A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Girlfriend December 2012 Newsflash: Three quarters of Girlfriend readers are not having sex - sex survey This may come as a surprise: 76% of Girlfriend readers are not sexually active. GF cites their reasons: Waiting to be in love (56%) Not wanting to have sex (37%) Feeling too young (31%) No particular reason (26%) Waiting [...]
Body image is the No. 1 concern for young people aged 12 to 24. Signs include obsessing about their weight, their shape, their size. Parents should focus on a healthy, balanced lifestyle. Praise your daughter for her accomplishments not her looks.* The new Lottie doll has arrived and it is a welcome change from the [...]
HENS' nights were once the domain of cheeky fun and light-hearted antics, but they are being taken to a crass new level as girls try to outdo the boys in celebrating their last moments as singles. The boisterous bride-to-be and her entourage have become such a problem that many Perth clubs and pubs have started [...]
70% of smokers say they want to quit. Most smokers start when they are teenagers. Tobacco is addictive, out of the 3 million smokers in Australia, 70% want to quite but find the habit very hard to kick even though they are aware of the health risks. Saturday 1 December 2012, saw a new turning [...]
A weighty issue… Last week there was a call from prominent Australian doctor for schools to include students’ Body Mass Index (BMI) scores on their report cards. The idea behind this is to “stimulate discussion” between parents, teachers and – presumably – kids about their health and in particular, their weight. I [...]
On the weekend, the Fairfax media carried an article entitled, How schools fail to curb bad behaviour. The article reported on research by Uniting Care that showed the amount of long-term suspensions in NSW had increased by 36% between 2006 & 2011. Suspension is a topic of hot debate in education. What good does kicking [...]
It seems that for boys ‘risk taking’ is all part of growing up and is needed to test their skills, strengths, weaknesses and independence in the world. Andrew Fuller, child psychologist and Generation Next speaker, says "We have a world that sanitises away risk, so that means risk becomes even more alluring. Boys are going [...]
We have to be vigilant about who we bring into our children’s lives. We have to be wary. But we also have to trust in others and in society to help us raise our children. Once the checks and balances are made, the safety parameters are installed we need to make a leap of faith. [...]
Girlfriend’s November issue is about boys. Sort of. It’s more about ‘hot’ celeb boys and recycling gender stereotypes. What do girl readers learn about the opposite sex? That they are, disgusting, fart, pee standing up and aren’t just “good for pashing”, they can also be “quite useful” (“they can fix all the things you accidently [...]
As the Fairfax media reports that more parents than ever were withdrawing their kids from the annual NAPLAN tests I wonder if these tests are even assessing the right things in school. Now I realize the importance of literacy and numeracy – of course I do. But, these tests only measure outcomes. [...]
