A ‘Fiction Fanatic’ or a ‘Book Abstainer’? Researchers Leonie Rutherford, Andrew Singleton, Bronwyn Reddan, Katya Johanson and Michael Dezuanni delve deeper and look how a parent can help. We know teenagers have busy and complex lives. School makes increasing demands on them, as do their social and...
Here are some wonderful picture books written by Aussie authors just for the under threes. The illustrations in these books show just how talented children's book illustrators (and authors) are! My Dream for You by Ash Barty & Jasmin McGaughey, illus. by Jade Goodwin, pub. HarperCollins h/b...
Kristy Diffey takes a direct approach to explaining death to her four-year-old son. Grief is a funny thing...
A bumper Bluey episode is about to hit screens, writes Divna Haslam. This special episode of the hit kids show will premiere on April 14. The episode will run for 28 minutes, which is four times the usual length of a Bluey episode. My kids are...
As the holidays progress, parents will no doubt be hearing a classic line from their kids: “I’m boooooored”, writes Trevor Mazzucchelli. We all get bored from time to time, and there is nothing particularly wrong with feeling bored. In fact, it is a useful emotion because...
Elise Waghorn asks do we stop to consider what distressing media is doing to our kids? While much attention has been drawn to the detrimental impact of violent video games on children’s developing brains, there has been relatively little discussion regarding the negative effects of news and...
Real-life impact, not diagnosis, should determine NDIS support, write researchers Nancy Sadka and Josephine Barbaro Ahead of the release of the government’s review into the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), the topic taking centre stage is the diagnosis of autism. Over one third of people accessing...
Does the government’s new draft do enough to help those in crisis? Asks Andrew Whitehouse The Australian government released its draft National Autism Strategy yesterday. It aims to power a “coordinated national approach, supporting Autistic people at each stage of life”. The strategy is the fulfilment of...
"Research suggests early intervention is linked with better outcomes for children later in life,” said Kirrilie Smout, clinical child psychologist and founder of Calm Kid Central. Recent research commissioned by HCF, Australia's largest not-for-profit health fund, sheds light on the mental health struggles encountered by Australian...
Tamara Heath wonders if liberation equals hyphenation – or is it just more complication? For want of a better solution, my daughters have a hyphenated surname. And I am the first to admit the ‘double banger’ name can be more than a little annoying. It takes careful...
