves, when the time is right.

Knowing how to navigate the online social networking world is crucial for parents and teens. Being educated and talking about online experiences can help reduce any negative impacts on youth mental health and well-being.

What happens in the early years of a person’s life has a profound effect on how they fare later on. Thousands of research papers have shown that children who get a poor start in life are much more likely to experience difficulties as adults...

Parents and teachers are painfully aware that it’s nearly impossible to get a teenager to focus on what you think is important. Even offering them a bribe or issuing a stern warning will typically fail. There may be many reasons for that...

In any culture, children hit by a natural disaster will see family members undergo huge amounts of stress and worry. They may be forced to live in temporary accommodation, and experience many changes to their usual routines and social circles.

Research has consistently shown that white individuals display implicit bias favouring white people over black people – and that this bias emerges early in life and remains stable as a child grows up. But research also suggests that...

Over the past few years, there has been an increase in media reports about postnatal depression and other maternal mental illnesses, and campaigns have led to greater understanding about the need for more specialist services.