Blogs
Peer support and autistic children
Around 1 in 70 Australians are currently diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. [1] [2] In recent years heightened awareness and improved access to diagnosis may have contributed to an increase in identification rates.[3] For children, diagnosis often provides details about specific challenges, capabilities, and helpful strategies and supports. An understanding of a child’s challenges and
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Divorce, separation and parent alienation
Divorce and separation can bring profound emotional upheaval for some children. Responses to separation and divorce can vary according to the level of parental co-operation, along with each parent’s ability to protect and shield their children from any conflict. A child’s age, stage of development, feelings of belonging and safety, and their resilience will also
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Teacher wellbeing is essential in an age of life-threatening events
Currently, Australian teachers are working with children in classrooms shaped by an unprecedented number of local, national and global life-threatening events. These include climate change, bushfires, floods, earthquakes, cyclones, drought, wars, shootings, terrorism and pandemics—both now and into the future. Such events can challenge a child’s sense of safety, predictability and control. Excessive worry can
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Help avoid escalation to school can’t (school refusal)
School attendance in Australia has been declining over the last decade.[1] [2] As many as 5% of school-age children are believed to feel they can’t attend school. [3] Higher levels are evident amongst children with unmet learning and/or social-emotional needs and those experiencing anxiety and depression. In Australia, many people describe school refusal as ‘school
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Supporting children of divorced or separated parents
In classrooms across Australia, many children are navigating one of life’s most challenging transitions, the separation or divorce of their parents. With over 40% of Australian marriages ending in divorce – and half of these involving children [1] – this experience is not uncommon, with some children also experiencing other family relationship separations. Divorce and
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Chronic calling out in the classroom
Calling out and talking out of turn are among the most prevalent low-level disruptive behaviours encountered by teachers in the classroom.[1] Reducing the frequency of these behaviours can contribute to a more respectful classroom climate, improve lesson flow, support student learning and engagement, and in turn, improve teacher wellbeing and morale.[2] [3] While many students
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Reducing calling out behaviours in the classroom
Little has changed over the decade since South Australian classroom research revealed that teachers find low-level disruptive and disengaged student behaviours difficult to manage.[1] More often it is the relatively minor, frequent, and repetitive nature of the behaviours, rather than less frequent aggressive and anti-social behaviours that teachers find most challenging, leading to stress and
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Rising rates of children who feel unable to attend school have become an issue in both primary and secondary schools. To support teachers, schools and families Psych4Schools has released a new edition of the ebooklet Working with children who school refuse – school can’t. In Australia, there’s been a recent shift within the community to
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Psych4Schools offers a library of ebooklets dedicated to enhancing the wellbeing, teaching and learning of children and young adolescents. Topics include emotional regulation, challenging behaviours, general childhood development and disabilities and disorders. To complement the ebooklets, Members can access eight resource packages. One of these is our Friendship difficulties package which offers five additional teacher
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School refusal – take a book to bed not the mobile phone
School refusal is a complex issue that affects a significant number of students and their families. It can be challenging for everyone involved, from students and parents to teachers, principals, and psychologists. Understanding underlying causes of school refusal and various strategies that can be employed to address it are crucial for effectively supporting students. For
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Autistic girls can present differently from autistic boys
Boys are currently four times more likely to be diagnosed with autism than girls, [1] as many girls seem better able to mask their autistic traits and challenges. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a collective term for a group of neurodevelopmental disorders characterised by persistent challenges in social communication and social interaction, and traits such
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Working with children who call out
Low-level disruptive behaviours are common in many classrooms, and the impact on student learning cannot be under-estimated. The OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) revealed about one quarter of Australian teachers’ classroom time was spent on classroom discipline and administrative tasks, rather than on teaching and learning.[1] Behaviours such as calling out, teasing, being
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Dyscalculia is a maths disability
Dyscalculia is a mathematics disability Do you teach students who struggle with the concept of number and calculating? Do they have poor ‘number sense’? Dyscalculia is a mathematics disability causing significant difficulties with: number (size or quantity) the relationship of numbers to one another a lack of sight recognition and feel for number problems with
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Anxiety and Autism Spectrum Disorder
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a collective term for a group of neurodevelopmental disorders characterised by persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction, and by repetitive patterns of behaviour and restricted interests.[1] The severity of autism is diagnosed from mild to severe and reflects the degree of support the child needs in relation to
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School Refusal: Strategies and Resources for Schools
School refusal is a complex issue that affects a significant number of students and their families. It can be a challenging experience for everyone involved, from students and parents to teachers, principals, and psychologists. Understanding underlying causes of school refusal and various strategies that can be employed to address it are crucial for effectively supporting
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We need to talk about handwriting
Pencils, pens and paper remain relevant Despite the widespread uptake of word processing from the 1980s, the rapid rise of the Internet in the early 2000s, and more recently the increased use of laptops and other digital devices people continue to write by hand each day. Handwriting remains entrenched because pens and pencils are low
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