Welcome

I'm a mother, journalist and researcher who is obsessed with how children learn and what environments help them reach their full potential.

For many years, I have focused on uncovering what science has to tell us about media and the developing mind. Much of that research appears in my latest book, Into the Minds of Babes (2007), which looks at how very young children respond to, and are affected by, what they see on TV and in other electronic media. The book has been called "balanced and lucid," (The Wall Street Journal), "fascinating and terrific" (The New York Post), "a gift to parents" (Television Quarterly) and "brilliantly researched and engagingly written" (KidsHealth.org.) The book led to the creation of the Media Minds blog and newsletter, which provided quarterly updates from 2007-2009.

My latest endeavor, starting in 2009, is to broaden my research to focus on what makes the most impact for children in families of all income levels. I am now director of the Early Education Initiative at the New America Foundation, a non-partisan think tank and incubator for explanatory and investigative journalism on pressing policy issues. I'm the editor of the Early Ed Watch blog and contribute to many general-interest publications about how and when investments in early learning make the most sense.

Over the past few years, I have given several talks about technology and young children, while also writing about the intersections of education, social science and technology for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Brain,Child Magazine, The Chronicle of Higher Education and other publications. For six months, I wrote the Baby Steps column for babytalk magazine, highlighting new findings by developmental psychologists on how infants and toddlers learn.

In 2009, I was interviewed on the PBS NewsHour on a segment about children's TV in light of Sesame Street's 40th anniversary. I also wrote an essay about Sesame Street for the June 1, 2009 issue of Newsweek: "Sesame Street: The Show that Counts." Let me know what you think.