Win 4 Tickets to a Play about Resilience, Tolerance and Understanding
Win one family pass for 4 people - 2 adults and 2 children - to the Wong Side of Life on 25th March 2013 at Chatswood's Concourse Theatre. Set in 2101 it combines comedy with drama and blends puppet characters with live actors to tell the story of young lovers, Lin Wong and Reece Hart, who are drawn together from widely divergent social and ethnic backgrounds. Read full article
How You Praise Your Toddler Has a Lasting Impact
In a study that is the first of its kind, researchers observing real-world parent-child interactions have shown the lasting effect of parents’ praise on their children’s behaviours and thoughts. In this article, reporting on the research, you will learn about which type of praise has a positive impact on children's motivation and persistence, and be provided with examples. Read full article
Helicopter Parenting - Why Is It Still the Mother's Fault?
I live in a small town way out in the country where – it’s true – debates about helicopter parenting are pretty rare. Here packs of sunburned kids ride helmetless around our winding roads, the wind blowing through their sweaty hair, the sun reflecting off their freckled faces...When Catherine Deveny decries helicopter parents and all their associated neuroses, she avoids the very persistent reality for many mothers: that of an oppressive sense of responsibility. Read full article
Fire Alarms are Scary - a Child's Perspective
Last week, the fire alarm went off in our apartment building. It was incredibly loud and didn't let up. The kids were getting ready to have their bath when it happened. My husband and I looked at each other and took a few moments to register what was happening...Mr 6 has been growing up so quickly lately, asking increasingly mature questions and showing great resilience. So it surprised me when he became panicked ... Read full article
Positivity - Top Notch Research Reveals the 3 to 1 Ratio that Will Change Your Life
World renowned researcher Dr. Barbara Fredrickson provides the lab-tested tools necessary to create a healthier, more vibrant, and flourishing life through a process she calls "the upward spiral." You'll discover:What positivity is, and why it needs to be heartfelt to be effective; The ten sometimes surprising forms of positivity; Why positivity is more important than happiness; How positivity can enhance relationships, work, and health, and how it relieves depression, broadens minds, and builds lives ;The top-notch research that backs the 3-to-1 "positivity ratio" as a key tipping point ... Read full article
Benefits of Teaching Positivity to Children
Follow the advice of "fake it 'til you make it" or just "be positive", and you may end up oozing a kind of "toxic insincerity" says Dr. Barbara Fredrickson, Professor of Psychology and specialist investigator of positive emotions and psychophysiology at the University of North Carolina. Dr. Fredrickson was speaking at a workshop that was part of the Young Minds conference held last week at Darling Harbour in Sydney. Teaching the benefits of positivity, Dr. Fredrickson says instead of ‘thinking positive’, we should aim to identify the experiences and contexts that give us a positive emotion, and then repeat them. Research indicates that experiencing positive and negative emotions in about a 3-to-1 ratio, has the potential to enhance your relationships, improve your health, relieve depression, and broaden your mind. Read full article
Are You a Helicopter Parent? Here is Some Landing Gear.
Are you a helicopter parent? Please don't let this article give you anything else to be anxious about - instead use it to think about whether there are areas of your child's life where he or she could become more independent and more self-reliant. I am sharing brief ideas with you about signs you may be a helicopter parent and four simple tips to pull back a bit and build your child's confidence, self-esteem and independence. Read full article
Focusing on Strengths to Teach Children with Learning Disabilities
Do you focus on how smart your children are, or how they are smart? This is a question often asked by Professor Howard Gardner. An Adjunct Professor of Psychology at Harvard University, Gardner is an expert on education theory and describes himself as a ‘student of creativity’... Professor Nancy Mather from the Department of Special Education, University of Arizona, says they “often feel surrounded by feelings of failure at school, and their life is consumed by the thought that ‘I’m not good enough’”. More emphasis is needed on how a child with a learning disability is smart, she says. Read full article
A 12 Year Old Drag Queen - Resilience and Fun
A 12 year old boy in UK entertains his village with "Naughty Nora" character. He does it for fun and his friends think it's cool. Is there really any harm in this? I don't think so as long as it is entertainment and satire and he is not being dressed up seriously in an overly provocative way. I discuss this with Suzanne Mostyn on The Morning Show and share some tips on raising resilient children. Read full article
Can a Children's Playground Really Be Too Safe?
Some researchers have suggested that the very safe playgrounds of today are depriving children of the opportunity to challenge themselves - they say a playground is a place where children can encounter and learn to overcome fears. Yvette Vignando debates this idea with psychologist Michael Carr Gregg on The Morning Show, Channel 7 - Michael bemoans the "woosification" of children. Read full article
