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Physical activity is essential for children’s healthy development, yet COVID-19 physical distancing restrictions such as school closures and staying at home, playground closures, and the cancelling of organised community sport have dramatically altered children’s opportunities to be physically active. This study describes changes in levels of physical activity and screen time from February 2020 (i.e., before COVID-19 restrictions were introduced in Western Australia) to May 2020 (i.e., when COVID-19 restrictions were in place). Parents of children aged 5 to 9 years from Western Australia were eligible to participate and recruited through convenience sampling.
The Kids Research Institute Australia researchers who worked with young people to develop an app designed to help teenagers stay safe in the sun have been named joint winners of a new award for ‘Best Practice in Children’s Consultation’.
Anxiety is a leading mental health concern in childhood. Whilst a range of therapeutic approaches effectively reduce anxiety in young children, several barriers impact their implementation into practice. Digital interventions could help overcome some of these challenges; however, whether these can effectively target anxiety for children with and without Neurodevelopmental Conditions is unknown.
Effective social skills are essential for functional social support, help-seeking, and resource access. Digital social skills training plays a key role in empowering individuals to develop social competence, improve access to various support and resources, and enhance locus of control through dynamic media.
Social media allows users to connect with others’ experiences and points of view, with TikTok being the fastest-growing platform worldwide. Highly viewed videos related to neurodiversity on TikTok have an increasing role in understanding and acceptance of neurodivergent individuals.
The generous support of West Australians through Channel 7’s Telethon Trust will help support crucial child health research at The Kids Research Institute Australia in 2022.
In this paper, we describe the developmental process of a culturally grounded Moombaki virtual reality (VR) game. We share how Aboriginal children’s drawings have informed the creation of an interactive learning platform for primary school-aged children attending schools in Wadjuk Boodja. The project focused on connecting students to cultural knowledge through immersive storytelling, creative exploration, and collaborative design by using small group yarning circles and game development activities.
Behavioural sleep problems are common in children. The challenges with establishing and maintaining good sleep hygiene may prove challenging to overcome based on environmental issues such as the liberal availability of electronic media from a young age, permissive parenting, difficult family dynamics and limited parental/carer understanding of a child's sleep needs as they progress through childhood and adolescence.
The prevalence estimates of physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep (collectively known as movement behaviors) in 3- and 4-year-old children worldwide remains uncertain.
With an increasing number of grandparents providing care to their grandchildren, calls have been made for these caregivers to be considered important stakeholders in encouraging children's engagement in health-promoting behaviors, such as physical activity.