Education
Children come first at new ABC, owners vow
Adele Horin Parents have been promised stability and higher quality care after a consortium of four charities won the bidding war for 678 ABC Learning Centres in a contest with a private equity firm.
Children with better educated mothers watch the least TV
Adele Horin Almost 15 per cent of Australian children aged three to four have television in their bedrooms and, by the age of seven to eight, the proportion has risen to one in five, a new study shows, raising...
Blind eye to driveway danger
Rachel Browne About a dozen children are killed in Australian driveways each year and hundreds more are severely injured, child safety experts say.
A child's right to be safe: teaching self-protection
Family Planning Queensland Self protection skills are one way to help children to be safe or know how to find safety.
Blurring the role of Mum and Dad
Rachelle Unreich Stay-at-home dads, working mums: modern parents are slowly, sometimes uncomfortably, blurring the traditional lines between breadwinner and caregiver.
New wave childrens' entertainment
Clare Kermond Move over Wiggles, a new wave of childrens' entertainment hits the stage. By Clare Kermond.
Malnutrition a fact of life for many
Robin Barker The news of two child deaths, allegedly involving malnutrition, arouses uncomfortable feelings of incredulity, dismay and shock.
First three years key to school success: study
Adele Horin How children are faring before they turn four is a strong guide to early school success, according to a major study.
Busy parents put baby's nose to the grindstone
Michelle Epstein Are we a nation obsessed with educating our children? Do we really believe that a child should be subjected to formal learning during as many waking hours as possible?
Parents to count cost of better child care
Stephanie Peatling Social Affairs Correspondent The cost of child care is set to rise under recommendations being considered by the Federal Government that all staff be trained either to TAFE or university level and more staff be employed at each...
Child-care centres to focus on preparing children for school
Stephanie Peatling All child-care centres will be required to begin baby learning and child development programs from July as part of a Federal Government push to make sure children are ready to learn when they start...
Ready, Set...Read!
Sonja Walker For almost 40 percent of children, learning to read is a challenge. Yet strangely, most very young children can identify their favourite fast food restaurant or breakfast cereal packet without too...
Communicating about sexuality with children
Family Planning Queensland It is important that children receive positive messages about sexuality. Parents, carers and schools can work together to promote healthy attitudes.
The importance of play
Maja Pitamic As adults we often underestimate the value that play has in developing children both mentally and physically.
Tackling childhood obesity - get Mum fit too
Erin O'Dwyer Last year Anna Barwick was 95 kilograms and too embarrassed by her post-baby weight to join a gym. Tomorrow she will compete in her first team triathlon - at Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast - along...
Australian adoptions hit a low
Yuko Narushima Adoption in Australia is at an all-time low as changed social attitudes ease the pressure on women to give up babies, and sex-education and birth control take effect.
Bipolar disorder in children
Margaret Rice Diagnosis of bipolar disorder in children has increased dramatically in the US, and Australia is struggling to resist temptations to follow suit, writes Margaret Rice.
No, it's not big bones
Jill Stark Parents are in denial about their obese children, with research revealing almost half of those who have overweight children are unaware they are fat.
Scramble for care
Colin Kruger and Stephanie Peatling The parents of 30,000 children are scrambling to find care during the New Year holiday period after nearly 400 ABC Learning child-care centres were identified yesterday as facing closure.
ABC closures force 4000 to move
Colin Kruger, Stephanie Peatling and Erik Jensen The parents of about 4000 children attending ABC Learning centres will be forced into new child-care arrangements next year after 55 centres, including four in NSW, were marked for closure by the end...
