Why Playing With Your Kids Actually Rewires Their Brain ft. Anna Housely Juster

Your extraordinary marriage starts here: www.thedadedge.com/25questions Dr. Anna Housley Juster is a licensed child and adolescent mental health clinician, education consultant, and award-winning author of "How to Train Your Amygdala" with over 25 years of experience supporting children and families. Her diverse career spans from directing content at Sesame Workshop to co-founding Pop-Up Adventure Play, while her current private practice combines expertise in mental health, developmental psychology, and education to support trauma-informed practices and self-regulation skills. Today, Anna Housley Juster brings her decades of expertise in early childhood education and mental health to share powerful insights about child development. Drawing from her journey from Head Start teacher to mental health clinician, Anna combines her deep understanding of children's learning with practical strategies for emotional well-being. The conversation explores the science behind play as a crucial tool for emotional regulation and family connection, offering parents four practical strategies for managing stress responses. Through her experience creating content across Sesame Street's platforms and her current work as an education consultant, Anna demonstrates how intentional play can strengthen parent-child relationships while fostering resilience and emotional development. www.thedadedge.com/512 www.thedadedge.com/alliance www.annahousleyjuster.com www.linkedin.com/in/anna-housley-juster