Author: Maggie Dent

Our boys tend to get into trouble more than our girls. There are lots of cultural and biological reasons for this but much of it boils down to the fact that boys are still soft-wired to be ‘mammoth hunters’, ready to react to any threat.

Generally, boys have more muscle than girls and, with that, a physicality that gets them in strife. There’s also brain research that shows that, while females tend to quickly shift emotions from the brain’s limbic system to the word centres of the brain, males tend to shift them into their bodies.

This is more […]

Author: Dr Jodi Richardson

“The mental load means always having to remember.”

Emma, a French cartoonist summed up the mental load that most mothers carry in her 2017 viral comic, ‘You should’ve asked’. In the opening scene, a very hassled mother was preparing for a dinner party, while feeding her two young children, dealing with a noisy dog and answering the phone, all while she was hosting a colleague for dinner. As the dinner boils over the stove and onto the floor she looked at her partner imploringly. He unwittingly answered, “But you should’ve asked! I would have helped.”

This scene artfully […]

Last week at the College, eServices ran our first cybersecurity drill at the College to educate staff on the issue of people trying to steal their username and password.

Cybercrime is certainly on the rise, with 1 in 3 adults being affected and at a cost of $29 Billion in 2019 in Australia alone. This event led to some rich discussions around the College this week and stories of encounters with scammers. The internet is a place of great resources and information. For example, I am particularly fond of learning new card […]

Author:  Michael Grose

This has been a tough parenting year. On a personal level it’s been challenging, but when you add the extra difficulty of helping children and young people navigate this year, you’d be forgiven for feeling like you’ve had enough.

It’s timely to look at US-based academic Dr. Brene’ Brown’s research that informed her book The Gift of Imperfect Parenting. Brown’s core finding was that the best parenting strategies rely on modelling for them to be adopted by children. That’s a little scary as it means we need to be the adults that we want to our kids to become.

There […]

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As Michael Leunig suggests, I hope you find some time this weekend to embrace the Joy of Missing Out and realise the power and energy that comes from having time to think, reflect and just be.

Kylie Wolstencroft
Wellbeing Coordinator / Registered Psychologist

Author: Michael Grose

Recently, I saw a remarkable act of parenting delivered in difficult circumstances.  A mother calmly won cooperation from her very excited four-year-old daughter just minutes after an unexpected visit from a neighbour and her children.

It was time for bed but Miss Four-Year-Old looked too wound up to go. Her mother calmly said, “Harper….stop!” There was a long pause between the two words, giving Harper time to take notice.

“Look at me, please.” Harper made eye contact. “Now listen.”

“I want you to go into your room. Put on your pyjamas. Then choose a book.” Three instructions only.

“Harper, what did […]

Author: Michael Grose

This year’s unique challenges have brought a sharper focus on child-rearing styles. Parents who rely on one style have often struggled to meet the emotional needs of their children.

Kids who are worried, fearful or fretting about the future initially benefit from a nurturant, empathetic approach. “I get it” is what they want to hear so they feel safe and secure. They also benefit from a firmer approach where an adult communicates “You can cope with this” is something kids need to hear when they experience change, difficulty and disappointment.

This combination of nurturance and firmness is known as […]