Preschooler Development
Parenting
The secret lives of boys
Sarah Macdonald How having a son has changed one mother's view of the world.
Maxwell's fight for her son
Chloe Maxwell's autistic son, Max, is her "precious gift" - and her great challenge. She tells of her tearful journey to try to understand the world he lives in.
Five things that I want my daughters to know
Justine Davies As the world celebrates International Women’s Day today, Justine Davies shares a personal letter to her daughters on what she wants them to know as they grow up into the next generation of women.
The anatomy of choices and mistakes
Mel Hearse It's tempting to try and stop your child from making mistakes by taking control but Mel Hearse discovers why you need to let your little ones make up their own minds.
Predator-proof your kids
Jayneen Sanders Teaching your child how to keep their body safe from unwanted physical attention is a sensitive topic. Author Jayneen Sanders shares her tips on how to start the conversation and keep them safe from sexual interference.
Grant Hackett: A fish out of water and raising twins
Katie Carlin When Grant Hackett hung up his green and gold in 2008 the triple Olympic gold medallist retired at the top of his sport. But retirement hasn’t managed to slow him down. The former Olympian sits down with Essential Kids to chat about fatherhood, life after swimming and his determination to help eradicate childhood drowning in Australia.
Lego makes sure that boys will be boys and girls will be girls
Michelle Smith A new toy range is doing no one any favours.
Include kids in your plans
Tanya Ryan-Segger Keep routines in place and communication flowing during a renovation, writes Tanya Ryan-Segger.
Christmas cheer or mayhem marathon
Kylie Orr As families grow and multiply, fitting everyone in becomes nigh on impossible. Siblings, parents, inlaws, outlaws, extended families, separated families, step families – a family tree becomes a family forest.
Natural born chillers
Paul Chai IF The path to happiness is all about living in the now, perhaps we could learn a thing or two from our own mini zen masters, says Paul Chai.
Overcoming childhood fears and anxieties
Brooke Tasovac It can be hard for parents to empathise with their children’s fears, especially when they seem irrational or unreasonable. But parents need to understand that fear is a survival instinct for self protection that children need to hone as they grow up, in order to have a proper perception of true danger.
Child water safety at home
Anni Taylor Children drown silently, in mere minutes. Despite the best efforts of parents and caregivers to keep their children safe, drowning remains one of major causes of child death in Australia.
Halle Berry wins court battle with ex
Halle Berry scored a major victory in court yesterday in her ongoing custody battle with ex-boyfriend Gabriel Aubrey.
Airbrushed perfection
An American website claims that it can take your ordinary family pictures and turn them into prize-winning pageant shots.
Magnets to teach sexism to kids
Kylie Orr Under the guise of “National Literacy Words” a UK company has released “Girls and Boys Talk Magnets”. Gender specific words which are “fun and encourage reading through play.” I had to check the calendar when I stumbled across these gems. It is 2011, right?
Learning to socialise
Brooke Tasovac Emotionally, children of preschool age want to be independent and will seek out activities that allow them to be autonomous.
A whole new world of learning
Brooke Tasovac Preschoolers need to know how to do a number of things before commencing primary school at age 4 or 5 and consequently will learn many things in the two years before kindergarten.
Is my child falling behind?
Brooke Tasovac There are certain signs that may indicate developmental delays in children aged between 3-5 years.
Samantha Selinger-Morris
Cutting little poppets right down to size
Samantha Selinger-Morris Has the backlash against baby braggers gone too far? Sure those smug parents who take every opportunity to tell you that three-month-old Lachlan is a shoo-in with Mensa, are annoying. And one can empathise with those who feel the desire to - as one mother recently wrote on geekology.com - ''key the car'' of parents who slap a ''Proud parent of an honour roll student'' bumper sticker on their car.
Child development between 3-4 years of age
Brooke Tasovac As this is an age where your child is learning new things every day parents should try to combine learning activities with play as much as possible.
Long work hours leave little time for child's play
Adele Horin Australia's culture of long work hours is putting at risk children's early learning opportunities, a study has found, as parents struggle to find the time to read, sing and talk to their preschoolers.
Smelly boys and pretty girls: smothering stereotypes
Kylie Orr Girls who won’t wear dresses, who prefer to roll around in the dirt and drive cars through the sandpit and smash them into the walls, are still girls. Boys who like to sit still and colour in, concoct imaginary games with dolls and teddies and mime to the latest pop music still qualify to be boys.
Accident of birth, sport
Andrew Stevenson The financial year has ticked over, with investors hoping for brighter prospects. But expectant parents, especially those hoping their issue will find sporting success, should know the numbers are stacked against them.
Letting your kids talk to strangers
Kylie Orr We recently had a new neighbour move in next door. He didn’t come and introduce himself, but does anyone anymore? It was our five-year old son who struck up a friendship with the new neighbour...
Thank god for grandparents
Amity Dry A recent study has reported that time spent with Grandparents plays an important role in a child's physical, cognitive and social development.
A case of the politically incorrect parent
Kylie Orr I am guilty of doing politically incorrect things as a parent. Nothing illegal. Simply things that would be frowned upon by the "Mother of The Year" judging panel.
Explaining tragedy to children
Amity Dry What a horrible, heartbreaking last week it has been. I have spent most of it in front of the TV, unable to comprehend the full impact of what was unfolding as the Victorian bushfires became the worst disaster our country as ever seen.
