From toddlers who are exploring their immediate environment to twenty-somethings who are exploring their place in society, technology inevitably and profoundly affects their development. Drawing on her expertise in developmental science and design research, Katie Davis describes what happens when child development and technology design interact, and how this interaction is complicated by children's individual characteristics and social and cultural contexts. Critically, she explains how a self-directed experience of technology -- one initiated, sustained, and ended voluntarily -- supports healthy child development, especially when it takes place within the context of community support.