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A small percentage (10 to 15%) of typically developing children exhibit stable fear responses and wariness to unfamiliar and familiar stimuli from infancy through childhood. These children are cautious and reticent in social interactions and have been characterized as temperamentally shy and socially withdrawn. In a series of studies over the last 15 years, we have shown that temperamentally shy children display a number of distinct psychophysiological responses at rest and in response to social challenges. These patterns are evidenced across a range of biological measures and contexts, making some of these children vulnerable to anxiety and depression.

On November 10, 2010, The Department of Human Development and Applied Psychology and the Atkinson Centre for Society and Child Development hosted a colloquium featuring Louis Schmidt, PhD, Director, Child Emotion Laboratory, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster University. Dr. Schmidt focussed on the origins, development course and outcomes of this temperamental style. He discussed how work on the phenomenon of temperamental shyness informs basic theory regarding brain‐behaviour relations and practice regarding the management of fearful children within the family and educational settings.

Excerpt: "Quebec's Liberal government has introduced a new bill of law to crack down on illegal daycares mushrooming across the province."

Government announces additional child-care subsidies and 300 child-care spaces.

Robert Fairholm, a director of the Centre for Spatial Economics (CSE), brings his 20 years of experience in economic analysis, modeling and forecasting to quantify the benefits of new public spending on young children revealing some startling findings.

Presented by Zeenat Janmohamed, Janette Pelletier, and Carl Corter at the AECEO conference, May 27, 2010.

Measuring and monitoring quality in early childhood and care programs can help to inform research, policy development, and program practice. The following research papers discuss measures of quality and help us think about initiatives in the early learning sector to improve program quality, focus on relevant indicators of quality, and how to improve social and development outcomes for children.

In partnership with Invest in Kids, Better Beginnings, Better Futures and Toronto First Duty, the Atkinson Centre facilitated this one-day event focussing on the implementation of With Our Best Future in Mind. Topics included service integration, parent/community involvement and the Community Vitality Survey.

The Building Bridges Handbook is a detailed resource guide developed in order to begin the discussion of what lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) families need in early childhood environments. The handbook briefly outlines LGBTQ terminology and history. The majority of the handbook examines the experiences of children of LGBTQ families in Early Childhood Education (ECE) environments. The handbook contains detailed suggestions for integrating LGBTQ families into ECE curriculum.