In this episode, Dr Meinou Simmons provides some tips for both parents and educators and answers some parent questions on children's mental health, focusing on the importance of sleep, connection and support networks.

Dr Kumar chats to Dr Cassie Rhodes about her recent recent research, which examined whether there are differences in the messages that preschool teachers send girls and boys about science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM). Listen for lots of tips on fostering scientific curiosity and interest for ALL young children.…

Researcher of the Month, Dr Mariya Stoilova, joins Dr Cassie Rhodes to talk about the efficacy of parental control tools, why families use them and whether they achieve what they claim to. This interview is packed with practical tips and food for thought for parents with children of all ages.

Charles Fadel, founder and chairman of the Center for Curriculum Redesign, and global education thought leader, chats with Dr Weston about his new book: 'Education for the Age of AI: Why, What and How should students learn for the age of Artificial Intelligence?'. Charles talks us through the positive role that AI can play in education and the holi…

Researcher of the month, Dr Francesca Solmi, discusses her new paper, which looks at the links between high BMI, body dissatisfaction and depression in children. Whilst she talks through some concerning findings, the interview is ultimately one of hope, providing numerous things that we can do to help children and young people have better body imag…

In this interview, we hear from Professor Michael Thomas and Dr Simon Green, who have just published a fascinating book called '⁠How the Brain Works: What Psychology Students Need to Know⁠'. Written in a playful style and illustrated throughout, it is designed to support students as they embark on the beginning of their psychology degree, but we th…

One of our researchers of the month, Professor Amelia Lake, talks to Dr Cassie Rhodes about her newly published study, co-authored with Dr Shelina Visram and other members of the FUSE team. It outlines numerous risks associated with children and young people's consumption of energy drinks, including an increased incidence of mental health problems.…

Our Researcher of the Month, PhD student Anda Solea, talks to us about her new paper, ‘Mainstreaming the Blackpill: Understanding the Incel Community on TikTok’. She discusses how misogynistic incel ideology is proliferating on mainstream social media platforms through the use of covert messaging and pseudoscience, and considers what parents and te…

In this interview, Advanced Specialist Eating Disorder Dietitian, Paola Falcoski, helps us get to grips with ARFID; an eating disorder where individuals have a very restricted diet, but are not motivated by body image concerns. We learn about the characteristics of ARFID, the diagnosis process and numerous strategies that can help to expose childre…

In this interview, we learn all about developmental coordination disorder (DCD) and get some top tips from two experts in the field. We also hear about an exciting research project, which schools might be interested in joining!

Cybercrime expert, Dr Lisa Sugiura explains what the 'manosphere' is and explores the harms of online misogyny and how it might impact on young people. This interview is packed with tips about how to talk to young people about these issues, encouraging cognitive flexibility and critical consumption of what see and read online.…

In this interview, Professor Peter Smith and Dr Jennifer St.George talk to us about their fascinating work on rough and tumble play. What is it? How does it differ from play fighting? And how should we respond to this kind of play, both at home and at school?

Our Researcher of the Month, PhD student, Gemma Goldenberg, tells us about her exciting research into the impact of learning outdoors on young children. Tune in for some fascinating findings about how simply being outdoors for a few minutes has a significant positive impact on children's physiological stress levels.…

In this episode, Dr Hope Christie speaks with three guests Scott Mair (Fathers Network Scotland), Kieran Anders (Dad Matters) and Professor Anna Tarrant (University of Lincoln), about the importance of father mental health, father inclusive practices and the role of fathers within a family unit.

In this episode, Professor Anna Tarrant talks with us about the importance and value of grandparents and other kinship carers. Find out about the role grandparents can play in a child's life and the benefits to a child's development of having extended family.

Monique Thoonsen, author of 'Sensory Processing in the Classroom' and 'Making Sense of Your Senses' talks to us about what sensory processing is, why it's so important and how we can best support children who struggle with processing sensory input.

Researcher of the Month, Camille Mori discusses her new paper, which examines the links between exposure to explicit sexual content and problematic sexual behaviours in children and teens. She talks us through the differences between normal and problematic sexual behaviours in children of different ages and outlines what we know about its relations…

PhD student and educational psychologist, Miranda Eadonable talks about how foetal alcohol spectrum disorder can impact on children's learning and behaviour. She tells us about her research, explores how teachers can best support children and young people with FASD and points listeners to numerous useful resources.…

In this episode, we learn more about alopecia and how best to support children and young people affected by the condition.

Dr Weston is joined by Becky Vieira, author of 'Enough About the Baby' and the woman behind popular Instagram account, #wittyotter. They chat about the first year of motherhood and all of its challenges and frustrations. Becky's book doesn't shy away from all those common taboos, from managing nosey in-laws and an anxious partner to surviving the f…

Researcher of the Month, Anya Heneghan talks to us about her work which examines the experiences of siblings when they have a brother or sister with an eating disorder. She talks us through what the existing research shows about how consuming eating disorders can be for siblings and provides numerous tips to help parents support all of their childr…

Researcher of the month, Professor Claudia Bernard discusses her recent paper which explores the experiences and perspectives of designated safeguarding leads in fee-paying schools to understand how they engage affluent parents when there are safeguarding and child protection concerns.

In this interview, Professor Johan Korhonen talks with us about math anxiety and its role on math performance. Find out about why math anxiety may develop in children, what are the early signs of math anxiety, and how it may impact future educational aspirations. Professor Korhonen provides a number of insights into strategies both parents and teac…

Researcher of the month, Professor Beatriz Ilari chats to us about how music has a wide-ranging impact on young people's social and emotional development. We might assume that being 'musical' means playing an instrument, but Professor Ilari stresses the importance of everyday musical experiences and simply of listening to and engaging with our favo…

In this interview, Professor Courtenay Norbury talks with us about developmental language disorder (DLD), which she describes as a 'chronically understudied' topic. Find out about early signs and what impact it might have on children and young people's development. Professor Norbury provides numerous practical strategies for both parents to use at …

Did you know that the ability to regulate our emotions well is connected to better mental health and wellbeing, academic achievement and stronger and more long lasting personal relationships? In this interview, Dr Erika Galea talks us through the most effective strategies for building the vital skill of emotional regulation which can be used in bot…

In this interview, we talk with Dr Marina Bazhydai, Director of the Active Learning Lab (ALL) at Lancaster University, about nurturing children's sense of curiosity, wonder and creativity. We learn about her innovative and fascinating work which investigates active exploration and curiosity in very young children, find out more about the links betw…

Dr Emma Ross, former Head of Physiology at the English Institute of Sport and founder of The Well HQ, talks to us about her new book and all things related to women, girls and sport. We learn about the need to change the language often used to talk to girls about their bodies and give them the confidence to advocate for themselves, how to fuel girl…

Maggie Johnson is a speech and language therapist specialising in childhood communication disorders and selective mutism, and the associated impact on families, schools and young people. She talks to us about her fantastic new book, 'The Selective Mutism Workbook for Parents and Professionals', which includes numerous activities and strategies orga…

Maggie Johnson is a speech and language therapist specialising in childhood communication disorders and selective mutism, and the associated impact on families, schools and young people. She talks to us about her fantastic new book, 'The Selective Mutism Workbook for Parents and Professionals', which includes numerous activities and strategies orga…

Our Researcher of the Month, Tanya Manchanda, has recently published a review which assesses existing friendship interventions and their impacts on the mental health outcomes of adolescents aged 12–24 years. In this interview, Tanya considers what we know about these interventions, for both the teen who is trained and their friends and reveals that…

In this interview, we talk to cyberpsychologist Dr Danielle Paddock about her fascinating examination of how teens converse with each other about appearance on social media. We know that appearance-related concerns are very high among teens in the UK. We also know that visual social media platform design encourages both image creation/sharing and i…

In this interview, Professor Jessie Ricketts talks to us about her research into reading and language development in both teens and younger children. We explore early reading development, how reading ability continues to evolve into adolescence and discuss evidence-based ways to boost young people's motivation to read. Professor Ricketts also provi…

Our Researcher of the Month, Professor Shana Carpenter, talks to English teacher and examiner, Patrick Cragg about the science behind two effective learning strategies: spacing and retrieval. She outlines how and why these simple practices can benefit learning and explores why so few students actually use them. Listen for top tips on how to integra…

In this interview, Suzanne Graham, Professor of Language and Education at the University of Reading, chats to us about the potential benefits of learning foreign languages. She discusses the links between language learning and creativity, talks us through her research into learning foreign languages in both primary and secondary settings and consid…

Have you ever considered the impact of the climate crisis on young people or really asked how they feel about the constant barrage of bad news that faces them? In this interview, Dr Weston chats with Dr Verity Jones about sustainable futures and education. They talk through optimal ways to discuss climate change with children and young people and o…

In this interview, clinical psychologist and eating disorder expert, Dr Amy Harrison, talks to us about optimal ways to support a friend who has an eating disorder. She discusses her innovative research into the impact of eating disorders on social functioning and gives us some actionable tips that might be helpful in maintaining and strengthening …

Should we worry if our teens spend hours a day gaming? New research shows that for the majority of teens, heavy gaming is not detrimental to their wellbeing and might even have a positive relationship with it. However, it also shows that there are a small number of teens for whom heavy gaming is associated with poor wellbeing. Dr Simona Skripkauska…

In this episode, Dr Weston talks with Dr Leor Zmigrod about the psychology of ideological extremism. It's a fascinating discussion which outlines cognitive characteristics that might act as vulnerability factors for radicalisation and ideologically-motivated behaviour in young people, before addressing what strategies might help to protect young pe…

Researcher of the month, Dr Cele Richardson, discusses her 2022 study, which shows that when parents have a warmer relationship with their teens, teens tend to have better sleep hygiene practices, sleep for longer at night and feel less sleepy during the day. Lack of sleep can have a significant impact on the mental health and wellbeing of many tee…

Dr Weston delivers a Christmas message focusing on emotional literacy, oracy and zones of regulation. Music by SoundGalleryByDmitryTaras from Pixabay.

In this podcast, Dr Weston talks with Dr Susie Bower-Brown about the experiences of binary-trans, non-binary and gender questioning young people in UK schools. Her research uncovers various ways in which teens who identify in this way often feel invisible or discriminated against. Listen for her thoughts on how schools can best support these young …

In this interview, Dr Weston talks to Professor James O'Higgins Norman about bullying. Professor O'Higgins Norman is the UNESCO Chair on Tackling Bullying in Schools and Cyberspace at Dublin City University, where he is Director of the fantastic National Anti-Bullying Research and Resource Centre. We chat about what bullying looks like in 2022, how…

Professor Brackett outlines how, far from being a weakness, emotions - and our ability to feel, understand, and use them - are vital to achieving success. He describes his effective, evidence-based approach to emotional intelligence, known as RULER, which is used in thousands of schools worldwide.

In this interview, Dr Weston chats with Ella Podmore about her role as senior materials engineer at McLaren Automotive. Ella answers questions from children and young people, talking inspiringly about setting goals and how to work towards achieving them. Passionate about inspiring other girls into STEM industries, Ella also highlights some campaign…

In this interview, Dr Weston talks with PhD student, Caoimhe Dempsey about her research into how parents feel when their children first start school. We know a lot about how to make children 'school-ready' in terms of their learning, but what about how parental attitudes and emotions impact their transition? Do parents tend to feel positively about…

In this interview, Dr Weston chats to England and Saracens rugby player, Sonia Green, otherwise known as Sonic. They discuss how to encourage sporting participation, how to balance academic pressures with sporting aspirations and the best way to deal with inevitable injuries. A must listen for all parents of young athletes and their children.…

In this interview, Professor Mina Fazel talks to Dr Weston about supporting displaced children once they are in a place of refuge. Listen now to find out about the crucial importance of a sense of belonging and how the outcomes of these children are dramatically improved if they are able to form natural social connections. Teachers and school staff…

Researcher of the month, Professor David Putwain, discusses his recent paper which focuses on whether warning GCSE students of the consequences of failure (otherwise known as a 'fear appeal') is a motivating strategy in terms of their levels of engagement and achievement. He outlines the reasons why teachers use fear appeals, how this kind of appro…

In this podcast interview, Dr Weston talks with Professor Deirdre Butler and Dr Paula Lehane about how Minecraft: Education Edition is being used in classrooms. They discuss the great potential of so called 'sandbox' games in children's learning, outline current gaps in the research evidence and provide useful tips for any teachers wanting to make …