When it comes to digital technology and children, the media often focuses on the physical, mental, and social well-being risks. This can leave educators and parents conflicted about how and when to support children's engagement with digital technology.  

A recent article from the Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child proposes that approaching children's engagement with digital technologies as we would a trip to the beach could provide an ideal framework for resolving the conflict.  

We speak with Professor Leon Straker, one of the article's authors, to find out what their framework could mean for the use of digital technologies in early education and care spaces.

Early Childhood Teacher Meg Anastasi discusses why we should consider each child's individual needs at rest time and offers some tips on how to approach rest time with non-sleepers.  

CELA CEO Michele Carnegie was one of twelve early childhood representatives invited to meet with Dr Anne Aly, Minister for Early Childhood, at the Ministerial Roundtable on Early Childhood Education and Care Workforce Issues held in Sydney on 8th August. The roundtable will feed into the Jobs and Skills Summit, which will take place in September this year.  

In this article, we share the recommendations that Ms Carnegie continues to put forward to the government and what we will do to keep these issues in focus as the Jobs and Skills Summit approaches.  

Research tells us that gratitude promotes well-being and life satisfaction, but is the practice of gratitude appropriate for very young children?  

To find out more, we speak to gratitude advocates and CELA members Kathy Phipps (Director of Narooma Preschool) and Ying Bean (Director of The Ridge Preschool and Childcare Centre). 

Every year on 4 August, Australia celebrates National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day (Children's Day). This is a national day dedicated to celebrating First Nations children and recognising the importance that culture, family and community play in the life of every Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child. 

Deborah Hoger, a proud Dunghutti woman and early years Indigenous educational resources specialist, shares what this year's theme means, and why every service should celebrate this day.