Early literacy doesn’t always equal an easy path at school, as Judith Ware’s son found to his detriment. No-one could have been prouder than I was when my son began to recognise his alphabet. I took it for granted, this being my first child, that this...
‘I had it first!’ All children argue, writes Amelia Church, and while this can be tedious for parents and carers, it’s not necessarily a problem. Conflict can help develop social skills, including learning to negotiate, and accommodate the needs of others. But if the conflict is physical, if...
Catherine Wade looks at what parents can do during their child's 'tweenage' years The teenage years can be among the trickiest times for a parent. You have been used to being your child’s voice of reason. Then, all of a sudden, your authority is challenged by...
Sarah Hamilton examines the epidemic of parents oversharing online. If a baby takes their first steps in a quiet family room and nobody Tweets about it, did it happen? Technology has infiltrated nearly every aspect of our lives, leaving our children little chance of sliding under...
What do most people mean by “happiness”? asks Dr Caroline West and other philosophers. Is maximising pleasure and enjoyment really our ultimate aim, as some studies argue? Some influential studies show that the decision to have kids leads to greater suffering — at least for parents....
As Susan Macciocca’s son begins school, both she and her son are learning to let go. My son watches intently as his bike is transformed. He grabs the handlebars and strides with the bike to the footpath. His dad holds him by the shoulders to get...
Tanya Cupitt’s son takes some time to settle in to school. Daniel, my firstborn son, was completely normal from the word go. I had a normal pregnancy, and he was a normal weight, length and breadth at birth. A regular baby, toddler and child. He did...
Social Worker, Priscilla Dunk-West gives some practical advice for parents. In Australia, around 21,000 divorces involving children occur annually. Separation and divorce can be an emotionally exhausting and difficult time, something which is recognised by the Family Court of Australia, which provides resources to assist people...
A push to raise the school starting age to 6 sounds like good news for parents, write Amanda Niland and Marianne Fenech. But there’s a catch The decision about whether to send a child to school “early” or “hold them back” can be a tortuous one...
Here’s how to protect the kids’ mental health, writes Rachael Sharman There’s an annual underground phenomena happening right now around Australia: couples who have decided to separate, but are putting on a happy face to perform their final Christmas as an intact family. January is known...
