Kathy is the Stanley and Debra Lefkowitz Faculty Fellow in the Department of Psychology at Temple University, a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, director of Temple University’s Infant Language Laboratory, and the recipient of the AERA Outstanding Public Communication for Education Research Award, the American Psychological Association’s Bronfenbrenner Award, the American Psychological Association’s Award for Distinguished Service to Psychological Science, the Association for Psychological Science James McKeen Cattell Award, the Society for Research in Child Development, Distinguished Scientific Contributions to Child Development Award, the APA Distinguished Lecturer Award and the SIMMS/Mann Whole Child Award.
“How play is making a comeback in Kindergarten clasrooms” – NBC News
“A Washington state district made an entire school just for kindergarteners where joy and play are the focus… On a sunny winter morning in Sara Stevens’ kindergarten classroom at Pathfinder Kindergarten Center, 5- and 6-year olds spread out across the classroom learning about colors, shapes, engineering and design. Not a pencil or worksheet was in sight, however. These kids were playing…” Read More…
Netflix explores the mystery of Babies with a new Docu-Series!
Coming to Netflix on February 21st, a series on the magic and mystery of babies!!
For information on the series, read more…
“To the Stars and Beyond from a Tower of Blocks” – Early Learning Nation
The building block has been such a fact of American childhood for so long, it’s easy to dismiss the humble little cube as irrelevant, particularly in light of fancy newer digital toys that flash and whirr, sing ditties and announce “I love you” at random intervals. The fact is, those shouty toys can’t hold a candle to the building block and its equally modest cousin, the shape sorter… Read More
A video by WHYY about Urban Thinkscape
Urban Thinkscape brings the benefits of playful learning, which combines the enjoyable nature of play with a learning goal, to a community, public setting of a bus stop. A recent video by WHYY presents some information on this project: Watch here….
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Kathy's work appears in news publications around the world.
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Some toddlers are chronically absent from preschool. A text message can help….
Head Start, the childcare program designed more than half-a-century ago for low-income families in the US, has an unusual problem: It is both oversubscribed and under-attended. Created in 1965 as part of president Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty, Head Start helps to prepare disadvantaged 3- and 4-year olds for formal schooling. A parallel initiative, called […]
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The best gift you can give your kids this holiday season is to put down your phone
And as we start 2020, Quartz offers a resolution for all of us to put our phones down in front of the kids. Good advice… “Holidays can be a stressful time for parents. When kids don’t have daycare or school to fill their days, they expect constant entertainment. Then there’s present shopping, meal cooking, and […]
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The Key To Raising Brilliant Kids? Play A Game
NPRWe all want to raise smart, successful kids, so it’s tempting to play Mozart for our babies and run math drills for kindergartners. After all, we need to give them a head start while they’re still little sponges, right? “It doesn’t quite work that way,” says Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, a professor of psychology at Temple University […]
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Some of Kathy's books include:
User’s Manual for the Quick Interactive Language Screener™ (QUILS™)A measure of Vocabulary, Syntax, and Language Acquisition Skills in Young Children
Becoming Brilliant:What Science Tells Us About Raising Successful Children
A Mandate for Playful Learning in Preschool:Presenting the Evidence
Celebrate the Scribble:Appreciating Children's Art
Play = Learning:How Play Motivates and Enhances Children's Cognitive and Social-Emotional Growth
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Kathy is a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, where she contributes articles to her Blog on a regular basis.