Hellen Morgan-Harris ponders how children might figure in her life. I wonder how on earth I am to explain to the angelic eight-year-old face peering at me that her uncle is wearing swimmers to bed because we have been warned that she might jump into bed...
Are there any particular characteristics that contribute to teenagers trolling? How often do they troll, and how often are they trolled? Asks Lead researcher, Dr Jessica Marrington These are just some of the questions researchers are seeking answers to as part of a research project investigating...
There’s more value to pocket money than just the cash, says Mary Pearl. I was having my morning caffeine fix at the local cafe and overheard two young mums discussing pocket money. One wanted her daughter to learn about the real world and how she would...
“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, again.” The biggest buzzword in education is grit, writes Nicki Letts, who provides these ideas to help your child develop it. Nurture them. Lab experiments show that baby rats whose mothers licked and groomed them to reassure them...
Tara Lister is determined to enjoy every second of every first before they become lasts. The day my baby came home was a rude awakening. Until then I had been surrounded by midwives, advice and meals on demand, and I felt invincible. Cool, calm and collected;...
Adolescent years can be a turbulent time for children and parents, as teenagers lack the skills and maturity to handle emotional stressors....
The arrival of two guinea pigs marks the end of Jodie McEwen’s pet procrastination. I’m just not an animal person; love of creatures is not in my nature. My dad tried to pass on his love of animals, so we had rabbits, guinea pigs, fish, birds,...
When a beloved family pet disappears, the hardest thing to cope with is not knowing what happened, explains Gill Canning. It was the first day of the school holidays. “Has anyone seen Ziggy?” I asked my three boys at lunchtime. They shook their heads. No one had...
Australians like their pets, and for most of us by far, the dog remains our best friend, write Associate Professor Luke Smillie and Dr Ferdi Botha For the first time, the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey that covers 17,000 Australians annually, has...
The federal government is pitching its 2021 budget as “women-friendly” writes Danielle Wood, Kate Griffiths and Owain Emslie. This week it announced a key feature of that – more money to make child care cheaper and boost women’s workforce participation. The Coalition’s policy will increase spending...
