Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop

Let's talk about play. When you hear “play,” you probably think of little kids. But play is just as developmentally critical for preteens and teens—especially in a world where they’re under immense pressure (see our Under Pressure Challenge) and have so little unstructured time. Gaming can be an outlet. As our friends at Center for Digital Thriving and Common Sense Media have found in their important report on Grind Culture (https://lnkd.in/gRtfi2Fj), digital play can help alleviate stress. Sometimes gaming is a teen's only chance to unwind and just be. Yet through our Youth Listening Tour, we heard teens say repeatedly, “I don’t have time for play. It isn’t productive.” Despite the fact that play is so important, they feel it isn't recognized by adults as a priority once they hit adolescence. Something is broken, and it’s time to flip the script. This is a sneak peek into our next funding challenge… Here Comes the Fun! Coming Soon ? We’re partnering with Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop (experts in designing healthy play) and Niantic, Inc. (creators of Pokemon Go and more) to reimagine digital play and gaming for young people. This week, we kicked off the conversation at Niantic HQ during Game Developers Conference, bringing gaming industry leaders into our world of listening to young people and building solutions with them. ?? Yes, there can be a dark side to gaming. About 8% of young players develop gaming addiction, toxic online cultures and bullying are a problem, and gaming companies must do more to design with youth wellbeing in mind. ?? BUT digital play and gaming can also strengthen real social connection, spark creativity, build resilience, and relieve PRESSURE. It’s time to empower young people and families to navigate toward the positive side of gaming. #findyourway Here Comes the Fun launches in late April—stay tuned! Huge thanks to Niantic for hosting, Yennie Solheim for being our gracious host and moderator, and Michael Preston for bringing his deep expertise to our panel. Digital play is play, and it's an important a piece in the youth wellbeing puzzle. This is going to be a fun one! #YoungFutures #HereComesTheFunChallenge Young Futures Org Sierra Malia F. Dr. Kristine G. Cassie Archdeacon Brooke Messaye Sarah Jacobstein Kelsey Noonan Pivotal Ventures Kevin Connors Susan Crown Exchange Kathy Gu Jaspal Sandhu Margaret Laws Hopelab Pinterest Celine Coggins Ph.D. The Goodness Web (TGW) Emily Weinstein Carrie James Beck Tench Amanda Lenhart In Tandem Dave Hersh David Torres, PhD

As AI becomes more embedded in children’s daily lives, how can we ensure it supports their well-being? At IDC 2025, foundry10 researchers Jennifer Rubin and Riddhi Divanji will co-host a hybrid workshop alongside Medha Tare, Ph.D., Rotem Landesman, and Azadeh Jamalian, Ph.D., bringing together educators, researchers, and industry professionals to collaborate on designing AI with children’s best interests in mind. Want to participate? Submit a brief position paper about your experience, research, plans, or evaluation of AI tools used by children by April 15. Learn more: https://ow.ly/yjOM50VfSbY

I’m so pleased to share this beautiful video that highlights the important work that we are part of in Oakland. ?? Something that we often highlight at Hoot is a finding from our earliest research at Sesame Workshop - that impactful live online literacy tutoring requires the right teacher, the right materials, and the right technology. ?? ?? ??? But there is a final ingredient that is key to that recipe: ?? Deep collaboration between the provider, the district and the funder.?? Hoot Reading is so grateful to be working hand-in-hand with Oakland Unified School District and Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation to accelerate outcomes for students who need intensive support to learn to read. ??? Please watch and share the full video to see how, together, we are changing lives through #Literacy: https://lnkd.in/grS3sZGT ?? To learn more: https://lnkd.in/gaVEqaEb cc: Maya Kotecha Caitlin Mehra Carmen Feng Swara Narayanan Adam Rehill Alyssa Pitura Cindy Chodirker, CPA Jordin B. Kara Henrie Nigel Mason Rebecca Asper #StateofHDT2025 #HootReading #PartnershipInEducation #PersonalizedLearning #TargetedSupport #Edtech #Tutoring #LiteracyMatters #SkilledReaders #EducationInnovation

Put the phone down! In anticipation of #GlobalDayofUnplugging, we hosted our first Verizon Digital Wellness Summit with Drew Barrymore. We unveiled initiatives to help all ages build healthy tech habits. As Drew Barrymore said herself: we want 'digital' and 'wellness' to go together. ? I'm excited to share the new programs Verizon announced today:? --Partnering with Discovery Education for a K-12 Digital Citizenship Initiative and a study with the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop focused on children's digital well-being. --Offering digital wellness workshops for parents in select Verizon stores by partnering with My Digital TAT2 and working with Older Adults Technology Services (OATS) from AARP to deliver courses for older adults on safe tech use in select senior centers and stores. --Launching the Verizon Arcade Unplugged pop-up (March 7-8) for screen-free family activities, touring nationwide this summer. ? Our Verizon Family app also provides protection features like location sharing and parental controls. Join us this #GlobalDayofUnplugging by stepping away from screens and reconnecting in real life! And we hope to see you at the Verizon Arcade Unplugged,?transforming digital games into life-sized, interactive challenges to encourage screen-free family time.?Verizon Arcade Unplugged is?in NYC through Saturday and then traveling nationwide starting this Spring.