Topic description and stories

Children playing

Pre-school play with friends lowers risk of mental health problems later

14 Jun 2022

Children who learn to play well with others at pre-school age tend to enjoy better mental health as they get older, new research shows. The findings...

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Learning through 'guided' play can be as effective as adult-led instruction

12 Jan 2022

Play-based learning may also have a more positive effect on younger children’s acquisition of important early maths skills compared with traditional...

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Children playing with a parent

Supporting mums’ mental health strengthens ‘protective’ playmate role with children

07 May 2021

Helping parents with depression or anxiety could also improve their ability to engage in potentially ‘protective’ forms of play with their children...

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Children use make-believe aggression and violence to manage bad-tempered peers

06 Oct 2020

Children are more likely to introduce violent themes into their pretend play, such as imaginary fighting or killing, if they are with playmates whom...

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Playtime with Dad may improve children’s self-control

30 Jun 2020

Children whose fathers make time to play with them from a very young age may find it easier to control their behaviour and emotions as they grow up...

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Hadza children engaged in cooking play

Gendered play in hunter-gatherer children strongly influenced by community demographics

26 Sep 2019

The gendered play of children from two hunter-gatherer societies is strongly influenced by the demographics of their communities and the gender roles...

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Gardeners and carpenters: the ‘skill’ of parenting

08 Nov 2018

Wanting your child to have the best chance in life is natural for any parent. But by focusing too much on the ‘skill’ of parenting, are we losing...

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Spotlight on children

01 Nov 2018

Welcome to our new ‘ Spotlight on children ’, a focus on research taking place at the University of Cambridge relating to children and childhood –...

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Education and the brain: what happens when children learn?

10 Feb 2016

Have you lost your house keys recently? If so, you probably applied a spot of logical thinking. You looked first in the most obvious places – bags...

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