Reading into eBooks for Kids, Tweens and Teens

As a once-upon-a-time English major, a paper and pen kind of girl, and a hoarder of books (which often necessitated storage units or piled up in precariously stacked book boxes during my apartment-dwelling years), I used to view the emergence of eBooks as a literary option for kids, tweens and teens with a sense of trepidation. My favorite moment of every day with my preschooler is that stretch of time before bed when we devour two, three or even four books with shared glee. But the latest findings from Pew Research, and early indicators from our own YouthBeat study (eBook ownership among youth households is up from 6% in 2010 to 15% in 2011; from 1% of youth owning the device on their own to 3%), suggest that the eBook is on the rise, and most likely, here to stay.

Last week, I had the privilege of speaking at the conference, “Children's Publishing Goes Digital.” Listening to industry experts reminded me of the many reasons why eReaders deserve a second look by suspicious parents, and serious consideration by companies and organizations seeking platform and promotional partners. Additionally, more and more educators have been studying the potential and the possibilities for eBooks among youth and specific sub-groups within this broad category. So here’s what gives this old school book ogler reason to rally behind this reading innovation:

1. eReaders don’t fundamentally change books. A look at the list of highest selling eBooks suggests that a book is a book is a book. Dr. Seuss still sells, regardless of whether his rhymes are read in paper form or on a portable digital device. Content is still king, and a move to digital doesn’t mean that a great story doesn’t constitute the first hurdle for publication. As long as stories are still evaluated for their narrative quality, and not their cool quotient, it shouldn’t really matter how we read them. And if we can’t give up our paper products, I wonder if books have just become fetishes that we like to look at on our shelves? (Note: I write this in front of a very, very large bookshelf, populated by a lot of pretty lit).
2. eReaders might bring in more readers. Reluctant, struggling readers, and readers with special needs can all benefit from the way in which eReaders reinvent the reading experience. Being able to hear a tricky word pronounced by touching it, or getting to play a game for finishing a chapter might seem like unnecessary supports or incentives, but from the perspective of kids who haven’t yet found reading to be rewarding (and the parents of those kids), eReaders might make the difference.
3. eReaders make books more complex – not more superficial. For today’s digital natives, every experience – whether it’s watching a movie, playing a video game, or even hearing an idea in school – comes with the expectation that you can go deeper on your own. Why should books be any different? And doesn’t the desire to learn more about an author, or “hear” a song described in a book actually sung, or find a land you’re reading about on an actual map all speak to a need for a stronger connection with books – not a weaker one?
4. eReaders make reading more cost effective and environmentally friendly. Yes, that first device costs a lot, but a download is much cheaper than a bestseller at cover price. And what about all that paper? Maybe eReaders will make it easier for this earth-conscious cohort to indulge in words without worrying about wasting more trees.

Perhaps the most important benefit of eReaders is that their mere existence has inspired a new generation of entrepreneurs and innovators to think carefully about reading! Books are no longer nostalgic baubles, but have once again become catalysts for changing the way we live.

Still, some caveats exist. Most researchers (and many speakers at the industry conference) affirmed that familiarity with old-fashioned books still serves as an important foundation for literacy. Infants benefit greatfully from the education that comes from sitting on a caregivers’ lap and learning that stories work sequentially, that pages turn in one direction, and that stories have a beginning, a middle and an end. Games and puzzles might be fun, but shouldn’t interrupt the carefully crafted flow that an author intends. And does the art work that often separates a good picture book from a great one always translate to a digital device?

And, of course, there are outstanding questions. Can a digital bookstore ever capture the magic of a physical one? (Check out this homage to the bricks and mortar bookstore that is making the rounds on YouTube). How does “discovery” happen in the digital world (a problem which many of the entrepreneurs at Children’s Publishing Goes Digital seem to be working on)?

But for now, we find ourselves inspired by eReaders’ possibilities more than pessimistic about what it might mean to reading.

Upcoming Webinar: “Putting the Preschool Market into Perspective”

Presenter: Amy Henry, Vice President, Youth Insights
January 31st at 1pm (CT)

Preschoolers have more power in American households than ever before. They have always had opinions, but those opinions are taken more seriously by today's parents who seek to listen and learn from their preschoolers as much as they try to teach them.  

Today's preschoolers no longer have to settle for oversized baby stuff or wait for big kid stuff-they have a culture that they can call their own. Also, parents of preschoolers are highly invested in the choices they make for their preschoolers as they know that their decisions about their children's education, eating, and entertainment set the stage for their child's preferences and opportunities in the years to come.

In this webinar, you'll learn about:

• The critical issues facing today's preschool parents and their children
• Insights that will affect your ability to better connect with them
• Cases that show how the best preschool brands are navigating this tricky terrain
• Practical considerations that come into play when preschool parents are making decisions in your category
• Finally, we'll describe some of the best practices in conducting research with this age group and introduce you to some of C+R's most effective tools for uncovering their needs

Click here to sign up!

Anecdotes and Outliers: When Kids, Tweens and Teens Go Against Type

“You can’t trust 6 kids in Podunk…” might be a phrase you are familiar with if you’ve attempted to make decisions about the youth market based on qualitative research…Or, “those kids just aren’t representative.” Enter quantitative research, developmental models and other reassuring statistics and structures that show us what’s really happening in the world. But the problem is that sometimes youth defy expectations, act counter to “type,” and occasionally, the outliers are more relevant than we might care to think. The question for youth researchers: when do we change our minds about youth, and how do we know whether what we’re seeing is really right, or just reaffirms what we already believe?

I found myself wondering about this recently in relationship to what I’ve come to believe (and often seen) about gender identity and children’s play. It might be easy to see that gendered play is part nature, part nurture (clearly, boys will try on the tutu in the daycare dress-up trunk if they’re given permission, but at the same time, just try to talk a boy out of their crush on cars). And there’s no denying that girls gravitate towards princesses and pink in large numbers, if not exclusively. Countless studies and developmental paradigms provide explanations ranging from exposure to gender expectations to a cultural/biological need for boys to separate from their mothers, while girls model their behavior. But, what happens when you’re confronted with anecdotal evidence that all seems to converge on the same themes?

My four-year old son recently caught a severe case of Spiderman fever. Despite never seeing any of the recent or old Spiderman films or cartoons, and rarely finding himself in the toy aisle of any store (mom and dad prefer shopping online to taking a preschooler into a manufactured Mecca), he seems to have a version of the Spiderman narrative inscribed in his mind…This “version” seems to be the result of a telephone game of sorts that has been playing out in his preschool. Clearly, someone has heard of this magical man with webs shooting out of his wrists, but my son has brought home numerous variations on this theme. “He is friends with all kinds of spiders…” “He wears a red costume because that’s his favorite color…” “He says nice things to his friends – but the bad guys don’t…” Some of these ideas seem more authentic than others…

But his conflicted parents encourages him to dress up as a firefighter instead of a crime fighter this past Halloween. And he agreed. When we showed up at his school parade, we cringed – our little one was a lone community helper amidst a sea of superheroes. And here’s the kicker – it wasn’t just the boys. There were a few preschool princesses, but supergirl and spidergirl lined up right behind our son. And just the other day, we warned my son that our friends with daughters ages 3 and 7 (without an older brother to pass down his toys) might not have cars or superhero toys, only to arrive and find that – right next to the Barbie castle – was a pile of well-loved Spiderman dolls, vehicles and even trading cards. Soon, imaginary webs were flying.   

So what does a student of youth do with this kind of info? Do we deny the evidence that shows that the stereotypes are often true (regardless of what causes them)? Do we encourage brands and organizations to go against type and to stop making all of those girls toys for girls, and boyish gear for guys? Probably not…But, back to our original question, when do we acknowledge that these outliers might be evidence of a real trend or truth, and when do we simply dismiss them as “not representative?”

Clearly, the answer is more art than science…But a few questions might help.

• Are you making assumptions about what one “like” means about another category? Youth often relate to brands, products and experiences in complex ways. Youth – particularly kids – can sometimes love both an experience and its opposite…Being an athlete doesn’t mean one’s not an artist…Liking TV doesn’t mean that you shun books or reading. Being connected to Facebook doesn’t mean that friendships in the real world don’t matter.
• Does your method fit the answer you want? Don’t get us wrong – we think quantitative information is incredibly valuable. YouthBeat is founded on the premise that your perceptions might lead you astray if, for example, you see a six year old on Facebook and assume every elementary schooler is a member of the site. Or when you need to know how many teens really own iPads. In other words, 6 kids in Podunk might help you really understand your audience in a nuanced way. But if you’re wondering about your brand’s ability to resonate among members of an unexpected group, qualitative might help you understand not just the “whats” but the “hows.” Clearly, Spiderman hasn’t replaced princesses as the most popular play-thing of the preschool girl set, but careful observation and age-appropriate conversations might show just how “super” they think those heroes are.
• What perceptions are we bringing to the table – and where do we place them? Finally, any great researcher knows that your own knowledge and experience with a category or audience segment is both your advantage and your Achilles heel. Knowing a lot about kids, tweens and teens, we would contend, is an incredibly important foundation on which to build your youth-specific custom study. In our opinion, you can’t truly make sense of the data you get back without knowing how these groups of youth express themselves, develop and make meaning of the world. But as important as knowing a lot is knowing when to blink…Even the most strongly held conventional wisdom deserves a re-think when evidence to the contrary emerges. This applies not only to what youth do, but perhaps even to what might be “good for them.” 

Regardless of what you know about youth, don’t forget to pay attention to the occasional outlier – it might just inspire you to get a leg-up on the next big insight.

Getting Away From Setting “Good-for-you” Goals for Kids, Tweens and Teens in the New Year

At this time of the year, gyms are packed, diets dominate the banter or morning talk shows, and advertisements attach products and services to a collective desire to re-craft ourselves…But like so many other cultural rituals, setting New Year’s Resolutions might not be a concept that can be easily applied to kids, tweens and teens.

“Resolving” to do anything that requires long-term commitment might seem like a dealbreaker for youth. But we could find countless examples of kids, tweens and teens who set goals and achieve them. One recent example: Jordan Romero’s Christmas Eve feat of climbing to the top of the seven highest peaks in the world (ending his journey in Antarctica!). Too ambitious for your ten-year old? Fret not. There is something to learn from Jordan’s story…

While psychologists and educators note the importance of teaching youth to set goals (with interventions among at-risk youth often incorporating planning and goal-setting as part of a holistic “recovery” program), and both sets of experts acknowledge that this might be a practice that requires support from adults (i.e., it’s not instinctive), Jordan’s story suggests that a healthy New Year’s Resolution might be focused more on what youth are passionate about than what youth “should” do. In the early days of any new year, blog entries abound that suggest helping kids set health-oriented New Year’s resolutions…Encourage your preschoolers to put away a toy every time they play…Challenge your tween to try a veggie at every meal…Ask your teen to research one potential college once a week. And while all of these goals might be noble, and clearly worthy of mom’s and dad’s encouragement, maybe these self-help ideas are more about parental hopes than about connecting kids with great goals. It’s not just that these “to-dos” feel more flat than fun (we know that teaching kids, tweens and teens that sometimes meeting their obligations isn’t all about entertainment), but it may be demonstrating that planning is unpleasant.

As an extreme, but telling case in point, look at Jordan’s journey…He set a difficult goal, but one that he (and his family) was personally invested in. He not only thought that fulfilling his goal would be a feat, but he described a sense of passion and fulfillment that he got from the view at the top. Climbing, for him, is a lifestyle he embraces – not a chore he’s charged with. Jordan and his family have founded the “Find Your Own Everest” movement to encourage youth to set meaningful goals, but more importantly, to find that goal that matters to them.

So if you want the youth in your life to stick to a promise this year, start by sussing out their interests, not their shortcomings, and focus on helping them find what they love, not fix what’s wrong with them. Perhaps this should be the New Year’s resolution that every parent and organization embraces for 2012.  

What Wishlists Tell Us About Teens

In our final installment of holiday wishlist reviews we tackle the trickiest target of all – teens and just in the nick of time!  When we think about teens, we can’t think of them as a cohesive collective in the same way that we do younger groups of youth. By the teen years, youth are seeking out their own style, their own identity and their own stuff. The brands and products they choose not only say something about who they are, but also who they want to be. And as teens begin to find (ideally) the thing that they’re passionate about – be it music, sports, school, volunteering or something else, they become more and more interested in total immersion. This doesn’t mean that all teens are totally independent, or that peer pressure doesn’t matter; it means being your authentic self across multiple contexts becomes both a personal priority and a brand attribute they value. So the top gift for a teen you know is likely to be something so specific to their interests that it wouldn’t make our list…Teens’ needs are likely to be for something so niche that it wouldn’t make sense for another teen that goes to the same school or is on the same team. Over the past few years, we’ve talked to teens about everything from their love of Cricket to their passion for Chuck Palahniuk novels! But a few items appeal to the masses for the holidays and we discuss a few below…

1. The first is no surprise – iPads. Teens aren’t the only youth who are asking for tablets this holiday season, but they’re more likely to get them! Check back in with YouthBeat to see how this item fares, or how the teens who request them do, in terms of getting this desired device. Most parents will be grappling with the dilemma of getting their older teens a laptop or a tablet, something that they might justify as a college application or attendance tool versus just a play thing. But still, we bet that a few lucky teens will count the iPad or another tablet as one of their newest treasures.
2. Have the teen who has it all? Or maybe just enough? Consider empowering teens with one of the many cards available for donating to charity…Check out the options at JustGive.org. While teens might be a bit disappointed if this giving gift is the only one under their tree, they might just appreciate the chance to be taken seriously, and to take their desire to help to the next level.
3. Speaking of exchanging stuff for something else…Today’s teens, more than any generation before them, crave time with mom and dad. Consider gifting an experience over a thing – like tickets, a night out at a special restaurant, or here’s the twist – give the gift of your own time! It might be a day at the batting cages, or a morning at the spa, but either way, moms and dads can make the most of the holidays by promising some quality time with these older youth.  For the particularly sophisticated teen, we love High 5, which gives your student access to cultural events (that they might just learn to love).

Happy holidays from YouthBeat!

What Wishlists Tell Us About Tweens

In our last few blogs, we have been looking at our YouthBeat age groups through the lens of their top wishlists items for this year.  If you’re shopping for a tween, you know that being “in the middle” – navigating the treacherous territory between the safe haven of childhood and the risky waters of the teen years – makes for a complex and sometimes confused wishlist for the holidays. Right around 11 years old, we often hear parents of boys and girls complain that their children no longer have a go-to store, and there “asks” have become alarmingly few and far between…Sounds like a nice problem to have? Perhaps, but parents of tweens know that their children still have high expectations for their holiday hauls, and they also know that tweens’ lack of locution doesn’t mean they don’t have strong opinions about what they want. So, below is our best attempt to help these moms and dads out!

1. If you need a tween shopping heuristic for the holidays, think child-like fun with a sophisticated twist. This lead us to a whole category that has served as a timeless turn-to for the tween set…Back in the late 80s, I remember, fondly, wishing for a bottle of Coty’s “Exclamation” under my Christmas tree. For tween girls, dressing up and putting on a look still feels playful, more than purposeful, and perfume serves as the perfect entry point to the beauty business. This category, which plays to the senses without putting forth an overly adult look, lets tweens fantasize and day-dream without being too daring. Every holiday season, a number of new brands emerge, but this holiday, we’re betting on wonderfully girly “Wonderstruck,” by Taylor Swift, the romantically optimistic “Someday,” from Justin Bieber, and for the ironic older tween, Hello Kitty and Crayola (yep, Crayola!) sprays from quirky scent house, Demeter.
2. This year, reading gets a rad makeover with EBooks making it on to tweens’ radar. Barnes and Noble’s Nook Color and the Kindle Fire may make for a new kind of scene – instead of tweens listening to their iPods together, we may see them side-by-side with their stylishly accessorized eReaders, downloading the latest installment of the Hunger Games or “Pretty Little Liars.” Although YouthBeat data suggests that tweens continue to prefer paper (with some industry experts hypothesizing that the buy-it-on-release-day mentality created by the Harry Potter Series has led this generation to take on a collectors’ level love of the hard cover version of their favorite reads), this year, we expect to see tweens take hold of this new technology to a greater degree than ever before. If eBooks are slightly too sophisticated (or pricey!) for your tween, take a chance on another kids/tween trend – making you the star of your own book or comic! U Star Novels puts your name into a novel, combining younger tweens’ love of customization with their desire to see their name in lights (or print).
3. Nike might not seem like news to us, but for tweens, this brand continues to top their list for footwear, and for boys and fashion. NikeiD gives the traditional brand a tween test, allowing tweens to get an authentic and socially endorsed product, but one of their own making. Customizable fashion can tend to feel kiddish, but mostly because the big brands tend to lead versus follow tween style…And too much play makes for a product that tweens don’t feel comfortable displaying. But NikeiD, which allows tweens to take a gift card to a website and create their own bags, kicks, and sport watches which look more like a find than a fun arts and crafts project.

Next up, our final group – teens!

What Wishlists Tell Us About Kids

As part of our pre-holiday blog series, we’re taking a look at some of the most commonly recommended items from among the “top pick” lists of some of our favorite toy and gift sites. Last week, we looked at some of the most telling take-aways about preschooler products; this week, we look at some gifts that are sure to catch the attention and capture the imagination of kids.

Parents of 6-10 year olds (how YouthBeat defines “kids”), may be experiencing holiday hecticness for the first time. Christmas morning might be measured more by what’s not there than what is…This isn’t to say that kids can’t delight in a surprise or two, but it gets harder and harder to impress these elementary schoolers, and more difficult to satisfy the many demands on their wishlists. In the past few years, we’ve heard more and more parents of this age group bemoan the high ticket price of the items that children expect. Even if a few high-priced gifts fit into Santa’s budget, most parents and kids fantasize about frolicking in wrapping paper, or at least, spending a long morning mulling through mounds of gifts! And kids this age ask for specific brands and models more than in the past, so relatives and reindeer alike are forced to embark on more strategic searches than ever before… 

The following products seem to embody the holiday hopes of kids in 2011:

1. LEGO Star Wars makes the evergreen kid brand a must-have (once again) for kids. LEGO has infiltrated almost every category that touches kids’ lives – video games, board games, and even LEGO TV. And according to YouthBeat data, even reading about LEGO is fun! LEGO Magazine ranks at the top of kids’ list of favorite magazines for the first half of 2011. But it’s the simple sophistication of these “loose parts” that continue to catalyze the imagination of youth. With STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) serving as the new buzz in education, parents are more willing than ever before to buy toys that inspire their future architect or astronaut. And they can feel good about the plug-free, signal-free and battery-free form that these classic toy sets take! But this is only half of the story…Star Wars is the set seducing kids this year. This movie still ranks as kids’ top of all time, according to our most recent wave of YouthBeat data. The story of good over evil, brought to the latest generation via Cartoon Network’s Clone Wars, not only makes for a great narrative, but also lends itself to techy gadgets – even in a low tech form.
2. Classic toys have been all the rage the last few years, with parents being inundated with catalogs from companies that specialize in re-makes of toys that they recognize from their youth, brands re-issuing modernized versions of the old standards, and old games and toys getting a makeover. One of the toy that will surely hit parents’ radar, even if it might be a bit young for kids, is Connect 4 Launch from Hasbro. This latest edition of the game (that was once seen as an innovative answer to the boring way we used to play checkers and tic tac toe), gets kids up and moving while they play, and adds a few gadgets in for good measure. Hasbro has sought to bring back family game night for many years now, and this old-school game with a new-school twist might represent the right way to do it for today’s family. Or it might just be more fun for kids to play together – afterall, chucking your checkers at the game board gives them permission to play a little subversively under the guise of good old-fashioned fun.
3. Kids might not connect with music the same way tweens are beginning to and teens always have. But this year, one of the most unexpected categories to make a comeback is headphones! And bucking other technology trends, these headphones haven’t gotten smaller, more portable – they’ve gotten bigger! The ones shown here, from Skull Candy, conceal the whole ear. They let kids (and tweens, and teens) cocoon while they tune in (and for kids, that’s as likely to be tuning in to a TV show on their portable DVD player or their parents’ laptop as it is to music). These statement sound-surrounders show that just when you thought kid products were moving in one direction, youth take a turn for the bigger.
4. And finally, Ugly Dolls demonstrate one of our tenets of great youth brands: they live in the middle. Or more appropriately, they negotiate two seemingly contrary ideas to create a product or experience that intrigues and inspires as much as it invites. And what two concepts could make for a less likely mash-up than “ugly” and “doll”? These characters that only a kid-playing-a-mother could love give girls permission to cuddle and care in a way that doesn’t make them feel babyish themselves.  Many models of these dolls make them ready-made for the always ready-to-collect kid.  Aesthetically, these dolls not only trade in cute for quirk, but they also demonstrate the almost-homemade look that seems to characterize many of kids’ latest loves (even thought the brand has been recognized by industry insiders since 2006, when it was named the 2006 Specialty Toy of the Year by the Toy Industry of America).

Next up: top items for tweens!

What Wishlists Tell Us About Youth

It would be more than safe to say that the turkey and cranberry sauce had barely passed our lips when the 2011 holiday season began. But in truth, this year, the winter holidays seemed to step on the heels of Halloween! As it has for the past few years, the sport that is Black Friday continued to dominate the headlines, with workers protesting Thanksgiving evening openings, retailers desperately trying to control  crowds bursting through their doors in a 5 am deluge by staying open all night. But like the many Americans who made Cyber Monday – the armchair quarterback version of the previous Friday’s shopping sprint – the biggest in its short history, we prefer to shop online.

TV advertising of youth-targeted trinkets seems to be surging in this period (although it’s still too soon to tell how this year will compare to last), but when shopping for youth, many parents and gift-givers will rely on the implied expertise of websites to provide them with age-appropriate recommendations for every child or teen on their list. In some ways, these search engines serve as virtual concierges, curators and, in the least, filters – helping gift-givers get it right, and more importantly, avoid getting it horribly wrong this holiday season. Whether it’s gifts.com, yoyo.com (the newest addition to the family born of diapers.com) or the online shops of bricks and mortar stores like Toys R’ Us, the items they recommend are sure to synch up with the biggest buys of the season. So we’ve taken some of the most commonly recommended items for each of the four age groups (preschoolers, kids, tweens and teens) and took a look at what they say about them, and why they stand out from the crowd…

In this post, we’ll focus on a few of the products that pop for preschoolers, with our take on the most recommended kid, tween and teen products to follow in the next few posts.

Preschoolers

For parents of preschoolers, the holidays might still feel more magical than manic. Preschoolers are just coming into their own asks, but can clearly imagine and fantasize what gifts they might get on Christmas morning or on the nights of Hanukkah or Kwanzaa. But they’re also easily surprised and parents can still delight them with items of their own choosing…Of course, many parents put educational products under the tree, but they’re also paying attention to their children’s budding passions (be it of the princess, pirate, or super hero variety) and looking to give them the goods that will get the biggest reaction when the bows come of the packaging.

In 2011, three products serve as symbols of the preschool market right now:

1. Let’s Rock Elmo follows in the distinguished tradition of Elmo automatons, which have managed to entertain many parents and kids in equal measure. Tickle Me Elmo may have caused a craze many holiday seasons ago (and could be seen as one of the products that, unexpectedly, started the habit of parents behaving badly in the face of toy scarcity on Black Friday), but this latest rendition seems to capture both the sweet essence of the lovable Sesame Street monster, and the precocious attitude that is increasingly ascribed to the preschool set. Preschool fashion has gone edgier (and even mainstream brands like Carter’s feature a line of products that shout “Mom Rocks” or “Dad’s a Rockstar” from 3T- and 4T- sized shirts).  This year, Let’s Rock Elmo will face-off with Rockstar Mickey, bound to be another top pick among parents of 3-, 4- and 5-year-olds. May the best icon win!
2. Today’s parents of preschoolers are as likely to blog about their little boys and girls as they are about their own passions. Between sharing their best shots on photo sites like Picasso (Picasso.com), and capturing their every move on their cell phones, it’s no surprise that one of this year’s hottest heists lets preschoolers put their own stamp, quite literally, on the pics they take. Fisher Price’s Kid-Tough See Yourself Camera puts photography in preschoolers’ little hands, and allows them to take a picture of these little narcissists’ (which we say with affection!) favorite person, themselves, with a lens they can turn to face them. Once they’ve caught a great pic of their mom, for example, they can accessorize right on screen…Suddenly dad dons a cartoon cowboy hat on his head, or their cousin wears a clown wig. Vtech offers the Kidizoom, but we think the added assurance that the Fisher Price version can stand up to the rough play that makes us love the preschoolers with whom we reside will appeal to parents.

Whenever we talk about an age group as a whole, we inherently minimize the many differences – particularly in the consumptions habits and attitudes – of the very different types of parents who have children of any given age group. The new line of products from eco-brand Seedlings may make for a great gift from parents who prefer to buy their preschoolers do-it-yourself products with a seemingly nostalgic simplicity. With products like “make your own family” dolls, that invite girls and boys alike to turn works of art into actionable objects (not just display pieces), this brand capitalizes on parents’ desire to foster their little kids’ creative instincts, these totally self-contained craft kits (with many – like make your own car, or decorate your own magic wand - also available from Melissa and Doug) might also make family fun night a bit easier to plan.

CTAM and C+R Research Partner to Study the TV Consumption Habits of 13-34 Year Olds

In the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing’s (CTAM) just released study, Watching Gens X, Y & i, findings for teens are put into the overall context of a cohort that watches TV in very different ways than ever before. The goal of the study—conducted by C+R Research—was to investigate the effect of lifestyles and life stages on media and technology usage among younger consumers. It included both qualitative and quantitative online phases in the summer of 2011, and utilized data from C+R Research’s comprehensive syndicated YouthBeat study to provide additional context. 2,124 total interviews were conducted as part of the quantitative phase.

Check out the press release for yourself.

In the meantime, here are a few highlights:

• 13-34 year olds average 4-5 other activities while watching TV
• Adults 18-24 and 25-34 are most likely to connect social media to TV viewing
• 18-24 year olds are almost twice as likely (37%) as teens (19%) to look up information online while they’re watching TV
• Teens are most likely to watch TV with friends and family (note, according to YouthBeat’s 2011 findings, siblings are most likely to sit on the sofa next to teens when they’re tuning in)
• Only 12% of teens watch video on their cell phones

For more information on this study, please contact:

Jason D. King, ABC
CTAM
Director of Communications & Media Relations
301.485.8914
Jason@ctam.com

To Tech or Not to Tech: Questioning Kids’ Relationship to Media

A few weeks ago, a friend of YouthBeat passed along this intriguing article from the New York Times on Silicon Valley stars who are opting to send their children to Waldorf schools – where technology is not allowed (to say the least). Their rationale: kids will learn computer skills eventually, and learning the Waldorf way (which includes knitting and playing with wooden manipulatives) engages the youth imagination more than any app. But the article’s author also acknowledges the other side of the debate: shouldn’t our classrooms take advantage of technology to bring them into the 21^st century? The Joan Ganz Cooney Center (an extension of Sesame Workshop) has taken on answering this question as part of its mission…Just as Joan Ganz Cooney saw the potential to turn TV into an educational tool (inspired by the way in which it tantalized her own children, but also by the discomfort she felt when watching them glued to the tube), the Joan Ganz Cooney Center was established to “catalyze and supports research, development, and investment in digital media technologies to advance children's learning.”

And this debate does not only happen between the experts, but also on the playgrounds, play groups, and cocktail parties where parents compare their parenting strategies and beliefs. For some parents, exposing their kids to technology is as important as teaching them to read and write. For others, screens are sacrilege – along with sugar and toys that make sounds. For every parent who sees video games as anti-social and aggression-causing is another parent who attributes game playing to their child’s sophisticated strategic thinking. Anthropologists often say that if you want to understand culture, don’t look at what everyone agrees on – look at what participants in a culture debate. The spaces in which we’re most conflicted are often the sites where values are developed. Media and technology’s place in parenting, and screens’ role in schools, are certainly at the center of a heated discourse on how children should live in the media world right now.

Rather than attempting to wrap our arms around this massive subject, we thought it best to point our readers to three essential studies, all released in the past few weeks…

1. In mid-October, the APA (American Academy of Pediatrics) reaffirmed their recommendation that screen time is not appropriate for children under two years of age. The study continues to ignore the role of digital media, but when it comes to TV viewing, the APA sees it as sub-par to free play, and parent/child interaction. We continue to question whether this recommendation is really based on media usage or is it attacking media as an activity that distracts from others which the APA deems more educational…Specific content viewed isn’t examined as much as time spent consuming media.
2. Also in October, Common Sense Media released Zero to Eight: Children’s Media Use in America. The study covers a broad range of digital media, and introduces data to support the emergence of a new “app gap.” According to the study, 55% of children from higher-income families have used a cell phone, iPod, iPad, or similar device for playing games, watching videos, or using apps, while just 22% from lower-income families have done so.
3. Finally, an interesting study just released from a group of researchers representing varied institutions examined the unintended consequences of the Children’s Online Protection and Privacy Act (COPPA). The study looks at how Facebook’s Terms of Service, which stipulate that users must be at least 13 years old, have influenced parents’ behavior (many of whom allow their underage children to bypass the sites restrictions by lying about their age). The study suggests that parents might be teaching their children that it’s okay to lie, and might also be acting in opposition to their stated beliefs about shielding their children from online advertising.

Tell us where you net out on these important debates!