Joseph Kelly contemplates the decline in the popularity of siblings sharing rooms. With the arrival of my second daughter, I carried on with the mistaken assumption that my two girls would happily share a room. The assumption was based on solid empirical evidence on the topic...
Cathy Watson discovers that time is of the essence. My mother was full of adages. “Little children love one another” was a familiar chime as her little children fought relentlessly and created new ways to annoy their siblings. “God loves a cheerful giver”, she would remind...
In today’s challenging economic climate, many parents find it increasingly difficult to manage their children’s requests for things they cannot afford. Explaining financial constraints to children can be tough, especially when it comes to saying no without causing disappointment or misunderstandings. Constructively responding to these...
Psychologist Cher McGillivray explains why they might ignore you! Have you ever asked your child to do something simple, but no matter how many times you ask, they keep ignoring you? For example, on a school morning, you may call out, “Sarah, put your shoes on. We...
Emotions don’t decide who you are, writes Shawna Mastro Campbell Inside Out 2 invites us back into the mind of Riley, now a 13-year-old ice-hockey enthusiast on the cusp of high school – and puberty. Literally overnight, her brain goes through a large-scale demolition and construction that...
Is it ever possible to be properly prepared for parenthood, asks Sarah Cameron. “Gotta go – can’t talk now – Emily’s screaming again. Honestly, she’s SO relentless!” That was the last line of an email I received recently from my sister, Nikki, who was talking about...
Some online platforms are starting to measure ‘student engagement’ at school, writes Chris Zomer. Here’s what you need to know. There is increasing concern children are less focused in school. This is often blamed on smartphones and social media. At the same time, there is significant pressure...
Evelyn Lewin is dedicated to documenting her offspring’s exploits. I have a feeling that my daughter is going to grow up thinking that she is famous. Either that or her mother has a camera in the place where her nose should be. This is because, and...
'No mullets, no mohawks, no ‘awkwardly contrasting colours’. Researcher Kayla Mildren looks at disputes over school uniform policies and why they often involve hair. A Queensland dad recently took his four-year-old son out of the Gold Coast’s A.B. Paterson College because the school had ordered the...
We all enjoy a good party, and Ruth Wajnryb reminds us of their primary purposes. Nostalgia is a funny thing—funny-peculiar, not funny, ha-ha. Once you’re on a jaunt down memory lane, it’s easy to get carried away. Take children’s birthday parties, for instance. When I was raising...
