This conference is a joint venture between the Children and Families Research Centre at Macquarie and the Australian Council on Children and the Media. It focuses on the impact of children’s media environment on their neural development. Read full post

Stimulate your mind at the 8th annual Mind & Its Potential conference and unleash your brain power in all areas of life! happychild readers can use this promotion code to receive a 20% discount on registration fee. Read full post

One of the favourite memories from my teenage years was coming home at 16 years old to find that my mother had arranged to have my very own phone line installed INTO MY BEDROOM. I can picture my room and the hideous beige/yellow colour of the phone taking up half my desk. (seriously what was it with the colours they used for phones in the 1980’s?), I can feel the huge rush of excitement I felt at my new found freedom and independence and now, as a mother I can almost imagine how thrilled my mother was at my excitement. Read full post

A couple of months ago I attended a performance of Joanna Murray-Smith’s new play, Fury. At one stage the central female character, Alice, comments that it’s often best we don’t know when it’s the last occasion of anything. I can’t remember her exact words, but I do remember the example she quoted: the last time her (now rebellious) teenage son and only child had shared a bed with his mum and dad in the morning. As parents we know this particular ‘last time’ must come for a whole variety of reasons, but I can’t help looking back on those (now past) years of morning cuddles with a twinge of sadness. Read full post

There’s a video doing the rounds on Facebook – an educational video teaching children how to protect their personal information online. While I do think parents and kids should watch it, as a cyber safety specialist, I have a few concerns, particularly with the message I was left with–that it’s ok for a 10-year- old to be on a social media site like Facebook as long as they do it safely. The problem with this harm minimisation approach is this: Read full post

Join child psychiatry expert, Professor Louise Newman, in conversation with ABC Life Matters presenter, Natasha Mitchell, and a childcare trauma specialist as they explore the impact of violence and trauma on children’s development. This Next 200 Dialogue is hosted by The Benevolent Society, the State Library of NSW and Radio National. Read full post

Youth Minister Kate Ellis has announced today that school bullying and cyber-bullying will be targeted in this year’s $500,000 Federal Government youth grants program. Offering grants of up to $70,000 under the Youth Development and Support Program for projects aimed at developing leadership skills and encouraging cyber-safety and anti-bullying behaviour in communities, this is a welcome initiative. Read full post

Today the Royal Australasian College of Physicians announced they are calling for law reform on the physical punishment of children – they are also urging parents and caregivers to consider alternatives to smacking. I say – good. And I hope the Children’s Commissioner gets behind this initiative. We have asked the Commissioner for comments and hope to hear from her later today – I will update this post. Read full post