🌍 Earth Day 🌍
Today we’re celebrating Earth Day and taking a little extra time to care for our beautiful planet. We’ve shared a few simple activity ideas for you and your little ones to enjoy together as you celebrate our special home.
#earthday #ourplanet #toddleractivities
Re. my last post, my research group host monthly seminars about language and broader cognitive development and they're hybrid. Everyone is welcome. Recordings of past talks also here! Awoooga etc! More details: www.lucid.ac.uk/category/eve.... See also @childstudycentre.bsky.social
✨ New blog post! ✨
Ever wondered why young children all seem to make the same language mistakes?
In our latest post, Professor Ben Ambridge explores how children learn language.
Head to:
www.lucid.ac.uk/category/blog 🐟
#languagelearning #research #languagedevelopment #childdevelopment
🌷As March draws to a close and International Women’s Month comes to an end, we’re celebrating just a few of the incredible women who make the Child Study Centre what it is. Their curiosity, compassion, and commitment to research inspire us every day. 💜
#EmpoweringWomenEmpowerWomen #WomenInResearch
📝NEW RESEARCH📝How diverse characters help young readers thrive.
What happens when children see characters who look like them in the books they read?
A new study by Dr. Nicola Lester (2026) reveals something powerful. 🌟
#RepresentationMatters #DiverseBooks #ChildDevelopment #ReadingForJoy
Our Spring Newsletter is out! 🌷
#childdevelopment #research
Study participation advert: "What we want: how can Speech & Language Therapy best meet the needs of autistic children? We are looking for autistic children & young people (9 - 17 years 11 months old) to take part in an adapted interview about their priorities and preferences in Speech & Language Therapy. We hope our findings will support the development of services in this area. In the first part of this study, we are looking for children & young people who are verbally-able, so likely in mainstream schools accessing a mainstream curriculum. A formal autism diagnosis is important and should follow national clinical guidance on best practice. Please get in touch to ask about eligibility or find out more: NDSpeech-LanguageTherapy@manchester.ac.uk. Our team includes experienced & DBS checked autistic researchers & Speech & Language Therapists. The interviews will be adapted to meet individual needs. If your child has more significant language support needs, we will be recruiting these children to a related but different study. Please do ask for details.” The study is a collaboration between the University of Manchester, University of Sheffield and the NHS Manchester University foundation trust. The study is funder by the UK National Institute for Health and Care Research.
It's British Science Week! We've been in the museum today and are there again tomorrow, meeting lots of young minds and telling them all about what we do.
We are also asking the question 'What makes us human?'
What do you think?
#britishscienceweek #askingbigquestions #childdevelopment #psychology
✨TUESDAY TIP ✨
👫Personal, Social and Emotional Development:
Secure, supportive relationships are at the heart of children’s personal, social and emotional development. When children feel connected to caring adults, they learn to understand their feelings, build confidence, set goals and keep trying.
9th-15th February - Children's Mental Health Week
This year's theme is 'This is my place'. 🧍♂️
We all want to feel like we belong. A sense of belonging plays a vital role in our mental health and wellbeing and is especially important for children. @place2becharity.bsky.social
Looking for ideas on how to help your child's development? The EYFS Framework covers the 7 areas of learning and development. First, we take a look at how to help your child with their Communication and Language.
#eyfs #eyfsframework #childdevelopment #communication #languagedevelopment
NASA’s Artemis II Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft are seen illuminated by lights at Launch Complex 39B, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
🌙 One step closer to the moon!
In a milestone for NASA’s upcoming lunar missions, the Artemis II rocket reached its launch pad this weekend.
Read more: www.nasa.gov/blogs/missio...
📸: NASA/Keegan Barber
#Artemis #ArtemisII
a cream background, in the top left corner there are three logos; the Cardiff University, the CUCHDS and the Cardiff Babylab logo. In the top right and bottom left corner there are red and blue circles that frame the post. Below the logos there is a blue rounded textbox, inside it says ‘New Research Published!’. Underneath there is text that says ‘Most kids know more words than they can say! But children with Williams syndrome… show a smaller “vocabulary gap”. We used computational modelling (brain-inspired computer simulation) to figure out why!’. In the middle of the post there is a diagram showing Hebbian connections between an auditory map and a visual map. Below it says ‘... and discovered that certain challenges in visual processing may help explain these language patterns.’ at the bottom of the image, in a blue textbox, it says ‘‘’Read more: (link to paper) Published in Developmental Science - “Explaining the Comprehension-Production Vocabulary Gap Through Neural Networks and Cross- Syndrome Evidence: Insights From Williams Syndrome.”’
📄 New research paper out!
Children usually understand more words than they can say – but in Williams syndrome, this gap is smaller. Using computational models, we explore why.
🔗 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
#LanguageDevelopment #Neurodiversity #DevelopmentalScience
A bit late - Our Fun Friday Fact about Child Development! Ever wondered why babies just stare and sometimes seem unable stop? Find out more at BBC Tiny Happy People: www.bbc.co.uk/tiny-happy-p...
#childdevelopment #babiesstare #babydevelopment #research
In 1950, in the very building that now houses the Child Study Centre, Alan Turing asked a question that changed the world: ‘Can machines think?’ His Manchester paper introduced the Turing Test, laying the foundations of artificial intelligence.
#artificialintelligence #STEM #manchesterhistory
🌍 Today is International Day of Persons with Disabilities!
This day reminds us that inclusion matters. Every child deserves opportunities to learn, play, and thrive—regardless of ability.
✅ Let’s break barriers.
#IDPD #InclusionMatters #ChildDevelopment #AccessibilityForAll #UniversityOfManchester
Currently recruiting 3 year olds and 4&5 year olds for two fun studies investigating child development. Contact childstudycentre@manchester.ac.uk to take part. 🧠
2/2 1/2 🔉LISTEN to this new podcast from @storiesofimpactseries with our own @bahar_kym, as she discusses her research around how children learn to think together. 👧👦 www.storiesofimpact.org/dr-bahar-koy...
This research was funded by Templeton World Charity Foundation. @storiesofimpact.bsky.social
1/2 🔉LISTEN to this new podcast from @storiesofimpactseries with our own @bahar_kym, as she discusses her research around how children learn to think together. 👧👦 www.storiesofimpact.org/dr-bahar-koy...
This research was funded by Templeton World Charity Foundation.
bsky.app/profile/offi...
2/2 🏛️ Museum settings boost decontextualised talk.
📦 Museum resources in classrooms increase rare words & complex sentences.
🏫 Regular classrooms? Less of both.
💬 Richer environments = richer language learning.
#ChildDevelopment #LanguageResearch #EarlyYears #MuseumLearning #UoMResearch #LuCiD
🧠 New research from @OfficialUoM shows that where teachers teach affects how they talk to children — and that matters for language development. #ChildDevelopment #LanguageResearch #EarlyYears #MuseumLearning #UoMResearch #LuCiD
This is a public service announcement...
Allow us to reintroduce ourselves...
#jayz #childdevelopment #research #signup #littlescientistswanted
🌍 World Nature Conservation Day 🌿
Nature isn’t just beautiful, it’s essential for child development.
Outdoor play boosts creativity, language, resilience, and physical health.
🌱 Protect nature. Support children. Grow futures.
#NaturePlay #ChildDevelopment #WorldNatureConservationDay #ProtectNature
Looking for something to do in the school holidays? Our team at the University of Manchester is investigating how 4.5-5.5-year-old children learn to understand English sentences in different orders. Interested in this ONLINE study? Please email shijie.zhang@manchester.ac.uk.
Are you a parent, family member or educator of children aged 2-11 years? Do you have questions about digital technology and children?📱
The Kids & Tech Questions project @education.ox.ac.uk need your views on digital technology and young children!
See tinyurl.com/yy8ujpr6 to take part in the survey!
Constructing language: A framework for explaining acquisition. New paper published by @carorowland.bsky.social et al. doi.org/10.1016/j.ti....
We just need a few more participants for this fun, ONLINE, Zoom study! 💻If you are interested in child development and have a 4 year old, your little scientist could take part in this research from the comfort of your own home 🧠🏠
#transgression #children #childdevelopment #psychology #research
We've got quite a few different studies going on at the Child Study Centre at the minute! Here's two of our studies. If you want to get involved send us a message or email childstudycentre@manchester.ac.uk :)
