In an ideal world, parents would be playing and interacting with their young children for most of the day. However, we do not live in an ideal world and even the best parents may have times when they need to rely on screens to keep their children occupied. In fact, research finds that 90 percent of children aged 2 to 3 years use a touchscreen device and that infants and toddlers on average spend 10 to 45 min per day on touchscreen devices.

When opting for screen time, many parents may wonder—is it okay to give my child a phone or tablet and let them play with an interactive app? Or would it be better to turn on a TV show? Many apps claim to be educational—but does research find that young children can actually learn from this technology? And, if so, which specific apps should you choose?

Research broadly finds that young children can learn from interactive apps but it remains unclear the extent to which this learning is transferable to the real world. A recent meta-analysis based on 36 studies involving 4,206 participants found that most studies involving children five years and younger show a positive impact of touchscreen apps on learning. This impact seems to increase with age, meaning that older children may be more likely to learn from apps than younger children. This seems particularly true for STEM-related concepts, such as math skills. This study also found that children seem to show enhanced learning from apps when compared to learning from computers or traditional classroom teaching.

A systematic review in the journal Pediatrics also found children under 6 years old can learn from interactive apps, particularly apps related to math skills. This study also found some evidence that apps may improve phonics skills.

Some research suggests that interactive apps may improve motor development. The age at which toddlers are first exposed to touchscreens is associated with improved fine motor skills. However, this effect was only found for children who were actively interacting with the touchscreen, not simply watching videos. No relationship was found between touchscreen use and gross motor or language development.

Research even finds that children as young as 15 months old can learn from touchscreens. However, they are 19 times more likely to learn if a parent is present helping them with “high interactional quality” (meaning the parent is structuring the task for the child, using a lot of different language, and providing warmth and encouragement).

However, it remains unclear whether children learn more effectively from apps than from passively watching videos or TV shows. Research is mixed with some studies finding enhanced learning from apps and some studies finding enhanced learning from videos. It is also important to mention that some studies have found that apps do not provide superior learning when compared to physical objects or face-to-face teaching. Research also indicates that apps may not be effective in teaching social-emotional skills. There is also some evidence that children may not transfer learning from the apps to real life.

So, research finds that it is possible for children to learn from apps but does this mean they can learn from any app? How do you determine which apps are truly "educational?"

A recent study evaluated 124 top-downloaded “educational” apps in the Google Play and Apple app stores and found that 58 percent of popular apps were “low quality” in terms of how they promote learning.

The researchers evaluated apps based on the “Four Pillars” of early learning. These Pillars include:

1. Active Learning (requiring critical thinking or intellectual effort versus a simple cause-and-effect)
2. Engagement in the Learning Process (whether the interactive features enhance or distract from learning, including whether the app has unnecessary visual and sound effects and distracting ads)
3. Meaningful Learning (how relevant what the child is learning in the app is to the child’s life and existing knowledge)
4. Social interaction (the extent to which the app encourages children to interact with characters in the app or with their caregivers while engaging with the app)

The researchers found that the following apps received the highest scores in terms of promoting learning: My Food—Nutrition for Kids, Daniel Tiger’s Stop & Go Potty, Toca Life (Neighborhood, School & Hospital), Lego Duplo Town, Zoombinis. The following apps also received relatively high scores: Bible App for Kids: Read the Nativity Story, Farming Simulator 18, Toca Lab: Elements, My Very Hungry Caterpillar AR, Toca Hair Salon 3, Melody Jams, Sago Mini Holiday Trucks and Diggers, Sago Mini Friends. Stellarium Mobile Sky Map, Star Walk, Brio World- Railway, Noggin Preschool, Sky View Lite, Toca Life: World, and Toca Kitchen 2.

A recent systematic review of “educational” apps for young children also found that children can learn from the following specific apps: Measure That Animal, Math Shelf, Know Number Free, Endless Alphabet, Letter School, First Word Sampler, Word Wall HD, Pocket Phonics, Skills Builder Spelling, Phonic Monster, ABC Touch and Learn, Bee Sees, Kindergarten Lite, Starfall, and Super Why.

So how do you apply this research as a parent, caregiver, or teacher?

1. Engage in apps with the child. Provide some help and assistance without doing the task for them. Help the child to pay attention to relevant features.
2. When engaging with apps together, use a lot of language to help to explain the task to the child. Offer frequent praise and encouragement.
3. Choose apps that require the child to think critically rather than simple cause-and-effect (for example, an app in which they have to choose the correct answer rather than an app in which they simply press a button and an animation plays.)
4. Avoid apps with irrelevant or excessive features or advertisements that are not related to the learning process.
5. Look for apps that teach children skills that they can easily transfer to real life and that are related to their existing knowledge (for example, learning about letters of the alphabet versus learning a specific skill that they would not use outside of the app).
6. Choose apps that encourage your child to interact with the characters in the app and/or with you or other caregivers while engaging with the app.

In summary, research suggests that children can learn from apps. However, not all apps are truly "educational" and parents, caregivers, and teachers should carefully evaluate apps based on the research-backed principles described above before allowing young children to engage with them.

"Confident humility can be taught. One experiment showed that when students read a short article about the benefits of admitting what we don't know rather than being certain about it their odds of seeking extra help in an area of weakness spiked from 65% to 85%. They were also more likely to explore opposing political views to try to learn from other sides."

"Students that are willing to revise their beliefs get higher grades than their peers. In high school, students who admit when they don't know something are rated by their teachers as learning more effectively and by their peers as contributing more to their teams. At the end of the academic year, they have significantly higher math grades than their self-assured peers. Instead of just assuming they have mastered the material, they quiz themselves to test their understanding!"

KEY POINTS

• In medicine, the "mind" and "body" have traditionally been treated separately.
• We now understand that the mind and body are linked, and unmanaged stress can seriously impact our health.
• Strategies for effectively managing stress include diaphragmatic breathing, shifting your thinking, getting active, and asking for help.

Traditionally, the field of medicine has treated the physical body as entirely separate from emotional experiences.

While it’s true that some ailments — a broken bone, for example — are entirely physical in nature, other conditions aren’t so clear.

We know that some medical concerns, particularly those that may fit into the category of “chronic” conditions, are often associated with stress. Gastrointestinal disorders, sleep problems, high blood pressure, and chronic pain are just a few conditions known to be caused by or worsened by high levels of untreated stress.

So how does this work? How does our experience of stress influence our health?

Our Stress Response System

To understand how stress influences health, we first have to understand what happens in our bodies when faced with a stressor. When our brain perceives a threat, our bodies experience a cascade of physiological processes. The sympathetic nervous system (SNS) shifts into what is referred to as “fight, flight, freeze” as a means of trying to prepare to fight off the danger, flee for safety, or “play dead.”

The adrenal glands release the stress hormones adrenaline and noradrenaline into the body. The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis also plays a role through a series of processes that result in the release of cortisol, another type of stress hormone. When this happens, the heart races, breathing rate increases, and your blood moves away from areas of the body that are more associated with “maintenance” processes, like digestion, to your arms and legs so you can run or fight.

Your brain shifts activity from more thinking and processing-based areas such as the prefrontal cortex to those involved in more emotional and behavioral responses linked to survival, such as the amygdala.1, 2 This “fight, flight, and freeze” system works quickly and is extremely efficient and useful in truly life or death situations.

The Impact of Chronic Stress

Problems start to arise when we face chronic stress, which means our body often activates our “fight, flight, freeze” response. This can happen either because we are in chronically stressful situations or because we perceive many situations as stressful. This repeated activation of our emergency response system can have a big impact on our bodies.

Those same stress hormones that are so helpful in preparing us to survive in an emergency situation can take a toll when they repeatedly circulate in our body. Immunity is suppressed, inflammation occurs throughout the body that can cause damage over time, and proinflammatory cytokines produced in response to stress have been linked to “sickness behaviors,” such as depressed mood and fatigue that can make it hard to engage in positive health behaviors like exercise.3,4 Over time, we may be more likely to experience a whole host of physical problems.

How to Manage Chronic Stress

The mind connection is very real and can significantly impact our health. However, there are things you can do to help buffer this effect, even if you are in a stressful situation that may not change. How often the “fight, flight, and freeze” response is activated and how long it stays on can be influenced. The difference arises in interpreting stress and what we do about it. Try these ideas for calming the SNS.

Practice Activating the Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS). The counterpart to the SNS, the PNS communicates the opposite response to your body: that all is well and there is no danger. Exercises such as progressive muscle relaxation and diaphragmatic breathing allow you to get better at controlling your PNS. These exercises slow heart rate and breathing, reduce muscle tension and blood pressure, and lower fatigue. There are many guided exercises available online if you search these terms.

Shift Your Thinking. As mentioned earlier, our interpretation of an event, or the “story” we tell ourselves about it, can trigger our body to go into “fight, flight, or freeze.” If you’ve ever imagined a potential conflict in your mind, rehashed a stressful situation, or ruminated about a possible fear coming true, you’ve probably unintentionally stirred up your SNS.

Telling ourselves things such as "I just can't make it through this" or "I'm so overwhelmed" is completely normal but may contribute to unnecessary SNS activation. We all have habits in how we engage with stress, and learning yours can help you see where you may have choices in thinking or behaving in a more helpful way.

It's important to note that this isn't the same as denying or minimizing your stress. Instead, you are simply looking for ways to get "unstuck" from unhelpful thought or behavioral patterns that keep you mired in stress. This past blog post has some examples of how to practice.

Get Active. Physical activity can counteract the SNS response by reducing stress hormones circulating in the body and releasing endorphins, “feel good” chemicals that reduce pain and improve mood5. This can be as simple as going for a walk or gardening. Anything that gets you moving counts.

Ask for Help. If you’re struggling with chronic stress and it’s impacting your health, it's probably time to talk to a professional. Many evidence-based therapies can help you more effectively manage stress. A psychologist can help with learning some of these strategies, as well as techniques such as biofeedback that can help you learn to control bodily functions that are usually automatic, like your heart rate.

We live in a highly stressful world and often cannot control the stress that comes our way. However, we have options for managing it that give ourselves the best possible chance of remaining as healthy as possible.

KEY POINTS

• Bragging pleases the braggarts more than their audience, but the braggarts don’t know this.
• Authentic pride can be distinguished from hubristic pride.
• Claims to fame ring hollow unless they are supported by evidence of competent or virtuous action.

Who knows himself a braggart, let him fear this, for it will come to pass that every braggart shall be found an ass. —Shakespeare

No one likes a braggart. Indeed, the term’s definition and connotation entail a negative evaluation. Despite its social harmfulness, however, bragging has not died out. How can this be?

Bragging is a form of self-promotion and self-promotion is not bad by definition. It has its uses. Students of persuasive speech learn that they must establish their credentials, that is, their expertise on the subject matter they are about to discuss. Audiences of goodwill want to learn, and they will appreciate credible claims of expertise. Sometimes, you see, we have to toot our own horn because no one else will do it for us—and when we do, we do gain advantages.

Bragging, however, is different from the communication of expert credentials. Bragging is gratuitous. It seeks applause from the audience without offering anything in return. When braggarts only gratify themselves without creating value for the audience, they should realize that it is time to step on the brakes.

Still, audiences may be forgiving or ignorant, and braggarts may know this. Research shows that simply claiming to be above average on some talent or skill induces observers to perceive the claimant as competent—at least until the claim is proven to be false (Heck & Krueger, 2016). In other words, bragging may work because the audience does not have enough information (yet) to evaluate the braggart objectively.

Braggarts may try to anticipate—and manage—the audience’s reaction to their exuberant self-presentation, and here desire encroaches on reality. Scopelliti et al. (2015) showed that braggarts have empathy gaps they are unaware of. They project the positive feelings stirred up within themselves by their own bragging onto others without realizing that these others do not care as much about them as they themselves do. Braggarts pay a reputational cost because they fail at perspective-taking.

Self-praise, i.e., bragging, amounts to an expression of pride. During the era of the Enlightenment, David Hume was skeptical of a view shared by many philosophers at the time that expressions of pride are necessarily signs of vanity, or, as he would put it, vainglory. Hume (1776/2015) argued that vanity or pleasure-seeking is not the cause of virtuous acts, that is, virtuous acts are not byproducts of vanity, but that instead the pleasure of self-satisfaction is caused by virtuous actions. When we act virtuously, Hume argued, feelings of pride or self-satisfaction are morally justified. Why not feel good after having done good?

Recent research suggests that both Hume and the philosophers he criticized had a point. In a series of studies, Jessica Tracy and her collaborators have brought the distinction between authentic and hubristic pride to light (see Mercadante et al., 2021, for an overview). Whereas authentic pride is grounded in effortful achievement (what Hume called virtuous action), hubristic pride is grounded in the idea of one’s own intrinsic superiority.

Observers are attuned to the difference. They can, for example, tell hubristic from authentic pride from differences in body posture and gaze behavior (e.g., a braggart is more likely to stare at you as if demanding validation).

Intriguing as this research is, it returns us to the question of why bragging is not self-eliminating. Are some braggarts perhaps self-sufficient as their own adoring audience? Such individuals only need others to witness their self-congratulation; these others do not need to endorse it. Other braggarts, of a more insecure stripe, need the audience to agree with them; they seek to extract approval with tactics such as fishing for compliments.

Sophisticated braggarts use nuance to lavish praise on themselves (Krueger, 2017). They will not, like Muhammad Ali, baldly declare that they are the greatest; they will only let you in on the fact that third parties, especially parties of high prestige, have already done the lavishing. On the websites of some academics, for example, one may find a list of awards, emphasis on the prestige of these awards (if you did not know), and even added emphasis on the fact that the self-describer was the very first person to win this very prestigious award, without ever being told what that person actually did to win these awards.

This strategy of showing off one’s existing fame is, alas, self-limiting. Eventually, discerning audiences will ask, "And what is it that you actually do?" Being famous for being famous lacks substance. The braggart is, as Shakespeare put it, shown up as an ass (i.e., a donkey). Still, the possibility remains that less discerning audiences settle for appearances, at least as long as they don’t have to pay. Perhaps this is enough for the braggart.

All told, psychology gives little comfort to the braggart. Stephen Hawking put The Bard’s verdict more colloquially: “People who boast about their I.Q. are losers.” Then again, who would ever make such a boast in the presence of Stephen? Such a person would definitely have to be a loser.

KEY POINTS

• Anticipatory anxiety can happen before an event or before you think something might happen.
• Exercise significantly reduces anxiety, and the more you exercise, the greater the benefit.
• To lessen anticipatory anxiety, answer your "what-ifs" with potential solutions and determine whether a thought is a fact or speculation.

Anticipatory anxiety can tell us things that aren't true.

Source: Joice Kelly/Unsplash

Anticipatory anxiety is the anxiety you feel before something happens or before you think something will happen.

It is normal to have anxiety before a big presentation, your first day of school, or any other event that has significance in your life.

Sometimes anticipatory anxiety can happen, and you’re not sure why. Your brain tends to go to worst-case scenarios when you have anticipatory anxiety. Read on for four ways you can help decrease your anticipatory anxiety.

Answer Your Worst-Case Scenarios

If you are experiencing a lot of “what-ifs” around an event, it can increase your anxiety level. Consider answering your “what-ifs” instead. Write down all your “what-ifs” — the things that could happen. Now answer each question with how you will handle that situation if it arises. Sometimes facing those “what-ifs” and coming up with a viable solution can help reduce anxiety. You are anxious about not waking up on time for work. Let’s look at the worst possible scenario: You show up late to work, and you’re fired. Then what? Well, you could find another job, maybe even a position that works better with your sleep schedule. The bottom line is that you will be okay.

Get Moving

When you are exercising, your level of anxiety decreases. The more intense your exercise is, the more significant relief you have from anxiety (Aylett et al., 2018). This effect happens whether you have elevated anxiety or a diagnosed anxiety disorder.

When you have anxiety, you may be itching to move but aren’t sure how to discharge that energy. Even taking a walk around the block can help reduce your anxiety. Part of why exercise is so effective for reducing anxiety is because it boosts dopamine and serotonin (Kim et al. 2021). Exercise also reduces pro-inflammatory cytokines (Ignácio et al., 2019). Cytokines help regulate the immune system.

Is It Fact or Speculation?

Anxiety can make your brain come up with some very creative ideas about the doom that might befall you. It can be challenging to tell what is real and what is something that might happen. When your brain goes into full worry mode, ask yourself if what you are thinking is fact or speculation.

Is it undeniably true, or is it something that your brain is creating? For example, you have two tickets to an event, and you ask a friend to go with you. Your friend can’t go, so you think to yourself, “What if I can’t find anyone to go with me?”

First, the facts are that you have two tickets to the concert, and one friend said they couldn’t go. That’s it. The rest is speculation. You can detach when you stop your thought process and ask yourself if it involves fact or speculation.

Come Up With a Solution That Is in Your Best Interest

If your brain is powerful enough to come up with a potentially harmful outcome, it also has the power to come up with a great outcome.

Think of what could happen if things went well. Ask yourself, “What is in my best interest?” You don’t know what will happen anyway, so why not choose to create a positive event? This technique works after an event as well. Thinking of something positive you learned from an experience can help you process it and reduce post-event anxiety.

Anxiety can be more easily managed when you can detach even somewhat from your anxiety. If you find that you are having anxiety more days than not or if it is impacting your quality of life, see a mental health professional.

DCSD Sources of Strength Night - April 11, 2022 6:30p.m.-8:30p.m. at PACE Center

You are invited to join us for our first DCSD Sources of Strength Community Night featuring youth from across our district, adult advisors and keynote speaker, Jarrod Hindman, Chief Operating Officer at Sources of Strength! This night will include an overview of this suicide prevention program and wellness model that is currently implemented in a majority of our middle and high schools across the district. We look forward to sharing the messages of Hope, Help and Strength with you and our community!

• Sources Night Invitation Letter from the DCSD HPSEL Team

• Registration Link for Sources of Strength Night at PACE - Use this link to reserve your FREE seat(s)!

• Flier for Sources Night at PACE 4.11.22 - Please share the attached flier with your staff, parents & community!

KEY POINTS

• When we find ourselves in a bad mood, we often have no idea how we got there.
• Feeling powerless to change the mood keeps people stuck.
• Emotional blindsides are far less common when you build awareness for what you're feeling in the moment.

A trademark of a bad mood is that we are often completely unaware of how we got there. This reality intensifies the bad mood because when we don’t know how we got there, we feel powerless to pull out. So, the bad mood lingers creating other symptoms—irritability with others, low motivation, isolation, low self-esteem. These symptoms carry a tidal wave of consequences: relationship conflict and distress, issues at work, lack of productivity, a negative self-image, loneliness.

The cumulative consequences of bad moods can be crushing and leave a person believing they are at the mercy of their moods with little agency for how to feel better or how to get what they want out of life. This cycle can go on and on throughout a life span.

Over the years it can feel as if you subsist for momentary highs and then fall back to a prevailing sense that you can’t predict or know how you’re going to feel on any given day. This pattern doesn’t mean you don’t have moments of joy and pleasure, but, because the bad moods feel out of your control, you never know when you’re going to feel poorly again. Never knowing if you’re going to be happy or sad or annoyed or anxious makes it hard to make plans, keep commitments, and feel the confidence needed to pull off your goals.

Tuning in to Your Feelings

Bad moods generally result from a lack of emotional awareness and compassion to what’s going on for you in your day-to-day experience of the world. In short, you’re pushing through life with little attunement to your feelings.

The culture at large, well-meaning caregivers, coaches, and media all supply the idea that if we act confident and push away the negative, we will thrive. In fact, repressing our negative feelings is typically a misguided attempt to feel better: “Why would I dwell on the bad?”; “I’m afraid I’ll never be happy if I let my feelings in; they will overwhelm me”; “I’ll get depressed if I connect with the negative”; or “I don't want to be a ‘Debby Downer’; it’s better to be positive.”

In reality, all humans have difficult emotions and moments of emotional turmoil or confusion. We are far healthier and more in control when we note these fluctuations and give our emotions kind attention.

The key is to develop a regular, simple ritual to tune into these fluctuations so that you aren’t surprised by a bad mood onslaught. It’s an investment in yourself, a small tax, so that you can be more self-aware and less likely to have your emotions blindside and overwhelm you at a later date.

Key Steps to Preventing Bad Moods

1. Tune into physical body sensations: If after an event or interaction or email, you feel your heart beat faster, your stomach sink, or your thoughts racing, these are signals that you need to slow down and go inward. Gently note your physical sensations without judgment: “Heart beating fast, stomach sinking….”
2. Ask yourself this question: What is my body communicating to me? Likely something happened in your environment or a thought came to mind that is bothering you.
3. Invite in what is upsetting you: The way your co-worker spoke to you, your mom’s criticism of your work, your dog’s hyperactivity: No matter how mundane or trivial the trigger appears to you, do not negate it. Invite your upset into your awareness. Make it know you see it.
4. Validate yourself: Literally make sense of your feelings. Find a reason why what you feel makes sense. There’s always something true in our emotions.
5. Soothe the emotion: Find a few phrases that make this part of yourself feel better—“These feelings will pass”; “This was only one moment in time; there will be other opportunities to prove myself”; “I am doing the best I can”; or, simply, “It’s OK to feel this way. I see you and I am here for you.”
6. Take behavioral action: What can you do that will help you to feel better? You can talk to a friend, journal, or exercise, or maybe you just need to eat or sleep. Sometimes the best action to take is to accept the feelings and the situation as it is and turn it over to the universe, accepting that you only have so much control.

Rinse and repeat every time you feel your body change in response to what’s going on in your head or in your life. Over time, this will become automatic, and you will have plenty of data to help you understand yourself and what you need to feel better.

When we consistently tend our emotional gardens, dark moods are less frequent and far easier to bounce back from.