What does family look like in Australia?

It’s more diverse than you think, report researchers Yuvisthi Naidoo, Ilan Katz and Megan Blaxland When we think of the concept of the family, a specific version often springs to mind: a mother, a father and children, usually two or three. It’s the version of society our policies and systems are built around. But Australia’s families are...

EDITOR’S PICKS

Our movie selection for the coming school holidays
Looking for some movies for the days when the holidays have become too much and a little quiet time is required? Here are a few new family movies out this September and October. Streaming or Movies at home? Parents can now check Flicks online to...
Editor
12 September, 2024
“Nanna Isn’t Well… ” 
Kylie Ladd writes about family responses to chronic illness in grandparents. When Julie Anderson’s mother was diagnosed with early Alzheimer’s disease, one of Julie’s first thoughts was of her own daughter. “Mum had been forgetting things and getting a bit muddled for a while, so...
Editor
05 September, 2024
Is the Federal Government going to close ‘special schools’?
The federal government has only ‘noted’ a call to end special schools, reports Linda J. Graham. What does this mean for students with a disability? We have just received the long-awaited response from the Australian government to the disability royal commission’s final report. One of...
Editor
29 August, 2024
Is there a ‘right way’ to teach?
Recent debates suggest yes, but students and schools are much more complex, report Jane Louise Hunter and Don Carter. New South Wales has just announced a curriculum “shake-up” for primary schools to start in 2027. Along with new content about the human body, consent, and...
Editor
22 August, 2024
Book Week: 2024 theme is Reading is Magic
The annual Book Week is with us once again, and although many parents and carers might let out a collective groan, Book Week helps us to focus on books and reading and why it’s so important for our kids to learn to read and keep...
Editor
15 August, 2024
Paralympics 101
With the Paralympics following hot on the heels of our best-ever Summer Olympic Games, there is a large group of Australians representing us in Paris at the 2024 Paralympic Games to keep the Aussie Spirit going! Ever wondered how athletes for the Paralympics are classified...
Editor
15 August, 2024

Celebrating Mothers

The temptations of childhood are many!
Martha Wegner gives into the contemplation of temptation. “Mum, I have something to show you.” Grim words spoken with a sombre expression. A slight look of panic around the eyes nearly gives him away. My son has something to show me all right, and it...
Editor
12 September, 2024
Not Always For The Best
Linda McIver comes to the conclusion that sometimes, near enough is good enough. This morning, I picked a fight with my six-year-old, Chloe. I didn’t set out to fight, of course, but she was really pushing my buttons. Her claim that she had finished her...
Editor
29 August, 2024
Book Review: Because I’m Not Myself, You See
This new memoir of one woman’s journey through hell and back is an amazing read for anyone, regardless of whether they have experienced the birth of a child or not. It’s a roller-coaster from page to page as you realise that she really is ill...
Editor
22 August, 2024
A Question Of Names
Victoria Steele and her husband have chosen a host of girls’ names – but their baby is a boy. At 32 weeks pregnant, if anyone asked me what the hardest part about having a baby is, I’d know my answer. And it’s not the lumbering...
Editor
08 August, 2024