TARGet Kids! (TK!) is a multi-disciplinary paediatric practice-based research network based out of The Hospital for Sick Children and Unity Health Toronto. TK! has been operating since 2008, collecting information on child development with a goal to prevent health problems.
One set of data that TK! collects is the Early Development Instrument (EDI). By using the EDI with our health and outcome measurement data collected in TK!, we are able to draw important connections with how health behaviours impact school readiness.
We are in the early stages of EDI collection for the 2022-2023 school year. To date, we’ve collected over 1300 surveys from 650 teachers in approximately 350 schools and across 15 school boards, TK!. With your help, we can build on the available information that may be used to support health and developmental care for children in primary care.
Read some of our recent publications to see the information that TK! is uncovering thanks to the EDI:
- Vanderloo LM, Janus M, Omand JA, et al. Children’s screen use and school readiness at 4-6 years: prospective cohort study. BMC Public Health. 2022; 22:382. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-12629-8
- Vanderloo LM, Omand J, Keown-Stoneman CDG, et al. Association Between Physical Activity, Screen Time and Sleep, and School Readiness in Canadian Children Aged 4 to 6 Years. J Dev Behav Pediatr. 2022;43(2):96-103. https://doi.org/10.1097/DBP.0000000000000986
- Omand JA, Li X, Keown-Stoneman CDG, et al. Body Weight at Age Four Years and Readiness to Start School: A Prospective Cohort Study [published online ahead of print, 2022 Jul 13]. Child Obes. 2022. https://doi.org/10.1089/chi.2022.0018
- Omand JA, Janus M, Maguire JL, et al. Nutritional Risk in Early Childhood and School Readiness. J Nutr. 2021;151(12):3811-3819. https://.org/doi:10.1093/jn/nxab307