Childhood Quote – 25 July 2012
"Children are not things to be moulded, but people to be unfolded." - Jess Lair I love this quote. As parents, we often subconsciously place our hopes and dreams on our children, when we should be spending more energy on helping them blossom as who they are. Hard to do, I know, but I'll try and remind myself more often that my role as a parent is to guide and advise, not to coerce and...
Read MoreTimeless Games for Children – Do We Still Need Them?
We're always seeing reports in the news concerning children spending too much time indoors in front of game consoles or the television; it's one of the factors that the government is fond of quoting as a cause of childhood obesity. There is certainly no denying that the technology we're used to today has changed the way that children play, but despite it all I am always delighted to see children enjoying the traditional and timeless games that haven't changed in decades. And it's not just a case of pure nostalgia either. Traditional games make children think, rather than be told what to...
Read MoreHow young is too young?
I recently stumbled upon a news article that caused me to do a double take. It was describing something that should have been a completely innocent occasion; a Mother's Day afternoon tea event organised by a school in Australia where the children were encouraged to bring along their mothers and grandmothers. With invitations promising tea, coffee, scones and a present it must have seemed like a perfectly pleasant event. So what caught my eye so dramatically? Well it all came down to the 'present' described in the invitation. It appears that young children attending this particular school...
Read MoreBig Boy Bike
His friends have been riding bikes without stabilisers for quite a while now but until recently, James was still reluctant to take his stabilisers off. On one occasion, his best friend had a cycling birthday party in a forest park and he couldn't join in because he would not have been able to keep up. He was of course a little sad but I never said anything. I've always believed that children will go on to the next stage when they're ready, so I never rushed him and never thought anything of it. Then last weekend, out of the blue, he asked daddy for a spanner and wouldn't say what he wanted...
Read MoreDo you dread dressing-up days?
Egyptian mummy. Roman soldier. Superhero. A piece of fruit. The teachers that come up with such an incredibly diverse range of different dress-up days must certainly be gifted with vivid imaginations! For me, the moment I dig the letter out of James' school bag politely requesting me to dress him in some new form of interesting outfit fills me with a sense of panic. The dread of having to design and create the next costume is enough to make me want to run for the hills! By the time work is completed, dinner is on the table (and swiftly disposed of), the dishes are done, I've had some time to...
Read MoreHomework – Good or Bad?
It's a lovely afternoon. The sun is shining, the sky is blue; it's a perfect opportunity for some family time in the garden after school. Perfect, that is, until you see that there's homework in the school bag to be done. Have you noticed that the quantity of homework seems to increase every year, with younger and younger children subjected to evenings filled with additional work. James is in Year 3 and, fortunately, doesn't have homework everyday. We are also lucky to have a teacher who is not too regimental regarding homework. But I know from other parents that as they go up the school...
Read MoreAbout Me | Mui Tsun
I'm addicted to noodles and Kettle Chips. I'm very good at cooking badly. People often ask why I'm so passionate about what I do. Perhaps it is because I only have two pictures from my own childhood that I've made it my mission to photograph children.
